FERRISBURGH — The Ferrisburgh Recreation Committee has undertaken a $35,000 fundraising effort to support the first phase of building a year-round facility near Ferrisburgh Central School that would serve as a covered skating rink in the winter and a basketball court in the summer.
According to a fundraising letter the committee sent to town residents, committee members eventually hope to surround a covered pavilion with a year-round walking track. All that would be put in place on the site of the town’s former sand pile, which lies next to the school’s playing fields.
Committee member Timothy Bicknell said on Monday that about $15,000 has already been raised toward the $35,000 needed for the first phase, a 110-foot-by-60-foot concrete slab that would serve as the rink and hoop court’s surface.
Bicknell also said that Carrara Inc. has agreed to give the town a break on the cost of the material needed for the project. Plans call for it to be ready for skaters by this winter.
The letter to residents also points to evidence of demand for such a facility. It states for the past two winters the temporary 40-foot-by-60-foot outdoor rink built by school parents on school grounds was used by families with children, hockey players, school physical education classes and after-school programs.
“The overwhelming support for this simple rink has demonstrated the need and desire in Ferrisburgh for a facility that will bring people together for health and fun recreation,” the letter stated. It also cites a survey in the town plan supporting “diverse recreation that is easily accessible for everyone in town.”
Project backers plan to explore grants as well as donations from individuals and businesses. The letter notes tax-deductible contributions may be made out to “Town of Ferrisburgh-Recreation Facility” and mailed to Town of Ferrisburgh, P.O. Box 6, Ferrisburgh, VT 05456.
The letter invites questions to the members of the Ferrisburgh Recreation Committee: Bicknell, Anne Cohn, Martha Davis and Sheila Schwaneflugel.