St. Joseph Cathedral School is on a fast track to expand its gym and fine arts facilities, thanks to significant help from an anonymous donor.
The school's current activities center was dedicated Oct. 30, 1977, nearly 40 years ago.
As the school's programs have grown, the capacity of the current facilities to meet demands has diminished.
"The students work so hard to pursue all of the gifts that God has given them," St. Joseph Principal Spencer Allen said in a news release. "We want a facility that really showcases the hard work that the students put into their extra-curricular involvement."
Allen explained Friday the current gym does not have air conditioning, which was especially apparent with the day's 90-degree weather. Industrial-sized fans kept air moving through the space from doors that had been propped open.
Allen said having A/C will solve a security issue as much as the comfort one.
He also explained the size of the gym now prohibits the school from hosting large tournaments, but with the expansion's new floor space the school will be able to host archery, volleyball and maybe basketball tournaments.
The new gym will have a drop-down divider, and drop-down volleyball nets also are being explored.
The expansion will push the footprint of the building out to the south, creating approximately 4,000 square feet of needed storage space underneath, Allen said, noting the playgrounds will stay where they are now.
The current stage will be made deeper and wider, and the dressing rooms for musicals will be enlarged.
There also will be new bathrooms - which will improve access during recess and ADA accessibility - and a larger, soundproof band room.
Allen said the school did a feasibility study on the project four years ago that indicated strong support. He said St. Joseph waited until Helias High School's construction projects were finished, though.
The capital campaign for the estimated $1.75 million expansion project at St. Joseph has already started. "So far, we have had many excited responses," he said.
An anonymous donor has offered to match all pledges made to the "Expanding Opportunities" campaign.
The Catholic Diocese of Jefferson City requires all diocesan building projects have at least 50 percent of the cost collected and available before construction may begin. Allen said the donor's matches will help expedite having that cash in hand.
He's hoping for a ground-breaking in February, once basketball season is over. If the work interrupts the volleyball season, the school is already making calls now to find alternative facilities, he added.
Further architectural renderings beyond the exterior one already released from St. Louis-based firm Otke-Doucet Architecture LLC are expected in the coming weeks. Allen said the design phase will start next month.
Electronic pledge cards and printed ones were sent out to parents Friday, and parishioners will receive them soon.
While the expanded facilities might not be ready for the start of school in August, Allen anticipates the new spaces will be ready for fall 2018.
"We think it'll be a really attractive facility," especially with the view from the south on Industrial Drive, he said.