On Juneteenth, the Center for Black Excellence and Culture in Madison, a project more than seven years in the making, will be one step closer to reality.
Construction on the 37,000-square-foot, three-story center will begin with a groundbreaking ceremony on Wednesday, June 19, at its future home on Badger Road in Madison’s historically Black Park Street neighborhood.
The center will provide a cultural and educational space for Wisconsin’s Black community to gather, tell stories, create and perform, develop professionally and celebrate their achievements. It will include theater, gallery and maker spaces, a co-working area, wellness and fitness spaces, and rooms for after-school and senior programming.
Alex Gee, founder and CEO of the center, seeks to create a sense of community, support and hospitality that makes young Black professionals want to stay in the Madison area and feel they can succeed there. Gee, who was raised in Madison, said the idea for the center came in part from noticing that Madison lacked a cultural hub to “celebrate and advance” its Black community.
“What we noticed when we talked with over 700 Black folks is that there’s really a need for Black brilliance to be on display and celebrated,” Gee said. “There needs to be a space for leadership development, intergenerational programming, a place we can put our best foot forward and feel at home here in the community.” Other cities, he said, are home to Black jazz clubs, coffee shops and more, facilitating this type of environment.
Spaces like these are especially crucial when you account for Wisconsin’s national reputation for racial disparities in everything “from education to criminal justice to income,” Gee wrote in a November 2022 opinion piece for the Journal Sentinel. These disparities, along with the present lack of a cultural gathering space, have pushed many young Black Madisonians to leave for other states, he said.
The center strives “to cause people to think differently about Wisconsin because there are plenty of opportunities here,” Gee said. “We just have to build better bridges to those opportunities.”
According to a news release from the center, since fall 2021, $33 million has been raised for its construction from donors and city, county, state and federal funds. However, $3 million more is still needed to complete construction debt-free. The center is expected to be complete in late 2025 and will stand next to Fountain of Life Covenant Church, 633 W. Badger Road, where Gee serves as pastor.
The center will be a place for celebrating Black stories
Storytelling is the center’s main focus, both in its facilities and what will take place inside, Gee said.
“How do you bring the excellence of our community alive? We need theater spaces for acting out stories, for film festivals, book festivals, lectures, comedians,” he said. The center’s multiple auditoriums and other venues will be equipped to host a variety of arts and cultural events, as well as weddings, banquets and receptions.
Gee emphasized that the Black community has a long history of using the arts to express and elevate themselves.
“One hundred years ago, during the migration of Black sharecroppers to the north, what fueled that journey … was their songs, poems and journals,” he said. “We created art forms like jazz, blues, gospel, and we created spaces like the Harlem Renaissance. It was music and art that helped transform the Black persona in America.”
In light of this, Gee said he finds it surprising that more groups don’t currently try to solve issues in the Black community using art and music.
“Often, we just think something is broken, so let’s bring in social services and fix it …,” he said. “I get that those support services are needed, but this is a fresh look at how we strengthen our community and prepare the next generation.”
The center seeks to cater to all of Wisconsin
Although the center will be located in Madison, Gee calls it a “statewide effort.” He said his team is working with Black communities across the state, including in Milwaukee, to highlight Black accomplishments and achievements from around Wisconsin in the center’s displays and programming.
The center will be visible from the beltline, and its proximity to the South Madison bus transfer point makes it easily accessible by public transportation, he said.
Earlier this year, the center was highlighted in Milwaukee in an advertisement at a Bucks home game featuring former WISN-TV news anchor Toya Washington.
“As someone who has called both Madison and Milwaukee home, I’ve reported on and lived the unique challenges facing Black residents in Wisconsin,” Washington said in a statement. “That experience is one of many reasons why I’m so excited by the positive change the center will inspire.”
Community members are invited to the center’s groundbreaking
All are welcome to attend the center’s groundbreaking ceremony; those planning to attend should RSVP at this link.
The event will begin at 11 a.m. on June 19 at 655 W. Badger Road in Madison.
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