Housing Authority Repairs ABGC Parking Lot

By Mahlon Smoke

During the summer, the Akwesasne Boys and Girls Club has been providing a great service for the community children all in quarantine. Offering food pickups, online activities, and mobile activities while following saftey measures to protect staff and children alike. But while the doors of the Boys and Girls Club remained closed, the parking lot was paved over and painted through Housing, who had received Covid-19 Care’s Act money, which was allocated in March. They hired a contractor to help them with that. At the main club house, there is now a clear entry and exit way to help with the flow of traffic for parents, workers, volunteers and buses which will make things a lot safer.

This includes new parking spots and a handicap parking spot as well as more room. As of right now, plans to reopen are tentative for the club, the members of the Akwesasne Boys and Girls club work with St. Regis Mohawk Tribe, Mohawk Council of Akwesasne and Area Management Board to find a way to safely reopen. In the meantime, the Club was very thankful for the hard work on the parking lot and making the Clubhouse look amazing for when the students do come back.

The Akwesasne Boys and Girls club was not the only benificiary of this according to Liz Jacobs, acting Director of the Akwesasne Housing Authority. “We reached out to different programs to help our community with this money.” said Jacobs. According to Jacobs they reached out to the Boys and Girls club when she noticed they were using a different building for food pick ups, but not their own clubhouse. At the time she wished to offer that help as, at the time, the parking lot just wasn’t safe for their operations.

“We got approved by [The HUD Offices] as a model activity– Our board itself donated because we couldn’t do any of the landscaping but the Board okayed it so now there are two trees in the parking lot.” Jacobs said in regards to how they fixed the parking lot. Not just the new striping, the entry and exits, and a new walkway, but two nice trees to help brighten the area up. “It was all in an effort through the Care’s Act to help our community”

Jacobs knew that the Boys and Girls Club was in need of a better parking lot and used what the Housing Authority was given to make that happen. The money they were given by the Care’s Act went directly to other community programs, such as assist the Senior’s Program with Meals on Wheels and Grocery delivery. Her program was able to spread the money around as much as they could and used a lot of the money for their own seniors and to make sure everyone in their complex was safe.

“I’d like to thank the Board of Commissioners and the Chiefs allowing us to help our community. We were given the money but they allowed us to help a lot of families, serving the elders, and young children.” Jacobs was grateful for the efforts her program was able to do to help their community. But she was also fully supportive of everyone in the community showing that same support through donations, using their services, and having their children attend, when they can, and continue to do what they can for the children in this community.