HARLEM — Jewish Community Center JCC in Manhattan has expanded into Harlem.
The space, headquartered on the Upper West Side, is opening JCC Harlem that will offer free and paid community programming to Jewish and non-Jewish locals.
Rabbi Joy Levitt, executive director of JCC Manhattan, said there are not a lot of resources or community spaces for Jewish residents uptown compared to the Upper West Side. When exploring locations, Harlem seemed the perfect fit.
“Harlem is a really interesting community. It has a lot of different communities living next door to each other,” she said.
Levitt said the organization’s mission is to shape 21st Century Jewish life, but also build connections with those who are not Jewish.
The organization said it conducted surveys and focus groups to pinpoint the needs of Jewish residents and other locals. It will also partner with local community organizations and businesses for special events and programs.
The 6,000-square-foot space, at 318 W. 118th St., was once the Harlem Garage, a co-working space that shuttered last year, with owners blaming rising rents and members accusing them of mismanagement.
The organization said for the next several months it will experiment with different programs as it continues to get a feel for the community.
Choosing Harlem was also a way of recognizing its roots as a once-notable Jewish enclave.
In the early 1900s, before the Harlem Renaissance, the third largest Jewish population in the world lived around 125th Street.
The city's community began moving north from the Lower East Side near the turn of the century. Those who could afford it ended up on the Upper East Side, but those who could not kept going north.
At the time there were more than 170,000 Jews and 150 synagogues in Harlem, many of which are now churches.
Councilman Mark Levine, whose district includes West Harlem, said the space can now serve as a place of “mutual understanding.”
“It’s a great place for building connections uptown between African Americans and Jewish residents,” he said.
