Plans moving to build new Boys and Girls Club
On Tuesday the Wichita Falls City Council approved closing an alley in the 800 block of Juarez Street as a step toward building a new Boys and Girls Club on the east side of the city.
The need for a club there arose from an analysis of where the city’s children are and where clubs are needed, according to Randy Cooper, executive director. Cooper said the organization studied the needs of all its local facilities for the next 15 years and determined a new club was needed on the east side of town. He said about 85 percent of students in schools near the site are club members.
To construct the facility, the Boys and Girls Clubs of Wichita Falls (BGC) is partnering with the Wichita Falls Housing Authority to build on the authority’s property where the old Rosewood club and three former Head Start buildings once stood. The facility, to be named the Rosewood Community Center and Boys & Girls Club, will be owned by the housing authority and leased to the club for 75 years with both organizations funding portions of the project. The authority will pay insurance, utilities and maintenance while the club will provide programs and staffing.
The approximate cost of the new 20,000 square-foot building club is $6.8 million. It will include state of the art security, a community center, the largest gym of all the BGC sites, a dance studio, an art studio, a learning center with computers and a homework area, a teaching kitchen and a fenced patio area.
“It’s going to be just a gorgeous facility. Its mission is to serve all kids, especially those who need it most,” Cooper said.
He anticipates a groundbreaking in late March with an anticipated finish date of July 2024.
“Our team hopes this structure will act as a catalyst for development on the east side,” he said.
The new club is one portion of the spending from an $11.5 million capital campaign to upgrade all the clubs in Wichita Falls. The existing four clubs – Central, Northwest, Southeast and Southwest – will get new lighting, painting, flooring and other upgrades.
Cooper said funding was raised through local foundations, individual donors, nonprofits and local businesses.
“We are thankful for the generosity of the community,” he said.
The clubs were first established in Wichita Falls in 1929. The east side club will be the first new club built in about 40 years, Cooper said.
The clubs serve more than 4,000 kids with families paying a $12-per-year fee for membership.
This article originally appeared on Wichita Falls Times Record News: Plans moving to build new Boys and Girls Club
