The Tacoma Mountaineers are ready to make a $1.25 million investment in their future by renovating their clubhouse in Old Town Tacoma. Once the final permits are approved by the city, a major renovation will begin early next month that includes adding a second floor to the existing structure.
The original building at the corner of North 30th and Carr streets was built by club volunteers and cost $16,000 to complete in 1957.
The plans for the new structure call for a great room for meetings on the first floor and a two-story entry/atrium. The second floor will include a classroom, boardroom and offices. The existing kitchen and restrooms will be expanded. If additional funds are raised, plans call for building indoor and outdoor climbing walls and creating a green roof.
While the plans are impressive, the drive behind the project is just as important, in my opinion.
The Tacoma branch of the Mountaineers will celebrate its 100th anniversary next March. The organization’s leadership wants the renovated structure to carry the group well into its second century. They want the new building to serve as the focal point of the organization’s ever-expanding list of programs.
The branch already is working to start a summer day camp for children. They want to have a full-time presence at the building, someone who can answer questions and register people for programs.
But the group is thinking beyond its own needs. The members want to serve other conservation groups in the area. That desire is reflected in the proposed name for the new building: the South Sound Program Center.
“We want the new clubhouse to be used by other groups,” said Geoff Lawrence, chairman of the branch’s board of trustees. “We really want to serve as the South Sound hub for conservation organizations.”
Debbie Due, a longtime member, pointed out that the Mountaineers have worked on numerous projects with other organizations, including the rails-to-trails work with the Tacoma Wheelmen’s Bicycle Club that led to the Foothills Trail.
“If you have this hub, you have groups working together on common projects sitting side by side,” Due said.
Lawrence said the local branch hopes to copy the success that the Seattle branch of the Mountaineers has seen following the 2008 opening of its program center in Seattle’s Magnuson Park. That center is a showcase for Mountaineer and non-Mountaineer programs.
The Tacoma branch is on target with that concept, making the new building more of an education and training complex than a clubhouse. To me, the connotation of “clubhouse” is too exclusive for an organization that wants to serve the needs of a wide range of outdoor interests. I think to many people, the word “clubhouse” reads: “If you don’t belong, you’re not welcome.”
There also is the sense, Lawrence admitted, that if you are not a climber, the Mountaineers is not for you.
Both are misconceptions, far from the truth.
Along with the Tahoma Audubon Society, the Tacoma Mountaineers is a stalwart among the organizations serving the South Sound outdoor and conservation community. The organization has almost 1,100 members, down from a peak of about 1,500 15 years ago.
To remain vibrant, the group must infuse its membership with new blood and renewed energy. An expanded program center, combined with some new and innovative programming, will help achieve that goal.
Jeffrey P. Mayor: 253-597-8640
jeff.mayor@thenewstribune.com
blog.thenewstribune.com/adventure
JOIN THE DISCUSSION | Register here
We welcome comments. Please keep them civil, short and to the point. ALL CAPS, spam, obscene, profane, abusive and off topic comments will be deleted. Repeat offenders will be blocked. Thanks for taking part — and abiding by these simple rules. A thorough explanation of rules of conduct can be found in our Terms of Service. If you have any questions, including why your comment may not be showing immediately after you submit it, be sure to visit the commenting FAQ.