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Dozens of people gathered
despite the threat of rain to witness the grand re-opening of
the Latino social service agency El Centro at its new home, on
the corner of Pearl Avenue and 28th Street, Lorain,
Dec. 14, 2011.
“We are so proud. Here we
stand as a community. Here is your building. This is a gift to
you,” said El Centro’s Executive Director Victor Leandry
before cutting a thick red ribbon that had been tied to the
entrance of the building, at 2800 Pearl Avenue. The audience
responded with applause and cheers.
The guests approved what
they saw. As they made their way through the building for the
agency’s open house, guests could be heard repeating “This is
nice,” and “Qué bonito.”
Mary Munn,
from Applewood, a children’s mental health agency, said
the new El Centro has a “pleasant” feel. “The colors are very
soothing and the natural light is wonderful,” Munn said of the
offices’ large windows and space, “They did a really good job.
It’s a pleasant place to work.”
El Centro’s new home includes: police substation, community room
and partnership offices
El Centro’s first floor
greets guests with a commodious reception area adorned by a
Christmas tree and houses 13 spacious offices which include a
community room and partnership offices – offices ready to be
used by partner community organizations.
The 650 square foot,
50-person capacity community/training room will be rented and
open after hours to community organizations and even for private
use like for weekend birthday parties, said Dan Radocaj,
the agency’s chief financial officer.
Standing in the community
room, adorned with a big Christmas tree and green and blue
chairs surrounding rectangular tables, Margie Carrión, a
former employee of El Centro’s El Dorado Senior Center
for 11 years, said she was pleased to learn the community room
will allow the seniors program to now have a permanent place to
meet. “I can’t believe it,” Margie Carrión said “It’s perfect
for them.”
The second floor houses
nine offices including rentable space, a conference room, a WIFI-available
technology room to be soon filled with computers and cubicles,
and a Lorain Police substation, said Greg Hickman, the
agency’s development officer.
Police Chief Cel Rivera
said the police substation will not be manned at all times,
instead will be used as an additional office space so Lorain
Police can lead interviews, have access to translation services
during interviews, and fill out paperwork. El Centro’s staff
however said they welcome the extra police presence.
Radocaj added part of the
first and second floor has WIFI access but not the entire
building.
El Centro will also
partner with the Second Harvest Food Bank, and once a
month, provide food for the community, Radocaj said.
Radocaj added the agency
is considering offering new programs and services in the future
including: an anger management program, AIDS testing services,
and even possibly providing a shuttle service, but those plans
are not definite yet. As the Lorain County Transit has
scaled back its services, “Transportation is a big issue in our
community,” Radocaj said.
Present at the open house
also were LCCC President Roy A. Church, LCCC Dean
Generosa López-Molina, Sacred Heart Chapel Fr. William
Thaden, Lorain County Commissioner Ted Kalo, from the
Coalition for Hispanic Issues and Progress Mike Ferrer
and from the Lorain Arts Council Antonio Barrios.
El Centro: To house a LCCC extended campus?
LCCC President Roy Church,
a board member of El Centro for 20 years, said I “deeply believe
in its mission and role in our community.” When asked if the
college plans to bring services or a LCCC branch campus to El
Centro’s new site, Church said he has talked with the non-profit
on possibly using the new facility to extend their partnership.
But no word yet on if and how the college plans to use the
agency’s new building. “The thinking is to give El Centro some
time to settle in to the new space, and see how it is being
utilized. Then, we may have a better sense of what could be
productively scheduled for delivery at that site,” Church said.
El Centro’s new home: a work in progress for several years
With the help of a federal
grant and donations, El Centro managed to raise nearly $1.3
million for the renovation of the former bank on Pearl Ave., and
turn it into its new headquarters after outgrowing its former 31st
street home.
But after falling short of
its original $1.5 million capital campaign goal, the agency was
forced to scale back on the design and renovate two-thirds of
the 11,000 square foot building. The renovation cost the agency
$1.2 million.
Leandry said he preferred
to fundraise because he did not want to finance the building.
The remaining unused 2,000
square foot section on the second floor housed tables and chairs
and served as a temporary cafeteria for the guests during the
open house. There, guests were treated to a variety of food
including: rice, pastelillos, appetizers, and sweets.
But that unfinished space
will be used by the agency or a partner organization in the
future, said Radocaj.
El Centro entered a
building exchange agreement with the city of Lorain in 2007 to
renovate the former bank at 2800 Pearl Ave., and turn it into
its new headquarters. In 2008, the agency exchanged its former
and outgrown 1888 E. 31st Street home and its former youth
center, for its new Pearl Avenue building, that is nearly three
times larger with a bigger parking lot and is
handicap-accessible.
El Centro received
$584,400 in federal funds, secured by U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown
and U.S. Rep. Betty Sutton, for the renovation of its new
building. Brown and Sutton were not present at the open house,
but a representative from Sutton’s office, Katey Breck,
attended.
El Centro is a non-profit
agency that was founded in 1974 with the goal of helping the
often impoverished and non-English-speaking Latinos. The agency
assists the Latino and non-Latino communities with a youth
program which includes tutoring; adult support services which
includes translation; money management services for individuals
with mental or physical illness; an employment program; a family
violence prevention program; and support services for seniors
under its El Dorado Senior Center.
Leandry has said El Centro
helps roughly 2,000 families a year, and among those families,
80 percent do not speak English.
Rey Carrión,
from the city’s development dept., said he was excited to see El
Centro finish the renovation of its new home.
“It’s absolutely gorgeous. It’s quite an accomplishment,” said
Rey Carrión, “This building has been sitting here vacant for 18
years. Victor has been a great driving force behind this. I’m so
proud,” he said.
See El Centro online:
http://www.lorainelcentro.com/ Call the agency at (440)
277-8235.
La Prensa’s video coverage
of El Centro:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9O3qNdyjyqw
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