Residents in downtown Pittsburg will soon once again have a space for recreational activities such as basketball, karate, fitness classes and indoor pickleball.
The former Marina Community Center – for decades used as a sheriffs’ training center – is being refurbished for all to enjoy. The City Council on Monday unanimously approved the project’s initial $750,000 budget using surplus Measure M half-cent sales tax funds to bring the former center at 340 Marina Blvd. back to its glory days.
Work first began on building a downtown community center in 1972, and over the next 30 years, the building was used for a variety of things, such as senior services, summer programs, afterschool programs, classes, a preschool, and city and county offices. It was the city’s only such center.
“This became that one-stop shop or hub for community information and programs,” said Kolette Simonton, Pittsburg director of recreation.
But in 2002, the city leased the 13,300-square-foot property to Contra Costa County to operate the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Academy, which brought a police presence to the area, which was experiencing crime issues and was undergoing a big redevelopment effort at the time, according to Simonton.
The lease came to an end in December. Months earlier, Pittsburg notified the county it would not extend the lease after the council had decided it was time to bring the site back for recreational and educational purposes. Residents had been asking for a community center for some years.
In budget sessions last May, the council earmarked up to $1.5 million for the refurbishing project, noting it is being done in phases and staff might have to return to request additional funds for all the renovations.
Some of the improvements include repairing the gymnasium floor, HVAC repairs, making the building ADA accessible, and adding new furniture, security and technology, according to the staff report.
As currently configured, the Marina Community Center contains two large classrooms, which could be used for anything from dance and fitness to training and workshop space, along with a full gymnasium, which Simonton said could be used for basketball, volleyball and pickleball.
“There will be three courts of indoor pickleball, which will be ideal for this area, because we don’t have outdoor or indoor pickleball courts,” Simonton said. “And what we have heard from the pickleball community is that indoor courts are very much in need.”
Simonton also said there will be space for youth camps, and the staff plans to have open gymnasium nights for anyone to come and use the gymnasium. Details on hours and days are still being worked out.
Repair of the gymnasium floor is underway, she said, noting it will be less expensive to refurbish than first thought as it is still in relatively good condition despite its age.
Simonton said the estimated cost to refurbish the gymnasium floors will be $63,572.
When “we initially looked at the floors, we anticipated we were going to spend quite a bit of money on those floors,” Simonton said. “We thought we would actually have to tear them out and put down a new flooring.”
Mayor Shanelle Scales-Preston said she was happy the gymnasium floor came in under budget so some of the money could go toward other improvements at the center.
“I am so excited about the Marina Center opening,” she said. “I can’t wait until it opens up, just to provide our youth space in the downtown area … to come and use this facility.”
Councilman Jelani Killings agreed.
“I share the excitement. I think the whole community is sharing this excitement right now,” he said looking at the photos of the center’s early days and teams that played there. “Even as you show the pictures in your presentation, I remember wearing those shirts, those jerseys; there’s nostalgia there.”
Simonton said the project should be completed in about 45 days and the building opened by April 1 “at the latest.”
“We’re hoping it will be sooner,” she said.
