YMCA to keep 180 Argyle Ave., 2 years after listing for sale
CBC News | Posted: March 8, 2025 9:00 AM | Last Updated: March 8
National Capital Region YMCA says its services are more important than ever
The YMCA announced this week that it will remain in its flagship building in Ottawa at 180 Argyle Ave. for the next five years, more than two years after announcing it was selling the property.
Community services are more important than ever, and now is not the time to sell commercial property, according to Trevor McAlmont, president and CEO of the YMCA for the National Capital Region.
"Our plan is to stay here, stay focusing on the community in downtown and start to focus on this asset which means so much to stakeholders," McAlmont told CBC Radio's All In A Day this week.
The YMCA put the Taggart building up for sale in October 2022, saying that fixing up the aging structure would cost $38 million.
"This building has come to the end of its life cycle and can no longer meet the needs of our community without significant infrastructure upgrades," then president Bob Gallagher said at the time.
But Community groups immediately raised concerns that the sale of the building would mean the loss of hard-to-replicate and valuable services.
'Backlash'
"We really did see a kind of a backlash," Eric Oikle, supervisor of the transitional housing program at the YMCA, told CBC this week.
"This is a staple in this community. Everybody wants the YMCA to stay here, and I think that even us as staff, we're very happy to be staying here."
The YMCA's Argyle Avenue location provides wraparound social supports including subsidized recreation programs and employment help.
It also provides transitional housing for about 250 people. This was previously for families, but the YMCA recently switched its housing program to support people facing homelessness, newcomers to Canada and those with physical, mental or health challenges related to substance use.
'I call the Y a home'
Joy Oare moved into the YMCA in January after previously living in a shelter. Oare, who is originally from Nigeria, said the transitional housing program has been life-changing.
"It has been so wonderful. I have this comfort, I have this sense of freedom," she told CBC. "My mental health is stable now."
Oare, who is a personal support worker, said she appreciates the ability to cook in her accommodation and the other services available, including Zumba classes at the gym.
"When I'm exhausted at work, I have the mindset that I'm coming home," she said. "I call the Y a home."
The YMCA is now seeking grants to upgrade the 1960s-era building and make it more energy-efficient.