Not your typical farm building. The Alaska Division of Agriculture requested a building to house several unrelated functions from cleaning small grass seed and seed purity certification, to a training and lecture room for staff and student tours. The facility is located in a group of agricultural farm buildings on a 400-acre farm.

The owner expected another metal building. Instead, Bezek • Durst • Seiser was able to provide a cost-effective wood frame building that integrates the most of the requested functions and serves as a striking visitor orientation landmark with soaring views of the local mountains and surrounding fields. Working with the owner, BDS identified an existing underused lab on the site that could be renovated and expanded to provide the seed certification and propagation lab. BDS also developed a site master plan to guide future development of the facility.

Views for free. From the front door entry throughout the building there is a grand view of Pioneer Peak and the major facilities and activities underway at the Center. When there is an opportunity to leverage a local landmark in this way, BDS always makes it a point to take advantage of Alaska’s spectacular landscape.

Showcase for the Department. BDS provided the Agriculture Department with a modest building that showcases their agricultural programs and plant propagation work for local school field trips, and the local farmers and sponsors. This building has set a new facility standard for the Plant Materials Center as their program grows and thrives.

Project: Plant Materials Center Addition and Lab Renovation*

Use: Plant Propagation Research and Seed Quality Certification.

Owner: State of Alaska, Department of Natural resources, Division of Agriculture

New Construction: 4800 Square Feet

Design Challenges:
Developing solutions that accommodated specialized, discrete activities (seed cleaning, seed certification, visitor orientation, staff training) within a modest budget.

Providing flexible space to accommodate future program growth and new agricultural initiatives.

*AIA Alaska Chapter 2006 Honor Award Winning Project