LAKEWOOD — Two organizations in Lakewood share the same problem: they have both outgrown their facilities and they are seeking more space.
Head Start, a delegate of Ocean Community Economic Action Now Inc. (OCEAN Inc.), and the Lakewood Community Center expect to have a facility built on Cedar Bridge Avenue north of the Kennedy Apartments.
The Cedar Bridge Avenue site, which was originally donated to Head Start by the Lakewood Township Committee, is in the process of being returned to the municipality, according to Mayor Robert Singer.
Once that transfer has been completed, it is expected that formal plans for the new building will be drawn up.
According to Meg Saunders, executive director of the Lakewood Economic Action Program (LEAP), “Both LEAP and OCEAN Inc. service 600 students throughout Ocean County between the ages of 3 through 5.”
In Lakewood there are 219 preschool children who are currently receiving services.
At the present time, the Head Start and Early Head Start programs are being administered at two sites. One location is at 30 East 8th St. and the other location is at 685 River Ave.
The Early Head Start program is available for children from birth through age 3, as well as for pregnant women. There are 60 children being provided with services in their home by Head Start representatives.
“We have outgrown the facilities that we have. It is important for us to provide the continuity of services. [A new building would be] an opportunity to do that under one roof. This will help to provide a seamless transition from birth to age 5 in one building. The community has been very generous allowing us to use available space,” Saunders said.
She said Head Start has partnerships with different community entities such as the library and the community center, each of which has allowed the agency to hold events and opportunities for the community at their sites.
Thomas Ross Sr., the director of the Lakewood Community Center, said that at the present time there are only two or three rooms that can be used in the community center, which is housed in an old dress factory.
According to Ross, the community center was started more than 30 years ago when volunteers refurbished the former Diamond dress factory. When it opened in the mid-1970s, the community center offered GED and civil service classes, social affairs and dances.
Today the community center is home to afterschool programs sponsored by the Lakewood Board of Education and the township.
Ross said the community center plays an important role in town. He said it is a place where Lakewood’s diverse population meets.
“Socially, it’s the only place, the only building specifically for recreation where children come,” he said.
Ross said he has been told that the planned community center and Head Start building on Cedar Bridge Avenue will be about 24,000 square feet in size and include a gymnasium, weight room, classroom, computer lab and a room for a modern dance program.
The Cedar Bridge Avenue building is expected to be funded by a Community Development Block Grant, according to municipal officials.