Marist High School officials decided buying an existing sports facility was more economical than building one from the ground up on their own campus in Mount Greenwood.
So when school President Larry Tucker saw the for sale sign on the Palos Courts building in Palos Heights, he inquired about it.
“Part of (the school’s) strategic plan is we should look for an indoor facility with turf of some kind that kids could use during inclement weather,” Tucker said.
Marist, a coed Catholic high school with about 1,585 students, has space on its 55-acre campus at 4200 W. 115th St. for such a building, but it would be tight, Tucker said.
Then school administrators looked at how much such a project would cost, and balked.
“If we were going to build it on our campus, the cost was going to be astronomical,” Tucker said, “so we put it on a side burner.”
Marist has great athletic facilities on its campus, he said, but there are so many boys and girls teams for different sports that practices have to be scheduled later and later in the evening. The school also has no indoor fields for the band and baseball, softball, lacrosse and football teams to use when it’s snowing or raining or the field is not in good condition. Teams then have to compete for space in the school gymnasium.
Tucker knew the owner of the Palos Courts building, 1221 S. Ridgeland Ave., and his adult son, Mike Brennan, who graduated from Marist two years after Tucker.
“It seemed like such a great opportunity. I called and we talked about it,” Tucker said.
He discussed the possibility with Marist’s athletic staff and its School Board. Palos Courts, on the east side of Ridgeland just south of Route 83, is about 4 miles from the Marist campus.
There were other potential buyers for 75,000-square-foot building, Tucker said, but the Brennan family ultimately decided to sell to Marist for $1.8 million. The sale closed Aug. 30.
School officials expect to spend as much on renovations, although the changes and the budget are still to be determined. The building is more than 20 years old has been used for tennis, volleyball, racquetball and other sports.
Marist administrators want to create a football field and baseball diamond inside. Although neither would be regulation size, they would be large enough to use for practice games and training camps.
It will mean Marist students could get home at an earlier hour, leaving time for homework, sleep and their general well-being, said Tucker, who was principal of Marist for 22 years before becoming president.
The facility will include air-conditioned girls and boys locker rooms, concessions, simulators for the golf teams to practice, audiovisual equipment and space for programs in sports medicine, sports performance and other health field careers students might want to pursue.
The first priority will be putting a new roof on and tuck-pointing the building, Tucker said. Once it’s airtight, workers can install the new turfs over the winter.
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The work will be phased, so students can use areas as they are ready over the next year, rather than waiting for the complete renovation.
The building might also be used for school ministries, campus retreats and Marist reunions, Tucker said. While being designed primarily for use by Marist students, he said it could be available to alumni, area grammar schools and sports clubs.
The plan is to fund the purchase and remodeling expenses with donor contributions.
In the next few weeks, Marist will launch a capital campaign to raise between $4 million and $5 million, Tucker said.
Kimberly Fornek is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.