The YMCA of Kanawha County will be able to use West Virginia University’s former athletic facility in Montgomery under a lease approved Tuesday by the West Virginia University Board of Governors.
In a related move, the Board also took steps to terminate a lease-purchase agreement of the former WVU Tech campus with KVC Foundation Inc.
The board approved leasing the Neal Baisi Athletic Center to the Charleston-based YMCA for less than six months to “further the University’s commitment to the Upper Kanawha Valley and permit the YMCA of Kanawha Valley to continue its current operations within Montgomery.” The YMCA pay will $1 in rent, as well as utilities, through June. During that time, it will also seek other funding in order to “make sure the ‘Y’ is sustainable in the long term in Montgomery,” said Rob Alsop, WVU vice president for strategic initiatives.
The termination of the lease-purchase agreement KVC Foundation ends a planned development of a specialized career college specifically for foster children who have aged out of the program.
KVC notified the University on Jan. 17 that the plan was no longer feasible or sustainable, and entered into good faith negotiations and are close to finalizing a settlement.
KVC and WVU had announced the lease-purchase of the Montgomery campus in April 2017.
