Boys & Girls Club moving to Grant Beach Park

General contractor Morelock-Ross is scheduled to begin construction in June on a new 22,000-square-foot Boys & Girls Clubs center in Grant Beach Park. The new building will replace the Henderson Unit at 1300 N. Boonville.

Pat Gartland, executive director of Boys & Girls Clubs of Springfield, said the existing Henderson Unit was built for boys in 1948, when the focus was more sports-oriented.

“Our membership now is about 50 percent girls, and we do so much more with technology, education and leadership,” Gartland said.

Because of its location, the new Henderson Unit will have access to the tennis courts, the pool, baseball field, picnic and play areas at Grant Beach Park.

The center itself, which will be located on the south side of the park behind the tennis court, will have several of its own amenities, including a full-sized gymnasium, teen

center, full kitchen, multipurpose room, learning center, technology lab, art and music center, game room, conference room and offices.

Boys & Girls Club held public meetings with community members and neighborhood groups to get input on the new facility, and to address concerns about the project. Springfield City Council and the Springfield-Greene County Parks Department have approved the move to Grant Beach Park.

“Any organization has to match our goals of providing services to the community,” said Jodie Adams, director of the Springfield-Greene County Parks Department. “It has to be good for the neighborhood and the area it will be built in.”

The Boys and Girls Club will have a 25-year lease with the option for renewal with the Parks Department, paying $1 a year for the property.

“This is the community’s park, and (the Henderson Unit) is providing more services to the local community,” Adams said. “It gives them a center where they can meet, (hold) neighborhood meetings, neighborhood activities, in a public place.”

Slone Architects designed the new Henderson center.

Initially, the Grant Beach Neighborhood Association had concerns about the relocation, but those have been addressed.

“We wanted (Henderson Unit) to look like the rest of the park area, with stone fronts native to this area, and they accepted our request,” said Margaret Blakey, vice president of the Grant Beach Neighborhood Association.

Boys & Girls Clubs’ 2004-2005 My Generation campaigns are providing about 80 percent of the $2.6 million needed for the Henderson Unit construction. The remainder will come from the sale of the Boonville facility, though Gartland declined to say who is purchasing the building or for how much.

The project is scheduled for completion in April 2007.