fictionpage Chapter 221 Farm Construction
Chapter 221 Farm Construction
Chapter 221 Farm Construction
Time flows gently forward like the winding stream inside the Red River Valley Farm, while the farm itself seems to be on fast-forward, greeting the sunrise with a brand new look every day.
From the initially somewhat barren land to the cultivated land that has now been reclaimed, the greenhouses that are being built, and the abundance of employees, everything is changing.
"Two requirements for the construction of the main house cannot be changed. First, the entire house must be made of solid wood. Second, the floor height must not exceed three stories."
Ernst stood on the grass outside the main house, stating his demands.
The construction of the entire Red River Valley Farm has now entered the construction phase, except for the renovation of the main house, which has not yet officially started.
As the number of workers increased daily, the issue of worker accommodation gradually became prominent and had to be addressed immediately. Ernst then thought of Leon Chandler, the contractor responsible for building Google's headquarters.
Red River Valley Farm is located in California, just over 200 kilometers from Mountain View, where Google's headquarters are located. Geographically, it should be within the service radius of Leon's team.
Sure enough, when he learned that it was Ernst, the big spender, who had made the request, Leon was exceptionally enthusiastic. He not only responded quickly over the phone but also promised to provide a complete solution within 24 hours.
Even if it's not within the company's scope of responsibility, he still has to solve this problem.
Leon's efficiency far exceeded expectations. He arrived at the farm early the next morning with his team and brought an ingenious solution: a large number of RVs.
In the United States, RVs are no longer a rarity; they can be found in everything from scenic national parks to bustling, down-to-earth neighborhoods.
According to authoritative statistics, more than 15 million people in the United States live in RVs, which are warm homes for countless people living in poverty.
Unlike RVs that can be driven, strictly speaking, it's just a house, without the car part.
These RVs come in various sizes, some as small as ten or twenty square meters, compact yet fully equipped.
The larger ones can reach forty or fifty square meters, as spacious as a small apartment.
Simply find a scenic park or a beach with a wide view, and you can instantly transform your cramped apartment into a mountain or sea view room with stunning scenery right outside your window.
The key point is that these RV houses are very affordable; some second-hand small RVs are priced at just over two thousand US dollars.
However, Ernst did not mistreat the workers who worked hard for him. When selecting motorhomes, he chose large motorhomes and required all motorhomes to be of the same standard to ensure that the workers could enjoy the same high-quality living conditions.
These large RVs feature a double-layer structure with an interior space of 48 square meters.
Two separate bedrooms are set up upstairs, so that even if the workers' relatives come to visit, they can have a comfortable place to stay.
Downstairs is a spacious kitchen and living room, meeting daily cooking and leisure needs. The entire house is equipped with two bathrooms and all kinds of furniture and appliances, fully meeting the needs of long-term living.
Once the RV arrives at the farm, it only requires a series of targeted modifications before it can be put into use.
The first step was to reinforce the undercarriage. Considering that although California experiences fewer typhoons, the central valley where the Red River Valley is located experiences strong winds every one or two years, in order to ensure the stability of the RV in extreme weather, Leon's workers precisely drilled six holes in the undercarriage and then poured high-strength concrete into the holes.
During the concrete pouring process, a thick steel bar was fixed in the middle, and a large rectangular iron plate was embedded at the top of the steel bar. After being precisely connected to the frame at the bottom of the RV, it was welded and reinforced using professional equipment.
With the stability of the house resolved, the next step is to renovate the water and electricity systems.
The electrical modifications are relatively simple, as the RV itself is equipped with a complete electrical system. It only needs to be connected to the farm's power supply network to function properly.
However, water system renovation, especially the renovation of drainage pipes, has become a considerable challenge.
According to the conventional design of RVs, sewage is discharged directly into the water bucket provided inside the vehicle, which requires manual emptying. This is not only time-consuming and laborious, but also prone to producing odors.
Ernst couldn't possibly make his employees go through all that trouble every day, so he simply had the construction team rebuild a separate water supply and drainage system.
The farm's original workers' quarters area already had existing water and electricity networks, which could be easily connected and modified to meet the needs of the new RVs.
Thanks to the efficient work of Leon's team, the renovation project of the workers' quarters was completed smoothly in just three days, adding more than 20 accommodation units and temporarily relieving the workers' accommodation pressure.
Bird kept Leon's contact information so that if expansion was needed in the future, Leon's team could be called upon at any time with just one phone call.
With the workers' quarters issue properly resolved, Ernst was finally able to devote all his energy to the construction of the main house.
When he told Leon his vision for the main house in detail, even the experienced contractor couldn't help but gasp in amazement.
Before coming here, I thought it would be a simple renovation, just a small project. But now it seems that it will be impossible to complete in less than one or two months.
"The second floor must have a huge outdoor terrace, big enough to accommodate at least twenty people at the same time. I can have coffee there and enjoy the view, and if there are more people, we can hold an open-air party."
He pointed to an open space in front of the main house and continued, "This open space also needs to be properly planned. I intend to renovate it into a circular stone plaza, with an exquisite fountain in the center."
"As for the farm's tool sheds, garages, and other ancillary buildings, they are arranged around this central square, forming a well-organized and fully functional living community."
Stepping inside the main house, Ernst stroked the old fireplace on the wall. "This fireplace needs to be preserved, but a fireplace alone is not enough. The whole house must be equipped with underfloor heating to ensure that every room is warm and cozy during the cold winter."
