The last of four public meetings to discuss the possibility of building new stand-alone community centers in Dorchester was held virtually last Thursday (April 14).

There is no stand-alone, city-run facility in all of Dorchester – the largest neighborhood in the city. The city community centers that do exist are all attached to school buildings, which limits usable hours.

“We see and hear the urgency in the community,” said Marta Rivera, interim director of Boston Center for Youth and Families (BCYF). “What we have heard on multiple meetings is there will be at least two [centers] and the potential for more in Dorchester. You’re not vying for or elbowing your way through to get this.

“This is not a fight for ‘a’ community center. Know that Dorchester is large enough that it could handle not just one additional or two additional – we don’t have any stand-alone centers here now. We’re talking about two or more…Now is an opportunity and I hope it’s one we can capitalize on.”

Rivera said that a city report on potential sites will be released next month, the culmination of a public process that started last fall and has continued without a hitch since Mayor Wu took office.

In a meeting earlier this year, the BCYF project team unveiled five test-fit locations on public land, though mentioning they have looked at many privately owned sites as well. The suggestions in the test-fits were:

•A park behind the Frederick Middle School facing Normandy Street in Grove Hall.
•A vacant lot at 40-48 Geneva Avenue across from the Jeremiah Burke High School in Grove Hall.
•A portion of Town Field where the basketball courts are now located in Fields Corner.
•A portion of Victory Road Park abutting the railroad tracks near Clam Point.
•The parking lot of Devine Rink abutting the new Garvey Park playground and fields in Neponset.
As was the case in the first meeting last fall, the April 14 meeting was dominated by residents advocating for a community center in Grove Hall, particularly on a vacant lot next to Burke High School.

“We believe with the new administration and the new mayor we’re in a positive place where the city is looking at Grove Hall and sees value in the people,” said Emmanuel Tikili. “We want to make sure the quality of life in the neighborhood is such that people in the rest of the neighborhood see us as wonderful people achieving great things…We really hope the city looks at Grove Hall and sees it as the center of the city and the heart of the city.”

State Rep. Liz Malia said Grove Hall has lacked resources when it comes to youth programming. She recalled when the temporary “bubble” community center was operating on the Geneva Avenue site. She advocated for that site to be one of the community center sites and added that “Grove Hall has had a few extra mountains to climb.”

Erico Correia, a member of the study’s Community Advisory Committee, also advocated for the Geneva Avenue lot to house a new community center.

“It’s been many years on the waiting list for Grove Hall,” said Correia. “I see kids get out of the Burke every day and they’re looking around for a place to go and things to do. This space is available and doing nothing for the community.”

Jayona Thomas, a 17-year-old who is part of Project RIGHT, said teens in Grove Hall want a center on the Geneva Avenue site.

“We’re one of the most populated areas and have none of these important resources,” Thomas said. “It would be a safe place for kids – to get comfortable and be comfortable with who they are. They would be opened up to different things because they aren’t around the same people all the time.”

However, the process to getting doors open is a much longer deal and could take an additional four years. The next opportunity for community engagement would be during the design phase, which is about one or two years away. Putting any community centers on public land would speed up the process by about six to twelve months, officials said in previous meetings.