Duffyfield community leaders claim lies while feelings of voicelessness proliferate
Jan. 25—The closing, demolition and eventual rebuilding of the
The 46-year-old facility is the centerpiece of
In an ideal world, Duffyfield resident
"A lot of different information has come forth from
Morgan, who is also a member of the
"We in Duffyfield have been neglected and the
On
This phase focused on plans for a replacement and the controversy of where it should be rebuilt, in a location that provides the most benefit for taxpayers, potential users and the
There appears to be no clear or immediate path forward for rebuilding while a City assembled community group remained engaged and skeptical that their voices are being heard.
According to
After months of meetings, the
A meeting on
The committee and public have been told that the Stanly White Center could not be rebuilt at the current location any larger than its former footprint, making the new location attractive. In addition to not spending a large sum on elevation, it would also allow for a larger building with more amenities.
A key opinion expressed by members of the Duffyfield community and the advisory committee members in recent months at numerous meetings is that they believe the City had plans to remove the rec center from their neighborhood from the very beginning.
Members of the Duffyfield community have pointed to the City's action of securing land slightly outside of Duffyfield but nearly 1,000 feet away from the existing location and submitted a proposal to
In response to a series of questions submitted by the
She said she believes the Board has "absolutely been transparent with the public on the rebuild of the
Alderman
"There's currently an environmental assessment being conducted by
In
Since that time, the committee has served as a liaison between the
The 10 member committee consists of:
City Attorney
Also in
At the time, the Aldermen said they were hopeful the rebuilding process would move along quickly.
"This has not been a delay on the part of this board or this staff, this has been a federal process," said Alderman Odham. "That federal process is soon coming to an end and whenever that deposit gets in our bank account it's on us then and I don't want to be responsible for anything that's going to cause any more delays."
By June of 2020, just over
The establishment of the fund earmarked the money specifically for the rebuilding process.
That news, however, was offset by the Board's approval of the purchase of five land parcels between
Community members soon became aware that the land was being considered as an alternative site for the new
Stanley White Committee member
City Manager
Stephens said multiple soil borings had been taken around the
Alderwoman
"We all have a responsibility to be transparent. There's a lot of closed door meetings that go on up in here and I know that people are going to come for me and that's okay...There's no reason why you can't build it back there. You don't want to put that
Since it was closed in
Members of the Duffyfield community have too often felt voiceless and ignored — the Stanley White rebuilding process so far has reinforced a distrust of the City as well as feelings that members of the community have too-often been treated as second-class citizens.
While filled with complex details, the competing arguments are fairly straightforward:
Option 1 — Rebuild an elevated recreation center at its current site at
Option 2 — Build a larger facility at an adjacent site that sits beyond the city's flood zone. Rebuilding on the alternative property would mitigate the potential flooding hazard and would allow the City to put the cost of elevating a new rec center into expanding and improving the new facility.
During a special called meeting on
Eure said the work would add an additional
Eure said rebuilding at
"If we can have a shelter in place in our community that is going to support our people, I think it's a plus, but that's up to the people of the community to make those choices," said Alderwoman Best at the meeting.
— The City would be obligated to maintain approximately
—
— Federal Executive Order 11988 requires federal agencies to avoid, to the extent possible, "direct and indirect support of floodplain development wherever there is a practicable alternative."
"If there is a reasonable alternative to locating the project in the floodplain...you and
The Board unanimously agreed to give the city manager direction to prepare bid documents to demolish the existing Stanley White Rec Center and to prepare a change in the scope of work to relocate the gymnasium to the alternate site on
Alderman
The roots of the issue stretch back to the mid-20th century and the construction of the
In 1975, the
The gymnasium was named for
The adjacent
Over the years, as newer and more expensive gymnasiums were built in
A look at the programs offered at Stanley White Recreation during the last year it was open bear out its importance as a community meeting and education center as well as an exercise venue. From November, 2017 — September, 2018, programs offered included:
— Recurrent Meetings: Community Watch,
— Open Activities:
— Youth Activities:
— Education: Diabetes Education, Mommy & Me, Healthy Eating
— Athletics: Youth Baseball, SWAC Basketball Tournaments, Summer
— Fitness:
Data from that same period also shows a total of 45 facility rentals for the year, while total participants swung between a low of 1,287 in
During a nearly two hour meeting on
Representing Citizens for the Restoration and Preservation of
"It means a lot to the community because we, including all the coaches and people who worked there, helped save a lot of children. Without a thriving recreation community we stand a chance of losing people. We don't just talk about sports we talk about education," said White.
"This is the first summer our kids have been out in the streets," he said. "The importance of parks and recreation to our community is huge."
Duffyfield resident
"This is the first time we've been playing in the streets and that gym has been there for us kids and also the adults of the community. All I'm saying is I think we should keep the gym," said Brown.
In response to community concerns, Spaulding explained that one of the issues with rebuilding
"We're going to get more Category 2 and 3 (hurricanes), we're going to get more 10 foot storm surges, so please know that we are trying to do the right thing for the future of the Duffyfield area," he commented.
A landmark comes down
For
"
Morgan said watching the destruction of a building filled with generations of memories has been bittersweet.
"On a personal level it's kind of tough, it touches my heart. But beyond that I'm a person of progress and I know that with progress there's certain things that you just can't cling to," said Morgan. "It sustained us from the '70s up until now so now it's time for us to have something viable that's going to support us for the next 60 years. The wants and needs that we had as children are not going to be what they're going to need 15 or 20 years down the line."
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