The Mosswood Recreation Center opened its doors once again in Oakland on Saturday, after fire gutted the building in 2016.
A cloudy Saturday did not stop neighbors from coming out to the brand new Mosswood Recreation Center at Mosswood Park. The brand-new facility officially opened its doors to the public.
The new community center is a two story facility with a social hall, kitchen, classrooms, a maker space, computer lab and improvements to the park.
“It’s amazing, it’s so beautiful inside we’re so excited for playing with her and coming to community events,” said Alexis of Oakland.
“I could never have imagined that it would turn out this good from what was here before, so even though we never want tragedies like fires to occur in our communities, what we have now is next to nothing that exists right now in the city of Oakland,” Councilmember Carroll Fife said.
A fire ten years ago tore through the original building, which was built back in the 50s.
“I was saying earlier the Black Panther Party held many events here and I used to bring my children here, and I know the history of Mosswood Park and the Center, and to see this is like the phoenix rising and it’s really a testament to the community and the community’s resilience and the community’s vision,” Mayor Barbara Lee said.
Investigators still have not determined what caused the fire in 2016, but both city leaders and neighbors say they are ready to put the past behind and look to the future.
“We’re always looking for Mosswood Park to be a hub we live so close we want it to be our community park, we want to play here, we want to spend time with our neighbors, and so I think this is really going to bring the people out,” said Laura of Oakland.