CWU To "Top Off" Student Union And Recreation Center Project

April 27, 2005

Contact: Maren Oates (509-963-2819/fax 509-963-3301/e-mail: oatesm@cwu.edu)

ELLENSBURG, Wash. - The ceremonially topping off of a construction project was first chronicled in Scandinavia more than 1,300 years ago. The custom acknowledges the hard work of contractors and recognizes teamwork, quality and craftsmanship among employees, especially the ironworkers.

A "topping off" ceremony for Central Washington University's new Student Union and Recreation Center will be held Friday, May 6. The event, slated for 11:30 a.m., will culminate with university officials, members of the board of trustees, the facility's project committee and other invited guests joining the Lydig construction crew for placement of the facility's final steel beam.

"This ceremony will mark an exciting and significant milestone in the construction of the new Student Union and Recreation Center," Bill Yarwood, CWU facilities management project manager, says, "and signifies the completion of the building's steel superstructure."

The final skeletal component will be painted and signed before being raised into place.

Heather Yergen, associated students of CWU vice president for student life and facilities, will speak at the event on behalf of university students.

"With the completion of the roof, it will be evident that the building is quickly becoming a reality," Yergen says. "When it opens, it will help improve the quality of life for students here at Central."

As now scheduled, the recreation portion of the facility will open in January 2006, with the union section opening the following April.

For more information about the event, or for persons of disability to arrange for reasonable accommodation, call (509) 963-2819, or (for the hearing impaired) TDD (509) 963-2143.