Hope, Unity, Belonging: White Center HUB Breaks Ground

White Center community members gathered Saturday, May 18, to recognize a huge milestone: The groundbreaking for the White Center HUB. The HUB (“Hope, Unity, Belonging”) will be a place of learning, sharing, and quality homes for working families, says the White Center Community Development Association (WCCDA).

It represents deep involvement from the community, who participated in years of outreach efforts. Community members expressed a desire for affordable housing and a community center for gatherings, especially for youth.

The HUB will fulfill that desire, with 76 affordable homes; a HealthPoint clinic; space for community-based organizations to further serve the community; and community gathering spaces.

At the ceremony at Dick Thurnau Memorial Park’s bicycle playground, community members talked about the seven years of partnership that have led to this milestone. They also shared memories of growing up here, teaching children to ride a bike here, and their excitement that their children will attend school right next door to the youth services to be offered at the HUB.

And, they reminisced about the many years of determined collaboration that this day represents.

This video (99 seconds) captures some of the day’s highlights.

A video from the White Center HUB groundbreaking (1:39) captures some of the memorable moments.

Update, Aug. 2, 2024: You can now watch the full video with all the speakers.

Self-determination and community ownership

This development is not only community-led, but also rooted in a community that is majority people of color. About 1 in 3 community members were born outside of the U.S. and almost half over the age of 5 speak a language other than English.

Sili Savusa describes the “freakin’ big idea.”

Sili Savusa, who until recently served as Executive Director of White Center CDA, described this development as a “freakin’ big idea.” Now Executive Director of Pacific Islander Community Association of Washington, Sili said her parents in the 1950s probably could not imagine that their daughter, “a Samoan girl who didn’t know how to do this,” could lead a $32 million development project.

She admitted that barriers to financing at times brought her to tears, and that it was daunting being in spaces with almost exclusively white faces. But she kept her hope.

“For young people today, this is what liberation looks like,” she said. “The community is squarely in the driver’s seat.” She said she wants people to remember this experience and carry it to the next project.

Aaron Garcia and Sili Savusa commemorate the moment by grabbing a shovel. Aaron and Sili have both served as members of COO’s Governance Group.

Aaron Garcia, HUB project manager and new White Center CDA Executive Director, served as the enthusiastic emcee for the ceremony. “Who did that? We did that!” he told the crowd. Reflecting on the many sources of funding coming together for this development, especially public funding, he said “we were asking not for their money, but for our money – Black and Brown folks.”

“This day is for all y’all,” he said.

HealthPoint’s Sherry Williams talks about the community clinic that will be housed in the HUB.

The HUB will offer a 31,000 square foot community clinic, with 6 treatment centers, dental services, and more. HealthPoint Vice President of Community Engagement Sherry Williams said she’s delighted to be part of this work “as a person of color who seeks and deserves good health care.”

The community center part of the building will house community-based organizations that offer services to youth and young people, like FEEST, Southwest Youth & Family Services, and YES! Foundation. 

COO Governance Group member Cilia Jurdy of FEEST talks to a community member. FEEST will have a home in the HUB. (Photo by COO)

Southwest Youth & Family Services’ longtime Executive Director Steve Daschle, who recently retired, is another partner who played a key role in the project.

L-R, Southwest Youth & Family Services staff Dennis Omondi, Bryan Hayes, and August Rowe. They’ll be one of the partners housed in the building. (Photo by COO)

Pat Thompson of YES! Foundation, another partner organization that will be housed in the building.

 Former White Center resident Sen. Joe Nguyen shares his connection to the HUB.

Tam Nguyen of White Center CDA, Family Engagement Advocate (Vietnamese), said she looks forward to serving families in the HUB. (Photo by COO)

State Senator Joe Nguyen (34th District) lived near here as a child, after his family immigrated to the U.S. from Vietnam. “People here uplifted my family in our time of need,” he said. He was one of several legislators who played a key role securing $3 million in state funding for the HUB.

Sherry Williams and Chris Persons, two of the key partners.

Community Roots Housing is another partner. Their executive director, Chris Persons, said he could speak to issues others might be reluctant to. It should not take 10 years to deliver a community hub with services for people living in poverty, he noted, and “it shouldn’t take 17 different funding sources.” However, this project helped him to have new hope, he said.

About the Building

Behind the trees you see in in the groundbreaking photos, the HUB will be built in a space that was formerly occupied by a now-closed Public Health clinic and the relocated White Center Food Bank. After the building is demolished, construction will begin. The new building is expected to be completed within 18 months, by September 2025.

In addition to the clinic and the community center space, the HUB will offer 76 quality homes for working families affordable to individuals and families earning between 30-60% of the Area Median Income (AMI). This means it will be affordable to people like teachers, janitors, and bus drivers. It will also serve as a hub for life-long learning, integrated health services, and space for community-based organizations and community gatherings.

“Our community needs this,” said Stephanie Tildholm, from the Highline School District board. She shared her hopes that these homes will mean stability for “our babies” and that “their parents will not need to work 90 hours a week to afford a home.”

The building is designed by SKL Architects, who says environmental stewardship is a primary goal of the project. Other development partners are Marpac Construction, Capital A Consulting, and EDGE Construction.

COO is delighted to recognize this milestone for our community partner, the White Center CDA. Watch for the case study about this development project we’ll be sharing later this year.

Left-right -- Aaron Garcia, White Center CDA; Chris Persons, Community Roots Housing; Sili Savusa, Pacific Islander Community Association of Washington (formerly White Center CDA); Mason Cavell, Community Roots Housing; Dennis Omondi, Bryan K. Hayes, August Rowe, and Kayla Epting, Southwest Youth & Family Services; and Sherry Williams of HealthPoint. (Photo by COO)

Video, and all photos, by Via Creative (unless otherwise noted).