Huot center teaches through hands-on home building

LACONIA — Students at the Huot Career and Technical Center were hard at work placing siding on a one-bedroom manufactured home Friday morning at the shop at Laconia High School.

The project is a result of a partnership with the Lakes Region Home Builders and Remodelers Association.

“This is the sixth house we've built,” said Bob Glasset, association treasurer. “The first three were tiny homes on wheels. This is a modular home.”

“We started at the end of October” on the home, said Ben Schneeweiss, construction instructor. “We got a bit of a late start because the one we built last year was here for a little longer than we wanted. So we’re just trying to get it out.”

As Schneeweiss spoke, students milled about in their tool belts, sipping Dunkin' coffee and inhaling Goody Good Donuts as they learned the ins and outs of placing siding. The brunt of the structure is already complete, including framing, foam insulation, the roof and windows.

Students, with the oversight of instructors and construction professionals, are responsible for the entire construction of the home with the exception of the electrical system.

“The whole idea of this program is to get the kids hands on,” Glasset said. “All the students, if they want to get into this business eventually, that’s what they have to do. Hands-on is the best thing, and there’s very few programs in the state that can even do this and duplicate this.”

The home is expected to be sold for around $80,000.

“Anybody in the public can buy this thing,” Glasset said. “The first one we happened to get a lead through a bank that a woman was looking for a small house. She purchased it from us, she hired a contractor to help her set the house on a foundation and that worked out great. The second one last year we delivered, the same thing happened. They were talking at the bank and the woman at the bank said, ‘I know where there’s a house for sale.’”

While it may seem small, the structure represents an affordable option. Once complete, according to Glasset, the structure will be ready to be placed on a permanent foundation. The profits of the home go right back into the program, including scholarships for Huot students.

In addition to traditional trade school scholarships, the program offers a $500 “toolbox” scholarship for graduates to purchase their starting tool sets for the construction industry from local lumber yards.

“The last two people to buy the homes were both single women who probably couldn’t have afforded a place on their own” otherwise, Glasset said. “So we’re helping in two parts. We’re helping the kids, and people who normally couldn’t afford a home.”