In the span of a year, the Newton Recreation Center has become a hub of activity, and its board hopes improvements will allow more people to enjoy it.
The center has hosted a plethora of classes, including yoga, Zumba, sip and paint, calligraphy and cake decorating, many of which have filled up. The interest in them has kept building administrator Bobbi Jo Klinkel busy, board Chair Terry Purcell said.
“We’re trying them all to give people an opportunity to see what we have to offer,” Purcell said. “They’ve been received extremely well.”
The center’s events committee is planning two concerts in the summer and the yearly fall festival in September. In addition, the board, which formed in March, hopes to reopen the fitness center, which has been cleaned and new cardio equipment and weights added, with additional equipment donated. They want to reorganize the history room to focus on historical items from the center’s days as an elementary school from 1964 to the mid-1990s. Originally built as the township’s school in 1939, the township has operated it since the late ’90s.
Board members secured grants to make improvements, including one for $5,000 through Lackawanna County’s Community Re-Invest Program to purchase pickleball nets for indoor and outdoor use, bike racks, benches, a gas grill and other equipment.
Purcell said the board plans to apply for more grants to renovate the gymnasium, do restorative work on the outside of the building and pay for the concerts. They plan this year to close the gym’s large windows, install new lighting, sound systems and backboards, and put in new flooring and walls.
Refurbishing the gym is a priority for the board because of the frequent activity in it, she said.
“It’s used every single day of the week,” Purcell said. “We want to make sure it stays in good condition and safe for everyone to use.”
The building’s two tenants, Daydreamers Child Care and A Steppin’ Time Dance Company, remain, with leases running through June. Supervisors are negotiating a new lease with Daydreamers, Supervisor Chair Doug Pallman said.
Township supervisors last year considered selling the building on Newton Ransom Boulevard but decided against it because of the flurry of activity. Pallman is thrilled to see new life in the center.
“I am extremely pleased by the commitment and progress our rec board has made,” he said in a text message. “They have been hard at work with cultivating new activities, classes, programs, etc.”
Purcell said attendance continues to increase, even in the winter.
“It’s encouraging to know that people are looking for a community center to go to … and have their activities and meet up with people,” she said.
Pallman is optimistic about the center’s future.
“It doesn’t happen overnight, but I believe that with the continued commitment from our board, great things lie ahead for the center,” he said.
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