Temecula YMCA Building Remains In Limbo

After the City of Temecula agreed to purchase the YMCA building at 29119 Margarita Road, negotiations have stalled and now the city claims the non-profit is in default of its ground lease agreement with the city.

During Tuesday night’s regularly scheduled city council meeting, City Attorney Peter Thorson said the city has had no contact with YMCA officials over the last 45 days and is in default.

but escrow on the deal has not closed because the city contends it is still in its due diligence phase.

The history of the relationship between the two entities goes back to Jan. 2003 when a ground lease agreement was entered into between the Y and the city. The YMCA subsequently constructed the existing building on the city-owned land but then ran into financial trouble.

The city agreed to step in with the $1.6 million offer that included an agreement to terminate the ground lease. It was agreed the city would take ownership of the more than 14,000-square-foot building and equipment inside -- including a lap pool -- and would subsequently operate the facility as a community recreation center.

The city and the YMCA did not immediately respond to reporter questions.