The City of Red Cloud has been without a community building since the Veteran's Memorial Hall was demolished in 1992. The Red Cloud City Council appointed a citizens' committee to develop plans for a new community center. The committee included Red Cloud citizens of all ages who worked with the Bahr Vermeer Haecker architect firm to design a center that would best serve the entire community. In September 1999, the committee presented to the City Council a design and location recommendation. The approved final plan called for a 9,000-sq. ft. building that incorporated the suggestions proposed by the committee.

Long before construction began, the community designed a strategic financial plan to fund the building of the new center. In November 1996, Red Cloud voters approved a 1 % sales tax to finance the community center. In April 1997, the tax went into effect and by March 2002, $442,225 had been collected. In April 1998, a community needs assessment survey of Red Cloud was conducted by the Center for Rural Research & Development of the University of Nebraska-Kearney.

On October 6, 2000, the City was notified it had been approved for a $250,000 Community Development Block Grant from the Nebraska Department of Economic Development. Shortly thereafter a loan for $865,400 was secured through the United States Department Agriculture -- Rural Development. With adequate funding in place, the City began to take bids on the project. On February 15, 2001, BD Construction of Kearney submitted the low bid of $888,960 and on May 21, 2001 the Red Cloud City Council awarded BD the contract. Excavating began in June 2001 with completion scheduled for April of 2002.

The Red Cloud Community Center includes a meeting room, multipurpose facilities, exercise room, and kitchen. One month before the center's grand opening a number of events had already been scheduled, including four wedding receptions, three family reunions, two class reunions, numerous meetings, a 50th wedding anniversary and the Willa Cather Spring 2002 Conference banquet. The building will also be used as a polling place in the primary and general elections.

Contact Information

Red Cloud Community Center
(402) 746–2215

Community Action Partnership of Mid-Nebraska (Partner)
www.mnca.net
(308) 865–5675

Rick Zubrod (DED Representative)
(402) 471-3762   •   (800) 426-6505
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