Forest City Military Communities Northwest held a ribbon cutting ceremony at Constitution Park in Lake Stephens, Wash., March 3 to celebrate the opening of a brand new community center.

Forest City partnered with Naval Station Everett and the local community of Lake Stephens to create this center. Now, the families that live in Constitution Park not only have a place to relax and have fun, but also have easy access to staff members who have an office located in the new building.

The center has a workout area with windows looking into a children’s play area, a large multi-purpose room, kitchen, small conference room, and an outdoor playground. The multi-purpose room will be available for scout events, birthday parties, socials, and more.

This project was an opportunity for the Navy to show their support for the families and to increase morale and welfare.

“While we enlist the Sailor we enlist the family so the manner in which we treat our families on a day-to-day basis and how we care for them, especially while the Sailors are deployed is a significant issue,” said Capt. Michael Coury, Naval Station Everett commanding officer.

Coury also mentioned the importance of the community in keeping the families of service members happy.

“When it comes to the family, we look at not only providing them with great information, but providing them with a great place to live,” said Coury. “The support of the community is a big part of that.”

Through the efforts of the Navy and the city of Lake Stephens, Constitution Park, formerly Greenwich Village, continues to be a beautiful, safe place to live and keeps getting better.

“If you walk out here today, you see a beautiful community that anyone would be proud to live in with safe streets and now with this community center,” said Lakr Stevens Mayor Vern Little.

The construction of the community center had a lot of effort and support from the Navy and the city but it would not be possible without the help of Forest City, who started the entire project for turning Greenwich Village into this housing development just a couple years ago.

Forest City assists in the building and leasing of private military housing units to service members and their families.

“Being in the military housing business is so much more than building houses, it’s about building communities. So what we’re doing here today is not only celebrating a cool building but the culmination of this whole community,” said Michael Nanney, vice president, Forest City Military Communities Northwest.

Forest City has almost 15,000 private sized military housing units under ownership or partnership with the Navy and the Air Force in places in Hawaii, California, Washington, Colorado, and more.