Progress Being Made on Towson Y's Construction Project

Construction activity is more obvious these days on a new building for the

"We're moving now from concept to what we're actually going to construct," said John Hoey, president of the Y of Central Maryland, of the Y's planned $12 million new building.

When finished, the new Y will include state-of-the-art fitness equipment and facilities, new locker rooms, a rock climbing wall, multi-purpose space and two swimming pools

This week, construction fences went up around the Kelso building, which will be torn down.  It once housed the Y's daycare center. 

Work crews are currently gutting the Kelso building's interior and demolition will begin "probably within the next month or so," according to Hoey.  He said work on the new building, to be built where tennis courts are now loccated, will begin early this summer.

The early childhood education programs at the Kelso building were moved to the former Jemicy School building at 301 W. Chesapeake Ave. The Y of Central Maryland headquarters, currently in downtown Baltimore, are also slated to move to the Chesapeake Avenue property.

Last year, that called for the county to use open space funds to buy the Y's property and lease it back to the organization as a way to fund the new building. Instead, the Y has secured a line of financing from Columbia Bank. Organization officials  said they would have preferred to avoid borrowing because $3 million of the $5 million capital campaign for the new building had already been raised.

"We really need to raise more money here," Hoey said. "The more money we raise, the less we have to borrow. And the less we have to borrow, the more we can put into programs and other things."

The Y of Central Maryland is still looking for general contractors for the project. More information is available on the organization's website.

Disclosure: This reporter