YMCA says changes needed to sustain downtown Sudbury location

The YMCA of Northeastern Ontario says it needs to make significant changes to its downtown Sudbury location over the next few years if it wants to stay afloat.

President and CEO Helen Francis said in a town hall with members on Thursday morning that the organization is forecasting a loss of$300,000 to $350,000 per year across the northeast within five years if it doesn't make changes to its operations.

Along with fitness facilities in Sudbury and North Bay, the YMCA of Northeastern Ontario offers child care and immigration settlement services.

Francis said the association's other locations and services are currently "buoying" theCentre For Life the Y's Durham Streetlocation in downtown Sudbury that is on track to loose $700,000 to $750,000 per year.

"We cannot continue to operate the way we are without running the risk of pitting the whole association under," she said.

Part of the change the Y would like to see is a new agreement with the city over its share of utility costs for the Durham Streetbuilding.

Strategy for financial recovery

The Centre for Life isa condominium, with units both the YMCA and the City of Greater Sudbury own. Francis said that when it was built in 1995, the YMCA had forecasted 9,000 members, but that has never been achieved.

She said it hit some of its best membership numbers just before the COVID-19 pandemic early in 2020, when it had about 5,200 members. Currently, there are about 3,100 members.

During the meeting with members, Francis said the Y has a three-part strategy for overcoming its financial challengesand making the Centre for Life sustainable.

The first is to increase memberships. The organization has set a goal to return to 5,000 members within the next five years, which Francis said staff is confident it is on track to do.

The second part of the strategy is to make better use of the building's square footage. The Centre for Life is about 88,000 square feet, with the YMCA occupying about 60,000 of that.

"That is a lot of square footage to try to carry with that membership base," Francis said.

The Y currently has some partners that lease out space, including Beard's Bakery coffee shop and Health Sciences North. Francis said there are several "irons in the fire" for other potential partners to join the space, and lease out parts of the centre.

Francis said the Y will likely close its squash courts to convert the space to an area that can be leased out. She said the organization is exploring a potential partnership with a youth mentalhealth support group that's interested in renting that space.

Finally, Francis said the organization is in talks with the city, in hopes of agreeing on a "different split" on the utility costs for the building. The city owns the Parkside Centre, which is located in the building, as well as some space in the basementand the parking lot. The Y would like to see the city take on a larger share of the utility costs.

Francis said staff have had "very good conversations" with the mayor and council, and have asked the city to make a decision on the Y's request by the end of March.

'Not going to be run for free'

YMCA member Neil Kennedy said he wasn't surprised to hear the Y is struggling financially.

"It's a tremendous facility and it's not going to be run for free," Kennedy said.

About 40 per cent of members at the Centre for Life require financial assistance. Francis said that number is high, but also reflects the positive impact the YMCA has on the community, as people are able to access the centre who wouldn't otherwise be able to.

It's that sense of community that has kept Kennedy coming back to the Y for more than a decade. When he first joined, he did so to keep up his fitness.

"When I came here, I found out that there's a large social aspect to being with the Y. I quickly made new friends and some of my old friends joined. And it becomes not just a fitness program but a social program as well, and that's what keeps me coming here."

Following the town hall meeting, Kennedy said he was feeling "optimistic" about the Y's plans for improving its financial stability.

The YMCA is hosting another town hall meeting in Sudbury at 5 p.m. on Thursday, as well as a virtual meeting Jan. 17 at 10 a.m. Francis said there will also be meetings held in North Bay next week.