Garden City officials outline strained negotiations with YMCA over inflatable dome; district declines to assume dome debt

District staff gave a detailed timeline of negotiations with the YMCA over the inflatable covered facility known locally as the YMCA dome and described continuing uncertainty about ownership, repair costs and long-term use.

The timeline presented traced events from the dome’s initial installation issues and litigation in 2019, through the YMCA’s reported $1.3 million fundraising and continued operating losses, to multiple purchase and lease proposals last year. The YMCA previously offered to sell the dome and equipment for amounts ranging from about $216,006 to $745,000 in various proposals; the district said it declined those offers.

District representatives said the dome’s HVAC system has experienced repeated failures and that replacement costs for HVAC equipment could reach roughly $500,000. The YMCA told the district it was unable to secure donors to cover outstanding debt and at one point informed district leaders it expected to default. The YMCA had proposed a purchase-price offer that included equipment and back utility payments; the district rejected offers that exceeded its valuation given maintenance unknowns.

On Feb. 6, district leadership told YMCA officials the district would not pay to acquire the structure and offered instead to assume ownership with no cash payment; under that scenario the district would assume all expenses and allow YMCA use under standard building-use forms. The current lease requires the YMCA to remove the dome structure down to the concrete footings if an agreement is not reached by mid‑June; if the structure is not removed by contract deadline it becomes district property. District staff said the YMCA has indicated a likely removal in May, when weather permits.

Board members and staff discussed practical impacts: the dome has been usable primarily after school for practices and events because daytime school use raised safety and access-control concerns; the district has not received full daytime access. Staff said the on‑site parking lot and lights were installed by the city and are maintained by the district. Estimates provided in the discussion put potential utility costs at roughly $7,000–$8,000 per month if the district assumed operation, not including inflation or possible additional HVAC capital costs.

No board motion was presented to purchase or accept ownership during the meeting; staff said conversations with the YMCA and board deliberations will continue through the June contract deadline.