Photo courtesy of Bob Schneider

By Scott Roblin

YMCA Re-Opening

Downtown YMCA set to re-open to public on Monday

Jul 10, 2020 | 5:22 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – Members missing using the downtown YMCA location in Medicine Hat will be able to return to the facility on Monday.

The YMCA of Medicine Hat has confirmed they will be re-opening with limited capacity, with new temporary hours.

Doors will re-open to the public at 5:30 am on Monday morning and will remain open until 7:00, which will be the schedule moving forward on weekdays with weekends set for 10:00 am to 5:00 pm.

“Of course, we were in Phase 3 initially so we thought we had more time,” said CEO Sharon Hayward. “We’ve undertaken about $150,000 of capital improvements to our facilities. When we got news we could open in Phase 2 we were excited, but that accelerated all of our timelines.”

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Members are being encouraged to call 403-527-4426 or email downtown@medicinehatymca.ca to pre-book 90-minute workout slots in advance if possible.

Walk-in members will be allowed to visit and workout, however will be turned away if the maximum of 80 members is reached.

Fitness classes and the squash courts will be available to book, though the downtown YMCA’s pool will remain closed for the foreseeable future.

“The pool we’ll have to take a bit more of a cautious approach to,” said Hayward. “We’re anticipating the longest it would be would be within two months of our opening date. We’re hoping to have it open sooner than that, but we just have to see how things go.”

All existing members are being offered free membership at the YMCA until Wednesday as a bonus, while a new subsidized membership model has been established for local families struggling financially as a result of the pandemic.

The YMCA saw their first batch of day camp slots fill up quickly, however have been able to extend the program this summer for interested families.

“We were able to work with the Public School Division to open another 384 spaces,” said Hayward. “We are accepting registrations for those, we have lots of room. So, we encourage families to get in touch with us.”

More information can be found at the YMCA of Medicine Hat’s website.