Cin’cere Huntley, a resident of Hollander Ridge in Baltimore, Maryland, took part in Operation Pathways’ Summer Internship Program. As part of the summer program students were asked to imagine a real estate project, with a budget, that they would want to design.
Cin’cere’s vision for a social and cultural community center was borne out of her own research and lived experience which showed that in a city of over 700,000, Baltimore has only 44 recreation centers. Cin’cere’s research showed that low-income areas of Baltimore, suffering from years of structural racism and blight, were particularly lacking in safe places for people to gather but also had a surplus of abandoned buildings and vacant lots.
This inspired Cin’cere to put her internship training to use in developing a proposal for a site. During her internship Cin’cere and her peers learned about property development, budgeting skills, profit and loss, and basic real estate knowledge.
The vision for the Cin’cere Social and Cultural Community Centre included a swimming pool, gymnasium, kitchen and ballet center. The center would offer childcare and be a warm and welcoming space to bring the community together.
Cin’cere delivered her presentation at the 6th Annual NHPF Symposium in Washington, DC to an audience of hundreds. Her heartfelt earnestness and sincerity moved many to tears.
The future looks bright for Cin’cere Huntley.