YMCA in Complexe Guy-Favreau looking for long-term solution
Facility slated to close at end of May, but received a last-minute reprieve
The head of the YMCA in Quebec says it will take a “community effort” to keep the YMCA in Complexe Guy-Favreau open for many years to come.
The YMCA in eastern downtown Montreal, next to Chinatown, was slated to close at the end of May, but it was given a last-minute reprieve March 17.
The YMCA had previously announced it would be forced to close the facility after its rent was raised to $240,000 per year.
But after members and community groups lobbied to keep the facility going, the Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) announced the YMCA would get a one-year lease at a token cost of $1.
Stéphane Vaillancourt, President of YMCAs in Quebec, said the challenge now is to come up with a viable long-term plan for the Y, which has been a tenant of the Complexe Guy-Favreau for more than three decades.
“We would not have agreed to even a $1 rent if we didn’t think we had a reasonable chance of finding a viable solution,” said Vaillancourt, who met with YMCA members Wednesday.
“So we’re going into this year making sure we have a very structured approach so that we just don’t do brainstorming to do brainstorming. It’s to make sure we have partners around the table, funding around the table, that we actualize our programming, that we have a viable business plan and we can make it for the long run.”
The federal government initially charged an annual rent of $1 when the Guy-Favreau location opened in 1986.
The symbolic rent agreement lasted for 20 years, but the government subsidy began to decrease in 2007.
Asked whether the financial burden to keep YMCA open beyond 2018 should be borne by members, the YMCA or government, Vaillancourt replied: “All of the above. This is going to be an inclusive process.”
“This is not going to be a small group of YMCA executives in their offices somewhere planning out how the Y should be run in GuyFavreau.
“It’s really going to be a very structured approach to make sure we do this right.”