Linden Park Community Center
Affiliated members of the Columbus/Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council completed work on the new Linden Park Community Center.
The $25 million project created around 80 jobs for affiliated members of the C/COBCTC.
The new 50,000-square-foot facility replaces the former community center, more than doubling its size. The original 24,000-square-foot building was built in 1951.
Linden Park, where the community center is located, includes 20 acres of land that also underwent a necessary renovation.
Now, Linden Park consists of a new community center, a spray park, a teaching kitchen, a gymnastics room, walking paths and a larger parking lot.
CBAs help strengthen city partnerships
Three Community Benefit Agreements were signed for the project.
Signing several CBAs guaranteed the workforce was made up of Columbus residents who worked 30 percent of the project work hours. Additionally, the C/COBCTC worked with their affiliated unions to ensure that their signatory contractors made good efforts to hire qualified workers from within the Linden area.
Under the agreement, the C/COBCTC agreed to hold three recruitment events in the Linden neighborhood and the City of Columbus continued its investment with the building trades by providing funds for toolboxes, hard hats, boots and other materials for over 300 middle and high school students in Columbus City Schools training programs.
The first Community Benefits Agreement created the Community and Workforce Committee, which is made up of representatives from the C/COBCTC, the City of Columbus and organizations dedicated to the advancement of minorities, women and low-income residents.
By signing the CBAs, the city and building trades were able to continue to strengthen their growing relationship.
Work concluded on the project in the fall of 2020.