East Palo Alto City Council has long prioritized community health as a goal of the city. We are heading into budgeting season for the city, and I think we should put our money where our mouth is. As a Member of City Council, I will be proposing a pilot program where we spend ~$1M per year supporting East Palo Alto families by working with the YMCA to expand memberships. East Palo Alto has the resources to do this and I hope to work with my fellow council members to fund the Y and expand access to our community.

Some background: East Palo Alto spends very little on Parks & Rec compared to other neighboring communities. Our neighbors in Palo Alto offer many public facilities for their residents to use and enjoy at Rinconada Park:

In Menlo Park, Burgess Park has a pool, a gym, a gymnastics facility, baseball & soccer fields, an outdoor basketball court, and an excellent skate park.

Also in Menlo Park, the newly built Belle Haven Community Campus has a pool, gym, and many other facilities.

East Palo Alto used to have a public pool and gymnasium, the Bell Street Pool and Gym. The pool and land that the Bell Street Gym was located on was donated to the YMCA, who in turn built a modern pool and facility on the land. The new facility (which opened in 2008) is great – it has a gymnasium (basketball and volleyball), rock climbing wall, studio for yoga and exercise classes, weight room, cardio equipment, an outdoor pool, table tennis, locker rooms, family changing areas, and childcare available for parents when they work out. It would cost at least $50M to build the YMCA today, and we are lucky to have such a jewel of a building in the community.

Expanding access to the pool would enable more people in East Palo Alto to learn how to swim, do laps for exercise, or just cool off on a hot day,

The YMCA offers childcare for parents while they exercise.

The Y offers classes and strength training for seniors, something that would expand with city funding:

The YMCA was originally envisioned as a public private partnership, with the City of East Palo Alto contributing to the Y’s operating expenses and allowing for broad access to the community. Currently, the City of East Palo Alto does not fund the EPA YMCA in any meaningful way.

The Y does have some limited financial resources available to subsidize youth memberships. Residents older than 23 years old pay the going rate – which is out of reach for most residents. The City should subsidize memberships, enabling many more EPA residents to have access to this facility.

We clearly have the money in the bank to pilot a program with the YMCA for a few years. Long term, we will need to address funding and either come up with grants to cover the cost or repurpose the various special taxes (O, HH, L) towards funding city services like this. As of April 15th, 2024 the City of East Palo Alto has reserves of $150 Million.

The City of East Palo Alto partnering with the YMCA will benefit thousands of residents in East Palo Alto. EPA residents deserve better services, and this is an easy way for the city to support our residents without having City Staff to directly manage the programs or facility themselves.