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As discussed in my previous post, El Centro de la Raza is a community center aimed to empower those of the Latin American population, as well as other races, to participate in
their community and practice social justice. El Centro de la Raza’s programs
are constructed to prepare their members to be involved members of society
through child and youth programs, human emergency services, education and skill
building programs, and community building development. Their services range
from programs like career building workshops to Cinco de Mayo Festivals that are open to the community. El Centro de la Raza embodies the
widespread values of Beacon Hill: culture and community.
The dynamic population of Beacon Hill has always been in need of a place where its residents can congregate and engross themselves in their community. With this in mind, the idea for Plaza Roberto Maestas was born. Their idea is to build a community-inspired center that honors the history of “El Centro de la Raza,” and also serves as a “town center” for Beacon Hill residents to enjoy. The center will have. The official design was released on the Beacon Hill Blog this Monday, May 13th. A team met over the series of ten meetings in 2012 to formulate the plans and designs for the “Latino” inspired community center. (Photos from the meeting)
Aimed towards low in come to moderate-income individuals and families, the plan is to create a housing community with 40 one-bedroom apartments, 51 two-bedroom apartments, and 22 three-bedroom apartments. While the center seems to be adhered more to families, there will be a section with predominantly one-bedroom apartments. The ground level of each building will be commercial retail space, El Centro de la Raza’s Jose Marti Child Development Center, and a Multi‐Cultural Community Center.
Possibly the Plaza Roberto Maesta’s most impressive feature is the fact that it is open to the public.
The Beacon Hill Blog says, “The Plaza is specifically
designed this project around the concept of an open, public central plaza for
the community to use and enjoy, as laid out in the neighborhood plan. The plaza
is being designed to both honor El Centro’s history and to create open
gathering space to celebrate the Beacon Hill neighborhood, specifically for
events such as Beacon Rocks and a potential farmer’s market, should one ever be
located on Beacon Hill. It is anticipated that the plaza will be closed at
dusk, similar to Seattle Public Parks, in order to maintain safety and security
on site for the residents and the neighborhood.”
El Centro de la Raza just announced a public-open meeting that will
launch off the permitting process on June 25th at Wellspring Family
Services on Rainer Avenue.
Additional Information can be found here.http://www.elcentrodelaraza.org/documents/PRM.pdf
(Future Plans of the Plaza, images via Beacon Hill Blog)
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