A Creative Learning Center dedicated to hobbyists in Valencia Lakes would benefit hundreds of residents, and potentially hundreds more — if it were built, according to supporters.
A community for those 55 and older with more than 900 homes just off U.S. 301, Valencia Lakes is also home to several active hobbyist groups covering everything from sewing and quilting to woodworking and clay.
With more than 200 members, the hobbyists would like to see a building dedicated to their varied interests: a place to work together, mentor and share a common interest.
Chief among those backing the plan for a Creative Learning Center are members of the Valencia Lakes Woodworkers Club. Founded in 2013, the club has more than 75 members, most of whom work from their garage — not an enticing prospect during a Florida summer, club members said. The club recently presented a plan to the community’s builder, GL Homes, to construct a building to house hobbyists.
“We have 75 members listed but only about six have a decent workspace in their garage and that is the only place they can do their work,” said Carl Aber, president of the Woodworkers Club. “And Florida is not the best place to do this outdoor work year-round.”
The woodworkers are active year-round on many philanthropic projects, most recently having worked to create reading benches at Wimauma Elementary with help from Mainscape, a commercial landscaping company.
Popular with active seniors, the GL Homes community features an expansive clubhouse that offers a complete fitness center, a large swimming pool with a separate resistance exercise pool, spa, cabana bath, yoga and exercise studio, art studio and gallery, social hall with raised stage and dance floor, and a gaming room, among other facilities.
The Woodworkers are proposing a new 80- by 65-square-foot building with seven separate rooms for Valencia Lakes, a home for the burgeoning number of hobbyists who call the community home.
With jewelry-making, needlecraft, painting, pottery, stained glass and wood-carving, and others all able to find a home in the Creative Learning Center — although not all at the same time, obviously, supporters cautioned — the new Center is designed to optimize every square foot. The building would also include a space for ham radio operators.
“We need it so the people who live here who do not have the tools and equipment that Carl [Aber] and myself have, so those people can work in a shop environment and other people can be mentoring them,” said Jim Harrington, a member of the Woodworkers Club who is helping lead the drive for the Creative Learning Center.
The woodworkers have also been encouraged in their efforts by other hobbyists in Valencia Lakes. “It would give you a place to meet and sharpen your skills. It would give people here that opportunity to learn from people who do know,” said Harrington.
Acknowledging that the building would not be cheap — “We are asking GL Homes to spend a lot of money here,” Harrington said — the hobbyists feel it would be well worth the outlay. With erroneous reports that the clubs were asking for a much larger building, Harrington wanted to make sure the public knows the facts and exactly what the clubs are asking for.
The new facility would mean “people would have the equipment to do their hobbies, mentor others and be mentored. It would also be a place where we could invite masters (in certain fields) to teach,” Harrington said. ‘It’s a learning center. That’s why we call it the Creative Learning Center.”
Harrington said he was also confident that membership in Valencia Lakes’ hobby groups would increase if the center is approved.
“What is the point of having a woodworking club if all you are going to do is sit around and talk about wood?” he asked.
GL Homes is currently reviewing the proposal.
The Woodworkers Club meets the second Tuesday of the month at 10 a.m. at the Valencia Lakes Clubhouse.
