Email:

Contact@Rotary5160.org

Durham Veteran’s Memorial Hall – Ansul Hood and Fire Suppression System

Area of Focus: Economic & Community Development

Lead Club Name: Durham

Lead Rotarian: Heithecker, Steven D.

Year: 2022-23

Project Budget: $43,599.00

DDF Grant Amount: $12,500.00

Project Description: The purpose of this project is to purchase and install an ansul hood and fire suppression system in the Durham Veteran’s Memorial Hall. This addition will update the Hall’s kitchen to commercial grade. Once the kitchen is upgraded the Durham Recreation and Park District will be able to further promote the Hall to generate more revenue to support and expand district programs. Background: The Durham Recreation and Park District (DRPD) began with the Durham Community Park in 1947. In 1958 the DRPD became one of five recreational special districts in Butte county. The special district is supervised by its own elected Board of Directors as authorized in the Public Resources Code. The DPRD is a public service agency created by the people to provide adequate recreational areas and facilities to meet both present and future needs of the community. Durham Recreation and Park District strives to provide quality and efficiently maintained recreation, park facilities, and comprehensive programs. This promotes community involvement, healthy lifestyles, cultural awareness, fiscal responsibility and environmental stewardship for our rural community. The Durham Veterans Memorial Hall was built in 1957, and is host to the Durham American Legion Post No. 673 and the Durham American Legion Auxiliary. The DPRD assumed operations of the Hall in 1992. The District maintains and uses the Hall for district sponsored events, programs and meetings. The Memorial Hall consists of a kitchen, large meeting room, Legion meeting room, main floor, stage area, and is available for public use. The Veterans Memorial Hall is used frequently throughout the year for community fundraisers (e.g. Durham Rotary Crab Feed) wedding receptions and holiday parties. The kitchen is in high demand, but due to the lack of commercial kitchen specifications, community members are limited to what can be done in the kitchen. The original oven was replaced in 2021, but can only be used for “warming” purposes due to the lack of a proper grease fire suppression system. No cooking or baking can be done with any oils that could cause a grease fire. With the addition of a commercial grade ansul hood and fire suppression system, the usability of the Veterans Memorial Hall kitchen will increase significantly. The funding of this project will not only impact the community immediately, but also have a positive impact for years to come. Durham Park and Recreation District could expand the promotion of the Veterans Memorial Hall, in turn bringing in more rental revenue to put back into the community to support and expand DRPD programs.

<< Project Showcase