Large pool water trucks, one after another, rounded a bend in Fairfield Hills and pulled in behind the new Newtown Community and Senior Center Tuesday evening, June 25.

As many as 30 trucks would be stopping for several hours to unload their water tanks and fill the freshly tiled six-lane lap pool and ground level pool inside the aquatics center. Inside the nearly finished new facility, a pipe entering from the outside carried the pool water indoors, where it spilled in a steady rush to dump an estimated 200,000 gallons of water, Center Director Matthew Ariniello said.

The aquatics center is at the back of the new construction on Simpson Street and features floor-to-ceiling windows letting in the daylight. To the left is a shallow pool that is three-feet-deep at one end and includes water features and inflatable features, said Mr Ariniello. It will serve to host events and offer climbing features, he added. A recent grant of $3,500 will fund some of these features.

Already, the center is receiving calls to book events in the building’s multi-purpose room as the center nears opening.

Residents walking through Fairfield Hills Tuesday afternoon saw Mr Ariniello talking with First Selectman Dan Rosenthal near the center’s main entrance. They asked about the opening, and Mr Rosenthal replied there would be a ribbon cutting on July 19, and the center would open to members on July 22.

Aside from programming space to include art, workshops, and general gathering space and to hold events on both the senior and community center sides of the building, both areas will also offer a kitchen and multi-purpose space.

The community center’s main lobby leads to the welcome center, administrative offices, a café, locker rooms, and the pools.

Off the main entry will be the Better Day Café, integrating students in the Newtown High School culinary department and students in the Transitions program to offer salads, soups, sandwiches, breakfast items — all cooked in a commercial kitchen, Mr Ariniello said.

The Café is open to anyone, not just community center members.

Also available to anyone will be a lending library of tablets and another for books. Charter/Spectrum donated the tablets, and the C.H. Booth Library donated books, said Mr Ariniello.

Both the parking areas and landscaping are nearly complete, as is the interior work. Signs and exterior benches will be in place in coming weeks.

Visit newtowncommunitycenter.org to learn more about programming and purchasing memberships. The Newtown Community and Senior Center is located at 8 Simpson Street, Fairfield Hills.