MetroWest YMCA Upgrades Framingham Branch with MassDevelopment Bond

January 22, 2019

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contacts:

Kelsey Schiller, MassDevelopment, 617-330-2011 & 617-694-9695 (cell)
kschiller@massdevelopment.com

Peter Waisgerber, MetroWest YMCA, 508-887-6916
pwaisgerber@metrowestymca.org

MassDevelopment has issued a $7 million tax-exempt bond on behalf of the MetroWest YMCA, which will use bond proceeds to make capital improvements to its facility at 280 Old Connecticut Path in Framingham. Projects will include expanding and renovating the branch’s Early Learning Center, including building a new classroom that will accommodate 22 additional children; building a new kitchen to enable the YMCA to provide healthy food for children in its programs and help address food insecurity in the region; expanding the gym to provide multi-purpose space for functional training and youth programming; upgrading the pool environmental controls and repairing the pool deck; creating a new group exercise space; relocating an after-school care site in the building’s lower level; and upgrading the building’s mechanicals and controls. In total, the project will create an additional 7,800 square feet of space at the facility. Middlesex Savings Bank purchased the bond.

“For more than a century, the MetroWest YMCA has made it its mission to improve the health and well-being of local residents while simultaneously building a greater sense of community in the MetroWest region,” said MassDevelopment President and CEO Lauren Liss. “By taking steps to upgrade and expand its Framingham facility, the organization can further grow its programming, create jobs, and offer an improved wellness experience for members and guests.”

Founded in 1891, the MetroWest YMCA is a cause-driven nonprofit that promotes youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility. With branches in Framingham and Hopkinton, the organization offers a variety of education and youth development programs such as aquatics, early education, gymnastics, summer camps, and youth sports, as well as healthy living programs including adult and senior aquatics, social, educational, and wellness programs. In addition, the organization offers chronic disease prevention programming, lifeguard certification, and High Flight, a leadership development program for at-risk teens. More than 25,000 children, adults, and seniors in the MetroWest region participate in the YMCA’s programs each year.

“We are grateful for our partnership with MassDevelopment and Middlesex Savings Bank,” said MetroWest YMCA President and CEO Rick MacPherson. “Together, we will make our vision a reality for thousands of local children and families, while ensuring that our Y will continue to respond to and address existing and emerging community needs for decades to come.”

MassDevelopment, the state’s finance and development agency, works with businesses, nonprofits, financial institutions, and communities to stimulate economic growth across the Commonwealth. During FY2018, MassDevelopment financed or managed 384 projects generating investment of more than $4.1 billion in the Massachusetts economy. These projects are estimated to create or support 10,994 jobs and build or rehabilitate 830 housing units.