Guadalupe-Parkway Sommerville Centers and Executive Director, Dela Esqueda, are dynamic community builders, passionate about their work and actively bringing people together to share resources and develop relationships. FBT is proud to be a part of this story. The Centers serve children and families of north and east Lubbock by equipping them with life skills and providing training in literacy, language, family living and academic support.

FBT and Groundwork studio worked closely with Guadalupe-Parkway Sommerville Centers and Texas Tech’s UrbanTech to design a new life skills academic building, learning garden, playground, and community development space. Getting there took collaboration and community outreach, fundraising, sharing resources, and above all, tenacity.

Community Connections

Dela and the Board of Directors brought deep community roots and a compelling vision for the Parkway-Sommerville Center, while FBT brought a depth of knowledge about the design and building process. FBT’s unflagging leadership, fundraising support and visuals guided the vision through to the final project.

FBT and Groundwork Studio worked alongside Dela and her team to host community meetings and present the project that would ultimately generate enthusiasm and secure the needed financial support. Funding came from a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), community member donations, private donors and the J.T. & Margaret Talkington Foundation of Lubbock who the new building is named for.

A Place to Grow

The new academic building provides flexible classroom space and multi-purpose rooms for after school activities and community gathering. The Learning Garden serves as a safe, comfortable and educational space with interactive musical instruments, shade structure, seating, pathways, trees and plantings that complement the Center’s curriculum. The project also created a neighborhood identity where there was none with a bright building and a colorful fence that offers both safety and a sense of joy.

Throughout the process our team was able to turn obstacles into connections. When the need arose to address challenging building codes and costly sidewalk additions, we came together to generate additional funding and provide new sidewalks in the area – improving pedestrian safety and accessibility for residents.

Looking Forward

FBT is excited to collaborate on the Centers’ next phase of development focusing on Lubbock’s Guadalupe neighborhood. The new Guadalupe-Sommerville Center will be within walking distance of the local school and serve as a catalyst to integrate the neighborhood with the adjacent Civic Center area and greenway.

FBT’s Daniel Chamberlain is working with students at the TTU School of Architecture on visualization and planning options for the City of Lubbock and Guadalupe neighborhood. We are eager to help create a space that builds a sense of pride and identity while serving the needs of at-risk students.

“At the forefront of our new Parkway Sommerville Center project stood a loner who imparted expertise, sweat equity and friendship. Thank you FBT Architects and Daniel Chamberlain for adopting us and guiding us. You are absolutely the best in the west! Your professional guidance sets the standard. Your footprint is evident through your impeccable work. You assisted us in acquiring furnishings through a partnership we simply could not penetrate on our own and saved us thousands of dollars through your hard work. You have yet to arrive empty handed to our meetings. We just could not have selected a better firm to work with. The thing that stands apart for us is that you understand our needs better than we do. Our $2 million dollar project is small, however you saw the value in what we do and delivered your absolute best to us.”

Dela Esqueda, Guadalupe-Parkway Sommerville Centers, Executive Director