The Brewster-Wheeler Recreation Center is a former recreation center located in Detroit, Michigan. Opened in 1929, it was a hub for community enrichment programs for those who lived in the city, especially those who lived in the Brewster and Brush Park neighborhoods. The recreation center was closed in 2006 as a result of lack of funding and decrease in usage. As of 2015, the City of Detroit is planning a multi-use redevelopment for the site, complete with restaurants, residential units, and commercial space. History as Brewster-Wheeler Recreation Center The Brewster-Wheeler Recreation Center is much more than a community activities center. It is a building with a long illustrious history that served an underprivileged community for many years. From its early days as the only public library in a very poor neighborhood to its later years as an athletic center which was a home to athletes like Joe Louis. The Detroit Public Library set up a branch on Hastings and Wilkins in 1913. Its purpose was to provide resources to poor immigrant neighborhoods on the outskirts of the downtown. A few years after the Hastings location was opened plans for a new permanent location to be built were in the works. The new location would be built west of Hastings and Wilkins on Brewster Street. The library was built of cut stone and beautiful brick. The building was finished and opened on May 15, 1917. The library was closed down only ten years later in 1927 due to a lack of use. The now eleven-year-old building was put up for sale and the public library was moved back to its original location on Hastings in 1928. The 1920s saw an influx of black immigrants from the south moving into the surrounding communities of Black Bottom and Paradise Valley. The Detroit Parks Department began to realize that this community lacked any real recreation center. This forced their hand to begin a $500,000 renovation of the old library into a community center. A brand new two-story wing added designed by George W. Graves, added classrooms, a swimming pool, boxing ring, and basketball courts. The existing library was then converted to an auditorium. The Central Community Center officially opened its doors to the public in October 1929. 5000 people came out to the dedication on November 1 (Source 1) Mayor John C. Nagle spoke of the changing composition of the surrounding neighborhood stating, "I