From the Ground Up: The Risdal Family Teen Center for Great Futures

Last edited 12:07 p.m., Nov. 25, 2024 [Editor's note: Own Inc. is the civil engineer. The company's previous name was used before. Additionally, a stated use for leased space has been corrected.]

Owner: Boys and Girls Clubs of Springfield Inc.
General contractor: Ross Construction Group LLC
Architect: Buxton Kubik Dodd Design Collective
Engineers: Own Inc., civil; RTM Engineering Consultants LLC, structural; and Buxton Kubik Dodd Design Collective, mechanical, electrical and plumbing
Size: 30,500 square feet
Cost: $12 million
Funding source: Capital campaign
Estimated completion: August 2025
Project description: Now that road and sidewalk improvements are completed, a lot of building construction is happening in the portion of the Grant Avenue Parkway south of Grand Street. Last week’s From the Ground Up featured a new multifamily development, The Wayfarer in the Dale, going up on 1112 S. Grant Avenue. Just south of that project, west of Grant on Catalpa Street, The Risdal Family Teen Center for Great Futures has begun to rise from its lot – itself located next to the new Nordic Landing affordable housing apartment building. The center has been in the works since July 2021, with a groundbreaking ceremony on Feb. 15. The goal is for the two-story center to be a safe place for middle- and high-school students to go after school to access programming in education, workforce readiness, the arts, character and leadership, health and wellness, and sports and recreation. It will have a gym and a game room, plus food, computers, laundry and shower facilities, with mental health care available. Services will be offered free of charge, Boys and Girls Club officials say. A portion of the second floor is intended to be leased for youth services, according to past Springfield Business Journal reporting.