The plan is to build a 2 story 5,000 to 7,000 SF building on the Hunterdon lots with parking on the 16th Avenue lots, “The Alpha House”, with offices, conference rooms, a banquet hall and prep kitchen for catered events. The building would be configured with offices, a reception hall and a community room on the first floor. The second floor we plan to devote to the banquet hall with a prep kitchen and a small conference/prep room for catered events. The basement will contain the mechanical room along with additional space for a gym, showers/bath and a private lounge for chapter activities. The building will be handicapped accessible with an elevator and rest rooms on every level.
As a community center, the building will be available for local groups and individuals to rent out event space, meeting rooms and offices at reasonable rates. The Alpha House will be the center from which we will run our national and local community programs throughout the year. We are currently working with the 17th Street School on Project Alpha, mentoring middle school boys to stay in school and prepare for high school. Two of the Project Alpha participants entered our Martin Luther King Oratorical Contest held every year at Metropolitan Baptist Church and won against suburban school competition. This program, and our other programs noted above will greatly benefit from having a place to plan, operate and expand from.
Demand for local affordable meeting and community event space for family and organizational events are particularly high in Newark, with many opting to hold events outside of the city when unable to find spaces they can afford. The major source for many is hotels and restaurants where outside caterers is not an option. Those looking for smaller venues for a baby shower, wedding reception, graduation celebration etc. have few affordable options. We would like to be able to provide local residents with a community space that could accommodate their needs as well as our need for space to operate our service programs.
