THE NEW CLUBHOUSE ON UNIVERSITY AVENUE (PHOTO: VIDAL WOODS)

He’s only 16 months old now, but when little Willie gets older, he’s attending the new Kips Bay Boys and Girls Clubhouse on University Avenue, according to his older cousin, Raven Cornish. That way he won’t be one of those kids who “has to wander the streets,” says Cornish.
The clubhouse, which opened this spring, offers SAT preparatory courses, leadership programs, work programs to prepare children for the future, and college preparatory classes, according to Executive Director Daniel Quintero. Kids can also enjoy playing basketball or a game of pool.
“That’s the first place I’ll send my [10-year-old] son,” says Florence Evans, a resident of the River Park Towers, a housing complex near the clubhouse. Otherwise, “he’d just be aimlessly playing around not learning anything.”
Pastor William Barbor of Christ’s Life Evangelism Inc., which is across the street from the clubhouse, loves the addition to the neighborhood. “It would develop leaders for tomorrow,” he said.
“This is a 20-year project,” says Kathryn Speller, a Community Board 5 board member and longtime resident of Morris Heights. “Some of the people who started the foundation of this clubhouse are dead. There are no types of after school programs within the district where kids can go to learn about art, music, etc. In order to keep them out of gangs, we need more youth programs.”
Residents and community leaders alike recognize the need for a youth development program in the area. “We have a huge youth population in Community Board 5,” said Xavier Rodriguez, the board’s district manager. “For youths ages 9 to 21, there are not many indoor facilities. You gotta give young people an alternative to video games.”
Community Board 5, which comprises the neighborhoods of Mount Hope, Morris Heights, University Heights and South Fordham, has a larger percentage of its population under the age of 18. Borough-wide, 28 percent of the population is under 18, but in CB5, this figure reaches 36 percent.
Adrina Figueroa, a local resident and former Kips Bay employee, says that the new clubhouse will “keep the youth off the streets and prevent them from becoming criminals, like the ones that robbed my brother.” Figueroa’s younger brother was recently robbed of his iPod at gunpoint around his apartment building on University Avenue.
Quintero has faith that his new center will keep crime down in the neighborhood. “Surveys tell us when new clubhouses open up, crime rates go down, graffiti decreases, and the grades of the students in the clubhouse go up,” he said.
In order to ensure the safety of the children, the clubhouse will have staff present at all times, a desk security guard monitoring the front door, and security cameras in every hallway and stairwell.
“If the clubhouse gives children a place to go after school, it’s a good thing,” said Morris Heights resident Tyjuana Julien.
Editor’s Note: The clubhouse is located at 1835 University Ave. For information, call Renard Cardona, the unit director, at (718) 975-0788, ext. 407.