Joe Guevara drives a back hoe around the newly renovated San Juan Communtiy Center to finish up porjects before the grand opening this Saturday.
music in the park, psychedelic furs

Repairs completed for half the estimated cost
San Juan Bautista residents and officials will celebrate the
grand reopening of the city’s community center that has been closed
for a year, on March 29, said Jan McClintock, San Juan’s city
manager.
Repairs completed for half the estimated cost

San Juan Bautista residents and officials will celebrate the grand reopening of the city’s community center that has been closed for a year, on March 29, said Jan McClintock, San Juan’s city manager.

“We were able to accomplish almost a miracle for what we spent,” McClintock said. “It was almost a miracle.”

The building received a new kitchen, roof and windows. Contractors and volunteers redid the bathrooms, including floors, lighting and plumbing. They also fixed the service bar, repainted, and reinstalled the stage.

Repairs were estimated to cost between $750,000 and $850,000, when city officials first undertook the project, based on bids from contractors, McClintock said. City officials spent $350,000 on the project.

Instead of hiring one contractor, residents and officials handled the work themselves, McClintock said.

“We’ve been able to do almost everything that we needed to get done,” McClintock said, “based on a lot of volunteer work, some donation of time and materials, and some thrifty shopping.”

Instead of buying a brand new stove that would have cost as much as $10,000, officials bought a stove that had been returned. It cost $2,000, McClintock said.

Pat Garratt, a retired construction worker, volunteered his time to do the repairs.

“They didn’t have enough money when they went out for bid, so I said, ‘I’ll just volunteer my time,'” Garratt said. “I just helped the city out. I lived here all my life.”

For nearly three months, Garratt worked eight hours a day, seven days a week.

“I built the bar, the kitchen and all that,” Garratt said. “I supervised, and I did all the framing, and the hanging of the doors, and all that kind of stuff.”

His wife, Regina, and his son, Pat, also helped, Garratt said.

“My wife picked out all the paint colors, the light fixtures,” Garratt said. “We put all the windows in, my son and I.”

Garratt said he is happy with how the community center turned out.

“I think it’ll be great, if the city takes care of it now,” Garratt said.

The money for repairs came from state and county officials, McClintock said.

San Juan officials received a grant from state officials for $250,000, McClintock said.

San Benito County officials gave San Juan officials a $100,000 grant, McClintock said.

Some residents got an early look at the community center, McClintock said.

“A lot of people have stuck their head in and took a look, when it’s been opened,” McClintock said. “They’ve been amazed.”

In the past, the building was mostly used for one-time events, such as weddings and quinceañeras, McClintock said.

San Juan city council members said the building will be a space for private events and community gatherings.

Nonprofits such as the San Juan Bautista Community Foundation would be able to use the building for fundraisers free of charge, McClintock said.

“The council’s hope is that it will be one more thing to bring the community back together,” McClintock said. “Working on the community center did bring a lot of the community back together. The most important thing is to keep the building maintained.”

“That takes money,” McClintock said.

Rental fees will be high enough to pay for cleaning the building after each use, routine maintenance and long-term repairs, McClintock said.

The building will need more repairs in the future, McClintock said.

“We still have people who say they’ll help us with the landscaping,” McClintock said. “It’s not done.”

The front stairs need to be replaced and the building has no tables or chairs, McClintock said.

The building also needs a second exit that is compliant with ADA standards, McClintock said. It would cost about $67,000, McClintock said.

To celebrate the reopening of the Community Center, there will be a ribbon cutting March 29 at noon at 10 San Jose Road. The building will remain unlocked for a few hours so that community members can view the repaired building.

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A staff member wrote, edited or posted this article, which may include information provided by one or more third parties.

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