Speaking to a packed gymnasium in the Van Zandt-Guinn Elementary School Oct. 28, Juneteenth Museum CEO Jarred Howard had a question for residents of the Historic Southside:
鈥淲hy do all the beautiful assets have to go in other communities?鈥�
His question wasn鈥檛 theoretical; it came as residents are facing a crucial decision about the future of the neighborhood 鈥� whether to support the museum鈥檚 proposal to demolish the neighborhood鈥檚 community center and build the National Juneteenth Museum in its place.
The roughly 19,000-square-foot-building is a locus of activity for the community, serving as a meeting space for everyone from young students attending after school programming to elderly adults taking part in the Golden Years Club and Steppin Grannies.
But busy as it is, the Southside Community Center, located at 959 E. Rosedale St., has fallen into disrepair. More than 50 years old, it is in need of , according to a 2022 condition report commissioned by the city.
鈥淲e have more problems on our hands than we thought,鈥� Monique Hill, assistant director of the parks and recreation department, said of the aging building.
The building does not meet current standards outlined by the Americans with Disabilities Act, and major renovations would trigger the need to address other issues such as asbestos remediation and other expensive repairs.
District 8 council member Chris Nettles, who represents the area, was frank with those gathered to hear about the proposal.
鈥淎t some point, that building will become unusable,鈥� he said.
For the National Juneteenth Museum, the opportunity to demolish the community center and build on the land at the corner of East Rosedale Street and New York Avenue would solve a pressing problem.
Despite acquiring land in the neighborhood, the museum has been necessary for its original plans. The nearby community center would allow the museum to stay within the neighborhood and close to the corner where Opal Lee, 鈥渢he grandmother of Juneteenth,鈥� created the first iteration of the Juneteenth museum.
Howard first announced the proposal at a Sept. 9 Historic Southside Neighborhood Association meeting, where a group of 20 to 30 association members the museum鈥檚 request to acquire the Southside Community Center.
In order to make the proposal a reality, the city of Fort Worth would need to agree to a long-term lease of the underlying land. When the city first heard that the Juneteenth Museum was interested in building on the site, Nettles said, he knew there were going to be a lot of questions and concerns.
鈥淭his is a 50-year-old community center, you can鈥檛 just take it away,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 said, let鈥檚 step back and have a community meeting.鈥�
Nettles said some people asked him why he needed to host the meeting after the Historic Southside Neighborhood Association gave its blessing. While he appreciated the neighborhood association鈥檚 input, it wasn鈥檛 enough to make a final decision.
鈥淭his community is much bigger than just the neighborhood association,鈥� he said.
Preserving community services
While several residents at the meeting supported the construction of the museum and agreed that the community center isn鈥檛 up to snuff, some raised questions about displacing services offered there.
Classes on finances and taxes, birthday celebrations and AARP meetings are all hosted at the community center, which is also currently acting as a polling place for the 2024 general election.
Debra Rivers, president of the 4508 chapter of AARP, said that her group has hosted meetings in the community center since 1989.
The location is convenient for the several chapter members, she said, especially for those who walk to the center for meetings.
鈥淲e are concerned because it鈥檚 a central location for us, and our members can drive up there and the parking is great,鈥� Rivers said. 鈥淎s far as getting in and out of the building, that鈥檚 great. They vote there. They have other programs like the tax preparers, and, of course, I鈥檓 concerned about the after school program.鈥�
Howard assured community members that space in the museum would be made available for residents to use if it wasn鈥檛 already booked for other events. Rentals are one way the museum plans to generate revenue.
鈥淲e have to be sustainable,鈥� Howard said.
James Walker, president of the Historic Southside Neighborhood Association and owner of a realty company, supports the construction of the museum and proposed building a community center elsewhere. He suggested a 1.5-acre piece of land within , which is already zoned for commercial use, as a potential location.
Rivers said that location would be too far for some of her members.
Dave Lewis, deputy director of the park and recreation department, noted the Historic Southside neighborhood has a number of existing facilities within a one-mile radius, including the Hazel Harvey Peace Center, the Atatiana Carr-Jefferson Community Center at Hillside, the Southside Community Center, the Ella Mae Shamblee Library and Glenwood Park.
In a presentation during the Oct. 28 meeting, city staff recommended moving Southside Community Center programs to several of these facilities if the demolition goes through, rather than building an entirely new center.
鈥淲e have some communities that don鈥檛 have a community center within 8 to 10 miles,鈥� Lewis said.
How do you feel about the proposal to put the Juneteenth Museum at the current location of the Southside Community Center?
The city is collecting survey responses. to participate in the survey.
Walker is hopeful that Nettles, the city and residents can find a way to build another community center and keep programs accessible to all of its residents.
鈥淣ow you know the concerns,鈥� Walker said. 鈥淟et鈥檚 sit down and see if we can come up with a solution.鈥�
Lewis said his department has launched a study to help determine where community centers are needed across Fort Worth. The city鈥檚 guiding light is the mile and a half rule, which generally states there should be a community center every mile and a half.
鈥淭he thing that鈥檚 important to note is that not every neighborhood can have a community center,鈥� Lewis said. 鈥淪o we try to build them in strategic locations that serve multiple areas.鈥�
He referenced physical barriers, like a freeway or a lack of transit options, which might interfere with a center鈥檚 creation and operations. Lewis said it鈥檚 also important to get a sense of what community assets currently exist, and how they could be colocated to maximize resources. A new community center can cost between $20 to $25 million, he said.
Plans for future conversation
Based on the turnout and interest, City Manager David Cooke said he could see the city hosting another meeting to discuss the proposal. That meeting鈥檚 conversation can be better informed by the survey responses the city gathers, he added.
鈥淐hris (Nettles) didn鈥檛 want to come to a conclusion without knowing what the broader community felt about it,鈥� Cooke said after the meeting.
Cooke anticipates coming to a resolution on the topic by the end of the year, which he said fits into Howard鈥檚 timeline for the museum as well.
Nettles said his key takeaway was that residents want both the museum and a new community center.
鈥淚f there is any way we can get the museum and host the (community center) programming there, that鈥檚 the best option we have,鈥� he said.
He also stressed that no decisions will be made overnight. In order to lease the land to the museum, the City Council would have to vote on a contract.
鈥淲e want to make sure we involve as many people as possible, and tonight we accomplished that,鈥� Nettles said. 鈥淪o we鈥檒l probably do (a meeting) again.鈥�
For Rivers, what comes next and what that means for her group and others remains up in the air.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a wait and see kind of situation,鈥� she said.
Marcheta Fornoff covers the arts for the Fort Worth Report. Contact her at marcheta.fornoff@fortworthreport.org. Emily Wolf is a government accountability reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact her at emily.wolf@fortworthreport.org or @_wolfemilyAt the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.
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