Community2gether Visioning moves forward

WARWICK — A new wave of three projects from the town-wide Community2gether Visioning is about to be launched. The announcement of these projects will take place at the upcoming Community Action Fair (CAF) to be held on Tuesday, Sept. 25, at the Greenwood Lake Elks Lodge at 6:30 p.m.
This second round of community projects includes:
A hiking/biking initiative that will link all parts of the town;
A focus on improving handicapped accessibility throughout Warwick; and
An exploration of possibilities for expanded activities for youth and families, including perhaps, a community swimming pool.
'Off the drawing board ... set in motion'All of these ideas were frequently mentioned in the Community2gether Visioning in which over 3,000 Warwick residents took part.
"It is at these Community Action Fairs," said Geoff Howard, one of the Community2gether organizers, “that the ideas that the residents came up with move off the drawing board, become projects and get set in motion. The moment when an idea on paper gets turned into a real project is one of the magical moments in the whole process.”
Community2gether’s plan is to launch projects a few at a time at CAFs to be held over time in different parts of Warwick, and based on the first fair, held in May at Town Hall, it has proven very effective.
At that first CAF, two projects were successfully launched — the Clearing of the Wawayanda Creek and the 3 Lakes Festival which will be held next summer and will become an annual event for the town.
Wawayanda CreekThe Wawayanda Creek project has attracted a robust and diverse group of more than 40 dedicated volunteers, some eager to work on the physical clearing, and others looking to help with community relations and environmental stewardship.
Work has already started and dramatic results are expected before the end of the fall.
3 Lakes FestivalThe idea for the 3 Lakes Festival came from Village of Florida Mayor Dan Harter Jr. and grew from one of the most frequently expressed themes of the Visioning, namely that Warwick could be a closer-knit, more unified community, where the villages and hamlets could find ways to come together and celebrate the many assets of the town.
Now, with another large group of community volunteer activists taking the lead, celebrating three of those assets — Glenmere Lake, Greenwood Lake and Wickham Lake — will begin to address this opportunity.
Next: Community Action Fair #2 The next CAF will be held at the Elks Lodge in Greenwood Lake on Tuesday, Sept 25, at 6:30 p.m.
Warwick residents who have an interest on seeing any of the three new projects become realities are urged to attend, hear more about each project idea and have the opportunity to become part of a Community Action Team to make it happen.