WHEREAS Somerville’s residents are deprived of adequate spaces for meetings, seminars, performances, artistic exhibitions, indoor recreation, and a place where our diverse community can come together; and 

WHEREAS these residents have stated their desire for a community center in scores of public meetings; and

WHEREAS Somerville’s elected leaders have discussed the need for a community center for at least 35 years, including it in the 2016 Union Square Neighborhood Plan and zoning; and 

WHEREAS Somerville’s City Council has passed multiple resolutions over the past two years calling for community center planning, yet there is still no plan; and

WHEREAS zoning and community-benefits agreements require community-center funding commitments from developers, which remain unspent and unplanned for; and

WHEREAS building a community center ensures that transformative development taking place in Somerville creates of not just a commercial center, but a vibrant neighborhood center which is a destination for all Somerville residents; and

WHEREAS extensive public health research has demonstrated the devastating impacts of the current epidemic of loneliness, which a community center can help alleviate;  

NOW THEREFORE we the undersigned call for the City to fund the creation of a feasibility study that will develop specific recommendations for:

WHERE a community center that is accessible to all could be located;

WHAT types of spaces the community center could include to best serve Somerville residents of all ages; and

HOW much it would cost, how it could be funded, and how it would be operated.