Council OK

Recently the City Council approved a name change for the Recreation Facilities Committee. The new name, Community Center Committee, better represents the focus of the committee, a focus that has not changed since the committee was given the task of planning for a new center. What has changed is the desire to have a name that fully encompasses the vision of the committee. The Community Center Committee has been busy laying the ground work to make that vision a reality.
    It is the goal of the committee to lay the ground work for a center that serves the entire community-hence the need for a name change. While the new center will meet the recreational needs of the youth of the city, it will also be a place for all of the citizens of Presque Isle. We want a place for all to call home, to exercise, to relax, and to meet. The building will include a gym, a senior center, a teen center, a walking track, an art room, and a multi-purpose room. The senior center will include a kitchen and provide a place for seniors to gather, socialize, and hold various activities. The teen room will include games, a television, and a quiet study area for students to use after school. The walking track will provide an indoor walking area for all, and the art room will allow the center to conduct year round art classes for citizens of all ages. The multi-purpose room will give the city a place to hold various activities including city wide, state, and national elections. The goal is to make a true community center, a gathering place for everyone, a place that addresses the social, educational, and recreational needs of all the residents of Presque Isle. Our new name is in keeping with that goal.
The last few months have been busy ones for the committee, visiting comparable recreation centers, meeting with community groups, narrowing the choice of sites, and picking an architectural firm. The committee visited seven recreation facilities throughout Maine and came away from the trip with a clear idea of what we wanted and what we didn’t want in the city’s new building. We had an opportunity to see what worked and learned some of the things we should avoid both in planning and in the finished design. In addition, many local organizations were invited in to talk to the committee about how their needs could be met by a new building. Some of these groups included the Girl Scouts, Evergreen Arts Group, Central Aroostook Mentoring Program, Aroostook Medical Center, Aroostook Area Agency on Aging, and many more.
These discussions helped delineate where our efforts could benefit a wider segment of the population. Throughout it all, the site selection sub committee has been wrestling with the pros and cons of the various sites. The list now has been winnowed to four and will be passed on to the architect to help make the final determination. Architectural firms have been interviewed and the committee is close to choosing a firm to create preliminary designs and evaluate the four sites selected by the committee. Once the architectural firm has been hired, the project design should come together quickly and we will have a clearer picture of what the new Presque Isle Community Center will look like.
The Community Center Committee hopes that its new name will inform all that it does. The Committee wants to design for the city a true center for the community, a place that is welcoming to all and provides recreational, social, and educational services for everyone. We are well on our way to making the vision of a new center a reality, but we need your help. If this is to be your center we need your input. Please consider attending public hearings and feel free to contact the recreation center with your ideas and suggestions.
Our Committee meetings are open to the public and all are encouraged to attend. Public comment is encouraged at all our meetings and you can also request to have a place on the agenda to share your thoughts. Together we can make the idea of new Community Center for Presque Isle a reality.
Kevin Sipe is a member of the Presque Isle Community Center Committee.