Congressional workers check out Kingston's Village Green

Looking at what some are now calling the “Kingston Ghetto,” due to the dilapidated fencing thrown up around the Navy housing site as a visual deterrent to any more vandalism, it’s not apparent that actual planning for the Village Green is gaining momentum and the welcome attention of federal legislators.

On June 19, Mary McBride, representing U.S. Sen. Patty Murray’s office, and Mendy Droke, U.S. Rep. Jay Inslee’s special assistant for Kitsap County, visited Kingston to hear more about plans for the Village Green and take a good look at the footprints in the park where a new community center and senior housing will be built.

Kitsap County Commissioner Steve Bauer and members of the Kingston Community Center Foundation and Village Green Stewardship Committee greeted Droke and McBride, director of Murray’s Tacoma office for the South Puget Sound and Olympic Peninsula regions.

The intent of inviting them to Kingston was to “enhance our chances of securing the Federal appropriations request submitted at the end of February,” noted Bobbie Moore, president of the Community Center Foundation.

Kitsap County Facilities, Parks and Recreation submitted the Transportation and Housing Appropriations grant in February, requesting $1 million to help fund construction of the community center. Murray is chairman of the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee of the Appropriations Committee.

The Kingston groups hope giving McBride and Droke an overview of the community center project and tour of the current community center and Village Green will send back to Murray a real sense of the need and opportunity a new facility offers not just Kingston, but other North End communities such as well.

“It’s a defining project for the community in a lot of ways,” Bauer said. “The community has been working very hard in doing the planning for this and Speaker Frank Chopp is very enthusiastic about it.”

The Community Center Foundation similarly welcomed Chopp when he visited here in April.

It’s all about connections

Foundation member and Kingston Stakeholder Dave Wetter also addressed McBride and Droke, pointing out the connections the community center project brings with it. He said not only will walking trails connect the Village Green to nearby shopping, but the proposed extension of California Avenue will help local traffic bypass ferry backups and provide alternate emergency vehicle access. He emphasized the support of the North Kitsap School District as well, as students from nearby schools will be able to walk to the community center for after-school programs. With the senior housing project planned adjacent to the center, seniors will also be able to use the building and it’s hoped many intergenerational programs will take place.

“There is very broad support in Kingston for the new heart of our community,” he said.

Dan Price, representing the Kingston Boys & Girls Club, and Susan Lavin, Kitsap Regional Library Kingston branch manager, also spoke about the benefits of a new community center.

The community center will house a small gymnasium, library, senior center, commercial kitchen, offices and meeting rooms. The foundation hopes to break ground in 2012.

“When we ask the state and federal governments for money, we’re not asking for a handout,” Moore said. “People can be healthy and well-educated into the future ... it’s not money you’re pouring down the drain.”

Tools to make it happen

The next task for the Community Center Foundation is to chisel out a memorandum of understanding with Kitsap County, hoping to have local ownership and management of the building, similar to the Greater Hansville Community Center in Buck Lake Park.

“The collective sense is that Kingston is ready and willing to do that,” Moore said.

The foundation is considering asking North End residents to approve a metropolitan parks district to provide long-term funding for maintenance and operations of the building.

McBride said long-term sustainability is an important part of any capital project considered for Appropriations funding.

“It’s one of the things that will strengthen your request. The sustainability of your project is one of the things they’ll ask about,” McBride said.

She offered to return to Kingston to help the Community Center Foundation learn about additional federal grants and agencies that can be tapped into to fund the project, “some tools you can put in your toolbox.”

“You have done a lot of your homework,” McBride said. “You’ve done a lot of things right. This is the type of thing that gets you far along the path.”

She encouraged the foundation to continue to find other partners who will step forward to help funnel funds into the project and bring “some unique resources to the table.”

Moore concurred, “It’s going to take more than a village to get this done.”

Kingston Community News Editor Rebecca Pirtle can be reached at editorial@kingstoncommunitynews.com or (360) 297-2875.