Syngenta makes donation to Coon Rapids Shelter House
 FEATURED STORY · December 13, 2007
FROM THE COON RAPIDS ENTERPRISE FRONT PAGE ARCHIVES
Shelterhouse is very first GP project in the state completed
On behalf of its employees in the Coon Rapids area, Syngenta recently made a $10,000 donation to the new Coon Rapids Aquatic Center Park Shelter house.
“Syngenta is pleased to support this facility which is an integral part of the Coon Rapids community and important resource to our company and our employees,” said Dave Wiemers, manager of the Syngenta plant in Coon Rapids. “In fact our employees used the shelter house this fall to celebrate another successful seed harvest.”
In the photo above, Wiemers (left) presents the $10,000 check to Coon Rapids Mayor Keith Dorpinghaus. Also shown is Syngenta’s Head of Internal Corn Operations, Ken Nielsen.
With Dorpinghaus serving as project manager, the park shelterhouse is the very first Great Place project in the state to be completed. With a budget of approximately $130,000, most of the construction labor was provided free of charge by the Northwest Iowa Correctional Facility in Rockwell City. It cost $13,234 to pay the general contractor to supervise the prisoners, and about $80,000 for materials. The remaining budgeted cost came from in-kind labor received from the City of Coon Rapids, (especially Bob Richards), CRMU, Kurt Sperry (design plans), and local electricians Bob Brumbeck and Pat Derner.
Seventy-five thousand dollars of the $1 million Great Place appropriation for Coon Rapids/Whiterock was designated to the shelterhouse project, and was used along with Syngenta’s contribution and a $5,000 donation from National Electronics Warranty. The city still has an outstanding balance of $6,100, which will be covered through a fundraising endeavor next spring when the city organizes an official shelterhouse dedication ceremony.
The new Aquatic Center Park Shelterhouse is certain to be a great facility for hosting large gatherings for families, class reunions, and business functions.
The city’s new shelterhouse boasts 4,500 square feet, with handicap accessible bathrooms and a kitchen complete with stove and refrigerator. There are 16 large picnic tables inside the facility, plus there’s a large covered porch area where additional tables can be placed.
The city will begin renting out the shelterhouse next spring. City Clerk Jesica Leighty says there are already a half dozen or more reservations for next summer and two already for 2009.
Syngenta employs 26 full time people at its Coon Rapids facility and hires up to 120 additional seasonal workers during the seed harvest and processing season. This year the plant will process more than 800,000 bushels of corn for seed and will ship nearly half a million bags of Garst®, Golden Harvest® and NK® seed to growers from Iowa to Texas.
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