Tri-Counties Community Center in Marysville seeks community help as its at risk of closing
MARYSVILLE – The Tri-Counties Community Center in Marysville could be at risk of closing within the next year if major renovations aren't done.
But there's hope. Lowe's is investing $100 million to restore community spaces across the country and the community center is hoping to be in the running for grant money.
Now, they're desperate to spread the word to qualify for the grant, but the nomination period ends on Tuesday, Feb. 18.
"I'd say six months to a year, if we don't get a new roof then we're going to have to shut down," said board member of Tri-Counties Community Center Shamaya Sutton.
The Tri-Counties Community Center serves roughly 30,000 people a year across Yuba, Sutter and Butte counties. It's a major staple for youth as well as an integral part of the community.
"It was in the last two weeks that it really started to show. We came in on Monday for a board meeting, that's when we saw this whole thing which had a bunch of insulation come down and we had to move that because we have an event coming in tomorrow," Sutton said.
They're expecting more than 500 people for the annual Yuba-Sutter Winter Pow Wow Saturday.
"Every time we try to make a repair to make it look better it gets damaged again, so we need a new roof in order to make this place better entirely. It doesn't make sense pouring money into anything else before we get that fixed," Sutton said.
While they're cleaning up for the Pow Wow, they worry about having the center at all next year.
"We don't have that stuff that Sacramento and Roseville have." said Courtney Sullivan, who brings her kids to the center daily, "It's a big thing in our community. We need it. My kids love it."
"This is my favorite time coming here," 4-year-old Aaliyah said.
The community center is applying for a grant through Lowe's. The corporation is investing money across the nation into community spaces.
"The more people who nominate, the more likely we are to get the grant. That would give us the ability to start the roof and get the projects underway," Sutton said.
"I feel like it would mean a lot to them because they like coming here and skating and hanging out with us," 9-year-old Alecia said.
Alecia says she goes to the community center nearly every day with other kids from her school.
"If we go away there's not a lot for the community to do, especially for an affordable price. A lot of our demographics are disadvantaged, low-income," Sutton said.
The building is safe for now, but they're worried that might not be the case next winter.
The community center says they need $200,000-$300,000 for major renovations.
If you want to nominate the community center you can head to their Facebook page, Tri-Counties Community Center, and they have a post up with clear instructions on how to vote. You have until Tuesday.
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