PWC supervisors earmark $930,000 toward master planning for new libraries and senior center

The Prince William Board of County Supervisors recently allocated $930,000 from the Capital Reserve Fund to start the process to replace the existing Potomac Community Library and to build a new Woodbridge Senior Center and a new Woodbridge Community Library.

The Potomac Library is well maintained with a roof that was replaced in 2013. In 2011, an enhanced garden was put in, but the building, which opened in 1975, is beyond its projected useful lifespan. The Potomac Community Library lacks sufficient meeting space for community events and has insufficient space for the public to access computers. The children’s area lacks small meeting spaces, and the bathroom is non-compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act, or ADA. Staff office space is limited and retrofitting the library with new technology would be suboptimal, a news release said.

The Woodbridge Senior Center was built in the early 1980s. The building received an addition and renovations in the early 2000s, along with work to make the senior center ADA compliant Though well-maintained, the Senior Center is also past its projected lifespan. Parking was deemed inadequate as early as 1983. Space inside is inadequate for non-ambulatory patrons, and demand has increased for more exercise, meetings, and classrooms. Staff space is inadequate.

Current and forecasted population growth in the Woodbridge Magisterial District shows that the district needs a new library and that the senior center and Potomac Community Library are hard-pressed to meet current demand.

Each project will receive $310,000 to go toward the in-house staffing, engineering, and architectural services needed to develop a master plan that will guide design, construction, and programming.