The Sacramento LGBT Community Center hosted a groundbreaking ceremony to launch the renovation of its historic Lavender Heights headquarters.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A gathering of civic leaders, major donors and community partners came together to celebrate a decade-long effort to secure and transform the home for Sacramento\u2019s LGBTQ+ community.\u00a0<\/p>\n
From a tiny yellow house across from the Mercantile Saloon to its current, two-story 11,250 square foot building on the corner of J street and 20th, the LGBT Center\u2019s CEO David Heitstuman said this renovation is another step to making the center a modern, permanent home for the community.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt a time when LGBTQ communities across the country are facing renewed attacks on our rights, our health, our visibility and our dignity,\u201d \u201cthis building stands as something very, very powerful,\u201d Heitstuman said.<\/p>\n
According to Heitstuman, the 100+ year old building has only been majorly renovated once. After the remodeling, it will create more space for community gathering and will expand confidential service spaces for their mental health services, sexual health services and case management.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen this building is finally completed with the renovation, it will match the scale and dignity of the work that\u2019s been happening in it every single day,\u201d Heitstuman said. \u201cToday, we\u2019re not just breaking ground, but we\u2019re taking the next step forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
When the center first opened at its current location, Heitstuman said they didn\u2019t have the capital to get the center off the ground. With the help of former Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg and current city councilmember Eric Guerra, they were able to secure a mortgage for the initial purchase of the building when they didn\u2019t have enough for a down payment.<\/p>\n
Guerra said that in the current political climate, increased support for the LGBTQ+ community is necessary.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to stand tall, we need to be speaking up,\u201d Guerra said. \u201cWe need to be creating a place of connection and acceptance. And not only that, but encouragement.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
During the ceremony, Guerra joined Heitstuman, fellow councilmember Phil Pluckebaum, and other community leaders in swinging hammers painted with the colors of the pride flag into a wall that will be torn down during the renovation.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/040226_lgbt_center_2.jpg\")
Sacramento LGBT Center CEO David Heitstuman, Sacramento LGBT Center\u2019s Board President Eddie Moreno and Sacramento City Councilmember Eric Guerra hold ceremonial hammers aloft in the new renovation groundbreaking ceremony on April 2, 2026.Ruth Finch\/CapRadio<\/p>\n
According to Shannon Cosgrove, director of annual and corporate giving at the LGBT Center, they also plan to build a commercial kitchen and to hold nutrition classes in the new center.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the things that I\u2019m excited about is we have the beautiful farmer\u2019s market out front,\u201d Cosgrove said. \u201cSo the idea is that we can have people shop with their EBT or give them a budget\u2026 bring them in the kitchen and they can make a healthy meal and teaching elders and young people how to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n
CEO of the Sacramento Native American Health Center Britta Guerrero said her support for the LGBT Center was about just being a good neighbor.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIntersectionality is what brings us all together. We stand right in the middle of Midtown, the Native American Health Center and the LGBT Center, in proximity, visibility and glory,\u201d Guerrero said. \u201cI can\u2019t pretend to know everything about every community, but I do know when we stand together, we\u2019re so much more powerful.\u201d<\/p>\n
Through the renovation period, which is expected to last through the fall, the center has temporarily relocated all of its services around the corner to 2031 K street until construction is complete.<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Follow us for more stories like this<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
CapRadio provides a trusted source of news because of you. \u00a0As a nonprofit organization, donations from people like you sustain the journalism that allows us to discover stories that are important to our audience. If you believe in what we do and support our mission, please donate today.<\/p>\n