Since that fateful week in 1996 when heavy rains and a rapidly melting snowpack produced flooding throughout Oregon, the bulk of the agency had been housed at the long-term temporary quarters of Cherry Avenue. Parts of some divisions had to find room off site. Both will relocate into the Food Innovation Center, now under construction and scheduled to open in April of next year. Laboratories for Measurement Standards, Plant, and Animal Health Divisions are now part of the Agriculture Building. Things look different now.
Windows are a major feature of the other floors as well.
The obvious result is more natural lighting and a brighter environment. The power, telephone, plumbing and heating systems have been moved from the basement to the rooftop. Eight feet of floodwater in the basement essentially drowned the life support system for the building. That won't happen again. The new basement includes five meeting rooms of various sizes as well as underground parking.