Latino Community Center Will Put Down Roots in the Strip District
The newly acquired space will be transformed into a center for youth programming, family support and workforce development.
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE LATINO COMMUNITY CENTER/LATINOCOMMUNITYCENTER.ORG
Pittsburgh’s Latine community will soon have a new space to cultivate fellowship, and the announcement comes just in time for Hispanic Heritage Month.
The Latino Community Center finalized plans this week to relocate from the current office space it rents near Friendship to headquarters it purchased in the Strip District. The building, officials say, is one part of Prospera — the Latino Community Center’s new multi-year strategic plan to assist more than 3,000 Latine youth and their families through educational programing, family support, workforce development and community engagement.
“Latine communities are spread across Allegheny County, and the Strip District sits at the intersection of that, too, which makes our new location accessible to the people we serve,” says Rosamaria Cristello, the Latino Community Center’s founder and executive director. “It was a natural choice, and we belong here.”
Organizers add that the neighborhood represents the intersection of Pittsburgh’s roots and its future; from a city built on steel mills and factories to a hub for technology, education, medicine and culture.
“Today’s Latine youth will represent more than one in 11 Pittsburgh workers by 2050. They will be our city’s doctors, teachers, engineers and business owners,” Cristello says. “This new building is our organization’s investment in the future of Pittsburgh and a physical expression of the Latino Community Center’s larger vision and goals.”
Securing a home also aligns with another milestone for the Latino Community Center: its 10-year anniversary in 2027. It was founded in 2017 with the goal of equipping Latine youth and their families with the tools necessary to thrive. As the region’s Latine population continues to grow, the demand for the Latino Community Center’s programming and resources have increased, according to Cristello. Renting office space limited the Center’s ability to expand to meet these needs.
The next steps for the Latino Community Center is for staff members to relocate to the Strip District and begin updating it to become the organization’s youth and family center.
“The vision is for young people to have a place where they can learn, explore careers, build skills and prepare for the workforce, while parents and caregivers can get support and resources to help them raise healthy, happy children,” Cristello says. “This is an investment in what our region needs today and what future generations will need tomorrow.”
