As the homecoming festivities kick off, some Iowa State students will lend their carpentry skills to aid the annual “blitz build” — constructing a house in one week for an underprivileged family.

“This year’s project is a bigger and better deal,” said Amie Carey, community service co-chairwoman for the Homecoming Central Committee.

The building site is located at 219 S. Kellogg Ave.

Chris Lichty, community service co-chairman, said the house students are building this year is a little bit bigger than what has been done in the past. The project is a two-story four-plex able to house four families.

The facility will be used for families who need temporary and/or transitional housing for up to six months, said Lichty, senior in animal science.

Carey, senior in biology, said the building will help those families who need a place to get on their feet.

“The families must have children and are required to pay some [rent] at a very low cost,” she said.

Most of the underground work already has been completed, and the foundation has been laid, so students will be building from the ground up, Carey said.

This year, the Homecoming Central Committee is working in conjunction with the College of Engineering’s Year of Technology program, Habitat for Humanity, Emergency Residence Project and the Partnership for Affordable Transitional Housing (PATH).

The Emergency Residence Project, which has a shelter at 225 S. Kellogg Ave., knocked down its building that once served as temporary and transitional housing. The previous building could only house two families, so the new building will provide help to more families at once, Carey said.

Last year, the committee built a house for one family and transported it to Roland where the family lived.

Because the committee and sponsors are saving money by building on site, they were able to make the structure larger than in the past.

Construction starts today and will continue through Friday, Lichty said. Students still can sign up to help by contacting the Student Alumni Office at 294-8488. The building crews have split the time in shifts running from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m., 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.