Plans move forward for Dorchester community center
La Plata town council to vote on ordinance, seek state capital funds
Plans to convert an unoccupied town property on Dorchester Street into a community center got a boost Monday evening when the La Plata Town Council agreed to consider an ordinance to allocate $25,000 for improvements and to seek additional funds from the state.
The Dorchester Community Center Alliance, a coalition of local organizations led by Haven of Rest Ministries pastor Romeo McClarry, seeks to convert buildings on the property, which is adjacent to Carroll La Plata Village, into a safe place for youth to enjoy recreational activities and seek tutoring after school.
The property has seen little use since the La Plata Police Department moved from its old headquarters building there in 2005. In addition to the former police office, the 4.5-acre property includes several smaller structures, a garage and a former public works building as well as a water tower. La Plata Police Chief Carl Schinner, a member of the alliance’s advisory board, originally proposed the site.
At a presentation before the town council last month, McClarry explained that the community center would be aimed at serving local youth from the fifth through ninth grades, many of whom often go without supervision for long periods of the day because their parents hold down multiple jobs or commute out of the county to work.
“Our goal is to allow these kids to get out of harm’s way, [and to] provide a safe, protected area for them to stay,” McClarry said. “We’ve gotten numerous people who have come in and said that they are willing to provide volunteer help, to help us get this off the ground and keep it moving.”
“We kind of have the wheels in motion, but now we need to actually look at the facility and ensure that the facility is as safe and as protected as we absolutely need it to be,” McClarry said.
Improvements being discussed for the property include installing Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant access to the former police headquarters building, laying down asphalt in two lots behind the building for basketball courts and cookouts, and either rebuilding or replacing a garage for use as a place to play board and arcade games. At some point in the future, the existing high fence may also be cut back to make the space more welcoming.
La Plata operations manager Robert Stahl expressed concern about the condition of the garage, noting that it appeared to be in “pretty rough condition” and suggested that it might be less expensive to erect a new building rather than attempt to recondition the existing structure.
Among the issues be worked out prior opening the community center will be to delineate a process for vetting the students who are allowed access to the facility, to ensure security and safety.
During Monday’s work session, Stahl explained that he hoped to be able to achieve cost savings on installing an ADA-compliant ramp and laying asphalt in the back and side lots by arranging for the town’s construction contractor to do the work while in town for other projects.
After a discussion, the town council settled on $25,000 as a reasonable target amount for the work to be done in the initial phase of the project. The council will vote on whether to enact an ordinance to allocate the $25,000 from the town’s general fund balance at its Sept. 23 meeting.
Town clerk Danielle Mandley told the Maryland Independent that over the past several years the town has spent a like amount on the facility to prepare it for use as a community center.
Mandley also suggested that the town consider asking Gov. Larry Hogan (R) to include funds in the state’s fiscal year 2021 budget for renovating the former public works building at the far end of the town-owned property for use either as the main community center or as an expansion.
La Plata Mayor Jeannine E. James noted that the project, which has been in the planning stages for several years, would likely take several years to reach its full potential, but the town council was committed to working with the community center alliance to uphold the town’s end of the arrangement.
“We have to take it in baby steps,” James said.
McClarry shared James’ perspective on a gradual approach to growing the Dorchester community center, saying that if the approach proves successful, it could become a model for other counties throughout Maryland to follow.
“The beauty of this project is that it can be a small beginning,” McClarry said. “As the Bible says, ‘Don’t despise small beginnings.’”