About

Oceanside Community Makerspace

A project of Oceanside Building Learning Together Society (BLT)

This project is being made possible through a Grant from the Governments New Horizons for Seniors program. 

Mission Statement

To provide a space that fosters creativity through sharing and developing expertise in a wide range of practical skills, for fun, personal interest and community enhancement.

The Slogan/Tag-line

Make Things, Make Friends, MakerSpace

Oceanside Community Makerspace is a focal point for creative people to work together or individually in a safe and supportive environment, sharing tools, machines and related resources that they might otherwise not have access to, with support from experienced and friendly inter-generational co-members.

It is a community work-space for hobbyists, crafts-people, artists, engineers, mechanics, scientists, teachers, students and just about anyone that has an interest in being creative.

The focus will be on new technologies, such as miniature computers, electronic control systems, robotics, digital video and photography, small scale machining, arts, crafts and cottage industry topics. This requires a wide range of equipment and expertise and the intention is to acquire and share community resources, re-purpose/recycle/reuse, and partner with local businesses schools and non-profits.

With a versatile 2000 sq ft club facility, it will become a community workshop, an artistic studio space, a well used social centre and educational facility where members can share tools, resources and knowledge to build just about anything, for fun, for personal interest and for community enhancement.

The Oceanside Community Makerspace began as an Oceanside Building Learning Together Society project with start-up funding provided through a New Horizons For Seniors grant and developed by a group of local volunteers made up largely of seniors over 70 years old, supported by both middle age adults and some younger members. While direct membership is limited to adults over 19 years of age, there are family memberships and children can be added to an adults membership. There are also many events open to the public or specifically designed to children to participate in.

Full Annual Members are eligible to hold positions on the Steering Committee and to vote at Annual General Meetings and Special Meetings. While “pay-as-you-go” members do not get this privilege (because there is only a month-to-month commitment to the club), all levels of membership are entitled to come to meetings and make their ideas and thoughts heard.