YMCA Aquatics Center Rising

The Aquatics Center for the Bayside YMCA expansion project is starting to take shape. Block walls are up around the concrete shell for the six-lane swimming pool. Crews for New England Construction have connected the new building to the old. "They connected it in one day," said Joe Martino, executive director for the Bayside YMCA.

The new Aquatics Center also will add a family splash area. The overall project will add new men’s and women’s locker rooms, family and special needs locker rooms, a wellness center within the fitness center, an upgraded and expanded lobby area, and improvements to the field house. The parking lot has already had a rough coat of asphalt laid. A new traffic pattern has been marked.

The $6.8 million expansion is being built in two phases to keep as much of the current YMCA open as possible. By the end of phase 1, though, said Martino, there will be a fully functioning, handicapped accessible building with complete site development. Construction is expected to be complete by next fall.