To the editor:
The warrant for the Annual Town Meeting on March 25 includes an article to approve $150,000 to fund “a feasibility study and preliminary design development plans for a community center to be located within the Hartwell Complex of the Ballfield Road school campus.” If funding for a school project feasibility study is approved, the board of the Lincoln Council on Aging and the Parks and Recreation Committee recommend approval of the community center article at both Annual Town Meeting and the town election to be held on Monday, March 27. The benefits to all residents of Lincoln in funding feasibility studies for both the school and community center projects are many, and include:
- Funding feasibility studies for both projects assures that planning will be done jointly, and therefore will take into account the needs of both projects most efficiently.
- Beginning the process for a community center project now will save the town money in the long run. Multiple committees have determined that both the Council on Aging and Parks and Recreation need significantly improved facilities and construction costs will only increase over time.
- The community center will provide all residents with attractive space for programs and activities they already enjoy as well as new ones, with enough parking that is a reasonable distance, and that is fully accessible. This includes:
- Adults and children who participate in Parks and Recreation programs
- Seniors who attend COA programs and use COA social services
- Members of community organizations who will hold meetings and programs in the community center
- Residents of all ages who need confidential health and social services
- All members of the community who would like to participate in fun and community-building activities like community suppers and townwide fairs, and
- Anyone who would like a place to gather to socialize with others in a relaxed, welcoming place.
- A community center in the Ballfield Road area, along with the schools and athletic fields, would enhance Lincoln’s sense of community by providing one place for formal and informal opportunities for residents from many generations and a diversity of interests to come together to get to know one another and feel a part of a vibrant and welcoming town.
The reasons for supporting a community center are as many and as individual as each town resident. What would you like a community center to do for you?
Sincerely,
Lincoln Council on Aging Board
Lincoln Parks and Recreation Committee
Letters to the editor must be signed with the writer’s name and street address and sent via email to lincolnsquirrelnews@gmail.com. Letters will be edited for punctuation, spelling, style, etc., and will be published at the discretion of the editor. Letters containing personal attacks, errors of fact or other inappropriate material will not be published.
Leave a Reply