ARCADIA, Fla. — The YMCA of Southwest Florida is partnering with the City of Arcadia to turn a vision into a reality.
A "Y" is coming to the city.
"Our guiding principle is to positively impact every life in Southwest Florida," said the nonprofit's President and CEO Gene Jones. "Arcadia is within our service area. We didn't up until recently have any services we were providing there."
You can watch Fox 4's Victoria Scott's full report on the project here:
Arcadia Deputy Mayor Keith Keene said the Speer Center immediately came to mind.
"I can remember coming here to vote," Keene said. "Sometimes it was a polling place. I can remember coming here to play pool or table tennis."
Historical experts say it dates back to the late 1930s.
"The building was built under the Works Progress Administration under President Roosevelt's New Deal," said Carol Mahler, coordinator of DeSoto County Historical Society's Museum and Research Library.
Jones said the center will feature a variety of programs in early youth development.
"We will have early learning classes," he said. "So, we'll have spaces for 58 children. 18 two-year-olds, 20 three-year-olds, and 20 VPK students. We'll also run after-school there as well as summer camp."
The layout will also feature a number of upgrades.
"We'll have a kitchen in there," Jones said. "We'll have classrooms. We'll have an open area and also develop the loft space, and of course, we'll renovate the bathrooms."
The project is expected to start in early 2025.
Jones said the goal is to have it completed by the end of next year.
