When the JCC’s current building opened in 1994, it was a dream come true. The shiny new classrooms, a gorgeous new pool, and the beautiful new social hall and gym were a source of pride and joy for the entire community. Nobody could have predicted the growth of our community and the changing needs of our programs that would take place over the next 20 years.
To accommodate some of this growth, in 2009 the JCC built a modular structure to add two new preschool classrooms on leased property on Clyde Street. Free access to the lush, green space on the property also provided a much needed outdoor play area for our summer camp program. Unfortunately, the lease agreement only ensured that the JCC could use the space through August of 2015.
By December of 2012, the JCC’s Board of Directors knew that we were facing several challenges. Our 20-year-old building would soon need expensive repairs: heating and cooling system updates, a new roof, pool and locker room repairs. Our early childhood classrooms had been designed to accommodate a much smaller half-day nursery school program. The space was no longer meeting the needs of our significantly expanded and incredibly successful early childhood education program and would require significant upgrades to better meet the needs of our young children. Would we be able to seize the opportunity to purchase the Clyde Street property before our lease expired in 2015? How would we accommodate the needs and wants of our community’s growing population of active adults who have no children in their homes, and who expressed disappointment in the lack of programming and space for them at our JCC?
With all of these questions in mind, the JCC conducted several local studies, including a survey that received more than 700 responses. This helped us to better understand exactly what our constituents expect from the JCC. We examined the state of Asheville’s competitive environment for the types of programs that we hoped to add or expand at the JCC. We put together a team of JCC members, community leaders, and staff who worked with a national expert on JCCs, to draft a business model that will guide us into the future. Our team took a conservative approach, avoiding inclusion of saturated businesses such as fitness, and selected to expand on what we already do well – aquatics, summer day camp, early childhood education, and social and educational programs for all ages. Due to JCC member demand, we also decided to expand our wellness programming to include more regular group fitness classes.
Following the report of our findings to potential funders, we were given a once in a lifetime opportunity to receive a matching challenge grant to fund a significant capital campaign. This unprecedented offer will allow the Asheville community to double whatever amount we are able to raise to fund these improvements to our JCC.
In 2014 we conducted a feasibility study and determined that our community members fully recognize the importance of this project and the significance of the matching challenge grant. We formed a building planning committee to develop a framework for changes to our facility that will meet the goals of our business model. We worked with the Asheville Design Center to reach out to the surrounding neighborhood and learned about their wishes and concerns regarding our project. We hired the architect firm of Clark Nexsen to advise us on how to best approach the various constraints of our current location as well as meeting zoning requirements.
The result of these years of study and planning are evident in our solid plan. Click here for details.