Huntington YMCA’s 29,000-square-foot expansion will include a full-sized gym, a basketball court, an indoor walking track and other space for health and wellness services. The expansion began in October of 2017 and is expected to be complete in early 2019.
The new building will be free-standing, allowing for the YMCA’s camp to occur this summer with minimal disruption; important because for many families, “summer camp becomes summer daycare,” said Eileen Knauer, senior vice president and chief operating officer of YMCA of Long Island Association Services.
“We could’ve said we won’t run a camp but we know we need it because it’s a revenue driver and parents need it because they need a place for their kids to go while they go to work,” she said.
Most construction this summer will be inside the building, not out on the grounds. But, if construction does conflict with camp, the YMCA has offsite space available.
The purpose of such an expansion, Knauer said, is to “fill gaps between healthcare and the general population.” The building will have an open floor plan, allowing for convertibility that it may meet needs 20-30 years from now. Some of what it will house:
- pilates, yoga, aerobics studio space
- diabetes program
- fall prevention program
- blood monitoring program
- nutrition classes for seniors
- youth obesity program (partnering with Northwell)
- programs for people in cancer recovery
- full-sized gym
- basketball court
- indoor walking track
- social wellness space (especially for seniors)
It’s “different than anything the Y has ever build,” Knauer said.
The $8.9 million project was funded by large private donors, whose names, based on some donors’ request, Knauer would not release, and through community events. J. Petrocelli Contracting Inc., a company that has done work for the Huntington YMCA before, is doing the expansion. Knauer and the company meet on a weekly basis to sustain an “ongoing dialogue and make sure the [main] facility is minimally impacted,” she said.
Huntington’s YMCA has a shared parking agreement with the town but will also be adding over 100 parking spots.
The Huntington YMCA has been in this community for more than 60 years and serves over 15,000 members. “We’ve outgrown the space,” Knauer said.
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