East Ottawa Star
Published: Friday, September 25, 2009 Big plans in works for Orléans Y With autumn now officially here and the kids into their school routine, everything has taken on a faster pace. And nowhere is this heightened frenzy activity more apparent than in the charitable sector, across our city and right here in our own backyard. To start, CHEO has launched its annual Dream of a Lifetime lottery. And my friends at the Ottawa Regional Cancer Foundation (yes, I’m the past chairman, bias stated) are in the home stretch of their lottery with great odds for the first prize of $500,000 cold, hard cash. The deadline is next Friday, Oct. 2 so please visit www.answertocancerottawa.ca to learn more and learn how to buy a ticket. Not to be outdone, the United Way of Ottawa has kicked off its annual campaign in its quest to raise $31.7 million to fund some 200 community agencies, including some that serve you or your friends and neighbours right here in Orléans. And these are all worthwhile causes that merit, if you can afford it, your support. Not to be outdone, there is also an important, and dare I write community-changing, announcement scheduled for Oct. 7 at the Shenkman Arts Centre about an exceptional gift – think of the six figures or higher variety perhaps – toward the expansion campaign for the Orléans Y. Nestled down beside the city’s Client Service Centre and the Shenkman Arts Centre, our Y has been bursting at its seams for years. So it has embarked on a $7-million expansion campaign to expand, adapt and serve the needs of our growing community. This campaign will finance the development of two new pools, one regular and one warm. The warm pool will help teach young children and also serve as a therapeutic pool, especially for our burgeoning senior demographic. A new gym will be built and even if you’ve never set foot in our Y, a quick glance as you drive by its southern façade will tell you that the basketball court alone is used all day and all night, each and every day. Along with the new gymnasium, an extra 7,500 square feet of workout space will be devoted for strength and conditioning. Finally, the architects of the Y expansion also envision a kids/youth zone, licensed full-day and before- and after-school day care spaces and community and education rooms to support enhanced programming such as nutrition, weight loss and other health-related pursuits. Of the projected $7-million cost, our community needs to pony up $1 million above and beyond the expected major gift announcement on Oct. 7. And this $1-million figure is above and beyond anticipated government infrastructure contributions and funding sources. = = = = = Comments can be sent to Walter Robinson at orleansouttakes@transcontinental.ca. |