YMCA Presents Plan for Joint Partnership on Community Center

The YMCA of Greater St. Louis has emerged as another potential partner for St. Charles in building a community center. 

The City Council is expected to vote on June 5 on that voters in 2008 overwhelmingly approved to be spent on building a community center.

That possible vote prompted both and the YMCA to. On Tuesday, YMCA officials presented information about how a partnership might work with the city on a community center. 

"We have a unique ability to partner in these things with a community," said Executive Director of the Greater St. Louis YMCA Cesar Silva. "You would be the folks who build and own the location, we would serve as the operators."

The YMCA currently has a partnership with the city of St. Louis on the Carondolet Rec Park Complex. The $21 million, 76,000 square foot facility was built in 2009 by the city. The YMCA operates the complex under a long-term agreement with the city. 

YMCA officials said they were interested in pursuing a similar partnership with St. Charles on a . 

The YMCA currently has a 39-year-old facility that serves located off of Shady Springs Lane, on the border of St. Peters. This facility is 42,000 square feet and includes and indoor pool, gymnasium, sauna and outdoor pavilion. 

The St. Charles County YMCA has about 1,000 "membership units" which would be rolled into the new community center, said Renee Tillman, executive director of the St. Charles County YMCA. 
Council members wanted to know about what would happen if the revenue at a community center didn't come in as expected. 
YMCA executives said that the city of St. Louis provides back up "insurance" for the Carondolet Rec Park Complex for the first several years of operation and agrees to fund certain percent of expenses should there be a need.
After that time period, if the facility runs in the red, the YMCA would be responsible for making up the excess, they said. 
The city of St. Louis is responsible for making major capital upgrades to the Rec Complex. Officials said they could work out a similar agreement with St. Charles. 

Councilman Dave Beckering, Ward-7, said he thinks St. Charles would need to go back to voters before they decided to use the bond money to build a community center because the circumstances have changed. 

At the end of the discussion, no council members said they were interested in having the city put out a request for proposals to give both ShowMe Aquatics and Fitness, the YMCA and any other group a chance to submit. 

Council President Laurie Feldman, Ward-3, said she thinks the council will have to vote whether they want to release the bond money before moving forward with a request for proposals.

"I would say last night was informational," she said. "I would probably project that if we vote to release the bond money, we won't be talking much about a community center." 

The city is also wanting to do several big projects including repairing the city parking garage and building a street maintenance facility.

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