Dear CEO Staff,

I’m pleased to share that we have received the final approval for the CRC building expansion project, the “CRC Bridge” building. Over the next few weeks, the initial excavation phase of construction will begin and we are planning a groundbreaking ceremony in early October.  We wanted to take a moment to share the vision and goals for this new space:

• We will provide a new home for Head Start classrooms that were displaced by the closure of Troy FRC that will provide spacious classrooms with modern ventilation systems and an expanded playground. This building will not ​ add to the number of classrooms we currently have, but allow for smaller class sizes and increased social distancing.
• There will be an outdoor, covered pavilion space for events, meetings, and activities such as food distributions or trainings.
• There will be a state-of-the-art training facility on the second floor and spacious meeting center for staff and some community activities. It will also have office space that will provide the possibility for program expansion. CEO is committed to providing a clean, safe environment for staff and customers.
• We will support the City of Troy’s goals regarding beautification in this target area of the city while achieving CEO’s mission of serving the low-income community.

It is exciting to be given this substantial and rare funding opportunity through a CDBG-CARES grant as part of COVID funding earmarked to prepare, prevent, and respond to pandemic impacts. We also remain keenly aware of the inconvenience that a project of this caliber may create for staff and customers on Fifth Avenue throughout the 12-month construction phase. We have weekly project conversations with the architect and construction manager and regularly discuss impacts and potential solutions to the parking and noise issues that will occur during construction. We have started conversations with city officials and our neighbors to evaluate all options and will share any solutions identified in the near future.  If you have any questions please reach out and I will be happy to provide additional information.

Thank you for being a part of the CEO Family!

Katherine