Published 12:16 pm Monday, May 12, 2025
A groundbreaking ceremony is scheduled at 3:30 p.m. May 22 for the Linn-Benton Community College Agricultural Center, which could mold the next generation of farmers, ranchers and ag professionals.
The complex, on 55 acres a half-mile from the campus in Albany, Ore., will provide more opportunities for hands-on learning and allow the college to add programs, said Jenny Strooband, department chairwoman for agricultural sciences.
“The goal is to have more areas of emphasis,” Strooband added.
The college also hopes to boost community partnerships and support for farmers and youth groups such as 4-H, FFA and Oregon high school equestrian teams.
The LBCC ag center will include a large indoor riding arena that can be used for events such as livestock judging, a 42-stall horse center, horse paddocks, barns and dry lots for beef, sheep and swine.
The complex will sit on about 10 acres, leaving roughly 45 acres of farmland.
The barns and arena are tentatively scheduled for completion in fall 2026, followed by the horse center in autumn 2027.
The third phase of the project is a classroom and lab building. “We’re hopeful that will be finished the following fall, in 2028,” Strooband said.
LBCC doesn’t currently have livestock facilities, so students travel to nearby farms for learning. New barns will allow for more interactions, observations and hands-on research projects, Strooband said.
LBCC’s existing horse center, with 30 stalls, is located about two miles off campus. The 7-acre site is old, cramped and becomes swampy in wet weather. A neighborhood has sprung up around the farm property as Albany has grown.
“It’s tough. It’s condensed. It will be nice to stretch out our legs at a bigger spot,” Strooband said.
LBCC has about 250 students in agriculture classes, up substantially from when Strooband was hired in 2002.
The goal is to add more with the new ag center. “We think it’s going to help us recruit students from all over the region,” Strooband said.
The community college offers four ag transfer degrees — animal science, equine science, general agricultural science and agricultural business management— and two professional ag degrees in horse management and animal technology.
LBCC is working closely with Oregon State University to develop an associate of applied science in veterinary medicine so students could become Oregon-certified veterinary technicians.
Another long-term goal is developing a crops and turf science program in Linn County, which is known as the “Grass Seed Capital of the World.”
The original budget for the LBCC ag center was $16 million, with an $8 million state grant and $8 million from a bond voters passed in 2022.
“This particular project can cross political lines in a lot of ways,” Strooband said.
Linn and Benton counties, separated by the Willamette River, are polar opposites politically, but the economy of both is supported by agriculture.
Strooband said inflation has increased costs, and while LBCC has made design changes, the college must raise $6 million more for the complex.
