Heritage Snapshot: Part 136

Larry C. Havstad built Burden Hall, Evans Hall, Shryock Hall, the Campus Hill Church, Risley Hall, the Library and Administration Building, the School of Dentistry, Griggs Hall, the Student Activities Center (including the Campus Cafeteria), Kate Lindsay Hall, the Loma Linda Market, Mortensen Hall, the White Memorial Church, and the White Memorial Hospital. In some cases, Havstad replaced heavy equipment with student labor to help students pay for their tuition. Earl Heitschmidt, his architect for almost 40 years on many of the projects, joined Havstad in adapting to financial constraints that faced the institution, and together saved it millions of dollars. On occasion Havstad personally absorbed costs that normally would be charged back to the owners. The Heitschmidt-Havstad team become known for stretching the CME/LLU building dollar. As a joint venture, contractors Larry C. Havstad and Associates and the Del. E. Webb Corporation began excavations for the new University Hospital on Aug. 19, 1964. Due to Havstad, Webb, and Heitschmidt’s combined efforts, the cost for building and equipping the new facility was more than $10 million under the $33 million originally estimated. Larry Havstad was born on a North Dakota Prairie on Nov. 14, 1904. In 1907 his family moved to Spokane, Washington and in 1910 to Richland, Washington. He attended local schools and graduated from high school in 1923. Havstad’s family was poor. After graduating from high school, Larry attended the University of California in Los Angeles and Pacific Union College, in Angwin, California. In the summer of 1925, when he and his brother Gordon heard of a building boom in Florida where carpenters were being paid $14 a day, they loaded their sleeping gear and tools onto an old Model T Ford without a windshield and top, and headed for Tampa. They arrived late in July, got employed immediately, and succeeded financially. Then the boom collapsed. Gordon Havstad returned to California to enroll in the College of Medical Evangelists. Larry enrolled in the International Correspondence School, enjoyed a course in structural engineering, and started a successful building construction business when he was 20 years old. After moving to Tampa, Larry met Lucile Bowen, a young woman who had been teaching in the local church school. The two were married in January 1927. Their daughter Martha was born in March 1928. Meanwhile, Larry Havstad branched out into other lines of work, including real estate development and the formation of the Port Tampa Yacht Club. In August 1929, their bank failed and the Havstads were “cleaned out.” They sold their home, furniture, and speedboat for $1,000 cash and a hundred acres near Palatka, Florida, to Homer Rodeheavaer, singer for Evangelist Billy Sunday. When they returned to Southern California, Larry worked for his father and his partners who owned and operated the Santa Monica Planing Mill. The Havstad’s son James was born on March 10, 1930. After Larry accumulated a little money, he bought out one of his father’s partners. A few months later he started building homes again, including one for his own family in North Hollywood. During this time Havstad considered involving himself with denominational building projects. While constructing the Hollywood Church, he met Dr. Wilburn Smith, a physician on the faculty of the Loma Linda College of Medical Evangelists. Encouraged by Dr. Smith and conference leaders, Havstad contacted CME President Percy T. Magan, MD, who allowed him to bid on a new chapel being planned in Loma Linda. When Larry succeeded in building Burden Hall for $22,000, including seating, the organ, and furniture, about, $3,000 under budget, more doors opened for him. Saving the institution money became a trend that repeated itself regularly over the years. Next he bid against five of the largest contractors in Los Angeles for the new White Memorial Hospital. When he submitted a bid of $325,000, $13,000 under his next competitor, the brethren were a little concerned about his youth. Mr. Myron Hunt, the hospital architect, evaluated Havstad and reported that he thought the young man was qualified. Before beginning construction on “the White,” Larry bid on the Pathology and Anatomy buildings in Loma Linda. When his bid was $13,000 under his next competitor, CME awarded him the contract to build what are now known as Evans Hall and Shryock Hall. Havstad spent countless hours late into the nights working on creative ways to save money. He drew up more than a hundred full pages of change orders, which not only improved the buildings, but also saved money. Total cost including cabinets was $125,000—$2 per square foot. After these two buildings were completed, plans were ready to build the White Memorial Hospital. Change orders had been estimated to increase the cost by about $65,000. Larry refigured the plans and concluded that he could build it for an additional $5,000. During construction California sales tax went into effect and he had to start paying Social Security for his builders. Also, notwithstanding an increase in the cost of building materials, Larry Havstad succeeded in completing the building for his revised bid of $330,000. The hospital’s steel frame with welded diagonal bracing was embedded in steel-reinforced concrete, making it at the time the most earthquake-proof building in Los Angeles.