$3 Million for Auburn Police Community Center Secured by Senator Collins in Funding Bill

Washington, D.C.--U.S. Senator Susan Collins, a senior member of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, announced that she secured $3 million to build a new Auburn Police Activities League (PAL) Community Center in the Fiscal Year 2023 Housing and Urban Development appropriations bill.  As the Ranking Member and lead Republican on the Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Subcommittee, Senator Collins secured funding for this project.

The omnibus funding package passed the Senate by a vote of 68-29.  It will now be passed by the House before heading to the President’s desk to be signed into law.

“For nearly a decade, the PAL Center in Auburn has provided children in Auburn with a safe, structured environment to play and learn after school; receive food, clothes, and school supplies; and build relationships with law enforcement officers who protect the local community,” said Senator Collins.  “This funding will allow the center to build on its success and expand its programming to serve even more children in the surrounding neighborhood.”

“For nearly 10 years, the Auburn PAL Center has been changing young lives, and we are so proud,” said Auburn City Manager Phil Crowell. “PAL was born from our desire to not only help kids and families in our community, but also to transform crime statistics in the heart of our city. It is a truly remarkable place. This new PAL Center will allow us to impact our community in ways we never imagined, and we are grateful to Senator Collins for her continued, generous support.”

Auburn Mayor Jason Levesque adds, “On behalf of the City of Auburn, we are grateful that Senator Collins understands that this significant investment in our youth will be an important step toward ensuring that kids in Auburn have opportunities to improve their lives and enrich our community.”

The funding will be used to build a new Auburn PAL Community Center at 24 Chestnut Street, which will become the hub for mentored/supervised after-school and summer activities.  The current building has far exceeded its total capacity to offer programming.  The new, larger building will support an early childhood education and child care program, a health center, a teen center, a gym, and a commercial kitchen and food pantry. 

###