Finally, Ernst's words suddenly became serious: "There is one more crucial element, and that is the water purification system."
Although the farm's current water supply undergoes basic treatment, it falls far short of Ernst's requirements.
He needs a super-large water purification system that can not only meet the daily water needs of the main house, but also provide a guarantee for the domestic water supply of the entire farm.
Leon listened attentively while quickly taking notes in his notebook. After Ernst finished speaking, he summarized it into one point.
That is to create a distinctive building that combines the luxurious quality of a Beverly Hills mansion with the rustic charm of a farm.
After glancing at this generous benefactor, Leon hesitated for a moment before speaking up, "If that's the case, I suggest we completely demolish and rebuild the current house."
"From the current building structure, your needs are too different from the existing house. Forcibly opening up and expanding on the original foundation will not only make the construction more difficult and time-consuming, but also increase the cost."
Ernst doesn't care; how you build it is your problem, as long as my requirements are met. "Okay, we'll demolish and rebuild according to your suggestion, but all the wood of the house must be preserved."
What he likes most about this old house is the solid wood structure of the exterior walls.
Each of these logs is very thick and sturdy, clearly quite old, having taken at least twenty or thirty years to grow to this size.
Finding timber of this quality is virtually impossible these days, and most timber of this grade is already under protection, so you can't buy it even if you have the money.
Leon immediately replied, "Don't worry, we will arrange for a professional team to carefully disassemble and re-maintain these timbers."
"I will immediately organize a design team to produce renderings after I get back, and I will send them to your email by noon tomorrow at the latest. You can provide feedback at any time."
After discussing some details, Leon left the farm with a happy heart.
Before coming here, I thought it would be a project worth a few hundred thousand dollars, but I didn't expect to receive a huge order worth several million dollars.
The main building complex alone, along with the processing plants and machinery, would easily cost at least four or five million US dollars.
He felt that Ernst was his benefactor, and he had to hold on to him tightly, not letting go of even a finger.
After seeing Leon off, Ernst called out loudly, "Lowe, Ron!"
He then headed toward the stables, intending to take advantage of the fine weather to inspect his territory.
Upon hearing their owner's call, the two chubby dogs slowly climbed up from under the shade of the tree. Although their fat bodies made them look clumsy and they were usually too lazy to move, when they actually got going, they were two agile fat men.
On the way to the stable, we could see Bird anxiously calling out to the workers from afar, looking very urgent, as if some emergency had occurred.
"What happened?" Ernst strode forward and asked, his brow furrowed.
When Bird saw Ernst, he quickly came to greet him and explained, "I just received a notice from the town that the roof of the town's public school has suddenly collapsed. We need to gather people to help with the repairs, as the children are waiting to go to school tomorrow."
Ernst knew that this situation was not uncommon in America.
Public schools are mostly funded by government grants and social donations, and the funds are very limited. They have to be very careful with their money when it comes to repairing the buildings, and often they have to keep patching things up for another three years.
Often, the town's residents have to raise funds to purchase the school's repair materials, which makes it difficult to guarantee the quality of the buildings and leads to a vicious cycle of construction, collapse, and reconstruction.
In comparison, California is in a relatively good situation, given its high level of economic development, sufficient government funding for education, fewer natural disasters, and lower probability of home damage.
In some economically impoverished northern regions, every winter a large number of classrooms collapse under the weight of heavy snow, sometimes resulting in casualties.
"Was it because of the heavy rain last night?"
Last night, a sudden downpour hit this area, and the farmers in Honghe Valley were on emergency preparedness all night.
The main structures were cattle sheds and horse sheds, designed not only for their sturdiness but also to prevent the livestock from being frightened.
Fortunately, Leon's engineering team was there yesterday, and with their help in reinforcing the structure, the night went smoothly.
However, to prevent even worse weather in the future, Ernst had Leon's workers reinforce these areas, so there would be no problem as long as no typhoons came.
Bird nodded quickly. "That's right. The rain last night came suddenly and violently, accompanied by strong winds. The old wooden roofs of the school couldn't withstand the damage and were blown off by the strong winds. Some of the walls were also damaged to varying degrees."
It's obvious that the roofs of those classrooms must be made of wood.
Timber is inexpensive and can save on construction costs to the greatest extent, making it the most economical and cost-effective choice.
Suddenly, Ernst seemed to remember something and asked, "I recall that donating funds for the repair of public schools is eligible for tax breaks, isn't it?"
Although he had some understanding of U.S. tax policies, he was not clear about the specific tax reduction rates.
Whitney Farm has done this kind of donation many times. Bird is very familiar with these policies and regulations, and immediately replied, "That's right. This kind of donation to education not only enjoys tax breaks, but the breaks are also very high, reaching 90%."
In other words, if you donate $10, the actual cost you will pay after deducting tax breaks is only $1.
Ernst's eyes lit up, and he quickly began to make plans in his mind.
If you donate $5, with a 90% tax deduction, you will only need to spend $5000.
But this $5000 can rebuild safe classrooms for the town's children, gain the goodwill and respect of the entire town's residents, and enhance his prestige in the local area. This deal is simply too good to pass up.
A few days ago, Ernst had already established a good relationship with the town's residents by hosting a farm party, and this donation will undoubtedly further bring him closer to everyone and solidify his positive image.
Without hesitation, he said, "Then help me donate $5 to the town's schools."
Bird immediately agreed, "I'll contact the town officials right away to complete the donation procedures."
Watching Bird's departing figure, Ernst couldn't help but smile.
This money was well spent.