Check
out
our
NEW
Community
Center
-
History
of
the
Dunmore
Community
Center
-
For
his
senior
project
at
Dunmore
High
School
in
1992,
Corey
O’Brien
had
a
dream.
He
knew
that
the
Borough
sorely
needed
a
place
for
its
residents
to
gather,
and
since
the
2nd
largest
municipality
in
Lackawanna
County
did
not
have
a
Community
Center,
he
spearheaded
a
project
to
bring
a
multi-generational
facility
to
Dunmore.
He
went
to
municipal
officials,
including
then
Mayor
Domenick
and
later
Mayor
Loughney,
with
his
ideas
for
a
Community
Center.
Several
committees
and
3
years
later,
the
federal
government
designated
a
special
purpose
grant
of
$600,000
under
the
Appropriations
Act
of
1995,
Public
Law
103-327.
The
Borough
applied
for
and
received
notice
of
approval
for
the
grant.
Unfortunately,
that
is
as
far
as
the
project
got
for
many
years,
when
then
Controller
and
now
Councilman
Jerry
Hart
and
Councilman
Joe
Talutto
traveled
to
HUD’s
office
in
Philadelphia
in
2003
to
revive
the
grant,
8
years
after
it
was
approved.
Bids
for
a
roughly
6,000
square
foot
building
came
in
well
in
excess
of
the
grant
amount,
and
the
project
stalled
yet
again.
In
2004,
Councilmen
Thomas
Hennigan
and
Michael
Cummings
took
office
with
four
main
goals
–
get
finances
in
order,
enforce
planning
and
zoning
regulations,
pave
roads,
and
build
a
community
center
that
would
make
the
residents
of
Dunmore
Borough
proud.
Using
the
10
year
old
$600,000
grant
as a
stepping
stone,
in
less
than
6
months
the
current
23,000
square
foot
building
was
designed,
more
than
3
million
additional
dollars
were
appropriated
and
borrowed
and
land
was
acquired
for
the
purposes
of
this
center.
Groundbreaking
took
place
in
November
2004.
Just
under
two
years
later,
we
are
here
to
dedicate
this
beautiful
facility
that
serves
young
and
old
and
will
be
the
jewel
of
this
community
for
generations
to
come.
Thank
you
to
everyone
involved
for
making
the
dream
of
one
young
man
come
true
to
shape
the
dreams
of
generations
to
come.
Facts
Pertaining
to
the
Dunmore
Community
Center
-
Cost
- $4
million.
Building
cost
is
approximately
$3.3
million,
with
the
remaining
funds
used
for
land
acquisition
($260,000)
and
design/engineering
($500,000).
Source
of
Funding
–
Special
purpose
grant
#PA26SPG501
in
the
amount
of
$600,000
and
Dunmore
Borough
financing
of
$3.4
million
through
FNCB.
Square
Footage
–
23,100
square
feet
of
space
in
total
including
a
12,500
square
foot
gym,
a
6,200
square
foot
Community
area
that
the
Dunmore
Senior
Citizen
Center
occupies
during
the
day,
and
3,000
square
feet
of
non-gymnasium
recreational
space.
Head
Start
occupies
another
1200
square
feet
for
its
programs
for
young
children.
Rooms-
the
focal
point
of
the
DCC
is a
large
Community
room
measuring
nearly
2000
square
feet
on
its
own.
The
seniors
use
that
during
the
day;
evenings
it
is
available
for
meetings
and
other
festivities.
In
addition
to
the
community
room,
there
are
4
offices
(2
available
for
rental),
a
conference
room,
an
art
room,
a
sitting
room,
2
full
commercial
kitchens,
7
bathrooms,
2
locker
rooms,
and
an
ancillary
room
currently
used
for
storage
but
can
be
held
for
future
purposes
other
than
storage.
Gymnasium
–
the
12,500
square
foot
gym
is
easily
the
room
most
likely
to
illicit
the
“oohs
and
aahs”
of
the
citizens.
There
are
three
40’
x
70’
gyms
with
one
regulation
high
school
full
court.
The
first
gym
also
has
a
batting
cage
that
drops
from
the
ceiling
and
hardware
to
set
up a
regulation
volleyball
court
as
well.
All
8
baskets
are
fully
adjustable
with
the
turn
of a
key,
and
there
are
three
complete
scoreboards,
one
for
each
court.
There
is
also
a
public
address
system.
Parking
–
there
are
total
of
76
parking
spots
for
the
center,
with
plenty
of
handicapped
parking
on
the
Monroe
Avenue
side
of
the
building.
The
building
is
all
on
one
level
and
there
are
no
steps.
All
bathrooms
are
handicap
accessible.
Hours
of
Operation
-
The
Senior
Center
is
open
during
the
day
on
Monday
through
Friday
during
normal
business
hours.
It
is
anticipated
at
this
time
that
the
gym
will
be
open
7
days
a
week
from
4 pm
until
9 or
10
pm.
Fees
–
for
the
remainder
of
2006
there
will
be
no
membership
fees
for
Dunmore
residents
but
there
will
be a
charge
for
non-residents.
In
addition,
the
Community
Center
is
available
for
special
events
and
gym
rentals
by
the
hour.
Call
the
Borough
Building
at
343-7611
for
more
information. |
