Philadelphia City Council Press Conferences, 6 May 2017

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From YouTube: Building the Strawberry Mansion PAL 5-6-2017

Description

Council President Clarke was among the participants putting finishing touches on the repurposed L.P. Hill School on Strawberry Mansion Volunteer Day on May 6, 2017. Thanks to a generous donation of resources and labor from Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) and funding from Council President Clarke, the former elementary school is coming back to life as a flagship PAL Center that will offer recreation and activities to area youth.

Council President Clarke spoke to the volunteers about what the new PAL Center will mean to him and to the area's young residents.

State Representative Dona Bullock added that the new PAL Center would provide a space for young people to have positive interactions with the law enforcement members of Philly PAL.

Video: Carolyn Esposito/PHLCouncil Fellow

A

We just want to say from the surveys and family to the boma family and so on this, how family loved them and we're ready.

B

This is very special, very impossible to me because of the location, particularly how it happened when the school district closed I think was like 32 schools across the city and actually proposed to close Strawberry Mansion and all people neighborhood said no you're, not posing strawberry man.

B

Sorry man, but we weren't able to say them, and you know we looked around. What do we want to do so for Alma and pal and all of you to come in and pull it together and allow us to repurpose this small portion of this school is very awesome, so guys I just want to say this is so important to the community. It's so important to me and the rep it's so important to young people in this communities. I want to thank all of you for your support. I just.

C

Want to briefly thank everybody, I mean you guys unbelievable Lola. You do this and it's just overwhelming. First off your willingness to jump into this and do all this work and you transform a place like this and what it's going to mean to the kids. I know: that's why you do it and one of these things you've got to come back and see it when it's full of kids, because I think that's when you'll say wow. We did that no you're so product our.

D

Goal is to make this a place for you guys the picture. There are all your friends and neighbors all to the streets, and you know in a safe environment and that's what it's about and that's why we're all here today and.

E

That it's not an end more important right now to our children to have positive interactions with our law enforcement. It is so important for them to have that. Experience and I look forward to this Center being that opportunity here in our community, where we have had tension and test years between law enforcement, community I.

F

Just really want to say thank you have no idea what that is for our community three years ago, almost three years ago now, when they close down the school, there's Parker myself said that we were not going to allow this to become kind of that's.

G

What it's all about, keeping our kids safe, keeping them in our own, a good environment where they can be part of so many great programs of how has to offer.