A day in the life of Conway Rec...

As we were dealing with the Parks Department over the upcoming privatization of Conway Rec Center, they kept telling us that the center was under-utilized. As we questioned them about this, we discovered that Parks uses registrations for sports activities and after-school activities as the metric for usage. That is, when people pay to attend events, or participate in sports, they are counted. If they are just stopping in for a pick-up game, or to hang out with friends, if they use the park grounds and stop in to use the restroom or get a drink, they are not counted. If participants at the center are a part of a partner program - such as the senior activities, or our meetings or other community meetings, they don't get counted... Seems a strange way to assess the impact of a facility on its local community.

Anyway, on one night in late February, we took pictures of the stuff happening at Conway and here's what we found - kids playing basketball, kids learning hip-hop moves, seniors doing art projects, and folks lined up for help from AARP in doing their taxes. What we didn't get photos of were the kids just hanging out in the entry talking with each other and adults, doing homework, or snacking.

See what you think makes a successful community center...