By Serena Solomon
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
UPPER WEST SIDE — Hell's Kitchen is about to get a new hub for neighborhood activism.
The West Side Neighborhood Alliance, along with their umbrella organization, the Housing Conservation Coordinators, is scheduled to open a new community center next Thursday, a move that will further establish the advocacy groups as a force in neighborhood affairs.
"We are planning to host monthly movie nights, conduct regular training and workshops, discussion groups, group cooking nights, etc.," Lucas Shapiro, the community organizer at HCC, said in an e-mail.
"We're in the process of putting in new carpet, painting the walls, and transforming the space in this week leading up to the opening," he wrote.
The venue's opening celebrations will be held at the new location at 500 W. 52nd St. next Thursday starting at 4 p.m.
HCC is dedicated to fighting for the rights of poor, low-income and working families. The group sponsors the West Side Neighborhood Alliance, which is a member-run organization.
They recently campaigned aggressively for a larger percentage of affordable housing to be included in the development over the Western Rail Yard, Manhattan's largest undeveloped space.
"Folks who attend the opening party will be encouraged to envision how they would like the space to best serve the neighborhood, bring people together and carry our campaigns forward," Shapiro wrote.
