Launches “ALL IN. BIG SKY” campaign to raise remainder
BIG SKY COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION
On April 25, the Big Sky Community
Organization announced that it had to-date raised more than $12 million for the
community center on the 3.3 acres of land the organization acquired and secured
as open space parkland in perpetuity in Big Sky Town Center, and announced the
launch of its “ALL IN. BIG SKY” campaign to raise the remaining $5.5 million
needed for the center by the end of summer 2019.
The community center is designed to be a
multi-use space that will serve as a gathering place for residents, visitors and
club members. The center will have common spaces, meeting rooms and office
spaces which will house nonprofits and community resources. It will also offer
recreational areas to facilitate a variety of indoor and outdoor sports, and
art programs, acting as an accessible, affordable space for the public.
“As Big Sky continues to grow, the Big
Sky Community Organization envisions a future Big Sky which will always feel
like home—with community spaces, parklands, trail systems and recreation
opportunities available to anyone with a need and interest, to people of all
ages, income brackets and backgrounds,” said BSCO Executive Director Ciara
Wolfe.
Currently, community recreation centers
within Big Sky are within private neighborhoods, not accessible to the general
public. Additionally, no public indoor community facilities exist in the Big
Sky community besides the Big Sky School District and the Water Sewer District
Building.
Through its facilities and the
organizations housed therein, the community center will provide local access to
art, culture and environmental education, while supporting physically and
mentally healthy lifestyles.
“We need a permanent community space that
serves everyone, yearround—and we’re going ‘ALL IN’ to make it happen,” Wolfe
said.
The community center stands to contribute
to the health and wellness of the community in multiple ways.
The center will provide a safe and
positive environment for teens and young adults to spend time together
participating in scheduled activities, skills programs or indoor and outdoor
activities.
It will also serve as a space to address
prevalent behavioral and mental health issues including substance abuse,
suicide and depression through the creation of an empowering support network of
on-grounds counseling and community-wide resources.
Slated for a July groundbreaking, the
community center is aimed at being Big Sky’s first Platinum LEED certified
commercial building, a certification awarded to structures that meet certain
sustainability criteria.
Tallie Lancey, a BSCO board member,
emphasized the project’s cooperative nature.
“Throughout every aspect of project
development, our organization has collaborated closely with partner
organizations to make the greatest possible community-wide impact.” Lancey said.
“We are truly ‘ALL IN’ this together, and BSCO’s goals and process reflect
that.”
BSCO—an organization focused on engaging
Big Sky’s public in recreational and enrichment opportunities through
development of partnerships, programs and places— leveraged the community center for
several collaborative endeavors, which include securing parkland for the Music
in the Mountains summer concert series, working with the Gallatin River Task
Force to develop an irrigation system that uses treated effluent and building
in a transportation hub for the commuting workforce.
“We believe this project exemplifies
collaboration and innovation within a strongly-rooted resort community that
values our people and this special place,” Lancey said.
The “ALL IN. BIG SKY” campaign seeks to
involve everyone in the Big Sky community in the community center’s creation, whether
through fundraising, showing up to support the cause or spreading awareness.
Visit bscomt.org/communitycenter for more information or to get involved.
