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Nov. 15 – Elevators with built-in TVs. Fish ponds. Yoga stations. And don’t forget the bedrooms.

 

If it were up to the students in Victoria DeLauw’s Grade 5 class at St. Joseph’s School in Simcoe, the proposed ALL Norfolk Community Centre would have some very interesting amenities.

 

The students sent Mayor Kristal Chopp their own designs for a new multi-use recreational facility after the topic came up during a recent visit the Mayor made to the school.

 

The students used paper, PowerPoint and even modelling clay to illustrate their vision for the community centre.

 

In addition to the Council-approved plan for the site, which includes two arenas, a pool, space for seniors, a community kitchen and an innovation centre, the students suggested building tennis courts, community gardens, a theatre, a music room and an outdoor playground, among other things.

 

One design envisioned a facility surrounded by fields of flowers, while another included sleeping quarters.

“I have to say the children loved doing this project,” DeLauw said. “The best part to see was how some decided to work independently and some partnered up and how they visualized something that’s not built. I told the students that this is going to be a great opportunity for Norfolk County and they will all benefit from it.”

 

Mayor Kristal Chopp agrees, saying it was heartwarming to see the energy and enthusiasm the students put in to their designs.

 

“I absolutely loved going through their designs, they are fantastic,” she said. “This is exactly the kind of creativity we want the new community centre to foster in Norfolk’s young people. This class project really highlights how much excitement there is in the community around the ALL Norfolk Community Centre, and that excitement is contagious.”

 

Norfolk County submitted a funding application for the centre to the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program this week. Council support for the project is contingent on provincial and federal funding.