Construction of the new $16 million downtown YMCA officially gets started on Thursday, Aug. 13, with a groundbreaking ceremony.

“This new facility will be the tool we need to maximize the Y’s mission of promoting healthy living to all segments of the community,” said Andrea Rosenbaum, director of advancement for the YMCA of Northwest Florida. “We will be able to offer expanded programs and a much more integrated approach to health and wellness.”

Pensacola Mayor Ashton Hayward III has been invited to the groundbreaking.

“Our new downtown YMCA will be a cornerstone of a growing and thriving downtown Pensacola, providing those working, living, and playing downtown with incredible amenities,” Hayward said. “Additionally, these new facilities will help us market Pensacola’s incredible quality of life, making it easier for our city to attract and retain new jobs and talent."

Baptist Health Care will be the Y's primary health care and rehabilitation services partner. In a memorandum of understanding signed in July, the organizations agreed to collaborate in the promotion of wellness, fitness and education efforts to promote a healthier community.

Jointly, Baptist and the YMCA will identify potential opportunities to develop programs that will impact a broad set of population groups, including persons with chronic conditions, at-risk pediatric populations, as well as fitness enthusiasts and weekend athletes. The partnership will address major community health challenges such as obesity, diabetes, heart disease and more.

Baptist will move its Andrews Institute Rehabilitation services from the main hospital campus to the new YMCA facility.

"Our entire community wins when like-minded groups join forces to increase accessibility to services, provide education, and support and encourage healthy lifestyles," said Brian Matson, Baptist Health Care senior vice president and chief strategy and business development officer, in a news release. "The work we will be doing with the YMCA has the potential to profoundly change the state of health in our area."

Others invited to the event include: Rishy Studer, Belle Bear, Teri and Fred Levin, Charlie Switzer, Jane Lauter (a representative of the Kugelman family), and Don Haferkamp, all major donors to the project. Representatives from corporate donors Gulf Power and Cox Communication will also be on hand, as will members of the YMCA board.

The new facility is possible largely due to the generous support for Pensacola business people and philanthropists Quint and Rishy Studer, who donated $5 million and the land for the facility, to be located at the corner of Tarragona and Intendencia streets.

The new facility replaces the existing downtown brach on Palafox Street.

“Our current 60-year-old branch is structurally obsolete, limiting our ability to serve everyone in need,” Rosenbaum said. “We have squeezed a lot of life out of our current building, but the cobbled together layout wastes space and is impossible for those with disabilities to navigate. This new Y will be a modern, fully-accessible building that will become a vibrant addition to the downtown core.”

The new 52,000-square-foot facility will include:

— A larger aquatic center with two pools
— Multipurpose rooms for group exercise and other community functions and programs
— A demo kitchen for nutrition education and cooking classes
— A larger KidZone child care area designed to accommodate children of a variety of ages
— A gymnasium
— A wellness center more than 2 ½ times the size of the current cardio/weight room
— Dedicated space for our hospital partner
— Expanded space for socialization and gathering
— Larger locker rooms and multiple family bathrooms throughout the building.

The facility will also be fully accessible to those with special needs. It should be ready to open by late 2016.

The new facility will be called the Bear-Levin-Studer YMCA, so named for the Studers and two other major donors: The Bear Family Foundation and Fred and Teri Levin, who gave $1 million each.

Other top donors include the Switzer Family, Cox, the Greenhut Family, Gulf Power, the Haferkamp Family and the Kugelman Foundation.

But the total need has not been met.

“We are so grateful to those donors who shared our vision of a new downtown Y and have already made their commitments,” Rosenbaum said. “Given the size of these gifts, many in the community seem to think we have all the money needed. But a Y of this size and with these features is an expensive undertaking, and we are about 80 percent to our goal of raising the total amount needed.”

Fundraising will continue during construction, with naming opportunities and other recognition still available.

Anyone interested in giving or volunteering can contact the current Y at 438-4406 to learn more.