‘Not the decision we were hoping for’: YMCA Northumberland says need for new facility is now
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- 4 min read
By reporter Natalie Hamilton
One recent Monday morning outside the Cobourg YMCA’s front doors, two women chat, one with a yoga mat tucked under her arm.
Meanwhile, a string of young kids in summer day camp parade pass a window of the YMCA’s Gravity and CycleFit Exercise Studio, which is lined with stationary bikes and other fitness equipment.
Earlier that day, about 50 seniors made a splash getting a work-out in the pool.
Many parking spaces in the Elgin Street West lot are occupied.
Eunice Kirkpatrick, YMCA Northumberland’s president and CEO, said with Cobourg’s growing population, time is of the essence to build a new, modern facility to accommodate the community’s needs. With the topic of a new YMCA site in town discussed for at least two decades, Kirkpatrick doesn’t want the project delayed any longer.
That’s one reason why YMCA Northumberland, through Kirkpatrick and board chair Mark Galonski, made a recent delegation before Town of Cobourg council. They are looking to the town for about $2 million through the donation of land located on the campus of the Cobourg Community Centre (CCC) to build a new state-of-the-art activity hub, according to Kirkpatrick.
YMCA Northumberland is also seeking access to Town of Cobourg development charges in the ballpark of $6.1 million and the continued exemption and payment of municipal taxes, according to a recent staff report.
The organization has presented the Town of Cobourg with drawings for a 62,000-square foot proposed facility that would include an aquatics hall, squash courts, a conditioning centre, a gym, child-care spaces, community meeting rooms, and more on land located on D’Arcy Street to the north of the CCC.
The concept is still on the table, but the project didn’t receive the momentum Kirkpatrick had hoped for during the recent council meeting. During the meeting near the end of July, council received a staff report about the YMCA recreation facility proposal.
Ultimately, council passed staff’s recommendation that asks YMCA Northumberland to report back with a clear implementation strategy and business plan for council’s review and consideration.
Staff also asked council to indicate to YMCA Northumberland that any future consideration of municipal financial support be contingent upon the submission of a comprehensive business plan outlining the project’s objectives, financial sustainability, implementation timelines, and the demonstrated community benefit to Cobourg residents.
“It’s certainly not the decision we were hoping for,” Kirkpatrick told the Independent.
“We’ve put a lot of work into trying to move this project forward. We had some momentum going.”
She noted there were meetings between the YMCA and the town in the spring. Ultimately, the YMCA was hoping those discussions with the town could continue and not be put on hold. The YMCA provided the town with an architect’s drawings of the proposed building and parking spaces as requested.
“We were hoping we could continue discussions, at least at the staff level, through the election to keep some momentum going.”
Kirkpatrick said the YMCA needs a commitment from the town before it can apply for provincial and federal funding. The charitable organization’s revenue primarily stems from government-funded community programs, its child-care services and day camps and membership fees.
In March 2024, the Town of Cobourg entered into a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with YMCA Northumberland. The intent of the MOU was to explore a potential partnership to develop a recreational centre in Cobourg that would provide expanded facilities that align with a YMCA operation, including an aquatic centre, as detailed by staff.
Following a March 2024 presentation from the YMCA, town staff participated in several meetings with the YMCA (president and CEO) and members of the YMCA board, between March 2024 and March 2026, according to staff.
“During these meetings, town staff offered recommendations and guidance to the YMCA to advance their capital facilities project,” noted Lacricia Turner, the town’s director of community services, in her latest staff report on the proposal.
In April 2026, Town of Cobourg staff struck an MOU working group with the YMCA president and CEO and YMCA board members to discuss the YMCA capital facilities project. The group met once in April and twice in May, as detailed in staff’s latest report.
The reported goal of those meetings was to prepare all required background information to support the YMCA as outlined within the MOU so that it can return to council with a detailed business plan, outlining specific requests from the Town of Cobourg, the report reads.
“Further, as per the MOU, the business plan must facilitate programs to meet the needs of the municipality, which would support its current (parks and recreation master plan) and other relevant strategic plans.
“Following the series of meetings and discussions as mentioned above, staff remain concerned that the YMCA capital facilities project has not advanced to a stage that demonstrates a clear implementation strategy or sustainable business plan,” noted Turner. “At the same time, YMCA Northumberland’s requests for municipal staff support and resources have continued to increase, resulting in growing demands on staff capacity without a defined roadmap or measurable benefits the facilities project will bring to Cobourg residents.”
The town also noted while the $6.1 million the YMCA desires is identified within the development charge study, “there are important practical and legislative considerations that should be acknowledged.”
Cobourg Mayor Lucas Cleveland said there’s a perception that he has a bigger role in decisions about the YMCA project, noting he has one vote just like everyone else on council. Cleveland voted in support of the motion and said he views the current situation as a time to “pause.”
“Council clearly said pause,” Cleveland told the Independent.
“Pauses are good. Pauses aren’t no. Pauses are yes and … (we need more information) and I think that’s really important to stress.”
“This is a good thing. We all want (the project) to happen.”
As for its next steps, Kirkpatrick said its board of directors will have to regroup and discuss.
“What we wanted to determine, is if the land at the CCC wasn’t suitable, can we explore other land options within the community?” Kirkpatrick said they don’t have that answer.
YMCA Northumberland operates three health and fitness centres, 25 child-care locations, four EarlyON centres, and one seasonal outdoor pool. It offers summer day camp at four locations in Northumberland.
In 2025, there were 299,100 visits to YMCA Northumberland’s health and fitness centres.
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