A YMCA for future generations

$1.1M grant will help Y begin facility renovations, additions

MIDDLETOWN — The Northern Middlesex YMCA on Union Street will be constructing an approximately 8,800square-foot addition courtesy of a $1.1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The grant will be used for the non-housing portion of the project, President and CEO Michelle Rulnick said Monday afternoon.

As long as additional funds can be raised, the YMCA hopes to also conduct a renovation and preservation project for the men’s residence. Part of that includes moving the entrance closer to the parking lot, she said.

QA+M Architecture of Farmington is the architect of the project. The building, presently 46,164 square feet, will increase to some 54,827 square feet.

U.S. Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro announced the Community Project Funding grant for the YMCA on April 8.

The downtown facility, at 99 Union St., was built in 1928 and last renovated in 1972, said Rulnick.

Upgrades will include an elevator to make the upper floors handicap accessible, Rulnick said. Presently, getting to the upper levels is “stairs upon stairs upon stairs,” the CEO said on April 8. Now, visitors must walk a distance from the parking lot.

“This building is an albatross. It limits our ability to serve the community instead of being a good partner in our work,” she added.

“There will be no requirement to use stairs to get where you want to go, which is amazing to think about,” Rulnick said Monday.

“The Y is special in our community. It is my absolute passion to make sure that this organization is here for the next generation,” Rulnick said on April 8.

The big focus now is raising money for other aspects of the project.

“This is not a slam dunk by any means,” Mayor Ben Florsheim said April 8. “This is a process that takes many many people — it takes a village ... to make it reality.”

Rulnick said the capital campaign is in its “silent phase.” The task ahead is to garner money from the public, city, federal government, and philanthropists, as well as use historic tax credits, she said.

“We are only going to be able to see this project through if we get the support from the community that we need,” she said. “We have a vision, and we’re really working hard for the vision to come true.”

As long as full financial support is secured, Rulnick hopes the project will break ground in 2026-27.

For information or to support the project, visit midymca.org.

Congresswoman DeLauro’s office/Contributed photo Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., left, recently visited the YMCA of Northern Middlesex County in Middletown, below, to announce $1.1 million in federal funding to pay for an expansion and renovations to parts of the building. To her right are YMCA Board of Directors Chairperson Karen Warren, state Sen. Matt Lesser, D-Middletown, and Mayor Ben Florsheim.

Contributed photo/Northern Middlesex YMCA