In January 2012, Auburn voters and the Auburn City Council allotted a $5 million tax referendum fund to be used strictly for public projects. Two of the withdrawals for this fund have been used for the Frank Brown Recreation Center.
Frank Brown, located at 235 Opelika Road, will soon begin its final phase of renovations.
The final phase of renovations to Frank Brown will complete all of the Parks and Recreations renovations made to the campus located on Opelika Road.
The expansion entails several new changes to the already recently refurbished facilities. The funds will supply a new racquetball court and the conversion of the old racquetball court into a new fitness area. This new fitness area includes treadmills, dumbbells, standard weight-room equipment and American with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessible weight-training equipment.
The first round of renovations included refurbishing both the inside and outside of the facility as well as adding new classrooms, a conference room and a racquetball court.
"Now, this new phase, which is also the last phase, is redoing the old racquetball court and converting that area into a larger fitness area that is open to the public and again there is no membership fee that goes along with that, it is free and open to the public," said Meg Rainey, the public relations specialist for the Auburn department of Parks and Recreation.
The Hubert and Grace Harris Senior Center and the Jan Dempsey Community Arts Center surround Frank Brown.
The Parks and Recreation Department maintains and pays for the entire campus.
The Hubert and Grace Harris Senior Center provides programs for senior citizens ages 50 and above, and the Jan Dempsey Community Arts Center serves all ages in the fine arts.
"Creating a campus feel for everyone, that was one of the major goals and one of the great things about having so many different facilities that serve so many purposes in one location," Rainey said.
Frank Brown offers a variety of programs to the public without a membership fee.
The only requirement is that patrons must be 16 or older unless accompanied by an adult.
Some of these programs include classes for fitness training, martial arts, yoga, dance, and recreational league sports such as basketball, Special Olympics basketball and volleyball.
The center changes its programs, advertised in their quarterly brochure, depending on the season of the year.
The center is always looking for new teachers and new ideas for classes. People in the community are encouraged to share by either participating or leading classes. The center provides facilities for the programs and simply charges a small percentage for building use and program advertisement.
With the last phase of campus renovation close to completion, the parks department will soon hold a grand opening of all of their new facilities for the public to use and enjoy.
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