Santo Community Center.

"We waited to make pretty doggone sure we were going to get this place before we put them up," said Tom Hilton, Medford's recreation superintendent.

After months of red-tape limbo, the city is acquiring the building and property at 701 N. Columbus Ave. in a ceremony today. It will become Medford's first community center.

With ownership, the city will be able to tailor the building to suit the needs of west Medford, one of the most economically depressed areas of the city, Hilton said.

"That's what this is about," he said. "To make west Medford a better place to live."

A former U.S. Army Reserve facility named for Medford High football star and World War II hero Hubert Santo, the red-brick building with faded green trim holds about a dozen classrooms and offices, including a vault once used to store ammunition.

The center also has a large square gymnasium-type room designed as a drill hall, with a kitchen is connected to it. In a fenced compound stands a shop. In all, the center has more than 16,000 square feet of floor space. It sits on 4 acres, surrounded by busy streets.

The city rented the property in 1997 from the federal government. It was used by several nonprofit and local groups, although most moved out last year because the center does not have air conditioning.

One year ago, the city applied to take over the property as surplus, only to find itself in a heated battle with the U.S. Navy, which wanted the property for a Naval Reserve Center. With help from the Oregon congressional delegation, Medford was awarded the property this spring.

Already, the city has allocated $250,000 to rebuild the wiring and to add a central heating and cooling unit.

"We're going to be able to do some things," Hilton said. "Before now, we kind of had to use it as-is."

The parks department, Hilton said, doesn't have any real city facilities other than two swimming pools and The Shack, a teen center near the Santo Center. He said the department has had to borrow classrooms in the past.

"There's an awful demand for clubs and organizations to have meeting places," Hilton said.

Medford Parks and Recreation Director Greg Jones has said the department will hold neighborhood meetings to decide the best use for the center.

Gigi Michaels, of the West Medford Community Coalition, which has offices at the center, said the coalition conducted a door-to-door survey of people who lived within a mile of the center about two years ago.

She said the results led her to believe the center should be a place for youth activities, for education and for agencies to meet with the neighborhood.