Calgary community groups form coalition to save Old YWCA building in Beltline

The Arusha Centre has supported community agencies since 1975, but half a century of service could soon come to an end.

Several dozen Calgary agencies have joined together to try to stop a historic Beltline building from being vacated at the end of the month.

The organizations involved work in the building – Calgary’s ‘Old YWCA,’ also known as the Arusha Centre – which sits at 223 12 Ave. S.W.

The City of Calgary owns the building – as well as the closed Beltline Aquatic & Fitness Centre next door at 221 12 Ave. S.W.

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The city had a lease with the Community Wise Resources Centre (CWRC), a nonprofit that has since terminated their lease and left the building.

Now, the city has released an Expression of Interest for the buildings, seeking a tenant it can work with to preserve the building and maintain the space.

The Save the Old Y coalition is made up of 65 organizations, all of whom will be forced out of the building come Sept. 30, including Calgary Narrative Collective, End of the Rainbow Foundation, Hispanic Arts Society, Lavender Club YYC, Queer Calgary and Calgary Cinematheque.

Spokesperson Tara Laverdure says the building will then sit empty.

“I appreciate that they (the City of Calgary) want to keep it a community hub – but that’s my understanding of what the building is now; a community hub,” Laverdure said. “We want to stay while that expression of interest is in process, and while a new lease is made.”

“We have been here since 2014, and it keeps us connected to the downtown core and keep us accessible to our venues,” said Calgary Cinematheque coordinator Ben Rowe. “We don’t have an office space currently lined up to move into, so our staff is going to be working from home for the foreseeable future.”

Rowe says for his non-profit, the space was affordable.

Other tenants in the building provide sliding scale therapy while youth also use part of the building as an area to hangout.

The Calgary Outlink Centre for Gender and Sexual Diversity is a tenant.

“I think about all of the people we’re going to lose connection to and won’t know where to turn,” said spokesperson Emma Ladouceur. “It’s about the kind of opportunity and potential for connection and collaboration for sharing resources, for supporting people more holistically.”

The Beltline Neighborhoods Association hopes a deal can be struck between The Arusha Centre and the city.

“It’s been such a positive force for social inclusion and welcoming of people of all different backgrounds and really a hub for community that has made the Beltline, such a strong beltline,” said the director of Beltline Neighborhoods Association, Peter Oliver. “I think it would be a complete embarrassment if this ever turned into an Apple store.”

On Wednesday, the Save the Old Y coalition held a rally at the building to drum up support.

“Our big priorities is preventing that vacancy and the expression of interest process, the applications will close December, and then there’s negotiations,” said Laverdure. “It’s going to be empty for an indeterminate amount of time unless the city decides to cooperate with us.”

In a statement, the city says it remains committed to preserving “this important heritage building” and maintaining a space “for community to thrive.”

“When approached by a subtenant, the city suggested they approach CWRC and request to formally take over the lease, which they declined to do,” the city said.

“We provided CWRC with their subtenants an opportunity to remain at the Historic YWCA building for 18 months while the EOI was open to mitigate impacts on the tenant’s and subtenants’ service delivery.

“CWRC was also invited to submit their own application. However, CWRC chose to terminate the lease on three months’ notice. It was up to the tenant (CWRC) to inform their subtenants of the lease termination.

“CWRC have invited all of their subtenants to join them in their newly secured space.”