YMCA officials said they are encouraged by the town’s response regarding the use of the Bessey School as the future site for the Scarborough YMCA and feel the town will ultimately deed the 15-acre parcel to the organization.
“We have a few hurdles to work out with the town, but I think it’s safe to say this is the best site for the Y,” said Cyrus Hagge, chairman of the Greater Portland YMCA board of directors.
Town officials agree. After meeting with YMCA representatives last week, Town Council Chairman Jeffrey Messer said he is confident an agreement can be reached between the two parties.
“In concept I think any councilor would tell you it’s an excellent opportunity for the town and the YMCA,” Messer said
Town Manager Ron Owens said the project would be an opportunity to not only provide a community gathering place, but also help preserve the Bessey School and perhaps use some of the facility for subsided senior housing.
The property is currently owned by the school department, which is using the facility for some offices. Owens said once the high school construction is completed sometime next year the district would probably no longer need the space.
According Owens, once the school district is no longer using the building for school purposes ownership reverts to the town, a process that would probably require a vote by the Board of Education.
Today Ruth’s Reusable Resources is the building’s biggest tenant and the nonprofit company would have to move before anything is done with the building. This is not an easy task given the business’s resources and the real estate market.
“It’s not hard to find a place, it’s hard to afford a place,” said Ruth Libby, the company’s founder and executive director.
Libby has been searching for a new home for several years because she has outgrown the Bessey School, but has not yet found a suitable location. Although she had just learned about the YMCA discussion, it was not a surprise.
“I knew that I only had about one-and-a-half to two years at the most at the building,” she said.
The Bessey School site has many positives for the YMCA, Hagge said. It is close to the schools and other town services, and is easily accessible to neighboring towns. Finally, there is enough land to allow for future expansion.
“We pretty much feel this is the best site,” Hagge said. “It gets the Y close to the kids.”
During a public meeting Monday night, YMCA officials discussed the upcoming project and what the YMCA needs from the community in order to make it successful.
One of the major things it will need is donations. Officials estimate that they will need $11 million to build a YMCA that includes a 25-yard pool.
If the town wants to build a 50-meter pool, which would be the first one in the state, the group would need to raise an additional $4 million, to form an endowment to help with the future maintenance costs of the larger pool.
However, YMCA officials stressed that they are first interested in building the YMCA. If they are unable to raise the additional $4 million they would move forward with the 25-yard pool and design it for future expansion.
“We’re raising money for the Y and if we go up to the $15 million we’ll build the 50-meter pool,” said Mark Urban of Community Counseling Services, which is assisting the YMCA’s fund-raising efforts.
Some people have said they would like to donate money in order to get the larger pool built, but the YMCA is not accepting that money until it has first raised the $11 million.
“If the time comes, we’d like to take you up on your offer. However, we need to build a Y first,” Urban said.
The YMCA is now beginning its fund-raising campaign and will be soliciting large donations ranging from $100,000 to $1 million between now and the end of the year. In the fall it will start the major gift phase, with donations ranging from $25,000 to $50,000. Beginning next spring the community phase of the fund-raising campaign will begin looking for smaller donations.
YMCA officials also are looking for about 50 volunteers to serve on its various boards that will guide the YMCA through the building project and planning process. The committees are fund-raising, building and program.
“It’s a chance for you to make a meaningful contribution to the community we live in,” said Scarborough resident Heather Jamieson, who is organizing the committees. “Now is the time to get working and be a part of this project.”
If everything goes as planned the Scarborough YMCA will be opened sometime in the first quarter of 2008. For more information or to volunteer for a committee call the YMCA at 874-1111.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
