The City of Victoria has pledged to increase its quality of health and wellness services in a collaboration with the YMCA/YWCA of Vancouver Island.
The two institutions made their working relationship official last week with the signing of a memorandum of understanding, an agreement that recognizes a 50-year history of co-operation. As both the City and the Y embark on building new facilities, the goal in working together is to make sure both provide complimentary services without overlap, said Mayor Lisa Helps said.
B次元官网网址淭he Y has a request for proposals out right now to build a new facility somewhere in the downtown, and the City of Victoria is rebuilding our Crystal Pool on the existing site,B次元官网网址� she explained, noting that between the Y and the city, one million visitors per year utilize their facilities.
B次元官网网址淲e want to make sure we rebuild them in a way thatB次元官网网址檚 going to have more accessible recreation for more people,B次元官网网址� Helps said. B次元官网网址淏ut also to make sure weB次元官网网址檙e not just building the same thing in both places and really then missing an opportunity.B次元官网网址�
Christine Gleed, board chair for the YMCA/YWCA said their organization has had a presence in downtown Victoria for over 140 years, 50 of those spent working directly with the City.
B次元官网网址淧eople expect us to work together,B次元官网网址� she said. B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e not planning any amalgamation. ItB次元官网网址檚 really about committing to running our own facilities in a collaborative way B次元官网网址� itB次元官网网址檚 more about providing more than providing less.B次元官网网址�
The Y has carved out an identity as a major provider of child care, and hopes to expand on that as well as housing programs, based on their non-profit model. Gleed points out that as the city grows, less families are living in homes, so demand for gathering spaces such as community kitchens are something the Y is looking at offering with a new space, similar to its location in Vancouver.
B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e seeing an unprecedented era of co-operation in the region right now,B次元官网网址� Helps said. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 exciting.B次元官网网址�
