New Boys & Girls Club facility opens on West Side
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The Boys and Girls Club hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony in celebration of the official opening of its new facility on the West Side Friday morning.
The three-story building measures 27,000 square feet and will provide a safe space for youth ages five to 18 or older. It sits on the same campus as the city's new joint Public Safety Training Academy.
"It's a facility built specifically and intentionally for our young people, and we also incorporated youth voice and choice into the design process," said President and CEO Michael Crowley. "This is not just a community club for the community, this is by and of the community, and it reflects the hopes and dreams and desires of our kids themselves."
It's the first newly built club in a generation in that area and will help serve families in Austin, West Garfield Park, West Humboldt Park, and other areas nearby.
One of the teens told CBS 2 that she's happy to have a safe space for kids in the neighborhood to get away from gangs and violence.