Message from LeDuc & Dexter

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Ryder Homes – Vintana	RESIDENTIAL

Over the years an abundance of farmland in Sonoma County has been developed into vineyards. Now, in Windsor, vineyards are being developed into homes. Vintana, a residential community situated next to Windsor High School, is replacing a 25-year-old Kline Family vineyard. The vines, which have passed their prime, are being removed to create land to build homes on. Vintana will total over 500 homes upon completion with 253 homes already built and sold by Ryder Homes.

Ryder Homes' new models at Vintana in Windsor viewed from the spacious park in the center of the project. (click photo to enlarge)   LeDuc & Dexter has install copper and wastewater piping in the new models at Vintana. (click photo to enlarge)

LeDuc & Dexter is now contracted to complete the remaining phases of Vintana. Ryder Homes Superintendent John Morrow describes the five current models under construction as "more upscale with two single story plans and three 2-story plans, the homes range from 1830 square feet to 2850." The entire community surrounds a large community park. "The park was purposely developed without any sports facility included," adds Morrow. "There are soccer fields about a half mile away in Vintage Greens and the final phases of Vintana homes will border the football field at Windsor High School." The impressive Windsor Old Downtown Development project is less than a mile away.

It has been a number of years since LeDuc & Dexter has worked with Ryder Homes. Morrow coordinates with Jim Kempers , Residential Manager for LeDuc & Dexter and residential Superintendent Kevin Delong for scheduling and day-to-day needs. Arturo Herrera is the lead plumber for LeDuc & Dexter, completing the top out plumbing on the models currently under construction. When the rough plumbing and electrical are complete Morrow, along with the architect and designers will proceed on a corporate walk through to check and make final changes before production begins on the current phase 4.

Phases 1, 2 and 3 were completed over the last 3 years; phase 4 through 7 should be finished over the next 3 years according to Morrow.

With street names like Winemaker Way, Decanter, Bouquet, Stomper, Pinot Noir and Zinfandel, Vintana is certainly paying homage to the former "stomping grounds" of the time-honored vineyard it is replacing.
 

La Jota	WINERIES

On Howell Mountain in Napa County, at what seems like the end of a trail, there sits a winery called La Jota . It's been sitting there since 1898 when it was built by San Francisco newspaper man Frederick Hess. The recent history of La Jota dates back to 1974 when Bill and Joan Smith purchased the winery and the 40 acres surrounding it. Bonded and licensed in 1982, La Jota became internationally known for their small batch, hand crafted Estate Cabernet and Russian River Valley Pinot Noir. The Smiths sold La Jota to Markham Vineyards in 2001.

La Jota, built in 1898, has its original stonewalls and new garden walls now under construction. (click photo to enlarge) Rear view of La Jota, viewed from crush pad, shows hose station between the door and the portable wine press. (click photo to enlarge) Close-up of hose station. (click photo to enlarge) LeDuc & Dexter installed the boiler, hot water storage tank and expansion tank (not visible) in this mechanical room. (click photo to enlarge)

La Jota recently excavated a wine storage cave into the hillside behind the winery. Although LeDuc & Dexter did not participate in the cave construction, LeDuc & Dexter have been instrumental in the newly poured cement crush pad, which is situated between the winery and the cave entrance. Costa Engineers designed the plumbing layout, which includes 6 strategically located hose stations on the crush pad and all underground water, air, & nitrogen supply piping for the hose stations at the crush pad and in the caves. LeDuc & Dexter's commercial department, led by Jeff Shank and Dave Riker, provided the installation of the piping as designed. The winery's wastewater and sanitary lines is also being installed by LeDuc & Dexter.

Rich Hoaglund of LeDuc & Dexter's commercial department is currently putting the finishing touches on the mechanical room that houses the winery's boiler, expansion tank, hot water storage tank and the air compressor. The boiler is capable of producing a million and a half BTU/HR. and it is powered by propane since there is no natural gas service in this rather remote area.

With a new crush pad, boiler and wine storage cave, La Jota seems poised and ready for this year's harvest, which, incidentally, starts in about two months.
 

Apprentice Program Redux	EDUCATION

The PHCC National Association and the National Center for Construction Education and Research, known as NCCER, have combined forces to begin creating a new and improved curriculum and textbook for the PHCC apprenticeship program. A committee comprised of members from both groups met from June 17-20 to commence on their mission, which was to review, critique and makes changes to the currently used NCCER first year apprenticeship curriculum and deliver the new version to the publisher by October. The committee began the 3-day meeting in Washington, D.C. by reviewing the objectives of the entire 4-year apprenticeship curriculum.

Tom LeDuc, President and CEO of LeDuc & Dexter, is helping to upgrade the PHCC apprenticeship curriculum and textbooks.

By infusing ideas from both organizations the goal is to create one superior curriculum. "It was a lot of work, I was exhausted," says Tom LeDuc, "and this was just the beginning." The committee will meet 5 more times over the next 2 yeas to overhaul each of the 4 years included in the curriculum. The entire curriculum will be finalized by the fall of 2005. The first year apprenticeship textbook should be available in April or May of next year.

By combining the two groups into one publication the PHCC takes advantage of the publishing benefits that come with the higher number of books printed. "We will double the number of books sold and spend less money," explains LeDuc, "Because of the printing quota we will exceed, the textbook will be 4-color instead of black and white, like we had, at no extra charge." The textbooks will be published by Prentice Hall.

The NCCER approached the PHCC to form this partnership. "They wanted to update the curriculum and they wanted to know what the PHCC thought it should include," says LeDuc, a PHCC Master Apprenticeship Committee Member, who was invited to participate, "I'm the only person on this committee who's not a teacher." The seven committee members are a combination of apprenticeship teachers and Kirk Alter, a professor from Purdue University, whom LeDuc previously worked with on a PHCC National Foundation program.

The committee will use conference calls and a Yahoo Group Internet format to share curriculum text and changes that are being made as the process unfolds. One other bit of news that Tom LeDuc received at the meeting was, "After this project is completed, the journey level assessment project will begin in February of 2005."