With representatives from various groups from teens to seniors, Mayor Dorinda Borer announced Anna V. Malloy School on Meloy Road will be transformed into a multi-purpose community center, putting under one roof the many disparate programs offered to city residents. The school, closed since 2010, will have some modifications to the current structure and the addition of a gymnasium.
Gov. Ned Lamont stood on the dais with the mayor, confirming the discussion he had with the mayor, and the $1.7 million allocated for the project. The allocation includes a $1 million bond from the State Bonding Commission, and a previously approved bond for relocation of the Senior Center.
The idea was part of the mayor’s many discussions with the governor, he said. But when the mayor gets a plan, he listens.
“When (Mayor Borer) calls with an idea we talk. Then she calls and calls and calls,” he said.
Along with the mayor and governor, were representatives of youth groups, Senior Center members, the Veterans Council, and members of various city departments who had a hand in producing the preliminary plans to get the funding.
“This was a team effort,” Borer said. “It’s an opportunity to rethink and repurpose a building that could serve many aspects of the community.”
She pointed out the location of the school is central to all parts of the city and has easy access from Meloy Road, a major artery.
The school is currently the temporary home of students from Washington School and will remain so until the new building is completed next May, according to schedule. Once vacated, modifications to the current structure will take place, and plans for an additional gym to house athletic events will be constructed.
The plan is still under design, but a graphic showing the various sections of the building, and the position of the gym gave the 100-plus people attending the event an idea of where things are expected to be located. For example, the cafeteria/auditorium will serve as a room for the senior center, according to the preliminary plan.
Staying with the “team effort’ theme, Borer introduced Superintendent of Schools Neil Cavallaro as well as State Reps. Bill Hefferman (D-115) and Trenee McGee (D-116), Elderly Services Director Alyssa Maddern, and Veterans Council head Dave Ricci.
Cavallaro emphasized the fact the repurposing of the former school is in keeping with his philosophy of all schools.
“This is a space that all members of the community can enjoy,” he said of the project. “Schools are community buildings. This can turn into something special.”
Heffernan emphasized the building repurpose will fill a need the city has felt for some time.
“People have had to go to other communities to get the programs this center can offer,” he said. “We have lacked something like this for so long.”
McGee remembered when she was a teen going to other towns.
“I would go to other communities because we didn’t have a teen center or place to go. This is desperately needed.”
Maddern said the opportunity for a new, larger space is something her department has been hoping to accomplish.
“I thank Mayor Borer and Gov. Malloy for making this possible,” she said.
Ricci, meanwhile, said the Veterans Council and Vietnam Veterans have been confined to a small office in the basement of City Hall, and have had no place to call home. Space will be provided in the restructure that will offer meeting space.
“We will be able to do expand our membership in this new space,” he said.
Youngsters were present and individually expressed their excitement for a new teen center that will be housed in the building.
Lamont offered a final comment during the program, saying the new project is an indication of a new direction for the city.
“You’ve encountered some difficult headwinds over the last several years in this city. You’re turning it around. It is important to have this type of community center.”
After the presentation, Borer said the plans are still in design, and the schematic shown on an easel was a concept. She said the concept should change into something more definite in the coming months.