BETHLEHEM, Pa. - South Bethlehem is on its way to getting a new community center.
Bethlehem Mayor J. William Reynolds announced to dozens of residents at a news conference Wednesday that the city will conduct a feasibility study on establishing a South Bethlehem Community Center.
Reynolds said he wants to make the community center recreation-focused, but he wants to leave the details of its services and design up to the community.
- Bethlehem Mayor J. William Reynolds announced the city will do a feasibility study for a new community center in South Bethlehem
- Reynolds said he wants the center to be recreation-focused and wants community input
- South Bethlehem used to have a Boys & Girls Club, but it shut down because of a lack of funds and enrollment
“What this really is going to be is what the community decides it's going to be,” Reynolds said. “This is not coming down to what I think needs to be in there, or people in City Hall, but rather, what is it that makes sense? What do people want? And how do we make that happen?”
Reynolds said the city will hire an outside consulting firm to conduct the assessment. His office presented five steps for the feasibility study.
First, it will assess which services it should provide, then figure out where it could go, then conduct a financial analysis. Reynolds said he has some locations in mind for the center, but he needs to study them before announcing them.
The final two steps will be engaging the community and presenting a final report.
Reynolds estimated the project will cost $20-$25 million. He expects the city will need federal, state, local and private funds to complete it.
Phase I of the project is slated to start in January, after the city hires the consulting firm.
Bethlehem Area School District Superintendent Joseph Roy spoke at the event, expressing his support for the project.
“This is going to be a tremendous facility and a tremendous place for our community to come together to celebrate athletics, to celebrate the arts, and to celebrate each other,” Roy said.
Winston Alozie, chief executive officer for the Boys & Girls Club of Bethlehem, used to work for his organization’s South Bethlehem branch before it shut down in 2017 because of low membership and a lack of funding.
Alozie said he has since advocated for a community space in South Bethlehem because now the area lacks key resources that the Boys & Girls Club used to provide.
“There's really been a hole in our community in that respect since 2017,” Alozie said.
According to Alozie, one of the reasons why membership was low in the former Boys & Girls club was because the community center was located in an area where families no longer lived. He thinks to avoid a similar closure, the mayor’s office has to center community input from the beginning of the process.
“The voices of the people who live in the neighborhood must be part of this. It is crucial. If this is being done to the community, it won't work. And if it's being done for the community, it won't work. It has to be done with the community.”Winston Alozie, chief executive officer for the Bethlehem Boys & Girls Club
“The voices of the people who live in the neighborhood must be part of this. It is crucial,” Alozie said. “If this is being done to the community, it won't work. And if it's being done for the community, it won't work. It has to be done with the community.”
Roy said in an interview that he supports the idea of a community center in South Bethlehem because it shows the community there that the city cares about it.
“It sends a sign that we value them and that part of the community, and that we want to build a facility that is a gathering place for folks on the Southide,” Roy said.
According to the U.S Census American Community Survey, 37.4% of South Bethlehem residents are Hispanic or Latino, and 16.7% of families live below the poverty line.
