One of Pampa’s most beloved quality-of-life facilities is undergoing an enormous renovation, and last year we got to witness the groundbreaking ceremony as the community gathered together to celebrate the project that was to come.
Now a year later, the Pampa Youth & Community Center has foundations poured, the new swimming pool built, and an eagerness to share what the new facility will have in store.
“They’ve got quite a bit done now,” said PY&CC Board President Dr. Jay Johnson. “We’ve got all the footings in, most of the plumbing in, they’ve got the floor poured for the pool and they’re framing the walls right now. The whole facility that we’re adding is going to be approximately 29,000 square feet, which will be about 5,000 square feet larger than our existing facility. This will be an opportunity to spread out a little bit and not have some of the hallways we have now and a lot of wasted space. I think this will give us a lot more functionality.”
Many of the features going into the new facility are based around the needs of the community, with the board focusing on safety, variety, inclusion, and multi-purpose utilization.
“The pool is going to be probably about 60% percent larger than the one we have now because it will have a little area for toddlers and younger kiddos, and we’re going to add two more lanes. Ours right now is a four-lane which is about 30 ft wide, so the new one will be more like 45-foot wide and 75-foot long, which is appropriate for swim meets. We’ll be able to have swim meets here more often and will have much more room for spectators and better competition with six lanes.”
“Something we’ve always done here is provide the high school swim team a facility to use because it would be pretty expensive for them to have to build a pool only to use it for a season. So we’re glad we can work with the community and not spend tax dollars for them to build a pool and we can share this one.”
“We’re also going to have a large climbing wall with six belays (ropes) so we can have six at a time climbing. I think that would be really exciting, and I could see kids from six to 60 trying that! Every one of the placements are bolted on so they can be changed in their layout so every climb won’t be the same. We’ll always have them for beginners and for more advanced climbers. I believe the tallest area will be about 22 feet, and these belays allow a climber to slowly come down.”
It is worth mentioning that along with the new addition, some old features will not be present in the new facility due to excessive maintenance and the ever-shifting trends in physical activities.
“So we’re not going to have hot tubs, but we are going to add a steam room. We will have one sauna and one steam room in the men’s and women’s section. We also won’t have the racquetball courts because it’s just not as popular as it once was. We’re trying to have things that people will want to use.”
While this project was still in the talks, Johnson made it clear that he wanted to make sure they used as many local companies as possible for construction, and he is pleased that they have been able to do just that.
“I’m really proud that we were able to use Carter Sand & Gravel, Larry Baker, and B&G Electric and several other local companies to get this going. Most of our money spent has been local. That was one of the things we mentioned when we were talking to the contractor, let’s use as many local people as possible.”
And while it’s exciting to think of a new facility and all of the features it will include, there’s something to be said about the original building that is nearing 70 years.
“I was afraid that if we didn’t do something like this, we were going to look at it in ten years and say, ‘well this isn’t worth keeping.’ This is a 68-year-old building, and buildings have a life expectancy. I’m trying to help get us something that is going to last us another 70 years. I want it to be something that will be functional and long-lasting.”
The PY&CC has owned quite a bit of land for many, many years, and it’s always been their dream to utilize that land and potentially expand.
“We own all the way from Harvester to Kentucky onto both sides of Sumner, so we could even build a lot more if we wanted to or had the money to. We have adequate space for growth and I’ve said many times I’m very impressed by the citizens in Pampa who formed this back in 1954 to have this vision. Just the fact they took so much property in having two large blocks of area, I can’t imagine ever using the whole thing, but there’s a lot of things we would like to do if we could.”
But PY&CC has never been in the business to make money, but rather provide the community a safe place to socialize, exercise, and reach their fitness and health goals.
“Our goal is not to make money. Our financial goal is to pay our bills, pay the employees, and just break even. That’s the reason why we ask for donations when we have a capital project like this. We try to keep our membership fees as low as possible. That was the goal in 1954. One of the things they said in their mission statement back then was to ‘combat juvenile delinquency’, which is something we don’t really hear anymore, but we understand what they meant. It’s to give the kids and community something to do.”
The donations that have come through over the years that have made this project possible have been largely from those in the community and surrounding area who have loved and appreciated the youth center for what it is, always has been, and always will be.
“The people in Pampa have been so generous, it’s such an amazing thing to see. I think the nicest personal gift we got was half a million dollars, and that person wants to remain totally anonymous, which I think is so awesome. Cabot has made a pledge, Reliant has made a pledge, the MK Brown Foundation has been instrumental in getting this started. The Mary E. Bivins Foundation in Amarillo and a foundation out of Midland called the Mabee Foundation who gives to things like this made a commitment. There’s been so many generous people who have helped make this happen and we’re so thankful and blessed.”
It’s certainly exciting to see the progress being made on the new facility, and we’re all looking forward to stepping foot in this historical and well-deserved milestone!
The new facility is scheduled to be up and running by May of 2027, but in the meantime, the original facility is still fully operational. For more information on memberships, stop by 1005 W. Harvester Monday through Friday from 5 AM to 10 PM, Saturday from 7:30 AM to 6 PM, and Sunday from 2 PM to 6 PM, or call 806-665-0748.
