AUBURN, ME — Today, U.S. Senator Susan Collins delivered remarks and participated in a ceremonial groundbreaking for a new Police Activities League (PAL) Community Center in Auburn. Senator Collins secured $3,000,000 in Congressionally Directed Spending (CDS) through the Fiscal Year 2023 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations bill to build the new center, which, in addition to hosting the activities league, will serve as a hub for supervised after-school and summer youth activities and mentoring.

Senator Collins was joined at the event by Auburn City Manager and PAL Board Member Phil Crowell, Auburn Mayor Jeffrey Harmon, Auburn Police Department Lieutenant Anthony Harrington, and PAL Secretary Rita Beaudry. Also in attendance at the event was Auburn City Councilor Leroy Walker.

“For more than a decade, the PAL Center in Auburn has provided local children with a safe, structured environment to play and learn after school; receive food, clothes, and school supplies; and build relationships with law enforcement officers who protect the local community,” said Senator Collins. “As Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I will continue to champion federal investments that allow successful community organizations like the Auburn PAL Center to expand their capacity, allowing more children and families to benefit from their great work.”

This year, Senator Collins secured nearly $11 million in CDS for community center projects in six additional communities throughout Maine in the Fiscal Year 2024 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations bill.