A groundbreaking took place last month for a new Breathitt Veterinary Center in Hopkinsville. The project was a KFB priority issue for several years prior to the General Assembly authorizing funding during this year’s legislative session.

KFB President Mark Haney and Executive Committee colleagues Fritz Giesecke and David S. Beck attended the ceremony at the new site south of Hopkinsville. Scheduled for opening in 2016, the new facility will encompass 32,000 square feet and will feature state-of-the-art classrooms and technology. Functional lab space will be doubled in the new building.

The current facility, built in the 1960s, remains open on Murray State University’s Hopkinsville campus. The BVC receives approximately 23,000 laboratory submissions per year and performs more than 200,000 tests. It is certified by the Center for Disease Control to test for “high impact” diseases of concern to public health. The lab has been especially important to Kentucky’s sizeable poultry industry.

Governor Steve Beshear attended the groundbreaking, noting the new center’s importance to animal agriculture in the western part of the state. The new facility, he said, “is absolutely essential.”

Project Director Dr. Wade Northington, who retired as the BVC director, said the new facility also will allow for expanding public services into areas such as water quality and food safety.

The center was named for former Governor Ned Breathitt. His daughter, Linda Breathitt, spoke at the ceremony. She is chair of the Kentucky Public Service Commission.