A new Wayman D. Palmer YMCA, along with a new Inez Nash Park, will be built for the residents of Toledo, Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz announced during a news conference Wednesday.
“Today’s announcement is a win for this neighborhood, a win for kids, and a win for Toledo,” Mayor Kapszukiewicz said. “My administration has put a priority on investing in all neighborhoods, especially those that have been ignored for decades. Whether it’s building this new YMCA, demolishing the old Driggs Dairy, or sending hundreds of kids to pre-K and college for free as part of HOPE Toledo, I’m proud of what my administration has accomplished for neighborhoods in the core of our city. Today shows that while talk is cheap, action is powerful.”
A public meeting will be held at the Wayman D. Palmer YMCA at 6 p.m., Monday, Sept. 27 to gather community input on the plan for the new facility and park.
U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur; Toledo Council Members Vanice Williams and Cerssandra McPherson; City of Toledo Neighborhoods Director Rosalyn Clemens; Brad Toft, YMCA of Greater Toledo president and chief executive officer, and Ray Micham, owner of The Collaborative Inc., were among those who joined the mayor for the announcement today.
“I am so excited to be here because this is something that is so near and dear to me… My daughter started out playing basketball here,” Ms. Williams said. “This was an intricate part of me being a single mother and needing a space for my daughter to go to that kept her active, kept her learning.”
Ms. Williams added: “This is a monumental project. This is something that this neighborhood has needed for decades.”
“This is well past overdue, but thank God it is about to happen because our children, our community deserve this,” Ms. McPherson said.
Funding for the $21 million project will come from a combination of sources, including Community Development Block Grant funding, American Rescue Plan Act funding, the YMCA capital campaign, and private sector donations. The new facility, which will face Bancroft Street and be built where Inez Nash Park currently sits, will open in 2024. The new building will be approximately 50,500-sqaure-feet, which is about twice the size of the current Wayman D. Palmer YMCA. It will have multipurpose rooms, a demonstration kitchen, a community lounge, gymnasiums, fitness rooms, and an indoor pool. The new park will take the place of the current building, Ms. Clemens said.
“This project is a legacy project for us. This is a must-do project for us. We must do this because these are the types of projects that make for equity inclusion,” Ms. Clemens said.
Here's a link for the announcement TOLEDO TO BUILD NEW WAYMAN D PALMER YMCA
Photo: Fred LeFebvre