A new 7,000 square foot gymnasium, a recording studio, a teaching kitchen, and space for both seniors and teens to hang out are the main features of draft plans to turn the old Sammamish Library into a Recreation Center.
At a public meeting on Monday, March 8 at Inglewood Junior High School, Plateau residents got their first look at an early conceptual plan for the old library, which will be leased by the City of Sammamish to the Boys and Girls Clubs of King County (BGC).
Under what is still an informal agreement, the BGC will pay a nominal amount for use of the building, and will in turn undertake the necessary renovations and construction, and operate the recreation center.
But, as City of Sammamish Parks and Recreation Director Jessi Richardson told The Reporter this week, the city still has some work to do.
In order to alleviate the traffic concerns which plagued the library and will likely worsen with greater usage of the recreation center, the city is proposing building an access driveway through the western half of the site, connecting Inglewood Hill Road with the car parking spaces to the north of the building.
Richardson said the city was committed to building and paying for the new access driveway, which would travel underneath the proposed gymnasium.
“There’s isn’t enough room to go around it,” she said.
The new gymnasium, which will likely include courts for sports such as basketball and volleyball, but will not include weights facilities or a pool, will be built adjoining the existing building’s western edge.
In order to build that driveway, the city will have to strike an agreement with the owners of the neighboring land.
Richardson said she did not believe at this stage that additional parking would be created, adding it was also unlikely the center would accommodate requests for an ice skating rink, or a hot tub.
Neither Richardson nor Executive Director of the Redmond Boys and Girls Club Jane Ronngren were willing this week to reveal cost estimates for the project. What they were saying however was they had received clear direction from Sammamish residents of all ages that not only should the recreation center offer programs and activities, but also open, multi-use space for “just hanging out.”
“From teens we heard a message of flexibility,” Richardson said. “The availability of a ‘hang out space’ – the opportunity to be there without having to be part of a specific program.”
To this end, the center will provide space for doing homework, meeting friends, be equipped with wireless internet, much like the library it replaced but with a less restricted vibe.
Richardson and Ronngren both stressed an eagerness to create “intergenerational opportunities” – facilities and programs which cater to both teens and seniors. A small performance stage would be used for open mic sessions, and performances of all kinds. The professional quality recording studio would not only allow young bands to record tracks but bands of all ages, and voice recordings for film, theatre, radio and web projects. Similarly, the teaching kitchen would be utilized for classes aimed at both teens and seniors.
“We heard that message from the seniors too, that they would appreciate somewhere to hang out with peers, to socialize, play cards, play pool,” Ronngren said. She added that, dependent on fundraising, the BGC hoped to break ground on the project no later than fall of this year. It is estimated the center would be opened in late 2011.
The current draft plan for the center, and more information about the likely cost of the road improvements and refit, will be bought before the Sammamish City Council early in April.
Ronngren is eager to hear more ideas for the center from the people of the Plateau. E-mail her at jronngren@positiveplace.org., or phone 425-250-4781.
Contact Jessi Richardson at jrichardson@ci.sammamish.wa.us., or phone 425-295-0580.
