‘Short-term pain, long-term gain’: Shawnee Community Center to close for 2-months

The Shawnee Community Center is getting a new HVAC system.

Officials say the repair is a critical fix for the historic community center — one of 14 managed by the Louisville Metro Department of Parks and Recreation.

All services and programs offered at the community center will be transferred to the Portland Community Center during the expected two-month closure, said Ben Johnson, the assistant director of recreation at the city’s Department of Parks and Recreation.

“If Shawnee is your location, it will be inconvenient,” he said. “But with the corrections we’re making … it’s short-term pain for long-term gain.”

There are more than 50 deferred maintenance projects across the city’s parks and recreation facilities, according to city records . The price tag for the fixes is about $12 million.

The California Community Center closed earlier this year for a HVAC replacement, Johnson said. That project took about four months.

The estimated two-month project at the Shawnee Community Center will cost about $492,500 and is being paid for with money from the American Rescue Plan Act, said Kevin Trager, a spokesperson for Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg. That federal legislation pumped more than $388 million into Louisville to support post-pandemic recovery.

The funding comes from a pot that was initially set aside for a $40 million project that became the center of an ethics dispute last year, Trager said. Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg terminated the contract for that project after the city’s Ethics Commission ruled that Metro Council Member Anthony Piagentini, a District 19 Republican, used his official position for gain when he helped a nonprofit get the allocation and then took a job with the group.

The Metro Council ultimately allowed Piagentini to keep his seat.

Greenberg and council members reallocated about $12 million of those funds to the Parks and Recreation Department for maintenance projects.

Johnson said it can be expensive to maintain the city’s 120 parks and 14 community centers.

“People don’t know how expensive basic things can be,” he said. “That $12 million is going to go pretty quick.”

Community centers, he said, are vital resources for people. They provide space, service and a sense of connection for young people, families and senior citizens.

“They really provide an outlet for the community,” he said. “From one extreme to another.”