by Geoff Fox
Town officials last month agreed to make meeting rooms on the second floor of Town Hall more comfortable for those who use them regularly in all seasons.
Council members had heard how the Girl Scouts room on the second floor of the community center needs an air conditioning unit and heater, but in August they heard directly from Girl Scouts representatives about the need.
Tammy Fox, who has been a Girl Scouts leader in Hancock for 23 years, came before town officials to fully explain what was being requested.
photo by Geoff Fox
The second floor rooms the Girl Scouts use serve not only Hancock youth and adults, but also those from other Washington County towns, Morgan County and Southern Fulton area, Fox explained.
She told officials she is someone who has seen first-hand the difference a safe, reliable meeting place can make for young people in the community.
Over the years, the Town of Hancock has allowed the Girl Scouts to use a room on the second floor of the community center as a meeting space.
“We are extremely grateful for that support,” she said.
Fox said she was asking the town to invest in maintain the room, specifically making sure there is adequate heat and air conditioning in that particular room.
“This might seem like a small request, but for our Girl Scouts it is incredibly important,” Fox added.
Right now, there are two troops of Girl Scouts in Hancock with nearly 40 girls. Troop 15127 has 16 girls ranging in age from kindergarten through fourth grade. Troop 15055 has 19 members from fifth grade through ninth grade.
The troops meet on separate nights every other week and because of the size and age differences, Fox said they need to be divided into smaller groups during those meetings.
Before access to additional scout rooms, Fox said girls were in the hallway because there wasn’t enough room.
“The availability of both rooms changed that,” she said.
By having those two rooms, Fox said it gave the girls the ability to participate safely and meaningfully in the activities.
Fox said the building is not just a bunch of rooms where meetings are held, it’s where the young people of the community grow, solve problem, learn to lead, work as a team, try new things, and many other things.
Girl Scouts also have access to the scout cabins in Widmeyer Park after they had served as the Boy Scouts cabins for many years.
Those cabins allow the older girls to take advantage of outdoor programs during the warmer months.
“We greatly appreciate that opportunity,” Fox said. “But they cannot replace the scout rooms.”
She added that her groups cannot meet year-round at the cabins due to the needs of bathrooms and appropriate meeting space during the colder months.
Girl Scout leaders from the western part of Washington County and from Morgan County come to use the rooms for adult meetings, training, collaboration, and planning.
The Hancock troops also host other troops from Hagerstown, Morgan County, Williamsport, Clear Spring, and Southern Fulton, Fox said.
When talking about maintaining the rooms, Fox said she’s talking about maintaining a space for youth, adult, volunteers, and families from around the area.
That is why reliable heat and air are so important for the rooms.
“Heat and air conditioning are not luxuries in a community building. They are part of making that building safe, usable, and functional throughout the year,” Fox said.
If the town is going to move forward making that space available, the basics systems necessary to keep the building usable need to be maintained, Fox said.
“We are not asking the town to create something new,” she said. “We’re asking the town to maintain an existing community resource that is already providing a valuable service to Hancock and the surrounding area.”
The Girl Scouts, Fox said, just need a reliable space to continue doing their work for the community.
Mayor Roland Lanehart said the cost would be around $1,400 and $1,500, depending on accessories are on it, for an air unit for each room.
An HVAC company wanted $6,900 to do just one room, the mayor added.
Councilman Richard Strong said the town should spend the $1,500 per room and buy the unit, which Lanehart said was the motion.
Officials unanimously approved the purchase.
photo by Geoff Fox
In related business, Councilman David Kerns told the council that the restrooms at Kirkwood Park — which used to be old communication buildings — need better air condition units.
If they removed the existing units and put new PTAC units on the buildings, it would cut the electric usage down by half with two of those units.
Kerns said he didn’t want to put money into an old outdated unit, regarding the current air conditioning units, one of which is currently not working.
Town officials unanimously approved those air conditioning units.
In all, the town would be paying $6,000 for both the air conditioning units for the Girl Scouts rooms and the restrooms at Kirkwood Park.
