MONROE, Mich. (WXYZ) — Monroe's only community center is now open. The Arthur Leslow Community Center, known as the ALCC, is a 28,000-square-foot facility where use of everything inside is free.
Watch Tony Geftos' video report:
The $9.3 million project — seven years in the making — held its ribbon-cutting Monday evening. A majority of the funding came from the state. The City of Monroe contributed $2 million.
The center brings together several organizations under one roof, including a career learning center and a library. It features small rooms for podcasting, medium rooms for adult learning, and larger spaces for senior programming such as bingo.
Mark Cochran, the interim city manager, has been helping lay the groundwork for the facility since 2019.
"Community spaces, incubation spaces we call them, and anybody in the community can rent them," Cochran said.
Cochran described the vision behind the project as building on a long tradition in the neighborhood.
"It's meant to be a community. The community center and the library have been part of this neighborhood since the 60s when it was built and established. So, we wanted to build upon the campus to offer more opportunities for more programs that people can take advantage of," Cochran said.
Phase one of the project included demolishing the library that previously stood on the site to build a larger, more modern one on the ground floor.
Nancy Bellaire, director of the Monroe County Library System, said the new space opens up new possibilities.
"So, to be able to do multi-generational activities simultaneously, it's kind of blowing our minds," Bellaire said.
Monroe Mayor Robert Clark highlighted the range of ways residents can use the space.
"Whether they're reading a book in the library or they want to have an opportunity to have a session, a meeting here with friends," Clark said.
The modern facility also serves as an umbrella for organizations such as the Opportunity Center.
"This project was a real transformational project for the Opportunity Center. We were so proud and are so proud to be a part of it," Stephanie Kasprzak, Executive Director of MCOP and the Opportunity Center, said.
Community members who attended the ribbon cutting expressed excitement about what the center will mean for Monroe.
"Just wow. It is beautiful. It is amazing. It's going to be a great asset to the community, for sure," Tammy Kadle, who works in Monroe, said.
Mark Ladd, a Monroe resident, said his family is already looking forward to using the space.
"My little ones, they're looking forward to being able to play basketball and the little library that's there, just to get to spend some time with their friends, I know who live around in the area," Ladd said.
Aaron Lavender, a member of the Arthur Leslow Community Center advisory board, put the project in the context of Monroe's history.
"We had Miss America come from this small town. We had world championship boxers come from this town. We have NBA and NFL players come from this town. We have one of the greatest gospel groups come from this town. So, when you talk about Monroe, Michigan, you're talking about a small town with big ideas, and this is just an extension of it," Lavender said.
The project is not finished. Fundraising is just getting started for phase two of the facility.
———————————————————————————
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
