Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
The Dahmen Barn at Uniontown will be gaining more space soon.
Volunteers have completed interior demolition on a 30x60-foot loafing shed next to the larger artisan barn at the edge of Uniontown.
Once finished, the revitalized shed will offer a large area for a classroom space and music performances, along with storage and bathrooms.
The estimated $45,000 project, due to be complete this summer, is paid for by a combination of Whitman County .09 percent economic development funds, Avista and individual donations.
Last fall, volunteers began moving out various materials from the shed, which was used for decades as a respite for cattle from the sun.
“There was a tremendous amount of stuff in there from when it was a dairy,” said Uniontown Community Development Association President Dale Miller.
By April, two trailer loads of debris were hauled away, along with two truckloads of manure and shavings.
Some salvageable barn board also was taken out.
John McCann, a UCDA member, coordinated the interior demolition.
“It went really well,” he said, noting what was inside; old rakes, plows, harnesses, machine parts.
“Lots of stuff after 40 years.”
Now that the loafing shed’s dirt floor has been cleared, Roach Construction of Genesee will soon install utilities, grading, sewer and water.
Concrete will then be poured for the floor. Volunteers will follow, adding the shed’s finishing touches of painting and some carpentry.
The UCDA has worked on the loafing shed project for the past two years.
Miller indicated that this will affect the main barn because there is a waiting list for artisans who would like to work in the barn’s studio spaces. The loafing shed will allow more studio room inside the main barn, as existing classroom space in the barn can be used for other purposes.
“It’s something we’re working on to expand the facilities for the Dahmen Barn,” said Miller.
Just as the shed project is finished this summer, it may be added to, since the UCDA hopes to expand the building to add four studio spaces.
In late May, the organization will hear whether they have been chosen to receive $340,000 in grant money from Artplace, a collaboration among 13 regional and national foundations, six large American banks and the National Endowment for the Arts.
The UCDA proposal is now in the top 105 of 1,200 applicants.
If awarded, the grant will fund the loafing shed expansion to feature four new studio spaces for the Dahmen Barn complex.
“We would like to have a space for art that creates dust or shavings,” Miller said.
Garth Meyer is a former Whitman County Gazette reporter.
Reader Comments(0)