Between two cowpens, 19 shovels stuck out of the dirt at what will soon be the latest addition to UF’s Beef Teaching Unit.
At Thursday’s ceremony, Florida cattlemen broke ground for the construction of the teaching unit that will hold a new cattle processing facility, as well as student housing, said Todd Thrift, an associate professor in the department of animal sciences.
The Beef Teaching Unit is an 80-acre farm at 3301 SW 23rd Terrace, he said. Most animal science students use the facility for classes and research.
In June, the Florida legislature allocated $1 million for the first stage of the renovation, a move heavily lobbied by the Florida Cattlemen’s Association, wrote Geoffrey Dahl, department of animal sciences chair, in an email.
The second phase will cost an extra $2.6 million and is slated to take place in 2016. It is pending legislative approval.
The unit is split into a northern and a southern facility.
The latter has been in disrepair for several years. It was infested with termites and falling apart.
The student housing was condemned a few years ago, Thrift said.
The facility was demolished about two weeks ago because of its problems, and the section is currently under construction, Dahl said.
Speakers from UF’s Department of Animal Sciences and the president of the FCA praised the construction before picking up their shovels to scoop up the powdery dirt.
UF animal sciences master’s student and Miss University of Florida Taylor Pohl smiled as someone took a photo of her shoveling dirt from the construction site in her tiara.
Pohl, 21, said she was nervous in the old southern facility.
"It was very rickety," she said. "Having classes out there for the past three years, I was kind of scared it was going to fall in on us."
Pohl said she’s excited for the new building.
"I feel like this new unit will not only provide the students more opportunities to learn but also a safer environment," she said.
A group of Florida cattlemen and executives break ground for the construction of the UF/IFAS Beef Teaching Unit, 3301 23rd Terrace, on Sept. 10, 2015. The 80-acre farm will house a new cattle processing facility and student housing that will be used by animal science students for research.
