An iconic part of Flint’s athletic and community education history will once again host a range of youth-focused programming after the city of Flint unveiled the newly renovated Haskell Community Center on June 23.
Haskell, which originally opened in 1924 in Flint’s historic Civic Park neighborhood right next to Bassett Park, operated for decades. The facilities once included a pool, basketball court, baseball and football fields, a tennis court, and other indoor and outdoor spaces for events and youth programs. It also served as a polling location for voters, among other functions, over the years.
Over the last 30 years, the center has been open and closed at various times, often a victim of city budget cuts. After closing in the early 2000s, it briefly reopened in 2006, was closed again a year later, and then reopened again 2009 and became the home for the Flint Police Activities League (PAL). Haskell closed again in 2017.
Flint Mayor Sheldon Neeley announced last year that the facility was being renovated and reopened, using a portion of the city’s American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding. In September 2025, the city unveiled renovations to the exterior and football field, named in honor of legendary Flint Northwestern coach Glen Kelly. On June 23, the interior improvements, including painting, building repairs, technology upgrades, and more were shown off to the community.
“This building has been a part of our community for more than a century,” Neeley said. “Generations of families have come through these doors for recreational opportunities, for fellowship, for tutorial programs, sports programs, and much more. When we talk about sleeping giants,a building that was on the verge of collapse, a building that was a liability to all of us here in the city of Flint, has now been resurrected to be an asset in this community.”
The facility will once again be home to Flint PAL, an organization that administers a range of youth sports and educational programs throughout the year, including a recently announced NFL Flag Football league that will play games at the new Haskell field this summer.
“One of the things that you hear is that we’re always asking our young people to do better, make better decisions, but we don’t always offer them the resources and the spaces to be able to do that,” said Flint Police Sgt. Jeff Spann, Flint PAL program director. “I think one of the big things that this building represents is that this is a space for young people to be able to do that, to provide those resources that they need to make sure that they stay on the right path. The revitalization of this building also represents the strengthening that we’re doing to bridge that gap between law enforcement and the community.”
Haskell will also host other programming, including some of the Flint Olympian Games sports, home games for International Academy of Flint’s football team, and potentially sporting events for other schools.
Pastor Robert McCathern from Joy Tabernacle and executive director of the Urban Renaissance Center in Civic Park spoke at the unveiling and said that the refreshed space will be a vital asset for the community.
“Lives will be strengthened, minds will be stronger,” he said.
Speakers noted the importance of the facility as a complement to citywide youth engagement efforts by a number of organizations aimed at curbing violence and other destructive behaviors. Neeley said that kids need structure and discipline, but they also need safe places and opportunities to be a part of healthy activities.
Rev. Alfred L. Harris, who leads Saints of God Church directly across the street from Haskell, spoke and shared his excitement about the renovation of the facility and other improvements in the area, including demolition of blighted houses and park improvements. Harris said that Haskell had been in disrepair for a long time, including having standing water in the basement, and he’s glad to see the city invest in giving it new life.
“Now we have the space for the kids from this area and other areas to come and enjoy this building,” Harris said.
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