Norwich — The city has numerous facilities that offer community activities, but their programming is fragmented and the city lacks one major feature — a swimming pool and aquatic center — the Community Center Exploratory Committee reported to the City Council Tuesday.

The committee is recommending the city hire an architectural firm to design an aquatic center with an eight-lane pool, a diving well, a therapeutic pool and spectator viewing areas in the Mahan Drive area, where several recreational facilities already are located.

The Rose City Senior Center, the skateboard park, several sports fields and basketball courts and the city Recreation Department office are in the immediate vicinity.

The committee, established by the City Council in October 2014, asked to remain intact to continue working on the project.

Chairman Steven Becker said the cost of an architect would be $35,000 to $40,000 to design the project to the point where a request for qualifications for developers could be advertised.

Committee members told the council that the city has 10 or more gymnasiums, along with numerous ball fields and parks, but lacks coordination of activities. Becker agreed that “no one wants more taxes,” but he said the city needs the “products” to attract people to Norwich.

“We need something akin to what the YMCA was to the city,” Becker said.

The privately operated YMCA closed suddenly on April 30, 2009, because of financial difficulties. In 2011, then-city Recreation Director Luis DePina advocated a plan that would convert that building into a city-run aquatic center.

The committee also recommended developing a teen center in the Mahan Drive area that would offer “a supervised place where teens could congregate for activity and socialization in a safe environment.”

The city then should hire a city-funded recreational professional to oversee the aquatic center and to coordinate the activities of the various city recreational facilities.

The city has been without a full-time recreation director for nearly two years.

Celia Siefert, a member of the committee, presented the committee's seven-page summary of its 28-page full report to the council Tuesday.

Siefert said the committee studied three previous reports and plans to bring a community center to the city, including the YMCA plan and an earlier, more extensive plan for an aquatic center akin to one that was built in Mansfield.

Becker said the Mansfield project architect met with the committee at length to provide assistance and an estimate to design a Norwich project.

Aldermen offered generally supportive comments to the report and thanked the committee for its nearly year-long effort. Alderman William Nash said his top priority would be to create a teen center. A retired police officer who worked closely with city youth, Nash said the city needs coordinated activities for teenagers.

“Maybe the fourth time is a charm,” Alderman William Eyberse said, referring to the three previous studies that never came to fruition.

c.bessette@theday.com

Twitter: @Bessettetheday