YMCA of Greater Pittsburgh Receives $500,000 Grant For New Hill YMCA Roof

McAuley Ministries, the new grant-making arm of the Pittsburgh Mercy Health System, has given out its first grant... and the recipient is the YMCA of Greater Pittsburgh. The $500,000 grant will help fund the construction of a green rooftop terrace for the new Thelma Lovette YMCA in the Hill District.

 

"The new Thelma Lovette YMCA touches several of McAuley Ministries grant-making priorities," said Michele Rone Cooper, executive director of McAuley Ministries. "This project will address health and wellness by providing a modern, safe location for exercise and recreation. Its programs respond to concerns such as youth violence prevention and academic achievement. The facility addresses community development through its location on the important Centre Avenue corridor in the Hill District; the green rooftop terrace will contribute to community aesthetics."

 

"Putting a green roof on what will be a brand-new YMCA demonstrates the YMCA's commitment to the people in the Hill District, a central, but underserved Pittsburgh community, and we thank the McAuley Foundation for making it possible," said Eric Mann, chief executive officer of the YMCA of Pittsburgh.

"The Hill is undergoing a real transformation resulting in a demographic change that has caused a need for more community-based wellness services and other programming. This new project shows that the YMCA and our partners like the McAuley Foundation can be difference makers in western Pennsylvania."

 

The new YMCA's green rooftop terrace will provide a safe playground for children participating in the YMCA's youth programs, outdoor exercise space for adults; a flexible space for family and community activities. The roof will be ringed by a raised planting bed backed by a vegetative screened fence. The YMCA plans to obtain Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) certification for the project from the U.S. Green Building Council.

 

A green roof is a roof on a building that is partially or completely covered with vegetation and soil, or a growing medium, planted over a waterproofing membrane.

 

Work on the new $9 million YMCA, designed by DRS Architects of Pittsburgh, is expected to begin the third quarter of 2009. The new YMCA is named after community activist, Hill District resident and longtime YMCA volunteer, Thelma Lovette. It will sit on an entire block on Centre Avenue between Hemans, Addison and Elmore streets. When completed, the new full-service YMCA will offer traditional health and wellness programs like swimming, sports and exercise, and traditional day and summer camp for children. Also, the new Y will offer social service programs to families and individuals.

 

"We were also thrilled the YMCA chose to honor Mrs. Thelma Lovette, a wonderful woman and community activist, and ironically the first African-American social worker at Mercy Hospital," Rone Cooper said. "This partnership with the YMCA was a perfect fit for McAuley Ministries' inaugural grant. McAuley Ministries' mission is to promote healthy, safe and vibrant communities; our focus includes the neighborhoods of the Hill District, Uptown and West Oakland."

 

Visit the Penn State Center for Green Roof Research website for more information.