Meeting Public Comments

Wade Riedinger [Iowa Alliance of YMCAs]

May 5, 2025For more than 100 years, YMCAs have been an integral partner in building a thriving, healthy Iowa. Annually, 26 Associations and 47 sites help over 300,000 Iowans in their journey to improved health or maintaining their health. YMCA facilities serve many important roles: a community center, day care, fitness facility, camp, health care facility, youth development center and more. They have been well loved and well used, and many are in need of support to maintain their aging facilities. Originally, local donors helped open the doors of many YMCAs, however those same philanthropicminded individuals no longer exist in many of our rural communities making it difficult to raise the needed resources to improve our crumbling infrastructures. Beginning in 2015 the Iowa General Assembly appropriated $500,000 from the RIIF budget to support the Rural YMCA Facility Improvement Grant program (Iowa Code 8.57). These funds were designed to assist YMCAs in renovation or maintenance of facilities in communities with populations of 28,000 or fewer residents. This level of funding of $500,000 plus $250,000 in matching funds provided by YMCAs. In FY 2017 the funding was reduced to $250,000. Between FY 2015 and FY 2025, $2.5 million has been allocated to support 51 YMCA projects. While this funding has supported projects to boost the economy across rural Iowa, YMCAs report a need of over $30 Million dollars in infrastructure improvements to continue to serve their communities. Rural YMCA Facility Improvement Grants have assisted, and continue to assist, YMCAs in meeting critical community needs by creating a safe environment with updated boiler systems, leakfree roofs, parking access, energy efficiency improvements, renovations to gyms, and classrooms to name a few. As one of the states leaders in water safety and aquatics, maintaining the Associations 63 owned/operated aquatic facilities, is greatly helped through this funding.Thank you for your past support of this important funding for Iowa YMCAs. These funds are essential to the YMCAs mission of building healthy communities through youth development, healthy living and social responsibility. The Iowa Alliance of YMCAs respectfully request your support to include $250,000 for YMCA Facility Improvement Grants in the RIIF budget recommendation for FY 2026 to ensure the monies continue to be a part of maintaining Iowas thriving YMCAs to serve rural Iowa communities across the State.Sincerely,Wade RiedingerExecutive DirectorIowa Alliance of YMCAs