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From left: Keyona Dunn and Krista Ehasz.
From left: Keyona Dunn and Krista Ehasz.

Highland Clubhouse officially purchases Niagara Falls property

Submitted

Fri, Aug 28th 2020 10:30 am

Highland Clubhouse officially purchased the property at 1111 Grove Ave., Niagara Falls, where it has been serving the community with activities and educational programming. Mayor Robert Restaino approved the sale of the property and it went through on Tuesday.

To celebrate this milestone, Highland Clubhouse is hosting a community event from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. where the mayor will be present to hand out school supplies such as backpacks, books, as well as food and facemasks. The community space will help the organization continue to foster improvements within the community by hosting neighborhood activities, mentoring, health and wellness initiatives, civic engagement, kitchen and laundry facilities.

“The Highland Clubhouse will be a great addition to the community,” Restaino said. “The vision and goals of the co-founders bring a much-needed resource to our residents. I am happy to complete the transfer of this property and help make this idea a reality. In addition, my administration has provided a development grant through the city's community development department.”

In July, Highland Clubhouse received a grant of $50,000 from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to support the development of the community space. The clubhouse is only a few blocks from the former Centre Avenue Community Center, which closed 10 years ago leaving a gap in neighborhood activities.

Co-founders of the clubhouse are Keyona Dunn (community currency coordinator at Create a Healthier Niagara Falls Collaborative and founder of Wish Mentoring) and Krista Ehasz (program associate at BlueCross BlueShield of WNY). They said they’re thrilled with the support received recently from the mayor and the community.

“Highland Clubhouse is so special to us and our community,” Dunn said. “We are so proud to own 1111 Grove Ave., and continue to build our community, support our youth and connect our neighbors.”

“Highland Clubhouse has been a labor of love for the past several years and it means so much that the city has faith in our shared vision for the Highland community,” Ehasz said. “Owning this property gives us the ability to build on what we have worked so hard for.”

Highland Clubhouse is continuing to raise the necessary funding to complete renovations for the property and programming. The community can donate at https://secure.givelively.org/donate/highland-clubhouse-inc.

Highland Clubhouse is a nonprofit organization focused on providing a safe community space for the residents of the Highland neighborhood in Niagara Falls. Learn more at www.highlandclubhouse.com.

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