By Megan Martin
April 29, 2008
A safe-haven, social spot, tutoring center, air-conditioned escape. All of these describe the Washington Activity Center in central Mesa. But soon, the only way to describe the center may be barren, desolate, and cut.
The center is waiting to hear its fate as the Mesa city council attempts to address more than $16 million in budget cuts. But as the council ponders its decision, the residents are left to question what will happen to their neighborhood.
"It has always been here. How can it be taken away from us after so long?" said Shanté Watkins, who has lived in the neighborhood for more than ten years.
This isn't the first time the center has faced these woes. Three out of the last five years, the Washington Activity Center has been up for elimination by the council. The other two years, funding was proposed to be reduced. Every year, the center was able to come out unscathed - but this year may be different.
The financial situation in Mesa has been bubbling for years, with each year there are more budget cuts needed in order to balance. Due to this and an ambivalent community, the fear of losing the center may be all too real.
The Washington Activity Center was built in 1977, on the same corner which housed the Booker T. Washington Elementary School – the first school built in Mesa to educate African-American children.
The center's main focus is to offer the children of the neighborhood a place for after-school activities, including video games, tutoring, outdoor activities, and arts and crafts. It also hosts summer programs, as well as programs specific for teens and youth. The small, white building houses a computer room, pool tables, a snack bar, and it sits next to a city park complete with a jungle-gym, basketball courts, and sports field.
While it has served the community for 30 years, it has become more than just a spot for the children. It has become the neighborhood's heartbeat.
"I don't know of anyone who hasn't done something there. It has been a part of everyone's life," said Watkins.
Many of the activities hosted by the center have been community focused, and the center has attempted to bring people off of their couches to interact with each other.
"We are here for the children, but we're also here for the community," said Di-Ann Hunter. She is employed by Mesa's Parks and Recreation Department, and is also one of the key figures at the center, having worked there for more than 17 years.
One of Hunter's favorite activities for the center has been to stage a parade for the neighborhood.
"I grew up going to parades, but some of these kids have never experienced one. So, we made one ourselves," said Hunter, as she showed pictures documenting the past. She said that the neighbors all came out to watch as the kids dance their way around the center.
Many of the other activities have had a community focus, including a vegetable garden, tended by the kids at the center.
Perhaps a bad omen, the garden is no longer green. It has been years since it was cared for, said Hunter. The food had gone to families in the neighborhood, but while it had been a popular activity for the center, when neighborhood interest dwindled so did the garden.
"People haven't been as involved in the last five years," said Hunter. "I'm not sure why, but people just don't come around anymore."
Hunter also recalls when an annual food drive produced hundreds of pounds of food, but the activity didn't happen last year due to a lack of volunteers.
"One time they gave my family food," said Dominique Shaw, a resident of the neighborhood. "It was hard times, and that food helped us out a lot. Its sad if more people won't be helped."
The neighborhood is lower-income, and many of the houses in the area have been built by Habitat for Humanity, a non-profit organization. Some of the houses look to be in disrepair, as plywood and tarps mend the roofs and barbwire topped fences that surround vacant homes are a common sight.
"This isn't an easy neighborhood to grow up in," said Hunter. "That's why we're here for the kids, because they don't have anywhere else to go."
According to Hunter, many of the children bypass their own homes to get the center after school on the weekdays. There they are provided with a safe environment until the center closes at 8 pm. The children come and go as they please, but many stay until closing, said Hunter.
"What will they do if we're not here? I'm not sure," said Hunter. "I don't think some of them are even allowed to hang out in their own homes, and some of them really don't want to for good reason."
"I went straight from school to the center. It was fun there. I got to experience a lot of stuff. But it also meant that if I was there, I wasn't at home," said Allison Perkins, now 23, she participated in the after school and summer program for two years when she was a teen, and still lives in the neighborhood.
The center has exposed numerous kids to experiences which may not have been possible, if not for the center. Hunter showcases pictures of some of the events in the center including dance classes, petting zoos, visits from Suns and Mercury players and snow days.
"One year we were fortunate enough to be able to take some kids to Disneyland," said Hunter. "Not a single dime had to be put forth by the parents."
Despite everything that the center has done during its existence, Hunter feels as though the community is no longer a proactive partner with the center.
"We rarely see the parents. We never see the neighbors," said Hunter. "It's been declining for the last five years, but I don't know why."
The city's proposed budget cuts have made a splash in Mesa, and Hunter testifies that the center has received much attention from the media and members from surrounding communities to the proposed closing. But she also wonders where these individuals were in previous times.
"This isn't the first time we've been in trouble," said Hunter. "Where were they when we needed tutors? Or when we needed donations of food or school supplies? But now that this may close, now they want to make sure it can stay open. It doesn't make sense."
While many of the people in the neighborhood were quick to speak of the times they spent inside its programs in years past, few were able to say that they have participated since.
Watkins now sends her son to the center. She believes that the center enabled her to stay away from some of the troubles that the neighborhood can present. While her son frequents the center, Watkins finds it hard to participate. As a single-mother to three children, her time is consumed with work and child-rearing.
"Even though I can't make it down there, they take in my son every day. I'm thankful for that."
While she wishes that the center will stay open, Hunter is also realistic about its future.
"We don't bring in any revenue. There are other recreational centers that do. So, of course we're on the chopping block. But this isn't the first time."
No Mesa city council members returned phone calls for a comment, although their proposals for budget management speak for themselves.
To balance its budget this year, Mesa needs to cut a total amount of over $16 million from city-funded programs and positions. The Washington Activity Center costs the city $131,000 a year to operate. If eliminated, some of the employees at the center will be relocated to other facilities, while others will lose their jobs.
Hunter hopes that if the city does decide to cut the program another program will come in to replace it. Whether faith-based or non-profit, Hunter believes, some sort of program is needed to support the neighborhood.
"If this building sat vacant, there's no telling what would happen. I already have to fight to keep graffiti off. I can only imagine how long it would take for the windows to be broken and everything to be torn up."
The city council and the center have hosted meetings regarding the fate of the center, but few from the community have shown up. Hunter fears that this may give the council the wrong idea, leading them to believe that the community doesn't care if it were to stay open.
"It's ultimately about the children. There are over 50 kids here everyday. This means a lot to them. That's why it should stay open, either through Mesa or someone, anyone, else."
The council will make its final decision regarding the center on June 2. If the budget cuts are approved, the center will shut its doors on June 30.
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