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Meeting Minutes
<br />Community Center Task Force
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<br />Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation for Lexington
<br />Budget is $2 million, none from tax levy; recreation is an enterprise fund (100% of money comes
<br />from user fees) covering staff (5 full-time, 175 seasonal part-time, 255 volunteers who give back
<br />5,400 hours to the community), aquatics, neighborhood and Center parks, tennis courts and
<br />athletic fields on school grounds, camps, programs, supplies, facilities, a portion of debt service
<br />on Lincoln Park.
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<br />Missing: dedicated indoor space during the day for programs. Schools can override Rec
<br />programs on any given day, building rehab moves Town facilities around and bumps or
<br />eliminates Rec programs. Programs such as adult fitness, preschool, after school indoor, passive
<br />and active recreation for those with physical, cognitive and social challenges, therapeutic and
<br />non-therapeutic arts and crafts, ceramics, painting, fitness and exercise centers. Overall, missing
<br />intergenerational offerings which bring true sense of community, and share (don’t duplicate)
<br />resources and talent within a community.
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<br />Would like to do: lack of consistent program space limits variety of programs they can offer.
<br />Need space for teens: gym, kitchen, game room, lounge. Computer training. Dedicated space
<br />would allow preschool programming: space could be used all day through school year and for
<br />camp in summer.
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<br />Community center would allow more effective partnering with Human Services, Police, Health
<br />Dept and could serve a wider range of ages and provide a wider range of programs. Could do
<br />more programs like FunFEST (FREE joint Recreation, Police, Human Services, program at
<br />tennis courts, families come with picnic dinner for games, music, swim, and fun activities), not
<br />just outside in the summer. CC would eliminate duplication of resources, and a central location
<br />would give a sense of community. More fitness, ping pong, pool, kitchen area and teen space,
<br />community meeting space for dances, teen music or Chinese New Year, for example. More
<br />programming for people with developmental delays. Could have a therapeutic recreation staff
<br />person, storage for materials. It would be shared space that has all players at the table, open and
<br />accessible to all.
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<br />After the presentations, the committee voted unanimously to approve the minutes of the June 14,
<br />2011 meeting, and to a corrected version of the June 28, 2011 minutes.
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<br />th
<br />The meeting adjourned at 9:10 PM. The next meeting of the CCTF is scheduled for July 19 at
<br />7:30pm, in the Legion room Room G-15 of Town Cary Hall.
<br />Respectfully submitted by Laura Hussong
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