City council decided too costly, and that doesn't include unexpected costs
St. Catharines city council putting a stop to investing over $5.5-million annually in recreational programming at the former YMCA building, on YMCA Drive.
Mayor Mat Siscoe says council and city staff met over several months with property owner Atria Development about possible partnership, but in the end decided an additional 4.7% property tax hike to pay for this was not a good idea.
Additionally, the mayor says the building is not up to Accessibility Design requirements.
To do that requires, but not limited to, fixing multi-floor changerooms, and fixing the pool area so it's accessible to people with disabilities and the elderly.
The mayor adds in additional to the known costs such as leasing, there are unknown financial risks that come with running and maintaining a 30-year old building.
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