GALVESTON — The Salvation Army is only $178,185 short of the $3.3 million fundraising goal it set two years ago, but rapidly rising construction costs means the money won’t be enough to start work on a new building.

Photo by Jennifer Reynolds

The artist's rendering of the new Salvation Army building that will be located on 51st Street in Galveston near the Pelican Island bridge. It will include wheelchair accessibility and space for families with children.

Architects now say the new center and thrift store will cost $5.8 million to complete, leaving the organization’s fundraisers wondering where the balance will come from.

Many of the county’s charitable foundations and major corporations already have pledged donations to the building campaign.

But the organization still isn’t getting widespread support from county residents or churches.

Jan Porter, who is in charge of the Salvation Army’s donor relations, said she spent months contacting churches on and off the island.

Only a handful responded to her plea, giving just $4,000 to the campaign.

“Most of the churches told me that attendance is down and so is giving,” Porter said. “A lot of them didn’t even return my calls.”

Galveston’s First Baptist Church did respond, collecting $1,900 from its congregation on April 20.

The church’s proximity to the Salvation Army’s shelter and thrift shop at the corner of 23^rd Street and Broadway helped encourage donations, said Ray Meador, the church’s pastor.

“The big thing for us is the fact that we see the impact the Salvation Army has here,” he said. “We see the good it does. At the same time, we see they need better facilities than they have now.”

Like most island churches, Meador’s congregation is not as big as it once was. He estimated average Sunday morning attendance at about 150 people, including children.

But many church members had a strong desire to help, Meador said.

The new Salvation Army building, dubbed the “Center of Hope,” will include space for families with children and wheelchair accessibility, both things the current shelter doesn’t have.

The organization has purchased and paid for 2.2 acres on 51^st Street, just a few blocks off Broadway.

Officials hope to start construction soon after the official end of the fundraising campaign, but the rising construction costs could make that tricky.

Even if the organization meets its campaign goal and can sell the current building for its $1.3 million appraised value, it will still be $1.2 million short of what it needs to break ground.

The national organization requires the building to be paid for before work can begin, Porter said.

The fundraising campaign, which started almost two years ago, was a hard-fought battle, she said.

But it has had its bright spots, like last month, when a man walked into Porter’s office with a copy of the last article The Daily News published about the organization’s financial needs.

The man, who wished to remain anonymous, asked for a tour of the current facility and said he’d been thinking about donating to the building campaign for several months, Porter said.

He then handed her a pledge card for $300,000.

“It was a big surprise and very emotional,” Porter said. “He’s a great guy, a strong Christian and a longtime supporter of the army. The important thing is that he trusts us and believes in the work we do.”

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For More Info

To contribute to the Salvation Army’s fundraising campaign for its new facility, call Jan Porter at 409-763-1691.

Potential buyers interested in the 23^rd Street property can call V.J. Tramonte at 409-765-9837.