the Star-Tribune staff | Posted: Wednesday, August 20, 2008 12:00 am
The Casper Senior Center broke ground on its expansion project a year earlier than expected today.
A fundraising campaign was so successful among senior center clients and the Casper community that the 5,000 square-foot expansion should be complete by June 2009, according to Wayne Clements, executive director of the center.
The expansion will double the dining room and multipurpose space, provide more activity space, new bathrooms and add 35 parking spaces.
The city gave the senior center $2.1 million from optional 1 percent sales tax funds for the project. Clements said he thought it would take the city longer to come up with that money due to the slowing economy.
Also, the senior center needed to raise another $700,000 before the project could begin.
Through some large donations from the McMurry Foundation, the Daniels Fund and a few clients, the senior center met that goal.
"There were other gifts ranging from $1,000 to $1 from 80 percent of the people who come here," Clements said. "We are all supporting each other."
See Thursday's Star-Tribune for more on this story.