COCOA, Fla. — Nearly four years after being damaged by Hurricane Irma, a Space Coast planetarium remains closed. And thousands of students are still missing out on a visit to the "out of this world" venue.

"Every year we would go, there's so much hands on learning that goes on there," says Meadowlane Primary Elementary teacher Lori Majoy about taking her first graders to the Eastern Florida State Planetarium and Observatory.

"It just made everyone sad, because we know how much the kids looked forward to it," she continued.

Just some of the 12,000 Brevard school children who visit every year enjoyed what the planetarium offered but in late 2017, Hurricane Irma came calling.

The storm caused significant damage to the building, tearing off the roof, followed by a week of heavy rains.

"We would call, and it wasn't fixed," Majoy said. "And we would call the next year, and it wasn't fixed. And we were like what's going on, and then it never did get fixed."

The Eastern Florida State Planetarium and Observatory needs to be up to code and repaired, but until there are enough funds, it will remain closed. (Spectrum News/Jon Shaban)

It was not for a lack of trying. Eastern Florida State College conducted an engineering study which found to get the the Cocoa campus' 45-year-old facility up to code, it needed a new roof, heating and air system, new fire suppression system and up-to-date emergency exits.

The college launched a $9-million fundraising campaign in 2018, but so far neither state or private funds have come through.

The planetarium opened back in 1974, and was built with public funding and private donations from “the citizens of Brevard County.”

It was dedicated to the men of the United States' Astronaut Corps who “have helped make this nation the world leader in the exploration of space.”

Majoy hopes someone steps up to get their beloved “space place” back up and running.

"Just because I'm old doesn't mean you throw me out and I'm not a teacher anymore you know?" Majoy says. "I still have a lot to offer kids, and that (the planetarium) still has a lot to offer for children."