Baltimore County officials and wide-eyed third-graders cut the ribbon Tuesday on the Cockeysville Community Center, a new, $3 million building that will also be used as a Police Athletic League center and a gymnasium for Padonia International Elementary School next door.
Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz called the 14,260-square-foot facility at 9836 Greenside Road "a good example" of the county government, the county public school system and the Cockeysville community working together. The building will be managed by the county Department of Recreation and Parks, in conjunction with Padonia International Elementary, whose students come from more than 30 different countries.
For the school, "this is a great asset because this becomes their new gym and auditorium," Kamenetz told a crowd of about 30 people gathered in the 6,000-square-foot gymnasium. And he said the school's own gym will become classroom space to relieve overcrowding, because the school "is bursting at the seams."
The new center also boasts a stage, activity rooms and a community rooms. The school system will have first dibs on the building during the school day, and PAL, the Cockeysville Recreation Council and other community groups can use it in the afternoons and evenings after school, said Padonia Principal Melissa DiDonato. She said several rooms are reserved for PAL.
The new building replaces the old PAL Center across the street, which will be torn down, said Ellen Kobler, a county spokeswoman. It was not immediately known what if any plans the county has for that site.
DiDonato, who is in her third year as principal, said the new building used to be a school parking lot and that the school's new parking lot has more parking spaces.
She said students at the school got a preview tour Monday of the new building, which includes electrically operated basketball hoops and backboards.
"The children were amazed," she said, adding that some of the students are also in the PAL program.
On Tuesday, instead of a countdown to the ribbon-cutting, Kamenetz asked the children to spell PAL as a countdown.
"Louder," he said.
County officials on hand included 3rd District Councilman Todd Huff, who pushed for the project, and Del. Wade Kach, who defeated Huff in the Republican primary and was elected to the council in November. Kach had kind words for Huff and said of the new center, "It is so needed."
Also onstage was Director of Recreation and Parks Barry Williams, who said, "I like having a new building, especially one as nicely appointed as this."
Williams noted that 98 children attended a PAL program at the new center Monday night, proving the wisdom of building a new center.
"It's doing what it should be doing," Williams said.
Also pleased was Connee Hart, who works in the county school system's central office as an elementary supervisor of teaching and reading for special education. Hart was one of 30 special education teachers and supervisors using the new building as a location for a professional development day. She said they used to go to the Oregon Ridge Nature Center.
"I love it," Hart said, noting that the new building has wi-fi for remote access to the Internet and other technological amenities. "It's very comfortable and there's good parking."