The weather over the last couple months has not been cooperative in Wellman, and as a direct result the construction of the new Mid-Prairie culinary lab is currently three weeks behind schedule according to business manager Jeff Swartzentruber. Every time it has rained, work on the lab has been delayed by 24-36 hours, which is something Swartzentruber said they’ve dealt with roughly every 72 hours this summer. They would get the area dried out, then it would rain again and they’d have to wait once more.

Additionally, they have had to wait longer than expected for the steel stud walls and truss packages, because of manufacturing delays. Those are expected to arrive later this week, and Swartzentruber is hopeful the walls and roof of the lab will be up before the end of September. In spite of the delays, he is still confident the construction of the lab will be complete for the beginning of the second semester on January 13th. At that point, he said it’s a matter of moving everything into the new space before it’s fully operational. The lab was funded in part by a $100,000 grant from the Washington County Riverboat Foundation.