Rising Above is hoping to break ground on a new building next spring. Rising Above presented a proposal to council on Monday for a 40-year lease as well as permission to build on the existing property.  

Executive Director Mel Siggelkow says, “We presented it to the City Council and were met with very favorable responses from all of Council. They deferred it back to administration to work out the details. And so, for us, that was the best-case scenario.” 

The second facility will be a self-standing building, but on the same property as the current Rising Above Park Campus. The 3200 square foot building will be three stories with a basement. It will add space for an additional 28 participants, plus a larger classroom. 

The existing facility will continue to be used pretty much as it is now, and the new building is just going to bring the ladies on site with access to more immediate support.  

Siggelkow says, “It's going to do 2 things here. It’s going to bring our ladies from the 4 houses that are dispersed in the community all on the same campus where they'll all be together. The ladies will be able to access the support so easily like our guys do now. Plus, this will increase our overall capacity by about 30%.  

The next step will be for Rising Above and the city administration to work out all the details of the lease, and then start connecting with some of the municipalities and other supporters in the community that would be willing to partner with the organization.