Merced College breaks ground on new $24 million agriculture student complex

For the first time in more than a decade, Merced College will have a new building.

Construction of the new 29,000-square-foot Raj Kahlon Agriculture and Industrial Technology Complex kicked off Wednesday morning with a formal groundbreaking ceremony.

The complex will serve as the main building for agricultural-related instruction at the college.

"We could not have been happier and more incredibly thankful to complete the fulfillment of a promise we made to this community," Merced College President Chris Vitelli said Wednesday. "This complex will change the jobs, it will help create the innovation, it will continue towards and ultimately contribute towards the talented and skilled workforce it will provide this community and region."

Merced College Board of Trustees on May 11 approved the project's $20,971,000 construction bid from F&H Construction out of Lodi. The project's overall cost is $24,894,000 and is estimated to take 15 months, with completion by August 2022.

The building is a publicly funded project that will take $12.6 million from a 2002 local bond and $12.3 million in matching funds from the state via Proposition 51, a community college projects bond from 2016, Vitelli explained.

The complex provides space for animal science, crop science, plant science, horticulture programs, conference rooms for staff, and a room for student leadership groups.

There will also be a courtyard area for events and a multi-use room that can accommodate large groups or be split into two classrooms. The building will replace the original facilities that were built in the 1970s.

In addition, the project will have new labs and upgraded training equipment for industrial technology programs in HVAC, industrial maintenance, electronics, and computer networking.

Merced County farmer Raj Kahlon is contributing $5 million to the project. Kahlon's contribution will continue to support agricultural programs for several years to come. As a result, the complex is named after him.

Assemblymember Adam Gray, U.S. Rep. Jim Costa, and Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis also attended the groundbreaking.

"This is an incredible investment. We have one of the greatest agricultural regions in the world. It's something we're proud of," Gray said.

Costa shared similar sentiments. "That's why this is such a great day — we're investing in our future," he said.

"The legacy of what this building will do and the work and education that will go on here and educating the next generation around agriculture — this will carry us into the future and into many, many generations to come," Kounalakis said.