The Littleton YMCA needed a boost. Of that, there was no doubt.
Membership had been declining for several years, and the 25-year- old facility was ready for some serious upgrades.
To complicate matters, the Littleton-area health club market is competitive, with several robust private clubs and the public facilities maintained by the South Suburban Parks and Recreation District.
“You’re talking about quality providers,” said Steve Tammaro, chief operating officer of the YMCA of Metropolitan Denver.
The YMCA’s executive staff decided to bring in Mike Hestera, whose leadership at the downtown YMCA had invigorated the staff and boosted membership, Tammaro said.
And the board of directors invested in the facility, replacing the old air-conditioning system, sprucing up the showers, adding a Pilates reformer studio and adding FitLinxx, a computerized system that attaches to gym equipment and stores workout data.
More upgrades are planned, Tammaro said.
Hestera, who is dividing his time between the Littleton and downtown facilities, said an important part of the YMCA that sets it apart from other health club facilities is its sense of mission.
For each facility, he said, the mission should match the needs of the community.
Littleton has a large youth sports program and child care and offers scholarships to ensure that everyone can participate, regardless of ability to pay. It also caters to the post-60 crowd.
“Littleton is different in that we have a strong senior contingency,” Hestera said. “Their favorite time is to drink free coffee, sit in the lounge and talk.”
U.S. census figures illustrate those changes. While Littleton’s population grew 20 percent from 1990 to 2000, the percentage of children younger than 5 declined, while the percentage of those 65 and older increased.
But there are needs not reflected in those numbers. The Littleton YMCA plans to get involved in the Greater Littleton Youth Initiative, which was a response, at least in part, to the Columbine High School shootings in 1999, Hestera said.
The program is designed to promote healthy youth development – giving kids something productive to do and a place to do it, he said.
“So, we at the Y are saying, ‘How can we help?”‘ Hestera said.
Hestera said the Littleton YMCA has offered facilities and volunteers to the program.
Kay Wilmesher, a research analyst at the city of Littleton who is on the board of directors of the youth initiative, said she is looking forward to the YMCA’s participation.
“They are just now getting ready to ramp up their work with the youth initiative, and we’re really looking forward to and excited about what might come of that,” she said.
Staff writer Alicia Caldwell can be reached at 303-820-1930 or acaldwell@denverpost.com.
