Backers celebrate construction start of $24 million Crossover Community Center | Education

Freeman 6 months ago

When it comes to the proposed Crossover Community Center, Tracie Chandler said she has put her bank account where her mouth is. “Not once, not twice, not thrice, but four times, I pledged half of my Social Security check to the building of the community center,” she said. “And I […]

When it comes to the proposed Crossover Community Center, Tracie Chandler said she has put her bank account where her mouth is.

“Not once, not twice, not thrice, but four times, I pledged half of my Social Security check to the building of the community center,” she said. “And I am so happy to see some dirt moving while I am in my right mind, at least most of the time.”

Chandler heads the Phoenix District Development Council, which oversees economic development in the 36th Street North Corridor. The area received a big boost Friday when officials broke ground on a roughly $24 million facility for Crossover Community Impact, a nonprofit focused on north Tulsa community programs.

“We are recruiting brains, boots and hearts to help us bring this plan to fruition: brains, people with ideas; boots, people to carry out the ideas; and hearts, those who love north Tulsa and justice,” Chandler said.

During the school day, the multipurpose facility will serve as the primary building for CCI’s Crossover Preparatory Academy all-boys school. Outside school hours, the center’s purpose will provide children and adults a safe place to gather for educational, physical, and social activities and programs.

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Located at 940 E. 36th St. North, the two-story, 80,000-square-foot community center will feature 15 classrooms for sixth through 12th grades, as well as a science lab and library.

Included will be a full-court gym, exercise and weight rooms, and locker rooms that will allow the Crossover Sports Association to use the space for youth and adult leagues during the evenings and on weekends.

Crossover Health Services will use the commercial kitchen during non-school hours for free healthy cooking classes. Crossover Development Company will conduct personal finance classes and employment training to support entrepreneurs and homeowners in the cafetorium, which will double as a space that can be rented for parties, weddings and church services.

The facility also will include a shelter for severe weather, administration offices and an enclosed courtyard.

Tulsa City Councilor Vanessa Hall-Harper said: “I’ve witnessed how this ministry has grown and how they have remained dedicated to this community. … We have different organizations, different institutions lifting up and supporting one another, all in a goal of improving the quality of life again through reconciliation, love and justice in our community.”

Tulsa County Commissioner Stan Sallee said the county earmarked $4 million in federal ARPA funds for the facility, which he said will be a “game-changer” for the area.

Designed by Cyntergy, the project is being built by NTLB Partners, a joint venture between Nabholz Corp. and Twenty20 Management, owned by Greg Shaw, Gary Sparks and William Tisdale. Construction is expected to be completed in the fall of 2023.

Targeting the Hawthorne neighborhood, Crossover seeks to improve the economic development, employment, housing, health, and education outcomes for residents through innovative programming.

“Crossover has impacted my family far beyond what I could have ever imagined almost 10 years ago,” Lakeesha Peeples said. “I thought I was just signing my son up to play youth football, but we gained so much more than that.

“We gained him learning the fundamentals of football but also being helped through his academic challenges. Street leaders were introduced, and they were able to help my son, help him to excel and be the young man he is today.”

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