La Verne : $200,000 Budgeted for Center

In its latest effort to gather funds for a new community center, the City Council voted last week to set aside $200,000 for the project, bringing total funds available to about $563,000. It would cost an estimated $1.2 million to complete the project.

Councilman Thomas Harvey said that construction of the center, much of which would be devoted to senior citizens’ needs, hinges on the results of a community survey to be conducted by the city to determine if such a building is needed and what kind of features it should have.

“A number of people are convinced there is a need,” Harvey said. “But we don’t want to create an edifice that would essentially bury us in debt.”

Harvey said several community groups, especially those that deal directly with senior citizens, have expressed frustration about the lack of a spacious gathering place for community activities in La Verne. Harvey says he supports construction of such a building, and indicated that the city may seek more funds from the state and from community-oriented foundations if the project has community support. If such support is not forthcoming, he said, $363,000 in grant money already pledged to the project would be sent back and the city’s $200,000 returned to a development fund for city parks.