OSF collaboration will make multimillion dollar Ottawa riverfront YMCA a reality

A new YMCA along Ottawa’s riverfront has been discussed for the past few years.

Now, a collaboration with OSF HealthCare is going to make it a reality.

OSF will provide a community benefit grant toward the $18 million to $20 million health and wellness facility.

Once completed, the full-service wellness center will encompass about 65,000 square feet near the former Central School site, featuring a world-class competition pool, generous spaces for group classes, community kitchen for healthy eating, children adventure center, family locker rooms, elevated indoor track, multi-use gymnasium, among other amenities.

“The vision the Ottawa YMCA and our volunteer board has for this project is a modern, healthy-living campus,” said Joe Capece, YMCA executive director, in a press statement. “It’s a bold vision for us to collaborate with a health care partner like OSF HealthCare that will transform the health and well-being of the communities we serve together, for generations.”

Both partners still are meeting with the architect and construction managers, so a timeline has not been set for construction.

“At this point, we’re on a really good track to move forward,” said Kelly Petterson marketing director at the Ottawa YMCA. “We’ve done all kinds of community research and we believe we have a really good plan in place.”

The campus will allow for expansion, should one be necessary down the road, Petterson said.

OSF HealthCare will occupy roughly 9,000 square feet of the center for physical, speech and occupational therapies.

“As we continue to address the social determinants of health, we look for innovative approaches to serving our community, where and when they need us most,” said Ken Beutke, president of OSF St. Elizabeth Medical Center. “This collaboration allows us to forge a new, long-term relationship with the Ottawa YMCA while simultaneously working to improve the health and wellness of our communities, making a lasting impact.”

Additionally, the Ottawa YMCA and OSF HealthCare will form a joint committee to focus on sharing space and developing community health and wellness initiatives, such as chronic disease prevention; cooperatively identified pediatric services; healthy eating and weight management and mental health initiatives; youth athletic programs; and more.

“This new facility we are currently developing is really transformational,” Capece said. “We share the same vision and mission of community wellness as OSF. We use the term ‘medically integrated wellness programs.’ We create one facility and we do it together.”

At an October 2018 event to determine Ottawa’s top priorities attended by more than 100 residents, a recreational and civic center topped the list of what should be the city’s top priority.

OSF HealthCare has a history in La Salle County with working alongside YMCAs. It made contributions to build a new health and wellness center at Streator’s YMCA, which included several amenities geared toward youth, as well as beginning a committee to oversee the community’s health goals.

“We look at the shared use between our organizations as prevention, treatment and long-term usage,” Capece said. “People come to the Y to prevent health care issues. But if they do have issues, they walk next door for treatment and then return to the Y for their long-term care. This natural partnership makes a lot of sense and brings a great deal of credibility to the project.”