(Radio Iowa) – Shovels of dirt were turned Tuesday in Sioux City in the groundbreaking for a new Iowa Army National Guard maintenance shop. The Guard’s construction and facilities officer John Perkins says it’s a 25-thousand square foot building the replaces a 72 year old facility that was too small.

The leader of the Iowa National Guard, Major General Stephen Osborn, says the nearly 14 million dollar project is federally funded.

Iowa Senator Joni Ernst, a member of the U-S Senate’s Armed Services Committee, attended the groundbreaking.

Ernst says she is still working on another Sioux City project that will expand the runway at the airport for the 185th Air Guard Refueling Wing.

The new Army building will feature drive-through maintenance bays, energy smart geothermal heating and backup generator systems. The building will support up to 18 mechanics, which its double the current number. It is expected to take 18 months to build.