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Gov. Perry, Czech PM Join for More Groundbreaking in West

The City of West is taking yet another step towards rebuilding after last year’s fertilizer plant explosion. On Thursday they broke ground on the new West Sokol gym. And as Jill Ament reports, Governor Rick Perry and the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic were in attendance.

The SPJST dance hall in West is a popular Czech cultural and heritage site where a lot of people in town got together. In Czech, SPJST stands for the Slavonic Benevolent Order of the State of Texas. The dance hall was destroyed in the West fertilizer plant blast last year. In fact -- the entire neighborhood it was located in was destroyed by the blast. West Mayor Tommy Muska’s parents had their wedding reception there.

“Back when they got married, they had their dance at the SPJST Hall," Muska said. "And Willie Nelson played for them at their dance that night. So it brings back… It’s pretty close to me.”

Thursday’s groundbreaking sets the construction of a new dance hall in motion. The project will also include the rebuilding of a gymnastics center right next to the hall. All together the revival of the Sokol Gymnasium and community center will be a $1.2 million project.

Czech Republic Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka participated in the groundbreaking.

With the aid of a translator -- he spoke to the audience of mostly community members and a flock of media – saying he hoped the gymnasium would stand as a symbol of solidarity for the people of West.

“The dreadful explosion that occurred on the 17th of April 2013 in which 15 young people of mostly Czech descent lost their young lives struck me profoundly," Sobotka said.  "And at the same time it raised the ties of solidarity in the Czech Republic.”

Governor Rick Perry was also there. He says they’re not only celebrating the construction of a building – but the spirit of the West community.

“But this community has an amazing soul," Perry said. "And it’s been on display for sometime since the tragedy that occurred here.”

Mayor Muska says the groundbreaking is definitely a benchmark in the town’s recovery – which he describes as a marathon -- not a sprint.

Jill Ament is a reporter at KWBU. She hails from right here in Central Texas, growing up down the road in Gatesville. She graduated from Texas State University’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication in May of 2012.