Did you ever think you could go to a community center for a morning swim, grab a cup of coffee with a friend, and attend a wedding at the same place later that evening?
Across the nation, cities are starting to rethink what community facilities can be. When recreation, gathering spaces, learning programs, and cultural uses come together in one place, these buildings can stay active throughout the day and serve many different parts of the community.
At the 2026 California Park and Recreation Society Conference, Noll and Tam Architects, Walnut Creek Parks and Recreation, RRM Design Group and Ballard*King are leading a session called Mix, Match, and Maximize: Creative Approaches to Combined Facilities. The session explores how cities can combine programs to make the most of limited space and public investment while creating places that feel welcoming to people of all ages.
The session begins with an interactive activity called the Wheel of Possibilities. Participants spin the wheel to randomly combine facility types such as aquatics, teen centers, libraries, and arts spaces. Small groups then sketch and discuss how those programs could work together in one building and what it would take to make the combination successful.
Following the activity, the panel will share lessons from real projects that bring multiple programs together in one place. The conversation will include insights from the upcoming Heather Farm Aquatics and Community Center in Walnut Creek, a project that combines aquatics, recreation, and community gathering spaces into a single civic destination.
The goal is simple. Help communities think creatively about facilities that do more, serve more people, and become places where daily life unfolds.
Janet Tam
Jocelyn Lawrence Barish
