A lot of fund raising would have to occur before Boys & Girls Club could build dream building along Winni River By Michael Kitch THE LACONIA DAILY SUN
LACONIA — In response to a request from the Boys and Girls Club of the Lakes Region to purchase municipally owned property on Davis Place for a permanent home for the club, the City Council has scheduled a public hearing on the project at its meeting on Monday, November 26. Representatives of the club, accompanied by attorney Rod Dyer, met with the council behind closed doors on Monday night to express their interest in acquiring two lots, with a total area of 1.82 acres, across the street from the Normandin Square Apartments. A portion of the property runs along the Winnipesaukee River. Following the meeting Mayor Mike Seymour announced that the council would hold a public hearing to sound abutters and neighbors about the project before considering whether to designate the property as “surplus” and negotiate its sale. The local Boys and Girls Club evolved from a teen center which was originally housed at the city’s Community Center. After moving to classrooms of the former parochial school at Sacred Heart Parish, it affiliated with the national organization and became the Boys and Girls Club of the Lakes Region. But, when the diocese found other uses for the space, the club began an odyssey that has taken it from Our Lady of the Lakes in Lakeport and to its current quarters in the Federal Building on Main Street owned by Lakes Region Community Services. \Cheryl Avery, executive director of the club, said that the Davis Place location was well suited for the club, explaining that it was very close to
the high school and within walking distance of the middle school. She said that students from the middle school could follow Opechee Street to Messer Street then cross the river and take Bisson Avenue to Davis Place. The prospect of enjoying access to the river, she remarked, presented an opportunity for some children and teenagers who have grown up around the water to canoe and kayak for the first time. The lots have 355 feet of frontage on Davis Place between Jewett Brook and an adjacent residential building. The property lies in the elbow formed by Jewett Brook and the Winnipesaukee River. Together the two lots have an assessed value of $112,400. Avery said that the club plans to build a 14,000-square-foot facility featuring a full-size gymnasium open not only to club members but also the entire community. The building would house a teen center as well as space dedicated for younger children, along with an art room, computer lab and flexible spaces. Once the property is secured, she said that the process of designing the building and raising the funds to build it would begin. Two years ago the club considered purchasing property on Fair Street owned by Geo. J. Foster Company, the former owner of The Citizen. At the time, Avery said that club officials approached several local businesses about contributing to the project and anticipated a renewed capital campaign would not have to start from scratch. Furthermore, she said that a building fund has a balance of about $300,000. “It’s not going to be easy.” Avery said, expecting the project would take two or three years to come to fruition.
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THE LACONIA DAILY SUN, Wednesday, October 24, 2012 — Page 3
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