Friends of Tamarac Discovery Center

2014 article by Ron Jensen

 

It is hard to believe that the dream we had three years ago is now becoming a reality! What I am referring to is the construction of the new Discovery Center located just east of the refuge headquarters parking lot. FOT volunteers and the refuge staff could see the need if we were going to truly do the job of educating our youth in the important area of environmental education. But we didn’t know if the public held the same view, so the Friends of Tamarac decided to go directly to the public and ask the question. The answer we received was an overwhelming yes, and we were encouraged to pursue our dream. After a year of evaluating the needs and uses of such a facility, we took the step of hiring an architect to draw up the plans. The FOT will build the Discovery Center, and then donate it back to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. Since it would finally be their facility, it would have to meet their building codes and energy savings. We started our fundraising efforts a year ago with $500,000 as our target. As of Dec. 1st , we have received pledges and cash donations of $522,000 from our generous corporate donors as well as an unbelievable number of individual gifts. While we thought our goal of $500,000 would be sufficient to complete this project, we now know that number to be on the low side. Although we are short, we decided to take a leap of faith and start the project. The final cost of the building as bid was $587,000 but that did not include architect fees, site evaluations, cost overruns, and other miscellaneous charges. Taking that into account, we think the real dollar number to have the building completely paid for is closer to $640,000. We still have a number of probable donors who will hopefully close that gap. We are pursuing grants that could have an immediate impact, and we have arranged bank financing if needed to help us through the construction stage. We poured the footings and outer support walls this fall and, we will be in full construction mode come spring. The completion date will be September 1, 2014. The phone has been buzzing from many area school districts that are anxiously waiting to use the new building and to participate in the great environmental programs that are offered. I hope this brings everyone up to date on our Discovery Center. We truly hope that you or someone you know can help us reach our fnancial goal.