Parking lot improvements at the Lakehills Community Center were completed in late January, following a $60,000 grant from the John L. Santikos Charitable Foundation, a fund of the San Antonio Area Foundation, according to the Medina Lake Betterment Association.
Lakehills Community Center Board President Barbara Engel said the parking lot improvements had been a priority for several years.
“The Lakehills Community Center has been wanting to repave our parking area for many years,” Engel said. “Our center is being used more and more, and the disrepair, loose gravel and other hazards were of great concern to us, particularly as we have many senior citizens and individuals with disabilities who use our facility.”
Engel said the grant made the project possible.
“This renovated lot will make our community center so much more functional and safer for our visitors,” she said. “We are grateful to the John L. Santikos Charitable Foundation and the San Antonio Area Foundation for this generous grant which will enable us to better serve our local citizens.”
A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the parking lot improvements is scheduled for 5:45 p.m. March 12, prior to the center’s annual membership drive and dinner in partnership with the Bandera County Chamber of Commerce. Andrea Figueroa of the San Antonio Area Foundation is expected to attend.
The center is funded through donations, grants and fundraising events, including the annual Medina Lake Cajun Festival, which is scheduled for Sept. 26.
Work on the project began Jan. 15 and was completed in about two weeks. Community center leaders said the repairs were scheduled during a historically slower period to minimize disruptions.
The Lakehills Community Center, established in 1969, serves residents in Lakehills and surrounding rural areas. T he facility includes a 6,416-square-foot building with a full kitchen and more than four acres of outdoor space, including two pavilions and a gazebo.
The center is operated by an elected, 15-member volunteer board and offers programs and activities for residents of all ages.
Senior programs include exercise classes, card games, crafts, quilting and a monthly senior lunch that serves about 100 attendees at no cost. Youth programs include 4-H, cooking, dance and art classes, along with Family Activity Night and Community Field Day.
The center also hosts community events such as dances, dinners, pickleball, seminars and political forums.
It partners with local organizations, including Hill Country Samaritans, Silver Sage Hill Country Resource Center and the San Antonio Food Bank, to provide services such as food distributions, holiday events and school support programs.
The facility also serves as a Bandera County voting site.
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