The city of Phoenix opened the Cesar Chavez Community Center last week, fulfilling the community’s long-held desire for such a facility.
“People out here have been saying, ‘There’s not a Boys & Girls Club out here. There’s not a YMCA out here. There’s nothing for our children. We need a place where our kids can feel safe,’” said former City Councilmember Michael Nowakowski at the opening ceremony Thursday, March 30, a day before Cesar Chavez Day.
Nowakowski said the effort to create a community center in Laveen went back 15 years. He reminisced with former City Manager Ed Zuercher that at every community meeting, residents would say Laveen’s biggest needs were safe neighborhoods and a community center.
