Hollister
– The Hollister School District Board of Trustees voted
unanimously Tuesday to sell 7.5 acres of land to the YMCA for a
multi-million dollar building that will include swimming pools,
athletic courts and a host of other facilities.
Hollister – The Hollister School District Board of Trustees voted unanimously Tuesday to sell 7.5 acres of land to the YMCA for a multi-million dollar building that will include swimming pools, athletic courts and a host of other facilities.
“It’s hard to put into words how happy and excited I was when we found out,” said Lou Bettencourt, Executive Director of the local Y chapter.
HSD voted to declare the land, which sits adjacent to Ladd Lane Elementary School, as surplus in late March, formally entitling the district to sell or lease the land to specific public or non-profit entities. Though the property was initially acquired for the purpose of building new school facilities for HSD, no official plans had been made for it, leaving the district free to sell it at fair market value.
“The land is valued at $1,050,000, and the YMCA has up to three years to come up with that money,” said HSD Superintendent Ron Crates. “But I’m sure the district would be open to extending that if we needed to, unless we really needed the land right away.”
Now that HSD and the local YMCA have reached an agreement, the Y must deal with piles of legal paperwork in addition to extensive fundraising, as well as obtain official approval from the regional and national YMCA chapters above them before the land can officially change hands.
“The nice thing about the YMCA is that this is an organization that’s done a lot of fundraising, so we have a lot of support and guidance there. We won’t be starting from scratch,” said Margie Barrios, who sits on the boards of both HSD and the YMCA. “And this community is very supportive of what we do. Every year we exceed our fundraising goals.”
Barrios expects that the Y will launch a fundraising campaign to cover the cost of the land in earnest by late summer.
The YMCA anticipates that the actual facility, an 85,000-square foot structure, will cost approximately $12.8 million alone. The center would include basketball and racquetball courts, at least two swimming pools, fitness equipment, sauna and steam rooms, and other spaces designed to appeal to both kids and adults. The facilities would also be available to community organizations in need of space, such as the probation department, or church youth groups.
“This will bring a lot of wonderful things to our community,” said HSD Board President Eugenia Sanchez. “It’s close to Ladd Lane and will provide after-school activities for our students, as well as the rest of the community. It’s exciting.”
The money from the sale of the land goes straight into a special account for the construction of future school facilities.
This is not the first collaboration between the YMCA and the district. The Y currently offers activities and makes use of facilities at Sunnyslope, Gabilan Hills and Ladd Lane Elementary Schools, which are popular with students.
“We know that the recreation and counseling services the YMCA will provide for our students will be very valuable,” Crates said. “And they promote values that our good for our families and kids.”
Both district and YMCA officials have high hopes for the future of the new facilities.
“I was visiting the center in Salinas, and I was so impressed by how many people attended, and that people of all ages were there, from toddlers to seniors,” Barrios said. “And I thought, one day we’ll have a place like this, that everybody in the community can be proud of.”
Danielle Smith covers education for the Free Lance. Reach her at 637-5566, ext. 336 or [email protected]
