PATRICK ROACH

APSU held a topping out ceremony at 9 a.m. June 27 for the new 50,000 square foot fine arts building.

The local community was invited to sign their names onto a white steel beam with black markers before it was put into place to finalize the frame of the new building. The beam was lifted and set in place as a permanent part of the new $16 million dollar building. The ceremony signifies a milestone in the construction process, marking the completion of the steel framework.

Ben Loftin, the project manager overseeing construction, gave a short speech before ordering the name-laden beam lifted into place. Loftin noted that the ceiling of the building would not be painted, with the white beam resting above the ceiling.

‘“In 20 years when they are renovating it,” said Loftin, “they’ll probably come across this and see a lot of our names written on there.”

As the beam was set into place, the more than 40 people in attendance celebrated with applause and cheers.

“It is a huge focus for us to have the community and Austin Peay involved.” Loftin noted, “It is a really close-knit community up here and we want to make sure they are involved in making sure we are doing a good job for them.”

Loftin recognized the fact that the project had suffered zero accidents to date, and promised to keep that trend moving forward.

The building is on schedule to be ready for classes for the Spring 2017 semester.

Turner Construction is simultaneously working on renovations for the Trahern building.