The City of Berkeley hosted a groundbreaking ceremony to celebrate important milestones for the long-awaited African American Holistic Resource Center (AAHRC) on Friday, Jan. 23, 2026. The event centered on breaking ground for the future building, which is tentatively scheduled to start construction in 2027.
The AAHRC will be a new building at 1890 Alcatraz Ave.
The ceremonial groundbreaking of a new construction project is meant to symbolize progress by digging the first hole of the construction. Speakers at the event included Mayor Adena Ishii and council members Ben Bartlett and Terry Taplin.
The AAHRC has been in development for around 15 years by city employees as well as Richie Brooke-Cole Smith, known to the South Berkeley community as Ms. Richie. Smith moved to Berkeley in 1949 and has been involved in service for the community for decades, volunteering much of her time to the development of the AAHRC.
“The center will be a space to provide culturally relevant services in education, employment, health, mental health, and housing advocacy support to all residents. The AAHRC is designed to meet the specific needs of individuals who have faced disproportionate impacts from racism and gentrification, particularly those from historically Black neighborhoods in South and West Berkeley and/or have been displaced from Berkeley,” the City of Berkeley wrote in a public statement.
The AAHRC will also provide social services referrals, cultural and ethnic events, community meetings, and other community services. The space plans to evolve to meet the needs of the community around it.
“It was an honor to stand with the many people who made the moment possible. I have been working to support the center since 2016, and after many hours over those years with the South Berkeley leaders who brought this project to this point, I was thrilled to be present and envision together the beautiful AAHRC that will be built to support our African American community,” Berkeley City Manager Paul Buddenhagen said.