Commissioners deny Boys & Girls Club request to lease Whitesville Road space

Chair opened the meeting and, during citizens ddresses, Ralph Howard Ford asked the board to authorize a lease allowing the Boys & Girls Club to use two classrooms and occasional gym access at the Whitesville Road (Todd Tettler) complex to restart programming in 2026. Ford said local donors had pledged roughly $250,000 toward restarting the club and described the program'026s past role in local youth development.

Parks and Recreation Director Lance Dennis told commissioners the Whitesville Road facility is heavily scheduled once school resumes, hosting daily practices, tournaments and events; his department maintains a policy limiting any single outside entity to two days per week to preserve access for other users. Commissioners and staff also noted the building houses election activity during voting periods, which they said creates security and scheduling constraints.

After discussion about whether to postpone the request until all commissioners were present, the board amended the agenda to make the leasing proposal an action item. A commissioner moved to deny the Boys & Girls Club access to the Todd Tettler complex; the motion was seconded and carried, and the lease request was denied at this meeting. The board'026s vote leaves the group to seek alternative facilities or to return to a future meeting for reconsideration.