The Aleutian village of Nikolski will celebrate the opening of its new community center with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and open house on Aug. 22. The center is restoring a vital gathering space that was lost when the island’s school reopened last year.
“We are pleased to have a new center customized for Nikolski, including a large kitchen to support our subsistence way of life,” said Tanya Lestenkof, tribal administrator for the Native Village of Nikolski.
Nikolski is located on Umnak Island in the central Aleutians with a population of about 30.
Residents had to reorganize how they used their buildings when the school reopened after being closed for more than a decade. They converted the former school building into a grocery store and post office, then offered their existing community center as a classroom space. The change left residents, including seniors who regularly gathered for meals, without their central meeting place.
The regional nonprofit organization, Aleutian Pribilof Island Community Development Association, funded the construction through its Community Development Grant Program.
Construction crews worked alongside residents this summer to assemble prefabricated structures. The village chose prefabrication because Nikolski doesn't have dock service, requiring all materials to arrive by landing craft.
The project took less than a year to complete.
