A major joint project at Red Morton Park in Redwood City is progressing to the next phase, with project plans officially submitted for the new YMCA facility alongside the currently under-construction Veterans Memorial Senior Center.
The development project has been underway for more than five years as part of a joint effort between YMCA of Silicon Valley and Redwood City. The partnered effort was established over a decade ago as a result of identified need for community programs focused on health and wellness, Patty Rally, chief development officer for YMCA of Silicon Valley, said.
“Residents of this community are going to have this really dynamic, vibrant space with lots of open space outside and lots of activities between all the different facilities there,” Rally said. “The idea really, for us, is to have a place for multigenerational participation.”
The new two-story, 48-foot-tall facility will be located at 1455 Madison Ave. and will replace, and be almost double the size of, the current Sequoia YMCA site.
It will feature a year-round aquatic center with both an indoor and outdoor pool, class space and early learning center, and various gathering areas intended for the community at large. More than 200 parking spaces will be included.
“It’s a really state-of-the-art architectural vision,” Rally said. “The spaces are flexible, comfortable, so we’re excited about that.”
Though the YMCA offers memberships to use its facilities, many programs that the nonprofit hosts are open to anyone in the community, and Rally hopes residents take advantage of all that’s offered.
“We’re really excited about this being centrally located in that community,” Rally said. “With easier access, there’s a great opportunity for the multiuse space and we really want this to be an inclusive space for everyone.”
As of August 2024, the building construction of the Veterans Memorial Senior Center is about 80% complete, with an estimated completion in the first half of 2025, according to the city’s website. The new YMCA facility will align visually and architecturally with the senior center, Rally said.
“You can already see how sleek and state-of-the-art and environmentally friendly it will be,” Rally said.
YMCA of Silicon Valley is working closely with the city, so architectural plans are already being adjusted to respond to city comments. The planning and building review is estimated to take about a year, and starting in January the developer will start to seek contractor bids, she said.
The cost of building itself is about $55 million, and YMCA of Silicon Valley is holding a capital campaign to raise close to $75 million, covering possible contingency costs and start contributing to costs of programming available after construction is complete, Rally said.
The start of construction in currently projected for June 2026, and an estimated end in April 2028.
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