Business & Tech

Town Releases Info On GE's Community Center Gift

In November, General Electric gave Newtown $15 million to build and run a multi-purpose community center in town. Now the town of Newtown has released a Q&A outlining everything residents need to know about GE's donation.

The FAQ answers everything from the basics (Why did GE make the donation? The company has more than 150 employees in Newtown and wanted to "[support] our friends, family and neighbors as they continue to heal") to the questions those who have followed the story may have wondered. (Will GE have any ownership rights to the facility? No.)

The Q&A contains at least one previously unannounced piece of information -- the community center is expected to be complete by 2016, the same year as the new Sandy Hook Elementary School.

The town will conduct a feasibility study to determine if the community center is a good fit for Fairfield Hills, officials said.

Read the full Q&A online here, or read more about what GE's gift means for Newtown and the behind-the-scenes details of the donation.

More answers from the document:

  • What steps has the town taken to advance the project? "Several months ago the Town put together an informal, ad hoc, study group of representatives from the Commission on Aging, Parks and Recreation, town department heads, and community leaders. That group has begun the process of identifying current and future needs as well as reviewing the research done over past years on the development of a community center and a senior center."
  • How would Newtown seniors be involved? "It is important that the voices of the community are heard in the development of this facility. The active participation of the Parks and Recreation Commission and the Commission on Aging, along with the directors of those departments is essential.  Further, general public input will be solicited at many steps along the way. Plans for the facility would progress through multiple public hearings.


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