AUBURN — As the sun blazed, a platoon of Maine Army National Guard engineer soldiers toiled on top of a Chestnut Street building Saturday, tearing off old roofing to make way for a new roof.

Their work was the beginning of a renovation project that will turn the former Pathways building at 24 Chestnut St. into an Auburn Police Activities League drop-in community center for neighborhood youths and a police substation.

The building will open in the spring of 2012, police Chief Phil Crowell said.

At the center, kids will get help with homework and will be offered meals and positive things to do such as gardening, cooking, basketball, soccer and football.

The center also will provide young people with police mentors. All of the services will be free, Crowell said.

Four years of crime statistics show that the neighborhood is where 23 percent of the city’s juvenile crime takes place. Much of it is assaults, fights and theft, Crowell said.

“We knew we needed something in this neighborhood,” he said. “We also know that Auburn ranks second in poverty with children in Maine. Lewiston’s first. If you take a look at the school numbers, 75 percent of children at Washburn School receive free and reduced lunch.”

The city’s answer to juvenile crime and poverty is to put officers right there. Members of the Auburn Police Department’s Explorer Post — high school and college students interested in law enforcement — will be available to counsel kids.

Crowell’s idea got going last year after the Auburn City Council granted his request to create a PAL drop-in community center. The council gave him $40,000 in a Community Development Block Grant.

That grant is a great start, but not enough to create the center and a police substation, Crowell said. So, he’s seeking partners. One is the Auburn Recreation Department; another is Lowe’s, which has agreed to provide materials and labor for new siding. Another partner will be the neighbors themselves. Crowell will be asking residents to volunteer and help run a snack shack during games and other activities. He’ll also host weekly community dinners with neighbors. To make the center a success, residents will have to want to take ownership, he said.

Still another partner is the Maine Army National Guard’s 136 Engineer Co. of Skowhegan and Lewiston, which is providing manpower during monthly weekend drills.

Guard Chief Warrant Officer Chris Barnaby said he had 28 soldiers working on the roof Saturday and Sunday. Turning the building into “a shining star in this neighborhood” is a rewarding project for his soldiers, Barnaby said. The center can make a difference in kids’ lives and get them off the streets, he said.

“They’re already doing a summer soccer league,” he said. “They’ve got quite a few kids in the neighborhood playing.” Crowell said 70 kids are signed up for soccer. Barnaby said it was rewarding to see the chief of police show up and neighborhood kids turn out, smiling and greeting him with, “’Hey, chief!’ That’s what it’s all about.”

Sgt. Zachary Garrison of Waterboro said building a community center is why engineering guardsmen joined. “It’s better than sitting in the armory going over battle drills.”

Neighbors watching the work Saturday said they were happy about a police substation and community center moving in.

“I think it will make the neighborhood better and keep the fights that happen all of the time out,” said Jeff Baldwin who lives next door. Kids need something to do to keep them away from drugs and alcohol, he said.

Sally Chabot, who lives across the street, agreed.

“Ever since I moved in here three of four years ago I’ve seen a lot of fights go down with teenagers,” she said. “I’m hoping this will help. They’re going to think twice before they come here, the ones who want to hurt people.”

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