Published: November 03, 2009 08:00 pm      

Community center building fondly remembered

Some stood in silent contemplation Tuesday morning. Others raced to get one last photograph of the Dalton Community Center before the trackhoe began tearing the 43-year-old building to the ground.

“I was raised in this community,” said Patricia Hall. “I played basketball here, swam, played softball, crocheted, played pool and ping pong. This is a big part of my life right here.”

The building is being torn down to make way for a brand new community center with an estimated cost of almost $4 million.

Residents of the area around Fredrick Street, where the center is located, joined city officials to watch the demolition start.

“It’s exciting. It’s also a little bit sad,” said City Council member Charlie Bethel. “I’ve played basketball in that gym a few times over the years. My children have taken swimming in that pool. It’s special to me, and it’s very special to so many people. It’s sad to see something you love being torn down, but it’s not nearly as sad as the excitement of knowing what we are going to put here and what it’s potential is for the whole community.”

The new community center is slated to open sometime next year. It will have two full-size basketball courts, compared to one middle school-size gym in the former building, as well as an indoor walking track, a weight room and a large meeting room that can be divided into smaller rooms if needed.

In addition, city officials plan to have an office for the federal Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program, as well as services from the Dalton-Whitfield Library, the Creative Arts Guild, Dalton State College, the Dalton Police Department and other agencies there.

“I feel like it’s going to be a good thing if they use it right. We did need a new center. This building has been around a long, long time,” said Elsie Johnson. “I can recall when I was a little girl. I used to come here swimming. I used to work at the concession stand.”

The project has been planned for three years. Council members said there was a delay while they nailed down funding, which will come from a federal community development block grant as well as city funds. But they say it was always a top priority for them.

“It has been so long. I’m glad to see something is fixing to be done,” said recreation commission member Bill Chappell. “It should be a real nice facility when they get through.”

Recreation commission member Lanny Cooper said the project had taken so long some residents of the community were skeptical it would happen. He said the demolition should show that the project is making progress.

“This is the start of something really big for this whole community,” said Mayor David Pennington. “There are a lot of people who are sort of saddened. I am, too. But at the same time it’s exciting we know that what will be in its place will be better and will help redevelop this whole area.”

Council members said the steel from the structure will be recycled. Most of the other material will be disposed of. But some of the red exterior bricks will be preserved. They will be used around the flag pole and parking area at the new center, and people will be able to pay to have their names or the names of loved ones engraved on them to raise money for the center.