Kaua'i YMCA project begins
By Jan TenBruggencate
Advertiser Kaua'i Bureau
PUHI, Kaua'i — The Kaua'i YMCA will break ground today for an $8.8 million athletic, office and meeting facility, the first of its kind on the island.
Courtesy YMCA
"The YMCA has been providing activities to the Kaua'i community for, like, 70 years without a facility. This will let us expand our services," said Ron Agor, Kaua'i YMCA vice president and the architect who designed the project.
A conceptual image by Agor Architecture shows what the YMCA facility in Puhi will look like.
The 3.6-acre site leased from the county is between Chiefess Kamakahelei Middle School and Kaumuali'i Highway, near Kaua'i Community College.
The first phase of the complex includes a multipurpose building, swimming pool and wellness center. Later stages include two ranks of batting cages, a daycare center, locker rooms, an administration building and a gymnasium for basketball, volleyball and other sports.
One of the key needs for the community, Agor said, is a pool for teaching children how to swim, as well as for fitness training and competitive swimming.
"There are not adequate pool facilities on the island," he said.
YMCA Executive Director Tom Tannery said that if there's enough money, the organization hopes to build a 50-meter pool. No pool that size is available on the island. If the money isn't found, the plan is for a smaller pool, 25 meters long and 25 yards wide, enough for eight lanes, with a shallow extension to one side for teaching young children to swim, he said.
Tannery said the organization has raised about $900,000 of the $2.5 million needed for the first phase. That will pay for basic infrastructure for the entire project, plus the first building, a multipurpose structure of about 2,000 square feet that will house a small office, restrooms and a workout facility.
One big issue is to establish an expanded membership base. Most YMCA organizations build their adult memberships around a facility, he said, but the Kaua'i YMCA, lacking such a facility, has a comparatively small base.
"This will be a service facility for the whole island. We anticipate many programs in place. We get many more requests to provide services than we can now accommodate," said Kaua'i YMCA President Patrick Childs.
The YMCA operates a community camp at Ha'ena, provides swimming lessons and supports a range of programs such as teen centers, roller hockey, surfing contests, a canoe paddling club, the Kaua'i All Girls Rodeo and a Hawaiian festival.
YMCA stands for Young Men's Christian Association, and while the organization keeps the title, the name no longer accurately reflects its makeup, Tannery said. Most members across the nation are women, and people of all faiths are represented.
"It's open to everybody, any religion, any culture," he said.
Reach Jan TenBruggencate at jant@honoluluadvertiser.com or (808) 245-3074.
