Ottawa, Streator YMCA's adjust to Phase 4 opening

The beginning of Phase 4 on Friday will allow gyms to expand their capacity, which means YMCAs in Ottawa and Streator will be allowing members back.

The Streator Family YMCA will reopen for the first time in months on Wednesday, July 1, while Ottawa’s YMCA opened its doors by appointment on June 15.

“We want to limit our capacity and be as safe as possible,” said Kelly Petterson, Ottawa YMCA’s membership and marketing director.

The Ottawa YMCA will eliminate the need for appointments starting July 1, but the facility will actively prevent its capacity from exceeding a certain point; staff are still in the planning stages and will have more information available soon, Petterson said.

Petterson said staff are suggesting to visitors if the weight room is full, try the cardio area first.

“We’re still getting all this figured out,” Petterson said. “We’re trying to open slowly and safely.”

YMCA staff also will bring back group exercise classes in conjunction with their Zoom classes, and child care will be available to a limited number of children for limited hours.

The gymnasium will not be open, but the racquetball courts will be available for one person at a time.

The Ottawa YMCA's hours will not change — they are 7 a.m. to noon, then 4 to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 8 a.m. to noon Saturday.

The Streator YMCA will open by reservation for weight and cardio training, while pool use and child classes will be phased in.

“Every member is going to get a spray bottle and microfiber towel so they don’t have to go searching for that,” Executive Director Alex Spencer said. “We’re taking reservations for an hour workout, and we want to get as many people in and out as we can.”

Spencer said staff have updated their cleaning procedures, which requires a two-hour window every day to deep clean the equipment and make sure everything is as sanitary as possible.

“All of our cardio equipment is spaced six feet apart, and we’ve got it spread out between our wellness center and that back basketball court,” Spencer said. “We renovated our downstairs and moved a couple pieces of equipment down there to accommodate as many people as possible.”

The Streator YMCA also is adjusting its hours to 5 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday with a two-hour break for a deep clean. The facility then will be open from 3 to 7 p.m. Saturday hours will be 8 a.m. to noon.

Spencer said staff might adjust the hours in the future, but they want to be careful in making sure they have their sanitation procedures down.

Members also have been notified that check-in now will be done touchless.

“We’ll be taking reservations upstairs and downstairs separately,” Spencer said. “We don’t want 30 people here all just for the treadmills, so we’ll have to check and see where we’re at.”

The drinking fountains are closed, but the Streator YMCA installed a water bottle filler upstairs and another downstairs for people who bring their own water bottles.

Staff also will require masks in common areas such as hallways, and the lobby will be closed to avoid people congregating. The gymnasium will be closed from July 1 to July 3, but after those dates people will be allowed to shoot basketballs by themselves, provided they bring their own basketball.

Neither YMCA is allowing guest passes or new members at this time.