From plowing roads during the winter weather to offering recreation and entertainment opportunities, what we do as a Town has far-reaching and vital impacts on the quality of life in Penfield. To do this work, we must have adequate facilities in place.The Town of Penfield is continuously working to improve services to our residents while striving to be good stewards of taxpayer dollars. Through this work, we have identified several facility improvement projects to better our community. The projects are at varying stages, and I am really excited about each one including the new Department of Public Works (DPW) facility, pickleball and recreation facilities at Shadow Pines, and planning for the potential construction of a new recreation center.
New Department of Public Works facility
Originally built in the 1950s, the current DPW facility does not have sufficient space for present-day operations and lacks modern safety features like a fire suppression system. It is time to modernize this facility to meet Penfield’s needs. Planning for a new facility has been in the works for quite some time, and we are now finalizing a plan to build a facility that will triple the size of our current building, going from 30,000 SF to 73,000 SF.
The new facility will be built on the northern side of the current DPW complex and will include a 26-bay vehicle garage with modern amenities, a maintenance area, an administration office, a breakroom, restroom facilities, kennel space for animal control, a fire suppression system and additional modern safety features, a salt storage building, a sand storage building, a pole barn, and a fuel station.
What we’re building will provide our team with the tools to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow more efficiently and effectively.
We hope to begin work this summer. The construction process will take about two years to complete. Once the new facility is done, the current DPW building on the southern side of the property will be removed.
Pickleball and playgrounds coming soon to Shadow Pines
I’m so happy to share that a significant milestone has been achieved. After years of planning, the pickleball and recreation area at Shadow Pines will soon get started. During our March 6 Town Board meeting, the board formally accepted a bid to begin work on the project. As has been discussed since last summer, the project will include 10 pickleball courts, a picnic area, an open-air pavilion, two inclusive playgrounds, restrooms, and a parking area.
We’ve received a lot of feedback from the community throughout the process, including well before I took office. I want to thank everyone for sharing input and helping us finally make this project become a reality. As we get a more definitive construction timeline, I will share that with the community. I look forward to seeing you out on the courts and at the playgrounds soon.
Expanding recreation facilities and programming
And finally, there has been much talk lately about improving our recreation facilities. Like our Department of Public Works, the Recreation Department has experienced tremendous growth over the years as our population has grown, but the facilities have yet to.
This year, we have gathered feedback from the community about Penfield Parks and Recreation through public input sessions and online surveys. I want to thank everyone who has participated in this process. Your feedback will help us tremendously as we finalize our Parks and Recreation Master Plan to set the stage for the future of recreation programming and facilities.
As part of this work, we’re developing long-range facility plans, including the potential construction of a new recreation center. If you went to the public input sessions, you likely saw what a design for a new recreation center could look like. I am excited about the possibilities and know it’s something our community wants and needs. Whatever we do, it will be done to provide maximum benefit to everyone in the community.
We have so many cool projects in the pipeline. And please know, your Penfield Town Board is working hard to improve operating efficiency and provide better services to the community.
If you have any questions, feel free to reach out. You can also find the latest project information on our website.
See you around.
Jeff Leenhouts, Town Supervisor