BRIDGEPORT – A new Jewish campus may become a reality on Park Avenue in Bridgeport, according to leaders of the Jewish Center for Community Services (JCCS) of Eastern Fairfield County, and the Jewish Home for the Elderly in Fairfield.
The JCCS houses the JCC and UJA/Federation of Eastern Fairfield County.
With the recommendation of the JCCS Long Range Planning Committee, the JCCS board has endorsed an agreement in principle to jointly develop a new, collaborative facility in partnership with The Jewish Home, at the current JCCS site at 4200 Park Ave.
“We are very excited about the possibility of working with the JCCS on the development of a new campus,” says Andrew Banoff, CEO of The Jewish Home. “Both organizations are committed to serving the Jewish community and are working through the various steps to determine if that’s possible.”
During the planning process, the JCCS will remain open and fully operational, says Steve Wendell, JCCS president.
The possible fate of the 49-year-old JCC building has long been discussed and debated in the Eastern Fairfield County Jewish community. It is widely agreed that, if the facility is to continue to serve current and future generations, the aging physical plant must be renovated.
JCCS leadership says that the partnership with The Jewish Home allows for the planning and design of a smaller, more efficient building that will incorporate many of the current services, as well as future programming.