DETROIT (WXYZ) — After nearly 60 years of sharing space with schools and other facilities, Detroit's Police Athletic League has finally found a permanent home.
Watch Evan Sery's video report:
The community program, which launched in 1969, held a grand opening on Friday for its first-ever headquarters following a multi-million dollar renovation project.
"With this new recreation center, it's gonna really be able to expand programming, and it's right in the neighborhood," Chief Todd Bettison said.
David Greenwood, Detroit Director of Engagement and Community Facilities for PAL, helped spearhead the renovation of the building that originally opened in 1949.
"We all put our fingerprints or footprints on things in life, and this is one of the things I can say I helped PAL do this," Greenwood said.
The building needed major updates before it could serve as PAL's new home.
"The heating system was either on 110 degrees or it was completely off. We had significant heat or cold issues, we also had a leaky roof," Greenwood said.
PAL's greatest partner is the Detroit Police Department, which provides mentorship through police officers. The program offers academic, leadership, and athletic activities, including cheerleading.
Elin Ford, a 10th grader at Cass Tech who has participated in PAL for four years, said the new facility is a significant upgrade from previous locations.
"It's amazing, actually. When I used to cheer here for competitions, there were mats on the ground, and we were stunting, but this is like an upgrade," Ford said. "What I've enjoyed about PAL the most is - it's taught me a lot of discipline; my grades improved significantly after I joined PAL."
Greenwood, who was a PAL participant himself in the 1970s, said grants from the state and support from nonprofits like Starfish helped make the permanent home possible.
"We faced the challenge and said Hey, we want to restore this facility and be able to give back to the community so our PAL kids and others can take advantage of safe spaces," Greenwood said.
A few more adjustments are needed before PAL participants can begin using the facility late next month.
——————————————
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
