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OFS Plans Recreational Center OFS, an office furniture manufacturer based in Huntingburg, Ind., plans to woo clients in high style with a proposed new $7 million to $8 million education and recreation center. Cheryl Graff, an executive assistant with the company, said plans call for the center to be built on 500 acres of farmland located off Indiana 64, in neighboring Pike County. Site preparations are under way at the location, which is about 15 minutes from Huntingburg. The center is expected to be complete within the next three years, Graff said. The idea behind the complex will be to educate OFS clients in timber that is native to southern Indiana or from other parts of the nation and world. The center will aim to promote OFS's environmental stewardship as a company, Graff said. The company's own forester, Scott Reckelhoff, is expected to play a key role in the educational presentations. The center also will include a guest lodge with a kitchen, dining room and fitness center, and a variety of outdoor recreation for clients to enjoy on the first day of their visit to the area. They will be able to choose from a Hummer course, hiking and wildlife trails, horseback riding, four-wheel riding and skeet shooting, among other activities, Graff said. The center also will include a 22-acre lake for boating, swimming and fishing. "We want to introduce clients from large cities to these sports and forms of recreation," Graff said. On the second day of the clients' visit, they will get down to business touring and holding discussions at the corporate headquarters, she said. OFS President Hank Menke also hopes to share the education center with area school groups, according to Graff. She also said OFS is planning a new research, development and product testing center for a building site across a company-owned lake from OFS's Huntingburg headquarters at 1204 E. Sixth St. The new building will house OFS's research, development and product-testing teams under one roof. Currently, the associates are spread among several different locations. The new research and development center will also include showrooms. OSF's headquarters will continue serving as a working showroom with the company's latest styles in office furniture in use. The proposed research and development center will contain a total of around 49,000 square feet of space. It is expected to be built within the next five years. Graff had no estimated cost on the project. Jack Faber with Evansville-based Hafer Associates is the project architect on OFS's plans.
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