Learning 4 Life Farm is under construction!
We've been raising funds for full construction of our barn, retail shop and workspace, pastures, garden and hoop houses needed to establish our job training program, completed in three phases over three years, with the goal to launch our job training program in 2023. Thanks to generous support from the community, we have our construction fully funded and we're completing the farm infrastructure this fall and winter and looking to bring in our alpacas in early 2023!
Last fall (2021) we put our barn up and we've moved on to Phase 3 of our farm construction in 2022, adding plumbing, septic, electric and finishing the pastures, dry lot, gardens and workshop/gift shop for our job training farm.
Construction Phase 1 was completed in fall 2020 - installation of a driveway and 3-car parking lot, gravel barn pad, field drainage and bioretention rain garden - and was funded by donations from individual supporters in our local community and support from local contractor Jake's Property Services. Phase 1 provided the foundation for Phase 2 and Phase 3, constructing and finishing the barn, workshop/gift shop, pastures and gardens.
Phase 2 Construction, which took place in September and October 2021, involved constructing the ADA accessible 36x80 foot alpaca barn and retail shop/workshop building. Locally owned building company Grabers Oak Flooring provided barn materials and local construction company Wharton Exteriors installed the 36x80 foot pole barn and generously donated a portion of their labor in-kind.
Phase 3 Construction - 2022
Now that the pole barn shell is up, our next steps are to install electricity, plumbing, septic system and exterior drainage. Local electrician Charlie Culbertson, owner of Charlie's Electric, is generously donating his labor in-kind; he installed our electrical panels in December 2021 and will install wiring, outlets and light fixtures in winter 2022-23. In December 2021, The Ohio Energy Cooperative installed an electrical conduit main line from an existing electrical transformer on the site of our partner school, TLS North East, extending to a transformer pad located adjacent to our barn.
Now that the pole barn shell is up, our next steps are to install electricity, plumbing, septic system and exterior drainage. Local electrician Charlie Culbertson, owner of Charlie's Electric, is generously donating his labor in-kind; he installed our electrical panels in December 2021 and will install wiring, outlets and light fixtures in winter 2022-23. In December 2021, The Ohio Energy Cooperative installed an electrical conduit main line from an existing electrical transformer on the site of our partner school, TLS North East, extending to a transformer pad located adjacent to our barn.
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Local contractors Mickey’s Roofing installed gutters and downspouts on the barn in early March 2022, generously donating materials.
In Spring 2022, local plumbing company G&M Plumbing & Heating, Inc., in partnership with local construction company MAC Construction, roughed-in pipes for our half-bath, utility sinks, barn water hydrants and alpaca waterers, and install a water line and conduit sleeve connecting the barn with the planned well location. Local septic installer Jack's Septic installed our new 320-gallon-capacity septic system in spring 2022 - thank you to Jack's for generously donating a portion of labor.
In summer/fall 2021, with support from OSU Agricultural Extension - Licking County and local business Granville Milling Company, we tested our pasture and one-acre garden soil and applied agricultural lime to lower soil acidity. In spring 2022, local excavator R & L Excavating completed final grading of our pastures. Jake's Property Services applied fertilizer with recommended conventional agricultural fertilizers and seeded our pastures with a grass grazing mix - thank you to Jake's for donating a portion of labor.
In summer/fall 2021, with support from OSU Agricultural Extension - Licking County and local business Granville Milling Company, we tested our pasture and one-acre garden soil and applied agricultural lime to lower soil acidity. In spring 2022, local excavator R & L Excavating completed final grading of our pastures. Jake's Property Services applied fertilizer with recommended conventional agricultural fertilizers and seeded our pastures with a grass grazing mix - thank you to Jake's for donating a portion of labor.
In October 2022, local well installers Beinhower Bros. Drilling Co. drilled a 97 ft. sand and gravel stainless steel screened well adjacent to our barn and installed a main line to the barn plumbing, a pump system, and collected samples for water treatment. Once our barn interior is complete, they'll install a water treatment system including water softener, iron filter, and reverse osmosis/UV drinking water treatment, as well as hydrants to provide alpaca drinking water, irrigation and water for garden/barn use.
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In early November 2022, thanks to support from the Make It Fit Foundation, local concrete provider Cornell Concrete poured a concrete floor for the gift shop/workshop side of the building. They went the extra mile, leveling the ground and putting down gravel on the alpaca side of the barn and on our front porch.
Local excavator R&L Excavating is currently in the process of installing a drainage swale and tile around the barn and an access driveway along the west (rear) side of the barn for tractor use/feed and supplies. A small fenced drylot will be installed adjacent to the barn, for the alpacas to use when pastures are wet and overnight for safety.
Local contractors working in partnership with the Make It Fit Foundation and MAC Construction have offered to provide reduced rate and in-kind services for interior finishes in the workshop/gift shop - building a wall and installing interior doors, a bathroom and utility room, dropped ceiling, insulation, HVAC and drywall - to take place in winter 2022. The barn interior framing is underway this week thanks to MAC Construction, including help from our students, staff and volunteers! Melissa Blackburn, owner of Haven Collective of Columbus, will donate in-kind services to complete the interior design and furnishings for the barn workshop and retail space in winter 2022-23.
In December 2022, local fencing company Cornerstone Fencing will install no-climb wire pasture fencing with wooden posts and metal gates around our three planned pastures for a total of approximately five acres of fenced pasture. Portable dog kennel fencing will be used to create partitions inside the barn for the alpacas.
Our barn features a 12-foot overhang along one 80-foot side to provide shelter for the alpacas and for gift shop guests entering the building. The barn will be divided into two sections, 36x40 feet each, with one side housing up to 10 alpacas in an open-floor-plan setting designed for their needs, and the other side housing a gift shop/workshop area. The alpaca section has three dutch doors whose top sections can be opened for airflow facing the overhang and a dry lot, two garage doors to allow for movement of the animals to pasture areas, and a portable fencing area inside to allow guests to view the animals in the barn. The alpaca section of the barn will have a gravel floor covered with mats for the health of the animals. The 36x40 foot gift shop/workshop section of the barn will have a concrete floor, windows, french entrance doors, and an employee door leading to the animal area. The gift shop/workshop will have a half bathroom and a storage room with a utility sink.
T&N Lindsay's Landscaping will install our paver patio sidewalk at the front of the barn, to include the engraved bricks donated by supporters in our "Buy A Brick" Campaign. T&N Lindsay's is generously donating a portion of the labor and materials, with MAC Construction and Columbus Builders Supply chipping in to donate materials as well!
We plan to procure 6 alpacas in January 2023, and launch our job training program in 2023.
Stay tuned for updates, and donate now to help us move forward.
T&N Lindsay's Landscaping will install our paver patio sidewalk at the front of the barn, to include the engraved bricks donated by supporters in our "Buy A Brick" Campaign. T&N Lindsay's is generously donating a portion of the labor and materials, with MAC Construction and Columbus Builders Supply chipping in to donate materials as well!
We plan to procure 6 alpacas in January 2023, and launch our job training program in 2023.
Stay tuned for updates, and donate now to help us move forward.