CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) - CentroVilla25 has been a project in the works for over 40 years, but after dedicated partners and representatives took the project over 10 years ago, they finally celebrated their grand opening Friday morning.
Over dozens of partners worked together to bring the dream to life, including; the Cleveland Foundation, Cleveland Cavaliers, Cuyahoga County representatives and local Cleveland representatives amongst many more.
“It’s an opportunity for us to give back and leave a legacy for our children,” said Councilwoman Ward 14 Jasmin Santana. “That’s what gets me excited, that my kids and my grandkids can come here and say my mom was part of this.”
Santana was one of the main supporters of the project who helped bring in Cleveland City Council support.
[According to the CentroVilla25 website](https://cv25.org/), the center hopes to grow the local economy by giving local Hispanic and Latino entrepreneurs a place to grow their businesses.
“When you ask what does it mean to me? It means pride. It means hard work. It means perseverance. It just is culture, and we were able to do it together,” Santana said.
CentroVilla25 was a project that cost over $14 million. The funds came directly from grants, donations, and crowdfunding.
“It feels surreal,” Founder of CentroVilla25 Jenice Contreras said. “It’s pretty magical. You have something in your heart or a little dream and you just put it on paper, put it into work and see it physically manifest itself.”
_Copyright 2025 WOIO. All rights reserved._