Wednesday marks a major milestone for Camden's $90 million state-of-the-art Kroc Center -- City officials and community leaders will gather for the project's official topping-out ceremony.
Seen as a key to revitalizing the city's underutilized waterfront in the Cramer Hill neighborhood, the new community center has been in the making for over 8 years. In 2004, the Salvation Army USA announced a $1.6 billion gift from the estate of Joan Kroc (her husband founded McDonald's).
Through a competitive process, $59 million of this funding went to Camden to build one of 27 Kroc Corps Community Centers in the country. The remaining $31 million has been raised through philanthropic efforts.
Tomorrow's topping-out ceremony hopes to garner even more excitement for the city's newest destination. Once complete, the new center will resemble one in Philadelphia's Nicetown neighborhood, which opened in 2010.
Camden's Center -- which Major Paul Cain with the Salvation Army calls "a super community center" -- will be a behemoth. The 120,000 square-foot facility will provide recreational, health, educational, cultural, family and spiritual programming for area residents. Members will enjoy an early-childhood education center, a food pantry, aquatic centers, a worship center, a black box movie theater and dance studios. The Center's grounds will also include a park, outdoor water facilities, sports fields and a playground.
"The program model is holistic," says Cain. "The Center will have amenities geared towards the mind, body and spirit."
The anticipated membership fee for a family of four is $200; however scholarships will be available for those who cannot afford the fee.
"Joan Kroc's purpose for each [Kroc Center] was to provide access to a state-of-the-art facility for underserved communities," adds Cain. "Camden's will live up to that legacy."
For information about joining the new center, visit KrocCenter.org
Source: Major Paul Cain, The Salvation Army
Writer:
Greg Meckstroth