COLUMBIA — The City Council unanimously approved the final plat of Regional Catholic High School during Monday night's meeting, with no discussion or comments about the plan.
Five out of six council members, including Mayor Darwin Hindman, were present and voted in favor of the plan at the meeting. Fifth Ward Councilwoman Laura Nauser was absent.
The high school will cost about $16 million to build and is scheduled to open in 2010. The school will be built west of U.S. 63, to the north of Gans Road and east of Bearfield Road on about 23 acres of land. Although it will only be able to accommodate 200 students at most in the first year, the high school will eventually be able to hold up to 400 students after it's finished.
The council unanimously approved preliminary plans for the high school during the Oct. 6 meeting, which set in motion a call for more detailed planning and fundraising. In early October, about $5.8 million had already been raised for the school.
Columbia is one of the largest cities in the Diocese of Jefferson City to not have a Catholic high school, and Regional Catholic High School will fulfill the needs of parents who want to enroll their children in smaller schools of faith, project manager Ray Beck said in October.