Ottawa commits $8.1 million for downtown Y redevelopment
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The federal government is backing a major redevelopment of Winnipeg’s Downtown Y that will expand community programs and update the century-old Vaughan Street building.
On Monday, Ottawa committed $8.1 million toward the Y’s plans to expand newcomer and mental-health programs.
The project will also upgrade elevators, change rooms, aquatics and fitness areas and energy systems. Construction is expected to begin in October, according to the Y’s website.
JOHN WOODS / FREE PRESS FILES
The federal government has committed $8.1 million toward the YMCA’s plans to expand community programs and update its century-old Vaughan Street building.
The YMCA-YWCA is contributing $3.5 million to the project.
The project’s original fundraising goal was $18 million, with the remaining costs to be financed, said Kamilla Karoli, the YMCA-YWCA’s vice-president of fund development.
The organization will continue raising money in hopes of reducing or eliminating the need to borrow for the renovations.
“We have an incredible group of supporters who want to see this project through and who understand the positive impact it will have on downtown,” Karoli said in an email.
The funding advances a redevelopment plan unveiled in 2023, when the organization said membership at the downtown branch had fallen from a peak of about 11,000 in 2009 to about 2,000 following the pandemic. Despite operating at a deficit at the time, leadership indicated its intention to keep it open.
Cordella Friesen, president and CEO of the YMCA-YWCA of Winnipeg, said Ottawa’s investment supports “the renaissance of Winnipeg’s downtown core.”
The Downtown Y building opened in 1913.
The federal dollars come from Canada’s Build Communities Strong Fund stream, which is providing $51 billion over 10 years to support new and renewed public infrastructure.
kelly.riess@freepress.mb.ca