(WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Thousands of young people on the West Side are expected to take part in fun and learning activities at a new Boys and Girls Club center.
The ribbon was cut Friday for the 27,000-square-foot facility at Chicago and Kostner, which was built and equipped with input from a council of young advisers.
One of them, a 15-year-old named Jametria, says she wanted the place to be “a safe place for kids like me.” The new center will offer young people a place to go so they don’t wind up hanging around with the wrong people, she said.
The new club has an NBA-sized gym, a technology center, an outdoor play area, a teen center, a commercial teaching kitchen, a music recording studio and a rooftop garden.
The Rusu-McCartin Boys and Girls Club is next to the city’s new joint public safety academy, where police and firefighter recruits will be trained.
Boys and Girls Club of Chicago President Michael Crowley sees that as a big plus because the two groups will have opportunities to meet.
“What an opportunity for us all to see each other as human beings first,” Crowley said.
“When we’re able to communicate and humanize each other, we understand each other better,” agreed Larry Snelling, who is expected to be Chicago’s next police superintendent.
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