INC NEWS - Duke Supports Durham's Holton School With Donation

[Blalock, Amy]

CITY OF DURHAM

Office of Public Affairs

101 City Hall Plaza

Durham, NC 27701

 

 

News Release

 

For Details, Contact:

Beverly B. Thompson

Public Affairs Director

(919) 560-4123 x 229

(919) 475-2362 (cell)

Beverly.Thompson at durhamnc.gov <mailto:Beverly.Thompson at durhamnc.gov> 

 

For Immediate Release:  May 19, 2008

 

Duke Supports Durham's Holton School Project With Cash Donation

Donation is in Addition to On-Site Wellness Center; Gift Presented to
City Council at May 19 Meeting

 

Durham, N.C. - As residents of Northeast Central Durham await the
transformation of the former Holton Middle School into a newly renovated
multi-purpose facility, a contribution from Duke University Health
System will help bring the center one step closer to completion on time
and within budget.

 

Duke University Health System has announced it will donate $250,000 for
design and construction-related costs for the project renovation.  This
monetary gift is in addition to its commitment to operate an on-site
Wellness Center to serve the health needs of the surrounding community.
"Now we have the opportunity to help in the revitalization of Northeast
Central Durham, as part of the extraordinary partnership between the
City, County and Durham Public Schools.  We are proud to be responsive
to needs expressed by the Durham community and honored to provide
primary and preventive medical care to our patients and neighbors," said
Dr. Victor J. Dzau, chancellor for Health Affairs at Duke University,
and president & chief executive officer of Duke University Health
System.   

 

Dr. Dzau will present the gift to the City Council at tonight's council
meeting, which will begin at 7 p.m. in Council Chambers, located on the
first floor of City Hall, 101 City Hall Plaza, Durham.

 

As part of a continual effort to revitalize this area of the community,
the City of Durham and Durham Public Schools (DPS) entered into an
inter-local agreement to renovate the former school into a recreation
and vocational training center as well as a wellness center.  The new
center will be called the Holton Center.  

 

Located at 401 N. Driver Street, the building is owned by DPS, but is
being renovated through collaborative efforts between the City, DPS,
Duke University Health System and Durham County.  According to Mayor
William V. "Bill" Bell, this collaboration will bring much-needed
services to the residents of Northeast Central Durham.  "This community
has needed for quite some time a neighborhood center that can meet the
various needs of our residents," Bell said.  "This unique collaboration
to deliver vocational training, recreational opportunities and health
outreach into the heart of Northeast Central Durham is a shining example
of the great things that happen in this community and shows the true
spirit of our combined efforts to improve the lives of our residents."

 

Duke University Health System will operate a 2,600 square foot Wellness
Center on the first floor of the renovated facility, in planned
partnership with Lincoln Community Health Center.  The Wellness Center
will operate weekdays and will be staffed by Duke medical providers and
staff.  The Wellness Center will provide primary care services to
community members, as well as to vocational school students whose
parents enroll them as clinic patients.  According to Dr. Dzau, the
Wellness Center will provide services to Durham patients regardless of
their ability to pay.  The Center will boast six exam rooms, a nurse's
station and reception area.  

 

Upon completion of the renovation, DPS plans to conduct vocational
programs using 30,000 square feet on both the first and third floors of
the new facility.  Proposed programs to be provided include construction
trades, such as carpentry, electrical and HVAC; landscape
construction/design and turf grass management; small engine repair;
computer engineering technologies; visualization and modeling; small
business entrepreneurship; business management; automotive technologies;
criminal justice; early childhood education; and machining technologies.


 

The City's Department of Parks and Recreation will provide recreational
programming within 30,000 square feet on the second floor, in addition
to providing class and meeting room space, managing the 6,945 square
foot auditorium and all outdoor playing fields. 

 

The design phase of the project is nearing completion and construction
is expected to be completed in time for DPS's fall 2009 school year.
The total project cost is approximately $16,680,188.  The City is
utilizing $8,424,000 in 2005 general obligation bond funds to assist
with the renovation.  For regular construction updates on the project,
visit www.durhamnc.gov/cip/ProjectView.cfm?vAcctNo=90.

 

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