Joliet Votes On Redevelopment For Galowich Family YMCA Now That New Shorewood YMCA Has Opened

Dive Right In Scuba, Inc., is requesting a variation to allow an indoor and outdoor commercial recreation facility.

By John Ferak, Patch Staff

May 4, 2026 9:25 am CDT | Updated May 4, 2026 9:27 am CDT

The petitioner states that the facility will support around 30 to 35 employees at full operation. Proposed hours of operation are 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days per week. (Image via Google Maps )

JOLIET, IL — Now that the Galowich Family YMCA has closed down and relocated to the new Village of Shorewood YMCA, the Joliet City Council will review plans to redevelop the property at 749 Houbolt Road. The City Council vote on the project will take place on Tuesday night.

According to a City Council memo from Dustin Anderson, Joliet's director of community development, Dive Right In Scuba, Inc., is requesting a variation of use to allow an indoor and outdoor commercial recreation facility.

Dive Right In Scuba indicated that the facility will support around 30 to 35 employees at full operation. Proposed hours of operation are 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days per week. There are approximately 104 existing off-street parking spaces, which meets the requirement for the proposed use, Anderson pointed out. There are no exterior modifications proposed to the building or to the site at this time.

The site contains an existing recreation facility that was developed in the 1980s for the Greater Joliet Area YMCA. The YMCA operated the Galowich Family branch at this location until it permanently closed at the end of April.

The petitioner's proposal is for a commercial facility, which is a permitted use in the general business district. Therefore, the petitioner needs a variation to occupy and use the existing facility components for their commercial proposal at this location, Anderson pointed out.

The site contains an approximately 25,000-square-foot building with an indoor swimming pool, indoor basketball courts, and a fitness center. The site also contains surface parking around the building, two baseball fields, an outdoor walking track, and open grass fields.

The petitioner's proposal, called The Flex, includes: aquatics programming, including swimming instruction, using the existing indoor swimming pool; indoor basketball for a local youth organization called No Mercy Basketball on the existing indoor courts; retail and training areas related to scuba instruction and aquatics programming.