Westborough residents and recreation staff lay out priorities as architects draft community center alternatives

Architect Joel Bargmann of BHSA opened a public design session for the Town of Westborough’s proposed community center on the second‑floor space, saying the architects were "here to understand what your vision for the project is," and that the design team will return around Aug. 20 with "three alternatives" at low, middle and wish‑list cost levels.

The meeting, attended by recreation committee members, the rec director and residents, centered on how to program a large, mostly windowless floor that previously housed a Boston Sports Club cardio and weight area. Beth Travis, a recreation committee member, said she was "blown away" by the space and urged the town to preserve active uses: a basketball court, a pool for lessons and after‑school activities, meeting rooms and teen programming to attract high‑school and middle‑school students.

Architects described an approach that separates senior and recreation programs within one building but allows shared, multipurpose rooms. Joel Bargmann and his team said some rooms (for music or acoustically sensitive uses) may require bespoke design, while others should be deliberately flexible to support STEM, art, babysitting classes and youth sports. Bargmann noted that the senior program’s needs appeared to be roughly 15,000 square feet and that the building footprint is large enough that sports features such as batting cages, turf for small soccer or multiple pickleball courts could be feasible in parts of the ground floor.

Participants raised practical constraints. One committee member asked about the pool’s structural condition, especially because it sits on the second floor, and warned that lifeguard shortages could limit programming. Another urged separate entrances or consolidated entries to reduce senior walking distances to elevators. Multiple speakers recommended reservable meeting rooms sized to serve volunteer organizations (about 15 kids plus adults) and identified storage as a key operational need for shared program gear.

The idea of including high‑end simulators — for golf or baseball (HitTrax) — drew interest as a wish‑list item. Architects described those items as potentially high cost and said they would be evaluated across the three cost alternatives. Designers also suggested co‑designing a teen space with local high‑school students so the room would feel owned by its users.

Jen Krogland, Westborough’s recreation director, urged broad participation in the planning process, reminding attendees that a town survey is available and announcing three public input sessions, including a senior‑focused meeting and a Zoom session at 7:00 p.m. Bargmann offered to arrange a tour of a comparable facility in Sudbury to help the committee visualize design options.

The meeting concluded with a voice motion to adjourn moved by Beth Travis, seconded by another attendee, and the motion carried by voice vote. The architects will return with three alternative design schemes for committee review.