Five Towns Community Center receives a minor makeover

For the past year and a half-plus, the Five Towns Community Center in Lawrence has been a hub of critical community activity from feeding thousands through Gammy’s Pantry and being a Long Island Cares site to now hosting a revitalized Nassau County Police Athletic League program.

Now the building will be receiving somewhat of a makeover as $4 million from the Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery is paying for asbestos removal. The work was scheduled to begin on Aug. 9 and be completed by Aug. 27, and a new heating ventilation and air conditioning system will be installed after Aug. 27 through early October, said Community Center Executive Director K. Brent Hill.

The Head Start portion of the building is now closed through early September. Those classes are expected to resume on Sept. 13, Hill said. The center’s after-school programs for the Lawrence Early Childhood Center at the Number Four School, the Lawrence Primary School at the Number Two School and Lawrence Elementary School will be held at St. John’s Baptist Church in Inwood through September.

“The pantry will be operational Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays during renovations,” Hill said, adding that the general contractor, Urban Ecospaces, in conjunction with the county and state, “has been very mindful of limiting interruption of our mission.”

A one-time grant of $49,000 from the Town of Hempstead through federal money will be used to help seniors navigate through the coronavirus pandemic, Hill noted. “Programs and services provided to the community are vital to the community,” said Sasha Young, who runs Gammy’s Pantry and oversees an array of activities at the center.

Nearly half a century ago, the center entered into a lease agreement with Nassau County. That lease is schooled to expire in roughly three years. County Legislator Carrié Solages (D-Lawrence), said that he has been involved in the negotiations for the past three years with County Executive Laura Curran and center leaders.

“The county executive herself expressed the vital role the Community Center plays in the community,” Solages said. “The mission, the vision, and the utility has grown exponentially,”. “I’m proud of everyone looking to making significant improvements.”

He quelled rumors that the building is for sale saying, “That is not the case,” Solages said, adding that the issue surrounding naming the center for Pete Sobol, a longtime board member and former executive director, should be resolved in the very near future.

“The lease will expire in 2024 and the county has been in communication with the tenant on the topic,” said county spokeswoman Justine DiGiglio-Cifarelli. “The county has always worked collaboratively with the center and appreciates the important role it played throughout the pandemic, serving as a vaccine and food distribution site. The county is beginning to examine options for building improvements that will enhance future operations.”

Last month, Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed legislation that designated the Nassau Expressway overpass the Peter V. Sobol Memorial Bridge. Sobol, a longtime Inwood businessman, died in February. He was 64.