Thirteen residents stood before Town Clerk Debbie Aurelia Halstead on Tuesday evening with raised hands, as she swore them in as volunteers forming a new Community Center Commission. They are John Boccuzzi, Bill Buchler, Andy Clure, Rob Cox, Sean Dunn, Brian Hartgraves, Carla Kron, Brian Leidlein, Christopher McDonnell, Jeremy Richman, Sheila Torres, Kinga Walsh, and David Wheeler.

Sworn in ahead of time and not present Tuesday was the fourteenth member Nicole Hockley.

Leading the members as the interim chair, First Selectman Pat Llodra then asked for a moment of silence to recognize 12/14. The community center project will, in part, be funded through a $15 million gift from the GE Foundation in the wake of 12/14. Several commissioners are parents of children killed that day.

Mrs Llodra explained the group’s charge to develop a proposal for construction and operation of a community center facility which would then go before the Board of Selectmen.

The facility should meet the following standards:

*Align with the conditions established by General Electric, the donor;

*Create a location that does not exist today;

*Act as an anchor for the people of Newtown to come together;

*Serve the needs of the entire community;

*Do not duplicate existing programs/services;

*Be based on $10 million to build, supported by a $1 million annual grant over five years;

*Be consistent with the long-term development plans of the community of Newtown;

*Consider the Capital Improvement Plan;

*Consider the Fairfield Hills Master Plan;

*Consider the Newtown Plan of Conservation and Development;

*Consider the Strategic Plan for Municipal Facilities (a work in progress); and

*Be responsive to broad-based needs articulated by community.

This new commission is the result of a prior, stalled effort to put the GE gift to use on a phased project. A previous community center advisory committee, of which Mr Clure was a member, had spent roughly 14 months as of April in developing an initial proposed version of the project, the first of a planned three-phase capital initiative at Fairfield Hills. The proposal would have gone to a referendum vote April 28, but some late concerns about the scope and direction of the proposal caused Mrs Llodra to withdraw the April ballot measure in favor of appointing a new group of residents to further research the plan.

That first-draft version included a new senior center and an aquatic complex with at least two swimming pools, a snack bar, locker rooms and other recreational components.

The Phase I development was being designed to integrate into two additional phases. The second would either involve developing a connecting facility between the senior/pool complex and the NYA facility, or a standalone facility encompassing the Parks and Recreation Department administrative offices and some added recreational spaces.

A possible, optional third phase, according to Mrs Llodra, could include absorbing part or all of the NYA under town and Parks and Recreation Department control.

Following setbacks to the most recent community center planning and the use of GE funds, Mrs Llodra said, “The last group wasn’t as formal; it was a [Board of Selectman] decision that … we wanted structure,” with the new group involved with the community center planning. This group’s meetings will all be noticed, offering the public a chance to sit in on the planning, and witness the process.

The Commission

As members asked on Tuesday for clarity about the stipulation that they “not duplicate” existing services, Mrs Llodra urged them to “let creativity and thinking take you where it takes you.”

She also explained that General Electric has certain expectations, but is “very flexible and want a project that’s right for the community.” She has not found that it “wants to control” this project, she said.

Ms Walsh asked if her group had a reference for what various groups in town need or want.

“Part of the answer is no,” Mrs Llodra said. She added, “You have to ask if this is achievable.” Is it possible to service needs of the entire community? She is not sure, she said, adding, “I think it’s not achievable at once, but over time, I do. I trust you’ll get there.”

She told members they would need to know who to talk to, what they need to know, how to structure the process, etc. But the members are not without information, to which Mrs Llodra will add based on members’ specific requests. They have background information in a binder that also includes documents such as the Fairfield Hills Master Plan and the town’s Plan of Conservation and Development, and the town’s Capital Improvement Plan, which contains its own budgeting of $15 million in coming years’ planning for community center purposes.

Mrs Llodra also told members to “learn from other groups,” such as the prior Community Center Advisory Committee and the Commission on Aging. “They can help inform your discussion,” she said. The Parks and Recreation Department is also available for consultation.

Members this week asked that recreation representatives attend their next meeting, which has been scheduled for Tuesday, May 11. It is scheduled to begin at 7 pm in the Council Chambers of Newtown Municipal Center.