Bay Shore Community Hall

We feel our project fully meets the review factors as fully described in the project plan.

Community benefit & impact

The Bay Shore Club was revitalized in 2008 when community members got together with the goal of making the club and hall a community hub for social, educational and physical activities.

Approximately 15 people are involved in the organizational and administrative functions of the club. Since 2008, the organization has done significant fundraising and made numerous improvements to the facility including a $15,000 new floor, a new roof, upgraded electric wiring, new windows, new heating system as well as other cosmetic improvements.

Activities held at the club include drop in music nights, pot lucks, birthday parties for seniors, information sessions for seniors, community interest meeting as well as community events and festivals. The club maintains an activity sign-in book and collected 3475 names last year. The club hosts at least one activity per week with an average of 50 people in attendance at most occasions. The drop-in kitchen-party-style music nights have been extremely popular drawing 15-20 musicians from surrounding areas to play to 30-40 others in attendance.

The club also hosts Pembroke Days each July as a way to raise funds and celebrate community.

Yarmouth County, with its population of approximately 10,000 people (from the 2016 census) is built of a number of rural and mainly residential villages and communities. Pembroke is fairly central within the municipal district and like many other rural Nova Scotian communities is resided in by many seniors. Many municipal communities, due to their proximity to Yarmouth tend not to share a sense of being a “neighborhood” and thus do not see their community halls as active as those in more remote areas. The Bay Shore Club is one of the community organizations that are changing this and developing a real sense of community and sharing for residents of Pembroke and surrounding areas.

 Needs assessment & project planning

Before the hall is able to become self –sufficient, there are improvements required: 1) there is only one washroom and it is not wheelchair accessible. 2) At times there are line –ups to use the one washroom so additional accessible washroom is needed to provide adequate facilities for all 4) when an event that requires full use of the kitchen, the present location of the washroom creates a problem. 4) The kitchen floor is in dire need of repair and has to be replaced. 5) There should be a proper sterilization system in the kitchen. 6) Kitchen space is inadequate for proper food preparation and delivery 7) Overcrowded situations in the kitchen and with hot food on the stove and coffee and tea urns create a possibility for someone to get hurt.

Overall objectives for the project include the following:

Replace the septic system and put in a field bed to comply with Department of Health standards.

Add two wheelchair accessible washrooms that meet Nova Scotia Accessibility guidelines.

Expand kitchen to full operational capacity including space and equipment.

 The executive organized an information session in October 2016 for public input to approve the above description of the expansion. The consensus from the public meeting (note: 45 people attended) was that the expansion was needed and would enhance the overall use of the community hall

Questions were asked how an expansion would increase present use: 1) Opportunities for more rental use would become available. 2) With a larger and more efficient kitchen they would be able to have two meal sittings instead of one which in turn would create additional income. 3) In the future the community hall could be assigned as a comfort center in case of an emergency.

Upon receiving project funding approval, a tender process will begin to allow for the club executive to select from available local contractors. The hope is to have the project completed within three months of hiring the contractor. Priority will be to have the septic system upgrade complete as that is severely restricting hall use. Assuming success in receiving adequate funding for the entire project, all work will happen concurrently to save costs in moving equipment, site set-up, etc.

A community celebration will be planned to show off the new facility to the community and region. This will be schedule in the fall of 2018 and include representatives of government and funding partners as well as organizers and community groups.

Equity and Accessibility

As a result of meeting the above objectives, the Bay Shore Club strives to meet overall goals to enhance the community:

1) The hall is used more often. With the upgrades to kitchen and bathroom facilities, the club will provide a more welcoming space to all who use it. The club aims to increase the use of the hall to at least two events per week for at least 40 weeks of the year by 2020. Events can be club initiated or outside hall rentals. Revenue will be used towards costs of cleaning and maintenance as well as to fund future endeavors.

2) Community members have access to more activities. With improved facilities, more program providers, other organizations and individuals will use the hall and therefor provide a wider variety of activities. As different activities are offered they may appeal to people who have never participated in hall events in the past. The goal is, once the upgrades are complete, to see 10% new people sign into the hall in 2019 over the past year to access programs, events or activities.

3) Leadership and recreation opportunities are enhanced. Older adults have many skills and experience to share but often require a welcoming, supportive environment to do so. Community halls can be a great place for these individuals to provide leadership and skill transfer to others in the community. Women and girls can especially flourish and contribute in this type of venue due to the feeling of a nurturing, close-knit neighborhood space. It is a safe hub to meet in order to walk, bike, or garden together as it is to listen to music and share talent. The club will endeavor to maintain a minimum of 5 females on the executive committee every year.

