Belmont Community Center
The Heart of Northwest Lincoln
There is much to celebrate in Northwest Lincoln. The Lincoln Kids team sat down with Emily Koopmann, Executive Director, and Brittney Hodges-Bolkovac, President-elect and board member, of the Belmont Community Center to learn more about its rich history and services.
In 1937, Mr. and Mrs. J. Will Blair and Mrs. Arthur Park took an abandoned church and developed it into a facility for youth and adult social and civic clubs for Northwest Lincoln. Originally called Lovely Hills Community Center, the name was changed to Belmont, a French word meaning “beautiful mountain.”
Belmont Community Center promotes individual growth, neighborhood pride, and community collaboration, noted Emily. “Over the years, our services have established trust within the community that spans generations – community members who helped build the Center now have great-grandchildren who attend preschool here. Our directors and board members grew up in the community.” Through shared history and experiences, these leaders listen and adapt services to the needs of their community.
Programs and Facilities
Belmont Community Center primarily serves children ages 3 to 13 and offers licensed early childhood programs including preschool for 3-to-5 year olds, before and after school programs, and summer programs.
The multi-use facility built in 1955 has hosted a myriad of resources, from being a branch of Lincoln City Libraries to the extensive all-youth programs today. The accessible spaces include a gym, meeting room, and baseball field that can be rented.
Moving forward, the Board hopes to expand Belmont Community Center’s programs in all directions, from increasing early childhood access to adding young adult and adult programming. The Center hopes to bring people together, face-to-face, after the past few years of uncertainty. Brittney shared that they are in the early stages of a campaign to build a new and updated facility in the same historic spot as the original building. “The building currently still has its original roof, plumbing, and electricity. We just want to give the space a new life.”
Learn more about programs and events on their website and social media!
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