MONTREAL -- Residents in Point-Saint-Charles were surprised and angered when they found out three YMCAs including their local Y were being closed.
Staff running the Y was told that the building is in desperate need of repairs and that those repairs are not financially feasible.
The YMCA says the centre has been running a deficit for three decades, but residents held a public meeting and said they'd potentially pay more to ensure the centre stay open.
"People are angry, people are hurt, people are feeling like they're losing their institutions that they've relied on for generations really," said Share the Warmth's Fiona Crossling. "People of all ages meet in the Y. They exercise. They have after-school activities. They really depend on their services."
Verdun city councillor Sterling Downey told CTV he is fuming at the decision, and that the City of Montreal has invested much in the centre and in the area, and that the fight to keep the Y open is far from over.
A petition is circulating to stop the doors from closing at the Y Dec. 31.
