Upcoming Renovations at Joslin Recreation Center + Olneyville Resilience Hub

For Spanish webpage, click here/Para la página web en español, haga clic aquí

About Joslin Recreation Center and Olneyville Resilience Hub

  • Joslin Recreation Center is a pillar of the Olneyville neighborhood and provides an invaluable after school space for young people.
  • The Olneyville Resilience Hub, which opened in January 2024, is located on the second floor of the Joslin Recreation Center. The Olneyville Resilience Hub is a community space that provides regular programs and services as well as supports the community in building resilience to environmental hazards such as flooding or extreme heat/cold.

 

Envisioning the Future of the Space

  • Since January 2024, the Olneyville Resilience Hub has pursued a wide variety of partnerships and has hosted many community events, workshops, health clinics, and more. The Olneyville Resilience Hub has also provided, and will continue to provide, emergency preparedness and climate resilience trainings.
  • Beginning in April 2024, the Olneyville Resilience Hub team embarked on a community needs assessment, during which the team spoke with neighbors about what types of programs and services they would like to be able to access through the Hub.
  • Based on those community conversations, the team compiled a list of community-identified priorities to help determine what types of programs and services to pursue.

 

Grant

  • At the same time, Mayor Brett P. Smiley’s administration secured $3.3 million in state funding for building renovations at Joslin Recreation Center and the Olneyville Resilience Hub.
  • The project team, Rowse Architects and Downes Construction, based their initial floor plans on these community-identified programs and services, with the goal of creating spaces in the building that would enable those activities.
  • In August, October, and January, the Sustainability Department, in partnership with the Recreation Department, hosted community meetings to review, discuss, and change the design to better align with community and staff needs.

 

Future Timeline

  • For up-to-date information regarding design and construction, check back on this site.
  • To stay connected to the Olneyville Resilience Hub, follow the Hub on Facebook .
  • In partnership with local community organizations, the City of Providence administration will continue to pursue additional funding to complete elements of the project that could not be covered with this particular grant.
  • Construction will begin at the end of the Summer 2025 and all construction must be completed by October 2026.

 

Reach out to our Policy Associate, Sophie, with any questions, comments or concerns at sworshfarnum@providenceri.gov !

Renderings of Joslin Recreation Center + Olneyville Resilience Hub (post renovations)