Dedication of the Charles R. Perry Construction Yard - April 9, 2007
Good afternoon!
I want to begin by telling you a short story about the late Charles R. Perry, the founder of Charles Perry Construction and the man whose generosity made possible the unique structure we are here to dedicate.
Mr. Perry, or "Mr. P" as he was known around the office, was, of course, a talented and prolific building contractor. Certainly, he was one of the most successful graduates of the Rinker School of Building Construction. You sometimes hear the phrase, "he built this city." Mr. P really did. You can't walk far in any direction here without bumping up against his legacy.
- The Alachua County Library
- UF's Murphree Hall
- Littlewood Elementary School
- Nationwide Insurance
- the new Alachua County Courthouse Building
- Emerson Hall
These are a handful of the buildings he coaxed toward the sky. Over four decades, Perry Construction has completed more than 400 large projects in this area.
But, Charles R. Perry began his life in much less influential circumstances. He was the son of a single mother who lived above a dry cleaning shop near Orlando. The first in his family to attend college, he hitchhiked north to Gainesville with his high school diploma and a couple of hundred dollars in his pocket.
That cash didn't go far, so Mr. P got a job as a mason. He spent his undergraduate years paying for his education and supporting his family by laying the bricks of some of the most storied buildings here on campus.
I understand Mr. P's first employer is here today. Abe Painter is going to attempt to teach all of us exactly what he taught Mr. P. over 50 years ago. Hopefully he won't put us to work, but I am not making any guarantees!
Anyway, Mr. P earned his degree in building construction with honors in 1960. Over the years, as he grew his business, he credited UF with giving him a useful education in the business of contracting. But, he also said he relied on his years as a mason to communicate with and motivate his workers. He understood that their expertise and labor is the heart and soul of every job.
I've been giving Mr. P a lot of credit this afternoon. But his wife, Nancy -- who we are happy to have with us today -- says he didn't see things that way. He always credited his staff in the office and the field with crafting his buildings. However much he appreciated the University of Florida, Mr. P felt the university did not give its students enough of the kind of hands-on experience his circumstances required of him. Those feelings only grew through the years, as the paper shuffling side of the building contracting business grew and the nail-hitting side shrank.
Mr. P was convinced that college graduates in building construction should also know something about skilled manual labor. That's what made him decide to donate the funds for this Charles R. Perry Construction Yard.
This is called a "construction yard" because that's exactly what it is. Not a real construction yard, but an educational one . . . a place where students see and try out the crafts that have underlain the art of building from time immemorial.
Mr. P would feel right at home here.
Students learning about masonry construction can come to this yard to watch a tradesperson demonstrate his or her craft. They can try their own hand at bricks and mortar. Rain or shine, these huge double doors can make room for forklifts and other heavy equipment. An overhead two-ton crane can haul in real beams for students learning about steel beam construction.
None of this would matter if curriculum continued to pass lightly over the crafts. But, thanks to this structure and his gentle nudging, Mr. Perry has spurred real changes in how educators in this College go about molding building construction professionals. For one thing, with this structure at their hands, professors are already making the trades a bigger part of their classes. For another, juniors and seniors will soon be required to perform at least 24 hours of community service.
We hope and expect them to put to use the hands-on skills they learn here in this construction yard.
What we're standing in is literally a laboratory for the School of Building Construction. But instead of Bunsen burners or dissecting trays, it has cranes and heavy machinery. What students learn here, they'll put to use improving their community. I hope you will agree, this Perry Construction Yard is a great tribute to Mr. P's vision.
But, I have only told you half the story, the part on the ground. The other half is above us, on the roof. That would be, the university's first "green" roof. You can't see it from here, but if you were to look down on the roof from the east windows of Rinker Hall, you would see something that looked more like a recently planted field than a rooftop.
The 2,600-square-feet up there is covered with five inches of soil. Just last week, we planted that soil with tropical sage, blue-eyed grass, blazing star, penny royal and dune sunflower. Underneath those plants and that soil is a state-of-the-art system that can absorb and hold up to an inch of rainwater. Any more rain than that, the water gets piped into cisterns, where it is stored for use during droughts.
We built the roof this way because it's important and timely. With the costs of energy spiraling and the consequences of pollution worsening, the building industry nationwide is working to be more environmentally friendly. So is our university, where we're trying to become better stewards of the air, water and land we share. As you may know, we have taken a number of steps toward greater sustainability in recent years. This roof is very much a part of this campaign.
Green roofs help control the temperature of buildings naturally, since the soil and plants act as insulators. They absorb rather than reflect heat from the sun. And, by trapping and re-using rainwater, green roofs keep that water from flowing across streets, carrying toxins and pollutants into our lakes and rivers.
The Rinker School faculty members are pioneers of this kind of environmentally friendly construction. The first sustainable construction course in the U.S. was offered here in 1994. And, Rinker Hall was the university's first green building -- the first building on this campus designed to be energy and water-efficient and to use sustainable materials.
That experiment went well. Today, all the major buildings we build are green buildings. This green roof has the potential for similar influence. I say "potential" because, like a lot of green building techniques and technologies, green roofs are relatively new and untested. This is one of the first of only a handful in Florida. So we have a lot to learn about how to coax out their best performance. Filling that gap in our knowledge is another goal of this roof.
I mentioned a few of the plants on the roof. Those plants are arranged in quadrants with different water sources and will be closely monitored to see which ones flourish. The next time someone builds a green roof, they may turn to our experience to pick the right species and watering system.
I want to close by saying a little more about Mr. P. I don't think anyone in this crowd who knew Charles R. Perry would object to my saying that he was a conservative guy. A very conservative Republican, as a matter of fact. Now, very conservative Republicans are not necessarily known for being on the forefront of environmental causes. And, to be forthright, we had not yet formed the plans for this roof when Mr. P died in 2005.
But, Nancy is an avid gardener and plant lover, and she gave her wholehearted support to our plans. And, in my opinion, no one knows a husband better than his wife. Nancy says she would have teased him about it, but Mr. P would have been "immensely proud" of being a part of this forward-thinking and progressive structure.
Nancy, on behalf of our faculty and students, I would like to say "thank you" to you and your late husband for your generosity and vision in creating the Perry Construction Yard. Future building construction students will be better managers because of you. And, because of you, we may all learn something more about how to live in a greener, healthier world.
Thank you.
Bernie Machen