In what Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz called a "win, win, win for everybody" The Mosholu Montifiore Community Center will open up the Van Cortlandt Child Development center in the two floors of the Van Cortlandt Senior Center that the Department of Education leased for over 10 years, but did not renew after building the new Ampark school one block away. A total of 130 two, three, and four year old children will be attending the Universal Pre-K, Head Start or Child care programs to be offered by the MMCC. In addition to the ten classrooms available an enclosed play area will be built on a currently unused roof of the structure. Dinowitz said that he had secured $345,000.00 for the renovations needed, and thanked city council candidate Andrew Cohen for bringing the MMCC and the VCSC together to find a use for the unused space in the building. Cohen in what is typical of him was very breif by saying that he was glad to have brought much needed services to the area, and to help two great organizations get together to do so.
Don Bluestone the Executive Director of MMCC said that his organization is one of 13 groups that is part of the Head Start program, and there are 400 children on the wait list at his center. Robert Gillman President of the VCSC thanked Mr. Cohen, Assemblyman Dinowitz, and MMCC Executive Director Don Bluestone for working out a deal for the empty space in the center that was left when the DOE pulled out. Gillman said however that the center will have to still make up a small shortfall in revenue that will be done with fundraising by the center.
Left - Andrew Cohen candidate for city council, Robert Gillman President VCSC, Don Bluestone MMCC, and Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz.
Right - A view of where the enclosed play area is to be placed.
Left - One of the rooms as was left by the DOE.
Right - A close up view of one corner shows some of the minor work that needs to be done.
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