Arcata Lumber Building Home Improvement Campus – November 21, 2012
The new Arcata Lumber store at 11th and M streets, due to open in December.
Eye Staff Report
11TH STREET – The 1200 block of 11th Street is getting a facelift now that Arcata Do it Best Lumber has broken ground for its new Home Center.
The new building will more than triple the amount of retail space currently offered, and further developments include new seismically-stable lumber racking and a dedicated contractor sales office in the historic administrative office built by the Little River Lumber Company in 1926.
Arcata Lumber remains open and perating from its longtime orange facility during of construction of the new complex.
Last August 8 saw the first of many transformations, with the deconstruction of the molding shed on the northwest corner of the property. The aluminum roofing and lumber from that shed are slated for reuse on other projects unrelated to the new store. More recently, the perimeter has been poured and rough plumbing has been installed.
The new retail building at Arcata Do It Best Lumber will be a model energy efficient commercial building in the region.
Exceeding the stringent 2008 California Energy Building Code by a whopping 43 percent, the design will reduce CO2 emissions by more than 101,200 pounds annually and save approximately $11,400 in annual energy costs.
Walls and ceilings filled with high-performance closed-cell foam insulation will be installed by Myrtletown Lumber Installed Insulation division.
A solar hot water system designed to provide roughly 50 percent of the annual heating will preheat a 92 percent efficient boiler, supplying the radiant floor heat for the building.
A heat recovery unit tempers the ventilation air and the indoor light fixtures will be LEDs. Sophisticated automatic lighting controls take advantage of day-lighting from the skylights.
By taking these far-reaching energy efficiency measures and going well beyond the energy code, the new building is recognized by the Savings by Design program offered through PG&E, which encourages high-performance nonresidential building design and construction.
The new building will be named McKenny’s Do It Best Building Center after owners Brendan McKenny, Kevin McKenny and Neal McKenny. The family trio also owns Myrtletown Lumber &Supply, Inc.
The current building will be refurbished and remodeled to serve as a design center with displays of windows, doors, countertops and more. “People can come in and have a nice environment to get ideas and shop,” said Dean Kruschke, general manager.
The old barn on the southeast corner will be repaired, re-sided and re-roofed. With the contemporary new building and the current structures restored, “it will look like a brand new piece of property here,” Kruschke said.
“It’s a very exciting time for Arcata Do it Best Lumber as we start the project of rebuilding this facility,” Kruschke said.
“It’s rewarding to be able to add jobs to the community, rejuvenate such a historic block in Arcata, and to increase the energy efficiency of a retail store while creating more than three times the floor space of the existing facility.”
The new facilities will open for business in late December, with the grand opening set for April, 2013.
Everyone is encouraged to come by to look at the plans for the new store, which are on display at the current store. (707) 822-1769, deank@myrtletown-arcatalumber.com
The overall site plan.