Safe & Secure Environments

The hall was revitalized in 2008 with its new mission and vision. Activities introduced at that time included Christmas dinners, Halloween theme party, Santa Clause for the kids, Christmas teas, Quilting, Card plays, Gospel nights, Music nights, and Seafood chowders. The hall was also booked for other events such as birthday parties, 4H at times, private parties and guest speakers. The Christmas suppers, seafood chowders and other food preparation functions did continue until 2016 when Department of Health disallowed any food preparations until an upgrade to the septic system was completed. The inability to hold these popular events have reduced the ability for the community hall to earn funds (note estimated yearly income from these suppers $2500 plus per year) and to increase its potential and availability to the community. The seafood chowders, bean suppers and pot luck suppers were the greater fundraisers of the suppers and private food events were minimum but served an important part of uniting the community and surrounding area. Since the initial revitalization of the community hall in 2008 the executive in 2015 introduced an annual Pembroke day event to celebrate their community (note this event raises approximately $1200 or more each year). Car shows, an outdoor music event, a mediation group, and guest speakers relating to senior needs and safety and general safety of the community are other activities that hosted at the community hall. Other guest speakers spoke of organic gardening and the creation of a community garden. One of the priorities of the community hall is to begin a community garden once an expansion is completed. The executive felt that focusing on one new event at a time will enhance the success of each new event/project.

 From 2008 to present the community hall was fortunate enough to receive various grants, such as corporate grants, private donations, Municipal grants and New Horizon grants to enhance the hall ability to serve seniors from the community and surrounding areas as well other interested groups. The executives of the hall continue to search avenues to improve the quality and function of the facility. When events and functions do occur the community steps up to the plate and ensure the event or function succeeds.

The Bay Shore Club currently is unable to meet the community demand for services/events in which food is served. They have space to re-heat food or to make coffee/tea, but require an operation kitchen to hold community suppers, showers, supper meetings, etc. Also due to the state of the septic, they are restricted by the Department of Health as to what they can do.

Many individuals who attend activities at the club are ageing and have mobility issues. The club itself is accessible to wheelchairs however the washrooms require upgrading to ensure the space is adequate and welcoming.

Community Halls often fundraise with food services such as festivals, community suppers and hall rentals. This form of income is very valuable as it sustains operations for these halls. The Bay Shore Club is one of the more active community halls in the municipality but yet is limited in what they are able to do in the space. It is the belief of the present executive that once the expansion is completed and kitchen and washroom facilities are upgraded, the Bay Shore Community Hall will be self-sufficient for many years in the future.

Resourcefulness

The biggest money making event presently being held at the community hall is the Thursday night music night. This event was introduced in early 2009 and has grown steady since that time. On an average the music night contributes $100 plus a week to the coffers of the hall. A portion of which is dedicated to a building fund. As of January 2018 the building fund is getting close to $15000 and will continue to grow until construction begins on the addition to the hall. It is projected that the weekly music night will continue to contribute a good portion to the operating cost of the Bay Shore Community Hall.

Long-term sustainability and committment

This assessment has demonstrated how the community and other groups have contributed to the success of Bay Shore Community Hall, but the Bay Shore Club gives back to the community as well in many ways:

 The executive of the hall, with permission from user groups, has given donations to people within the community who have experienced hardships, have donated funds to the Red Cross to help other organizations and families in need and also contributed to the Fort McMurray fire fund.

 During the month of February 2018 the Thursday night music group is donating all money collected to the Pubnico Fire relief fund. Again this demonstrates that the Bay Shore Community Hall not only receives financial help for its daily operations and building fund but is there to help out those in need. The community hall is certainly community minded and will continue this course in years to come.

 The executive from 2010 (note: this is when the community hall began to have available funds for repairs) to present have spent $54000 on hall improvements including a new main floor, new windows, electrical upgrades, and new shingles on roof.

 Included in the above expenditures is a sound system to enhance the music night activities and for guest speakers and other functions to use. A computer and printer were purchased to address some basic needs and most importantly a computer course was offered to seniors and was well attended.

 A shell grant was of $800 was received in summer of 2017 and used to purchase sun tents and a banner to promote the annual Pembroke Days festival that raise approximately $1200 plus a year.

 From January 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017 there has been 3475 people who have signed the guest book at the hall. It is estimated that between 3 to 400 others that did not sign guest book because either due to private functions, or some of the activities sponsored were held outdoors during the summer.

In closing, I believe the Bay Shore Community Hall has demonstrated that the executive, community and other user groups are confident that with an expansion to the kitchen and assessable washrooms will contribute to an increase of activities of the hall and thereby become self-sufficient for many years to come.