By Cailean Cooke

Town Crier Editorial Intern

Last year, 1,200 kids participated in the Youth Basketball programs at the Mountain View YMCA located at 2400 Grant Road; but hundreds of others were wait-listed for lack of gym space.

On Saturday, 32,000 square feet of additional facilities were opened to the public, featuring a new state-of-the-art gymnasium that can host additional basketball teams as well as service members of the YMCA.

“We wanted to be able to serve all folks that come to us and we were not able to do that (prior to the renovations),” said Laura Toller Gardner, YMCA director of marketing and communications.

For a price tag of about $7 million, collected through fund raising, donations and a low-interest loan, the YMCA was able to add two exercise centers, a child-watch center, a teen and counseling center and a remodeled multipurpose space for fitness classes.

The first construction began last summer and has been ahead of schedule. The second phase of renovations is expected to be completed in the fall or winter.

At that point, the center will have constructed and renovated a total of 54,000 square feet, not including the existing outdoor pools.