The class, under the direction of Jeff Swenski, built a 1,600-square-foot house in Iron River for Wyatt Hill of Wyatt’s Automotive. They showed off the finished project at an open house Thursday.

Hill was unable to attend the open house but said in a statement, “I’m just so happy with everything they did — all the built-ins, all the little touches they did to the place.”

Swenski is in his 23rd year of teaching and said Hill was part of his first class. The class had 18 students who worked on the project on East Siding Road. He said the number of students in the class varies — this was his largest class, while a past year had only seven students.

This was junior Matthew Swenski’s first year in building trades. He is unsure if he will choose to pursue a future in the industry. Dominick Brunswick, a senior in his second year with the class, plans to join the carpenter’s union after graduation.

The house owned by Wyatt Hill that was built by the West Iron County High School building trades class in Iron River. (Marguerite Lanthier/Daily News photo)

The house features an open-concept living room, a kitchen with a custom pantry, a main bedroom with walk-in closet and a connected bathroom. On the other side is a second bedroom, bathroom and laundry room. The basement has another bathroom and several rooms that could be converted into living spaces. There is a large covered porch in the front.

Swenski believes that this is the most realistic way to teach home building because the students are working with an owner and on the job site.

“They leave the school site. We’re out here, just us on the site,” Swenski said. “Everything we do is dictated by the weather and by material flow. But the weather is a factor, just like a real job site. If we don’t have things done that have to be done before it snows, we still have to get them done. You can’t go inside until it warms up. The only way to get warm is to build a place to be warm. They can’t run to the office, can’t run to their lockers, can’t run to the bathroom. It’s very realistic.”

Hill’s sister, Amber Laturi, served as an intermediary for her brother on the build. She was amazed by the students, saying they would come off the bus and immediately start working on projects. If her brother wanted something incorporated into the house, they would do it. The hardest part was making sure they had the materials available when the students needed them, she said.

Swenski has seen a lot of changes to the construction trades over the years.

Junior Cash Koski shows off a closet in the main bedroom of the house the West Iron County High School building trades class constructed for Wyatt Hill in Iron River. (Marguerite Lanthier/Daily News photo)

“Things are constantly evolving in the construction industry; a lot of product changes, a lot of changes to the way things are done. We have to constantly be aware of changes in materials and changes in procedures and practices. We always try to stay on top of what is current in the market, because ultimately my goal is to provide employees to people, so we need to be up to date and aware of what’s happening,” he said.

He already is planning future projects for the class. Anyone who would like to be placed on the list for consideration should contact West Iron County Public Schools at 906-265-9218.

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Marguerite Lanthier can be reached at 906-774-3500, ext. 85242, or mlanthier@ironmountaindailynews.com.

Ericka Sauter snaps a photo of the custom pantry at the house built by the West Iron County High School building trades class in Iron River. (Marguerite Lanthier/Daily News photo)

Some wood from homeowner Wyatt Hill’s grandparents’ barn has been incorporated into the house built by the West Iron County High School building trades class in Iron River. This area is by the side door. (Marguerite Lanthier/Daily News photo)