Midwest City seeking grants for new YMCA

By Jeff Harrison
Midwest City Beacon

Plans for a new YMCA in the Mid-Del area are progressing.

The YMCA of Greater Oklahoma City, Mid-Del Schools and Midwest City have been working together on a project to replace the current Midwest City YMCA with a new and modern facility. Tinker Air Force Base has also been included in the discussions.

The proposed 70,000-square-foot facility would include such things as a fitness center, gymnasium, swimming pool and other amenities. The project is expected to cost $35 million.
Funding for the project is still underway.

Mid-Del School District voters approved a $10 million bond issue for the project. Midwest City will contribute land for the project and city staff are pursuing grants and federal funding. The YMCA will also be asked to help fundraise for the project.

Midwest City has applied for a $15 million grant from the Defense Community Infrastructure Program. DCIP is designed to support infrastructure projects in military communities, to enhance military value, support training of cadets, installation resilience and/or military family quality of life.

In 2022, Watertown, New York received a $9 million grant for a new YMCA. The project included remodeling an existing building to house the YMCA and serve service members and families at nearby Fort Drum.

Midwest City is also seeking a $5 million grant in Community Project Funding with assistance from U.S. Rep. Tom Cole. The city has had success in receiving federal funding for local infrastructure projects.

If the city is able to receive the grant funding, the project would still need at least another $5 million. City Manager Tim Lyon said the remaining funds would be filled through the YMCA’s fundraising efforts or community support.

“I feel better about us getting a new YMCA today than I have ever been in the past,” Lyon said. “If we’re able to get this grant money we’re going to be moving forward quickly.”

If the city does not receive the grants, Lyon said the community will need to find another option. It would likely need to come through a general obligation bond issue. That would need to be approved by voters.

“That would need to be a council decision whether they want to go out for a general obligation bond,” Lyon said. “And the people would need to decide.”
Midwest City has identified three potential sites. They include city owned property on SE 29th St. near Douglas Blvd., the former Sears buildings at Heritage Park Mall, and west of the Reno Swim and Slide at Joe B. Barnes Regional Park.

Lyon said all three sites would be good options.

Mid-Del Schools needs an aquatic facility for its growing swimming program. The swim team previously used the Rose State College pool for practices and home meets. Rose State closed its pool in fall of 2022 due to problems with the building and officials have not expressed plans to reopen the pool. The swim team has practiced at the Midwest City YMCA this past season but needs a larger facility.

Kelly Kay, CEO of YMCA of Greater Oklahoma City, said many communities across central Oklahoma are experiencing similar issues. He said a new YMCA provides many benefits for children, families and seniors, but can also be a boom for communities. He pointed to the Mitch Park YMCA that was built with support from the school district, Edmond and the YMCA.

“We’ve really taken this model and Tim [Lyon] and Dr. [Rick] Cobb have embraced it,” Kay said during a Midwest City Rotary Club meeting on April 1. “Now that the school has passed its bond issue we are having meetings.”

Lyon said the YMCA would be beneficial to the base and military families.

“They don’t have enough space on base for workout facilities and they need a place for the families to go,” Lyon said.

The YMCA of Greater Oklahoma City is working with communities to build new facilities. They are working on a second facility in Edmond and partnered with Stillwater Public Schools for a new pool. Weatherford also approved a sales tax to help fund a new YMCA.