Construction Starts on Farmworker Housing

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By Molly Kelleher

Summary

A controversial project is now under construction. State workers were out in Basin City on Wednesday to break ground on a new farm worker housing unit.

Story Published: Nov 11, 2009 at 6:18 PM PST

Construction Starts on Farmworker Housing
BASIN CITY - A controversial project is now under construction. State workers were out in Basin City on Wednesday to break ground on a new farm worker housing unit.

This is the first of its kind for our area.

But not everyone likes the idea.

Local farmers were pretty vocal earlier this year at a Franklin County commission meeting. They said they were worried that the 96-bed facility might bring an uptick in crime.

But backers of the project promise close oversight and say it's better than the alternative.

"There was a lot of camping and it wasn't a good situation, there was lot of health concerns. So this is an effort to address situations like that so we have a long term solution," said Marty Miller with the Office of Rural and Farmworker Housing.

The farmworker housing unit is going to go up quick. The idea is to have it ready by spring for the picking season.