Brooklyn Borough President

MARKOWITZ BREAKS GROUND FOR NEW “Y” IN BED-STUY

In photo 2: Borough President Markowitz encourages students from Bedford Academy High School to stay on the path to success.

Photograph by Kathyrn Kirk

In photo 1: (from left to right) Capital Campaign Chairman for the Bedford-Stuyvesant YMCA Alan Fishman, Bedford-Stuyvesant YMCA Executive Director John Rappaport, Borough President Markowitz, Mayor Bloomberg, Taylor Young, Councilmember Vann, Student Body President of Bedford Academy Capri Sansbury, and YMCA of Greater New York President & CEO Jack Lund.

“The Bedford ‘Y’ has been a cornerstone of the Bedford-Stuyvesant community since 1889,” said Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz. “It has given thousands of young people a place to play and learn after school, and the guidance and sense of community they need to succeed in today’s world. This new facility will enable the YMCA to help thousands more children every year — that means thousands more healthy kids, more wealthy kids, and more wise kids.”

On Thursday, February 3, Borough President Markowitz joined Mayor Bloomberg and YMCA of Greater New York President & CEO Jack Lund to break ground for the new Bedford Stuyvesant YMCA. Councilmember Albert Vann, Capital Campaign Chairman for the Bedford-Stuyvesant YMCA Alan Fishman, Bedford-Stuyvesant YMCA Executive Director John Rappaport, Taylor Young of the YMCA’s after-school program, and Capri Sansbury along with 230 of her fellow students from the Bedford Academy High School attended the event at the Bedford YMCA Activity Center.

The Bedford-Stuyvesant community will have a new 19,000 square foot state-of-the-art YMCA on the corner of Bedford Avenue and Monroe Street. The YMCA Youth Activity Center on Monroe Street will also be upgraded. Brooklyn families will enjoy new multipurpose rooms, more after-school programming, a new fitness facility, teen center, and improved health services. The construction and renovation are expected to cost approximately $8 million. Borough President Markowitz allocated $500,000 to help make this project a reality.

Donald Blair Architects designed the project, slated for completion by the end of 2005. As part of the overall site development, the Department of Education is also renovating the existing Technical School building, adjacent to the main YMCA building, to create a permanent home for Bedford Academy High School.