New Boys & Girls club would be bigger, better
Lynne Lynch/Columbia Basin Herald<br> Brant Mayo points out features of the new Boys & Girls Club of the Columbia Basin as shown on an architectural rendering. He is the club's executive director.
MOSES LAKE — Imagine a place where kids could go after school that’s designed for their needs.
With the new Boys & Girls Club in Moses Lake, ample space would be available for a wider selection of games, programs and activities.
The club’s two locations in Moses Lake were originally built for different purposes. One clubhouse is a downtown storefront and the other is a former Air Force building.
The downtown building measures 4,000 square feet and the other club location comes to 3,000 square feet.
It’s why a larger, 10,000-square-foot building is being proposed.
“We have made our current facilities work for our kids, but they and their families deserve more,” said Brant Mayo, the club’s executive director.
With the $3.2 million project, the club would have new offerings for school-aged kids.
They include a teen center, community room, outdoor recreation space and fine art center.
The club will be located on the same campus as the proposed Park Orchard Elementary School, located east of the Grant County Fairgrounds.
The shared location means club members would have access to the school’s gymnasium, kitchen/nutrition center and computer center after school.
The club currently offers youth a place to spend their after-school hours, with positive role models and leadership, Mayo said.
“After school is the toughest time,” he says. “Studies show it’s when they get in the most amount of trouble.”
The project has been well-received by the community.
Already, the organization received $700,000 in pledges and in-kind donations of materials and labor.
All of the club’s board members made pledges toward the project.
“We’re proud of that,” he commented.
The project’s architectural firm is NAC Architecture out of Spokane.
The firm designed the new Sage Point Elementary School in Moses Lake and The Terraces, which is the luxury condo project located on the golf course of The Coeur d’Alene Resort.
The firms also does work for many hospitals.
“They are very good at detail, producing good working drawings and at getting things done on time and on budget,” said John Barlow, president of Hagadone Real Estate Company.
He said the company likes the finished product of The Terraces.
“They are a good firm,” he says. “They should be able to do a real nice job with the Boys & Girls Club.”
For more information, call 509-764-9694 or e-mail Bmayo@bngclub.org.