The University of Alaska Fairbanks will hold a groundbreaking ceremony for the new School of Natural Resources and Agricultural Sciences West Ridge Greenhouse Friday, April 22 at 11 a.m.
The $4.8 million facility will be constructed by Ghemm Co. Inc. of Fairbanks. Design Alaska did the architectural design. It will be located on the south side of Arctic Health Research Building. When completed, the greenhouse will have 4,200 square feet of space for controlled environment plant production.
The facility will feature an energy curtain that can be pulled down to conserve energy in the winter. “Every modern greenhouse has this,” Meriam Karlsson, horticulture professor, said. “It will also have more accurate greenhouse controls so we’ll have better ability to program the temperature, lights, humidity and integrate the environmental variables with plant growth. This will open up all kinds of opportunities. There is a lot of interest in greenhouse production. This will be a place to come and see all the modern equipment and have educational opportunities.”
Fairbanks is a wonderful place to do greenhouse research, Karlsson added. “It’s where research should take place. The greenhouse manufacturers will be excited. If we can run a greenhouse in Fairbanks it will work anywhere.”
Additional areas inside AHRB and adjacent to the greenhouse include an 1,100-square-foot laboratory, classroom, headhouse, soil preparation area and space for growth chambers, offices and storage facilities.
The ceremony will be held near Arctic Health Research Building and a reception will follow inside AHRB. Speakers include Chancellor Brian Rogers, UAF Regent Jo Heckman, Sen. Joe Thomas, Cooperative Extension Service Director Fred Schlutt, SNRAS Dean and Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station Director Carol Lewis and local businessmen Bernie Karl and Jay Ramras. To RSVP, contact fysnras@uaf.edu.
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