August 2nd 2023.
The Emma L. Bowen Community Service Center in Harlem, NY, has been providing therapy, treatment, and substance abuse services to its community for over 50 years. Now, the center is undergoing a major shift. According to CBS News, it will be bulldozed and replaced by a 9-story tower with 200 apartments and mental health services for the homeless, elderly, and low-income families.
Construction is expected to take several years, so the center will have to operate from a temporary location 10 blocks away for the time being. Once completed, the tower will span Amsterdam Avenue between West 145th and 146th streets and will include a newly improved Bowen Center on the first floor. Patricia Jordan, board member of the center, believes that the new design will make it even more comfortable for those using the center's services.
The project has been met with opposition from some Hamilton Heights residents who fear the new construction will bring an end to the services they've been relying on for the past half-century. The plans were detailed during a September 2022 meeting by Community Board 9, which sparked rumors that the center's facilities would be squeezed into a smaller space. Victor Edwards, member of the community board, was surprised to hear about the redevelopment plans and noted that the clinics would have their rent doubled, which Board Chair Barry Weinberg deemed "unacceptable".
Residents of the area have voiced their concerns that they are being made to bear the brunt of the city's efforts to push supportive housing initiatives in their neighborhood. Ernest Lyles, a Harlem resident who lives near the building with his wife and two children, worries that the community is becoming more dangerous because of shelters, injection sites, and other types of supportive housing. He shared an example of this, saying, “The other day, my kids stopped playing in the flower beds because there were capsules from drugs being left over.”
Those behind the redevelopment project say that their goal is to increase affordable housing in the area. They are confident that the project will have a positive impact on the community, while still providing necessary mental health services for those in need.
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