FORT LUPTON - The Colorado Army National Guard will break ground Wednesday on the new Fort Lupton Readiness Center on a 25-acre site on the southwest corner of County Road 31 and Ninth Street.

The 35,000 square-foot building will contain an assembly hall, classrooms, library, learning center, kitchen, recruiting office, physical fitness area and restrooms. Construction will cost about $11 million and is scheduled for completion by April 2011.

One project goal is to attain Leadership in Energy and an Environmental Design Silver Rating as developed by the U.S. Green Building Council. Sustainability features of the building include water and energy saving measures, indoor environmental quality and using local building materials during construction.

In addition to providing a place for weekend training for 131 guardsmen and unit administration by five full-time staffers, the readiness center will also serve the community as a venue for social events and as a disaster relief command center for emergencies. Most of those training at the center will live within a 50-mile radius and the annual economic impact from their salaries on the community is expected to be around $1.3 million.

The Fort Lupton unit will be one of six elements from the First Battalion 157th Infantry, a new light infantry unit of the Army National Guard tied to communities across Colorado.

Readiness centers are constructed with federal and state funding, with Colorado providing the land, offsite utility infrastructure costs and 25 percent of the construction costs. The federal government bears 75 percent of armory construction costs and the full cost for equipment and furniture.

The Guard is awaiting approval for state funds to build additional readiness centers in Alamosa, Grand Junction and Windsor.