Construction at the Family YMCA of Marion and Polk Counties building in downtown Salem on Nov. 16, 2021. (Ardeshir Tabrizian/Salem Reporter)
It’s been four years since Salem’s YMCA received its first state funds to help the nonprofit replace its century-old building.
In the time since, the organization has gotten a new CEO, adjusted fundraising goals, pushed back construction timelines, demolished a building and added work to the three-story structure currently being built at the corner of Northeast Court Street and Northeast Cottage Street.
Now, CEO Tim Sinatra says the Family YMCA of Marion and Polk Counties is in its final push to cap off the project: a push to raise $3 million from donors in the next 90 days.
That target will trigger a matching $1 million contribution from Mountain West Investment Corporation, finally hitting the organization’s goal of $29.5 million months before the gym and community center opens to the public in June. (Disclosure: Larry Tokarski, Mountain West president, is also a co-founder of Salem Reporter.)
“We love the challenge,” Sinatra said.
The building will have many features of a traditional gym, including a swimming pool, workout equipment and rooms for exercise classes. But Sinatra envisions it as a gathering place for families of all ages. There will be a preschool and childcare on the first floor, spaces for teens to hang out, event space for community programs and groups to meet, and activities for infants through seniors.
To date, Sinatra said they’ve raised about $25 million. The bulk is from $12 million in state lottery bonds allocated in 2017 and Oregon’s share of federal Covid relief, which added $4 million earlier this year. A federal tax credit in the works will contribute about $4 million, Sinatra said.
Sinatra said eight private foundations have contributed $1.6 million, and about 240 individual donors $3.6 million. In-kind donations and a city grant account for the rest.
To hit the February fundraising target, Sinatra said the YMCA will seek to leverage smaller donations, sending out mailers to its roughly 5,000 members and supporters. Individuals can also make donations on the YMCA website.
“We’re really hoping that we can really engage a large group of the community,” he said. YMCA leaders are also meeting with philanthropists and foundations who have previously expressed interest.
The building has been in the works for years and saw several delays before the pandemic as the YMCA struggled to raise enough to begin construction. The previous CEO, Sam Carroll, scaled back the work to a $20.5 million building and used a loan to begin demolition work in the fall of 2019.
Sinatra took over as CEO last summer. Under his leadership, the YMCA again expanded the building’s scope and ambition.
The Legislature’s contributions have come thanks to the help of longtime YMCA member and Senate Majority Leader Peter Courtney, who famously lived in the downtown YMCA’s now-demolished apartment complex after he first moved to Salem.
The latest funds, allocated in 2021, came after Sinatra made plans to offer a preschool program on the ground floor, responding to a worsening shortage of childcare providers in the region.
In July, Sinatra said the final cost of the project would be $27.5 million. That’s now closer to $29.5 million, he said, because the organization’s leaders made plans to build a canopy over the outdoor terrace on top of the building – something included in original designs that was shelved because of cost.
Sinatra said that reflects the support the YMCA has seen in recent months from donors, which left him confident they could hit a higher target.
“We feel so blessed with the momentum we’ve had in reaching this goal. We thought, ‘Oh, we’re not that far out.’ It makes more sense with just being efficient and effective with stakeholder dollars,” he said.
He’s hoping to open the first week of June, a slight delay from an original April target.
With the building’s outer structure now standing, Sinatra said they’re beginning tours hoping to court prospective donors by showing them the shape of the future building.
Sinatra hasn’t been yet, but said other YMCA staff reported getting emotional as they envisioned the structure full of families and kids.
“The feeling you have – it’s overwhelming,” he said. “I can’t wait to take my own tour.”
Correction: This article incorrectly listed the intersection where the YMCA building sits. Salem Reporter apologizes for the error.
Contact reporter Rachel Alexander: [email protected] or 503-575-1241.
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