NEW LONDON —The Outing Club Board of Directors has announced its plan to explore the feasibility of building a new indoor facility that will meet the current and future needs of community members in the Kearsarge-Lake Sunapee Region for year-round sports, recreational, social and educational programs.
The Outing Club’s vision for the facility includes a gymnasium andindoor field; professional management staff to augment its volunteer leadership and limited staffing; a meeting/function room with a kitchen for community events; and classroom, office and storage spaces.
The Outing Club sees a regional center as critical to the fulfillment of its mission and future growth, says Laura Pillsbury, president of The Outing Club board.
In fall 2017, a committee was formed to evaluate the current and future needs of area communities. The committee cited population growth and increasing demands for full-time access to indoor facilities that support sports and recreational programs; after-school programs; teen centers; senior programs; and community activities and events.
With the closure of Grantham Indoor this past January, the need for a centrally located facility that accommodates year-round sports and recreational programs has become especially urgent.
“The Outing Club recognizes these growing needs and has a clear vision for how we, working with dedicated individuals and organizations, can address these needs and explore the feasibility of a new center that works for everyone in the region,” says Pillsbury.
The Outing Club has established a Steering Committee that will develop a comprehensive plan for the project, and it now seeks motivated individuals, municipalities, businesses and organizations to contribute their support, input and expertise to this effort. These individuals and groups will serve on designated subcommittees that will focus on the following: a regional space needs assessment; building site and design; fundraising and marketing; operations and management, and timely implementation of a comprehensive plan.
The Outing Club will host a Community Forum on Building an Indoor Recreational Facility for the Kearsarge-Lake Sunapee Region at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 8 in the SAU 65 Meeting Room in New London. Steering Committee members will present avision for the facility and address questions from community members. Those in attendance will have opportunities to sign up for the Steering Committee’s designated subcommittees.Refreshments and babysitting services will be provided.
The New London Outing Club is a private, not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization that has provided sports, recreational, social and educational programs for the Kearsarge-Lake Sunapee Region since 1947. In recent years, the organization has been more commonly known as The Outing Club in recognition of its regional mission and to differentiate it from the town of New London’s Recreation Department. For more information, visithttp://www.theoutingclub.net/
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