FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:  Brie Turek (407) 246-3106
Laura Bornfreund (407) 246-3423

ORLANDO MAYOR BUDDY DYER AND DISTRICT 3 COMMISSIONER VICKI VARGO OFFICIALLY OPEN ROSEMONT COMMUNITY CENTER

Unique Mosaic Artwork From Italy

WHO: Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer
District 3 Commissioner Vicki Vargo
Residents of Rosemont Neighborhood

WHAT: Grand opening of Rosemont Community Center

WHEN: Monday, November 21, 2005
5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

WHERE: Rosemont Community Center
4880 Rose Bay Drive

ORLANDO (November 17, 2005)-- Mayor Buddy Dyer, District 3 Commissioner Vicki Vargo and the City’s Families, Parks and Recreation Department will officially open the new Rosemont Community Center on Monday, November 21st, with Rosemont community leaders, residents and children.

The 15,500 square ft. center includes a multipurpose room and computer lab for community meetings and educational purposes. The center also houses a fitness center, bathhouses, recreational space and swimming pool for Orlando residents to enjoy with children and neighbors.

Unique to the Rosemont Community Center is mosaic artwork fabricated by J. Piercey Studios. The mosaic is based on the painting “Serenity in the Park” by Arthur Dawson and is featured in the multi-purpose room. Each panel of the mosaic is 8 feet by 10 ¼ feet and is constructed of Italian smalti, which is the result of molten glass being poured on a slab and hand cut into uneven half-inch squares.

Meadowbrook Middle School Marching Band, Rosemont Elementary School and local citizens of all ages will help Mayor Dyer, Commissioner Vargo and community leaders kick-off the grand opening of the newly constructed Rosemont Community Center.

After the grand opening, regular hours of operation for the Rosemont Community Center are listed below:
· Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. - 9 p.m.
· Saturday, 9 a.m. - 9 p.m.
· Sunday, 1 p.m. - 6 p.m.

The Rosemont Community Center is the 11th of 12 City projects to be completed this year. For more information about the Rosemont Center and programs offered, please visit www.cityoforlando.net or call City of Orlando Recreation Division at (407) 246-2288.

Editor’s note:
The artist, Arthur Dawson, of “Serenity in the Park” is a self-taught artist from Wakulla, Florida who currently lives and works in Orlando, Florida. Dawson has had collections on display at the Orlando International Airport, Federal Reserve Bank (Los Angeles, CA), Orange County Library and the Florida Regional NAACP. For the past two years, he has served as Artist Coordinator for the Zora Neale Hurston Festival.
 

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