Seymour Revives Community Center Planning Committee

Members of the Seymour Board of Selectmen during a meeting held online.

SEYMOUR — When former First Selectman Kurt Miller appointed a committee back in January to explore the possibility of building a new community center, no one knew a pandemic would get in the way of progress. 

The committee — comprised of Miller, Building Official Jim Baldwin, Facilities Director Tim Connors, Mike Marcinek, chairman of the permanent building committee, Board of Education member Fred Stanek, Suzanne Reilly, chairman of the livable communities committee, Zack Philippas, the community center’s manager of recreational programming, Town Engineer Bryan Nesteriak and Board of Finance Chairman Bill Sawicki —never had a chance to get off the ground.

In July, Miller announced the issue had been put on hold as officials waited to see what happened with the COVID-19 pandemic.

But, at its Nov. 17 meeting, members of the Seymour Board of Selectmen decided to jump start the committee because the century-old building that houses the Seymour Community Center, the Senior Center and a satellite branch of the Boys and Girls Club, all housed at 20 Pine St., isn’t getting any younger.

First Selectwoman Annmarie Drugonis said she will call the first meeting of the committee in early to mid-December to get the ball rolling.

Voters in November 2019 were asked if they’d be interested in borrowing up to $15 million to potentially build a new community center, but without a specific proposal in place, they shot it down by 389 votes. 

Seymour officials viewed the vote as a barometer reading, not a wholesale rejection of the concept.

Miller, prior to the failed vote, said there were several options the town could consider for the aging community center, which he said is bursting at the seams.” One was building a brand new facility, possibly at Gary Park, and another option was to enter into a public-private partnership with a developer to get a new center built, at less cost to the town.

Property owned by the Haynes company behind Stop & Shop has been floated as a possible location, too.

The committee’s job is to come up with scenarios that suit the town’s needs.

We definitely need to look at what our best options are,” said Connors, who oversees maintenance at all town-owned buildings. One option is to redo what we have, which could cost $4 to $7 million, build brand new, or enter a public-private partnership, which could be easier on funding for the town.”

Connors said the $15 million figure to build a new facility was based on a new community center the town of Newtown recently built.

We need to meet as a committee, and get some numbers flowing and see which direction the town wants to go in,” Connors added.

Connors noted that COVID-19 restrictions and CDC guidelines could influence how the building is designed. Whether the town would be able to build an indoor basketball court, indoor soccer area or even a swimming pool inside a new community center remains to be seen. Connors said air quality controls have changed, as well, in terms of building new facilities.

There’s a lot we’re going to have to look into, but we definitely have to get the ball rolling,” Connors said. 

Selectman Rob VanEgghen said the committee can start putting together a wish list, so at least we start planning all the things we’d want” in a new community center.

The 100-year old building is in need of many repairs, Connors said, including a new roof and elevator, both which continue to receive patch-jobs.

Miller had said over the last two years the Community Services Department had exploded with recreational offerings for residents. The current building as is, he had said, is holding the town back in providing more programming opportunities because it’s at full capacity.

While the ongoing pandemic has caused the center to temporarily close, and revert to virtual programming for the time being, town officials know life eventually will return to normal, and having adequate facilities and programs in place for families, seniors and others is important. 

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