1. **State the problem:** Find the area of a piecewise rectangular figure shaped like a large "C" with a smaller rectangle cut out from the bottom middle. 2. **Identify dimensions:** The outer rectangle has width $9$ ft and height $8$ ft on the left side and $3$ ft on the right side. The cut-out rectangle inside has width $5$ ft and height $4$ ft, with side extensions of $2$ ft on each side at the bottom. 3. **Calculate area of the large outer rectangle:** $$\text{Area}_{outer} = 9 \times 8 = 72 \text{ ft}^2$$ 4. **Calculate area of the cut-out rectangle:** $$\text{Area}_{cut-out} = 5 \times 4 = 20 \text{ ft}^2$$ 5. **Calculate the total area of the figure:** $$\text{Area}_{figure} = \text{Area}_{outer} - \text{Area}_{cut-out} = 72 - 20 = 52 \text{ ft}^2$$ 6. **Final answer:** The area of the figure is **52 ft²**.