Editor’s Note: This article has been updated to provide neutral attribution regarding the development of the clinic and health services model, acknowledging the contributions of community-informed public health work conducted in partnership with the University of Minnesota.
PROCEED is moving ahead with a new youth and community complex on St. Paul’s East Side that will pull youth programming, health services, and workforce support into one campus. Organizers say the center is designed to close gaps in access to medical and mental-health care while giving young people steady places for enrichment and job training. Work is scheduled to begin this spring, with organizers hoping to welcome visitors by the fall.
Campus Expansion At Progressive Baptist Church
PROCEED currently operates out of Progressive Baptist Church in the Battle Creek neighborhood, and organizers say the new facility will be added to the church’s campus. According to Progressive Baptist Church, the congregation has run food-shelf and youth programs that the new complex is expected to fold into a larger, more coordinated campus.
What The Center Will House
PROCEED’s materials lay out a mix of spaces: STEM labs, a gym, and a workforce center. While PROCEED’s historic focus has been social and economic development, the health and clinic component was later shaped through community-informed public health work conducted in partnership with the University of Minnesota’s School of Public Health and Progressive Baptist Church’s health ministry. The organization’s project pages say the complex will host an on-site medical clinic and culturally focused mental-health services to make care easier to reach for East Side families.
Health Services Designed For The Community
Reporting by the Spokesman-Recorder adds that M Health Fairview is expected to operate the on-site medical clinic and that the development will include an Alter Program focused on dementia and Alzheimer’s disease in the African American community. The coverage also says Therapeuo Mental Health will be housed in the complex. “Most kids who look like us won’t express what they’re going through when they can’t talk to somebody who looks like them,” Jo Ann Clark told the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder.
Fundraising And Next Steps
The project carries a $9,949,855 price tag, and organizers have set a groundbreaking for April, as reported by the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder. PROCEED is actively fundraising to reach its construction goal, and the group’s campaign page on GiveMN shows an ongoing donation drive. According to GiveMN, the effort is framed as a long-term investment in the East Side’s services and infrastructure.
