Proposed National Junth Museum to sit on former Southside Community Center site; center to move to Hazel Harvey Peace

City staff and representatives of the National Junth Museum on Tuesday briefed the Community Development Committee on plans to relocate the Southside Community Center temporarily and to build a proposed National Junth Museum at 959 East Rosedale.

Marilyn and Mon'nique told the committee that first-floor construction at Hazel Harvey Peace began in April 2026 to accommodate programs moved from the Southside Community Center. They said construction on that first-floor work is expected to be complete by July 31 and that the physical move of programs will take about one-and-a-half to two months; a grand-opening date for the relocated Southside programming was not yet set. The presenters emphasized that key services — public meeting and rental space, voting services, senior programs and a teen program with podcasting — will be kept intact during the move.

Jared Howard, identifying himself as a representative of the forthcoming National Junth Museum, showed renderings and a brief video of the planned facility. He described a 50,000-square-foot cultural complex with a museum on the second floor, a 250-seat theater, a food hall intended to address local food access gaps, a business incubator and roughly 50 co-working spaces. "We are building a 50,000 foot culture complex," Jared said, and described programming that he said will include productions and community events anchored in the historic Southside neighborhood.

Jared cited results he said came from an Oxford Economics impact study, calling for more than 100,000 annual visitors to the museum, over half of them nonresidents of Fort Worth, and an annual economic impact he described as more than $20 million and the creation of about 180 jobs per year. He also described the capital campaign as a $70 million goal and reported $52 million raised to date; he said the State of Texas provided a $10 million appropriation in the last legislative session. The transcript records these claims as Jared's statements; the committee did not adopt or verify the study during the briefing.

Marilyn and Mon'nique said that once Southside programming moves, the land at 959 East Rosedale will be made available for the museum. Jared said demolition of the existing Southside Community Center is anticipated this fall with community engagement, and that construction would begin shortly after. He also described a planned Freedom Vibes festival and other pre-opening community activities.

During questioning, a committee member asked whether the museum's co-working incubator would include a mentor program; Jared said yes and said the museum intends to partner with existing organizations rather than operate incubator programs directly. Committee members thanked staff and presenters; there was no formal vote or action taken at the meeting. The committee adjourned at about 1:40 p.m.