The Chilkat Valley Preschool has passed the halfway mark in its effort to raise $420,000 for the construction of its new home, a 1,400-square-foot addition on the back of the Haines Senior Center.
The nonprofit organization is also making headway with the Haines Borough Assembly, which on July 26 approved a lease agreement with the preschool on a 5-1 vote. Assembly member George Campbell was opposed.
Ann Myren, who is handling the fundraising and grant applications for the preschool’s project steering committee, said the organization has raised $235,000.
An anonymous donor has funded a $20,000 challenge grant, matching donations up to that amount through Aug. 31. The grant has brought in about $8,000 in donations so far, Myren said.
Partnering with the borough, the preschool submitted a letter of intent to the Rasmuson Foundation and will find out in the next month or so whether the preschool will be invited to submit a grant proposal.
Grant applications to First National Bank Alaska and the Douglas-Dornan Foundation have also been submitted, and Myren also is working on a Crockett Foundation grant. Those grants paired with an October fundraising event at Harriett Hall and raffle should put the preschool where it needs to be, she said.
“If we are successful with our grant funding and we are able to raise the money from individuals and businesses that we are hoping for, then it will all work,” she said.
The preschool already has ready-to-build designs, she added.
“We’re moving forward on lots of fronts. We’re raising money and working through the planning process and permitting with the state and the borough. We’re really trying to look forward so once we can start to build, we can get in there for the 2017-2018 school year,” Myren said.
Public facilities director Brad Ryan said the borough and preschool have hammered out a management agreement for the building. “I’m not doing it anymore, which makes me really happy,” Ryan said of managing the facility.
It is going to take a while to determine whether the agreement pans out for the borough, as the municipality is still paying utilities on the Senior Center in exchange for the preschool collecting rents and cleaning it. Because the center is fueled with pellets, which are purchased in bulk, it is hard to tell if the trade is balanced, Ryan said.
To contribute toward the $20,000 challenge grant, search for Chilkat Valley Preschool at http://www.gofundme.com. Donations can also be sent to P.O. Box 1165, Haines, AK 99827.