Since Mekong NYC's inception in 2012, our organization––much like our refugee community––has struggled to find a permanent place where we can call home. When Mekong started as the first-ever organization to serve the Southeast Asian community in NYC, we started with a tiny staff of five. We shared a house with Vamos Unidos on 2431 Morris Avenue. We used the front part of the house as an office and the rooms inside as conference and meeting rooms. 

In 2014, we moved to a subsidized basement office space at 2471 University Avenue from Fordham Bedford Housing Corporation. The basement office is smaller than 850 square feet, forcing our staff to adjust and consequently provide services and support for our community members that are limited/restricted/compromised in many critical ways:

• The entrance poses accessibility barriers, as it is located down a flight of concrete stairs with no elevator - a challenge for older adults and those with mobility issues.

• The unit has two rooms, with no designated private rooms for organizers to meet with community members, for community members to wait for their appointments, and for organizers to separate workspaces from program spaces, leading to compromises in confidentiality for sensitive cases.

• Community events must be held off-site due to the accessibility barriers and size of the unit.

• We have outgrown the space - since 2014, the staff has grown from 5 to 18 people. During a typical day, there will be staff, youth fellows, community members, and sometimes visitors at the office, and different layouts to accommodate so many people can be challenging.

In February 2024, we found the perfect property for Mekong NYC.

Just half a mile away from our old office on West 197th Street, the new location is in Kingsbridge Heights in the Bronx, consisting of a 6,448 square feet lot with a two-story + basement brick building and approximately 5,000 square feet of open space. Located immediately adjacent to the children's playground at the southernmost corner of the Jerome Park Reservoir, where Reservoir Ave. meets Goulden Ave., the property will house
The Mekong Center. 

The Mekong Center will increase our community’s access to much-needed organizing and campaigns, arts and culture programs, and advocacy and direct services. It will be a permanent home for Southeast Asians in the Bronx. With this new space, there will be:

• Accessibility for older adults and people with disabilities

• Separate offices for one-on-one case work and operations

• Meeting rooms, classroom, and flex space

• Space for events, like health fairs, cultural events, workshops, food distribution, and more

• Walking distance from the 4 and D Kingsbridge Street subway stations and the Bx22 and Bx32 bus lines

With funding from NYC Council Speaker Adrienne Adams via the EDC, NYS Senator Robert Jackson via Project CREST, we have $950,000 of our costs covered! Our overall campaign goal is $1,500,000, with 63% raised. 

We aim to raise $150,000 (10% of our overall goal) in individual donations. We will leverage grants and other financial resources to close the gap. Will you help us build The Mekong Center so that the Southeast Asian community can finally have a permanent home in the Bronx?

Ways to Give

• Online at https://bit.ly/mekongnyc 

• Mail cash or check made payable to Mekong, Inc. to 2471 University Avenue, BSMT, Bronx, NY 10468

• Corporate matching gifts

Do you have a creative way to collaborate with Mekong NYC? Email our Capital Project campaign staff, Teline Tran, Development Manager at teline@mekongnyc.org or Kim To, Deputy Director at kim@mekongnyc.org!