YMCA Being Razed to Make Way for New

When Dave Powell joined the West Valley Family YMCA as executive director 3 1/2 years ago, he never dreamed of the logistic and financial headaches that were to come. On Jan. 17, 1994, they arrived in the form of the Northridge earthquake, dealing a crippling blow to the Reseda institution that has been serving the area for nearly 40 years.

“It was an incredible mess,” he recalled ruefully, remembering his first visit to the Vanowen Street building in the hours after the quake.

Now it’s a mess again. Only this time, staff members aren’t complaining. The old building is being demolished this week to make room for a larger replacement.

“There are a lot of emotional ties to the old building,” Powell said from a trailer on the property that will be the Y’s headquarters for the next eight months. “However, I think everybody understands that in order for us to move ahead the facility needs to be torn down.”

The work is part of a $2-million project to erect an 18,000-square-foot, single-story building that will hold the Y’s aerobics studios, a fitness center and staff offices. The post-quake reconstruction began last year when the swimming pool was rebuilt at a cost of $200,000.

Construction on the building is scheduled to begin Aug. 1 and should be finished in February, Powell said. The organization also hopes to raise $350,000 for improvements to the parking lot and an outdoor recreation area and to build a roof over the pool for year-round use.

By Thursday, little more than a dirt lot will occupy the spot where the Y’s original building once stood. Powell doesn’t mind. Aerobics classes continue in a portable trailer and the pool will soon be open for summertime swimming.

“It’s been an interesting couple of years,” he said.