PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. — It's been an 18-month wait for Letty Tinebra and her son, but the Burns Road Community Center is ready to reopen in Palm Beach Gardens.
"Hopefully, he can get into some activities and sports, things like that. So, I'm looking forward to that," she said.
The original building, constructed in 1983, featured a gym along with various arts and dance rooms.
A makeover nearly 20 years later included a second gym and expanded arts facilities.
That set the stage for 2023, when officials weighed the option of renovating versus constructing a new facility where the only original elements would be the gyms.
"The rest of the building would have actually cost more to renovate up to today's standards ad expand than it was to tear those sections down ground up," Charlotte Presensky said.
Presensky is the city's leisure services administrator. She says the city surveyed Palm Beach Gardens residents for what they wanted in an updated center.
"That drove how we designed the building and the spaces because we knew the kind of things the public wanted today and what would carry us into the future with trends," she said.
The new $30 million center now features a STEM classroom, meeting spaces, a dance studio, two gyms, and two dedicated art rooms.
"A lot of the money came from recreation impact and other funds. A small portion came from the general fund. Great for residents because impact fees come from new construction, so they pay for their impact to the community, so the taxpayer doesn't," she said.
The grand opening and celebration of the new community center is May 31 from 2:45 p.m. to 6 p.m.
