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OVERCAST Temp: 70 °F Wind: CLM at 0 mph Saturday, October 4, 2003 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine Joy Magazine Tempo A & E RogueValleyAutoFinder RogueValleyHomeFinder Real Estate Showcase Wellness Connection Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Employment Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend October 2, 2003 The Grove: What now? The city of Ashland ponders the future of the defunct teen center By JONEL ALECCIA Mail Tribune ASHLAND — The Grove, a defunct $1.2 million teen center built on community dreams and donations, has been all but relinquished to the city of Ashland. Now officials there plan to seek help determining its future. "The question is, here’s a community asset," said Ashland City Administrator Gino Grimaldi. "What are we going to do with it?" A draft agreement is expected to be signed soon transferring ownership of The Grove from Community Works, a Medford social service agency, to the city. Advertisement Budget cuts, a sagging economy and flagging enrollment forced the agency to close The Grove earlier this year, Community Works spokesman Ed Roussell said. "We’re big boys and girls over here, but there was a lot of emotion over this," Roussell said. A lease agreement that allowed the center to be built on city land at 1195 E. Main St. stipulated that the building would revert to the city in such a situation. The center has a real market value of $526,210, according to the Jackson County Assessor’s Office. "I’m sure we’ll be able to make use of it," Grimaldi said. Exactly how best to use an 8,000-square-foot center that housed a gymnasium, a full kitchen, a music recording studio and a bicycle repair shop will be pondered during a meeting this month. A group of nearly three dozen community members will meet Oct. 14 to consider suggestions ranging from expanding a senior center to housing adult recreational basketball games. First, however, the group will focus on the site’s original mission: a teen center. "In my mind, unless someone can convince me otherwise, I think we need to use the assets as they were intended," said Cate Hartzell, an Ashland City Council member. Completed in March 2000, The Grove was built with grants from regional foundations, corporate donors and more than $400,000 in individual contributions. It was the brainchild of the late Steve Groveman, a Community Works administrator who galvanized community support for a center dedicated to children, teens and families. Services for at-risk and low-income young people were a priority. But after Groveman’s death in 1999, Community Works struggled to attract young people to the center. In its last months, the site served perhaps 25 to 30 kids a month, officials said. Since its closure, the furniture, games and other equipment that furnished The Grove have been donated to several area nonprofit agencies, Roussell said. Some residents wonder if Ashland’s changing demographics — more retirees, fewer young families — have lessened the need for a teen center. But Hartzell said her work to ensure affordable housing in the city indicates that there is still a need for services for kids. "I want to look at the range of the need that exists," she said. The building’s future use is complicated by terms of a $250,000 federal community development block grant used for construction. The HUD grant requires that more than half of clients served be low-income. Seniors are exempt from the low-income requirement, Grimaldi said. That gives some weight to a plan that would move the Ashland Senior Center to The Grove. That would free up the senior center on Homes Avenue for other uses, including, perhaps, services for kids. It’s too soon to tell what The Grove’s future holds, city officials stressed. Community Works officials will sit in on the sessions to offer advice — and, perhaps, warnings, Roussell said. Teen centers are expensive propositions, especially in difficult economic times, he said. "It takes money, and no one’s got it," he said. "That’s the truth." Reach reporter JoNel Aleccia at 776-4465, or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2003 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. 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