$7-Million Community Center To Open July 27

The city’s long-awaited community center, a $7-million facility featuring recreational opportunities for all ages, is set to open later this month.

A ceremony set for 1 to 4 p.m. July 27 will commemorate the completion of the facility, which has been planned for nearly 20 years.

“The center will add a component that we don’t currently have in the city, which is a place where the community can gather for all kids of activities, meetings, weddings, banquets and recreation,” Councilwoman Bev Perry said. “It really pulls everything together.”

The Community Center has two full-size indoor basketball and volleyball courts.

“We didn’t program the gym with a bunch of leagues, so people can drop in and play,” said Cindie Ryan, a city spokeswoman.

For a small fee, which can be waived for lower-income residents, patrons can use the fitness complex, which includes treadmills, stair-climber machines, stationary bicycles and a variety of weight-training equipment.

The center also will offer regular classes in aerobic exercise, yoga, stretching and stress reduction workouts. “We’re also looking into having special classes for senior citizens and people with disabilities who need to get into shape,” Ryan said.

For less strenuous recreation, table tennis, billiards and air hockey will be offered.

Counseling services, a youth employment office, a teen center, meeting rooms, a banquet hall and outdoor arts garden are also featured.

For a few months after Orange County’s 1994 bankruptcy filing, the center’s plans were in jeopardy. The city’s Redevelopment Agency had lost about $3 million in the county’s investment pool, and city officials were uncertain about the center’s future.

“Just by coincidence, we had signed the contract a couple days before the bankruptcy hit,” Perry said. “And when we looked at what the construction company could have gotten for breach of contract, it was cheaper, and made more sense, to go ahead with the work.”