During its meeting Monday, the Washington City Council will consider modifying a lease between the city and the Beaufort County Police Activities League.

The lease pertains to the use of city land next to Washington-Warren Field by BCPAL for its Aviation, Technology and Fitness Center. The lease modifications are minor according to a memorandum from Frankie Buck, the city’s public-works director, to the mayor and council.

The original lease agreement, approved by the council in September, called for the front façade of the center to match, as close as possible, the exterior of the adjacent airport terminal building. BCPAL is seeking to modify that element of the lease, according to the memorandum.

“I felt it necessary for the Council to review and approve the revised lease agreement. The Airport Advisory Board has approved this project,” Buck wrote in the memorandum.

The center’s facilities will include, but are not limited to, a simulator room where patrons will learn flight and boating fundamentals, a multipurpose classroom, a fitness center (addressing physical fitness, nutrition and other health-related concerns) and a laboratory where patrons may construct airplane models and other items related to their studies and research. The city’s Airport Advisory Board recommended approval of the center. The proposal has been reviewed and cleared by the N.C. Division of Aviation and the Federal Aviation Administration.

At the groundbreaking ceremony for the center in September, Alvin Powell, BCPAL president, explained the Beaufort County’s PAL program is unique because it focuses on an academic program that stresses science, technology, engineering and mathematics and includes fitness and nutrition components. PAL usually stands for Police Athletic League, in which sports is used as the tool for improving relationships between youth and the law enforcement community, he noted.

Grants to build and equip the center come from several sources. The Winston-Salem Foundation is providing $75,000. The Cannon Foundation is contributing $35,000.

Grady-White Boats is kicking in $15,000. A $160,000 grant from the Burroughs-Wellcome Fund is providing $160,000, but that money is earmarked for program expenses. Beaufort County United Way is helping fund the project, Powell noted.