Catalpa Y Wont Be Saying Goodbye

When borough president Helen Marshall announced that the Catalpa YMCA would stay open until 2004, members of the western Queens community were ecstatic. Now they have another reason to celebrate. Councilman Dennis Gallagher recently won a $500,000 appropriation that will go toward the purchase of the Catalpa Y location by the city.
"This is something that I felt very strongly about and I made it one of my trop priorities. Our community deserves a break. There are a lot of at-risk youth in our community and they deserve someplace to go. Its a perfect location, right across from a police precinct," said Councilman Dennis Gallagher.
The decision comes during a time of intense budget negotiations, which made the procurement twice as extraordinary.
"We were hoping that the money would get approved in the budget and it was really a surprise to everyone. Dennis was one of our strongest supporters from the beginning. He followed through and came up with this money to buy the building. Personally, I was thrilled," said Nancy Greco-Shearer of the Save the Catalpa YMCA Committee.
Under the terms of the agreement reached in June by Marshall, Gallagher, Assemblywoman Catherine Nolan, Greco-Shearer and YMCA of Greater New York president, Paula Gavin, the center would remain open with financial help from politicians and community members. The cooperative effort also included the search for a suitable buyer for the property, so that the community center could continue to provide sports and recreation programs without YMCA of Greater New York sponsorship.
"Our intent was once we got the 14 months, our next plan of action was to get an organization to come and take over the programs existing there now," said Greco-Shearer. "With Dennis Gallagher getting the $500,000 and the rest of the money we have raised, we can find an organization to take over. It brings us so much closer to the reality of an organization coming and taking over the programs."
Now, with the money procured by Gallagher, the Catalpa centers staying power has increased immeasurably. It may seem like a great deal of money, but $500,000 is not nearly enough to purchase the aging and ailing building,which could cost as much as a million dollars to buy and possibly more to conduct renovations. Combined with funding from the borough president, Assemblywoman Nolan and Senator Serphin Maltese, the money is a step in the right direction
"It would be a shame to lose it to someone else. Were committed to buying the building," said Gallagher.
The Catalpa YMCA serves 3,000 children and over 1,000 adults from Ridgewood and the surrounding communities each year. Each day, children utilize pre-school and after school programs, summer camp, the teen center and leaders club. In March, the YMCA of Greater New York announced the crushing news that the Catalpa Y would be closed on July 1 because it lacked certain facilities and the high maintenance costs associated with keeping the center open.
Instead of taking the news laying down, in the months following, community members, politicians and the people on the Save the Catalpa YMCA Committee generously gave their time and money toward getting a 14-month extension for the 38-year-old community haven. In the case of the Catalpa YMCA, it was the strong voices of the western Queens community that made all of the difference.
"We didnt want the YMCA selling the building to the highest bidder," said Greco-Shearer. "Its really important for the community. They got what they really deserved, which was more than fourteen weeks notice of closure."