Jefferson City Schools to expand athletic facilities on property damaged by tornado

Jefferson City Schools is continuing to buy properties damaged in May’s tornado and plans to use the land to expand athletic facilities at Jefferson City High School.

The district plans to build competition fields at Capital City High School and purchasing the 33 properties near Jefferson City High School will allow that school to expand its athletic facilities, too, said Jefferson City Schools Chief Financial Officer Jason Hoffman.

“We want to have the same opportunities at both schools,” he said.

Hoffman said the district doesn’t have a date set for immediate construction but is considering building facilities for baseball, soccer, softball and tennis and a greenhouse.

Capital Region Medical Center has bought five properties in the area located near the hospital, said Lindsay Huhman, director of public relations at Capital Region Medical Center.

She said the medical center doesn’t have any immediate plans for the purchased properties.

Jefferson City Planning Manager Eric Barron said the city is looking at the tornado’s impacts on the community’s need for housing.

“I think the concern is not just the school district acquisition area, but the overall effects of the tornado on the affordable housing situation in Jefferson City,” Barron said.

He said the Jackson Street Corridor is slowly transitioning from a residential to an institutional area.

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