CHARLOTTE — The YMCA is selling its Morrison branch in Ballantyne to Moments of Hope Church after declining Mecklenburg County’s offer to purchase it.
County officials revealed they offered to buy the facility before the sale was made public, but the YMCA did not entertain the proposal.
Susan Rodriguez-McDowell, a District 6 Mecklenburg County commissioner, said the decision places the county in a difficult position to replace a major recreational hub for the Ballantyne community.
“I can’t think of a better word than disappointing,” Rodriguez-McDowell said. “To me, that just is really tragic because it’s a loss. And I believe it’s a loss that will cost the county. And as a result, the taxpayers.”
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The sale will result in the loss of aquatics and day care services at the Morrison location. Outdoor athletic programs will continue on county-owned land surrounding the YMCA, including a building constructed by the YMCA that will revert to county ownership.
“Soccer, baseball, all of that. Flag football, whatever the folks of the Y were doing. That all just reverts back to the county,” Rodriguez-McDowell said.
Mecklenburg County currently operates two facilities in the Ballantyne area: Elon Recreation Center and Knights View Recreation Center. Neither location offers the full range of amenities available at the Morrison YMCA facility.
Building a new regional recreation center to match those amenities would require major funding, according to county estimates.
“If we were to try to recreate that in a regional recreation center, you’re talking at least $100 million,” Rodriguez-McDowell said. “You know, if you have to buy the land and you build the facility, it’s $100 million easy.”
Community members in Ballantyne have held multiple protests outside the facility to fight the sale.
Despite the pushback, the YMCA announced plans to move forward with the deal, stating that revenue from the transaction will fund upgrades at other YMCA branches across the region.
The Morrison YMCA will remain open until next summer before closing its operations.
Rodriguez-McDowell noted that replacing the lost services with a new facility will take considerable time.
“I really don’t know how this is going to unfold,” Rodriguez-McDowell said. “It could take a decade or two before something could materialize. And that, in my view, is just, you know, that’s really hard to swallow.”