The final session of the office hours scheduled by Newtown Community Center Commission members has been cancelled.

The group issued a statement shortly before 3 pm Monday, saying that the office hours that were to be held at Edmond Town Hall the evening of Monday, April 4, were being cancelled "due to the weather."

Newtown residents had been invited to participate in any number of information sessions that have been offered during the past week. Sessions have been hosted by the Town of Newtown, Commission on Aging, and the Community Center Commission. Polls will be open at Newtown Middle School on Tuesday, April 5, from 6 am until 8 pm, so that registered residents can participate in a referendum to pass or veto a proposed plan for a community center.

The project would create a facility at Fairfield Hills of some 43,000 square feet comprised of two main features, including at least 13,000 square feet of flexible, programmable space for general community use and an aquatics component with two pools, a lap pool of up to 50 meters and a zero-entry pool. Site work, parking, and support features such as locker rooms, offices, and bathrooms are included in the project.

A $15 million gift from The GE Foundation will support the project, and at least five years of operational expenses.

The referendum is a chance for residents to authorize or reject a $14.55 million special appropriation, along with a $5 million bond authorization for the planning, design, and construction of a Newtown Community Center.

That spending plan includes $9.45 million remaining in a gift from General Electric that was provided to the town following 12/14, specifically to create a new community center. That money will be combined with $5 million already approved in the Capital Improvement Plan in the current fiscal year, also earmarked for a community center project.