Despite being the largest community center in the county — and the one generating the most revenue — the Potomac Community Center is plagued by dirt and disrepair, PCC board members say.
The center is in the process of remodeling its kitchen with new cabinets, counters and sinks and a design that eliminates closed spaces that promotes cleanliness. The existing kitchen is dilapidated, with missing cabinet doors and dirty floors.
The project is one of many that the board has undertaken on its own initiative, using money raised through private donations, concession sales and the center’s own “Club Friday” program for teenagers.
Money raised through the center’s normal operations — from renting the rooms for birthday parties and other events, for example — goes directly to the county’s general fund. The county pays for the center’s operation and the salaries of its staff, but has stonewalled requests for major upkeep and improvements, board members said. The board contracts with private cleaners, whose work picks up where the county’s leaves off.
“We love the building and obviously the community loves what happens here. But the average user of the building doesn’t realize that what they spend in here doesn’t stay here,” said Allen Cohen, a member of the board. “People don’t realize what the building would look like if the community didn’t support it.”
Cohen proposes that the county at least attach a fixed fee to each rental that stays in the building for maintenance and cleaning.
In addition, the center is currently soliciting funds from Club Friday families and other community members.
The needed repairs are organized into a rough triage — the kitchen and filthy ventilation system are near the top, while new theater curtains, ceiling tiles and paint land closer to the middle of the list.
“These vents haven’t been cleaned, we understand, since 1995,” Cohen said. “[The county] said, ‘Unless it’s an emergency there’s no money.’ … All we can do is keep asking.”