State Will Close Mystic Education Center Sept. 30

The state will close the Mystic Education Center on Sept. 30 to save money, and Groton’s park and recreation department will have to find a new home for all of its programs there, according to a report by the town manager.

“This action will have a significant impact on parks and recreation programming…” Town Manager Mark Oefinger wrote in a report to the town council.  A complete list of Groton’s programs at the center was unavailable Monday, but includes the aquatics programs, five levels of swim lessons, family open swim, six gymnastics classes and the Falcon’s field hockey camp.

The state has decided the education center is surplus and will dispose of it, State Management Services Director Douglas Moore wrote to Jerry Lokken, Groton’s manager of recreation services.

“I hope you can understand and appreciate the need for the state to reduce operating expenses at our state facilities, particularly at facilities which no longer provide a state program,” Moore wrote in the July 29 letter.

The decision will save state taxpayers $200,000 this year and $400,000 each year once the property is disposed of, the letter said.

Groton town councilors will discuss the closure at their meeting at 7 p.m. today in the Town Hall Annex.

Michele Kravath, of Groton, said she has used the pool for more than four years.

"I think it's a terrible loss," she said. Kravath, who has prosthetic legs, said the pool also has the advantage of stairs rather than ladders, and is equipped with a chair lift to lower people into the water.

"I think the decision is very unfortunate," she said. "I understand that a lot of things are being cut. I don’t take it personally. I think that it’s just another state building that is going to be unused."

For years, the council advocated for a long-term plan to reuse the education center property, Oefinger said.

“… We now find ourselves in a situation where… facilities that we have used for many years to support our parks and recreation programming will no longer be available and we are being given a 60-day notice of termination. . .” his report said.

Oefinger said that based on follow-up discussions, the town may have another 30 days to use the facility.

When a property is declared surplus, the first step is typically to offer it to the host community, he said.