“At this point we’re running at about 570 members,” said Major Tom Duperree, who heads the Salvation Army’s Dayton command. “So far the administration is very, very happy with the results we have. I don’t want to grow so big so fast that we’re not able to accommodate the needs of the community.”
Duperree stressed the Kroc Center is open to “everyone in the city, the county and beyond,” not just residents of the distressed McCook Neighborhood or to the needy population typically served by the Salvation Army.
Mike Reichard, an investment adviser who lives in the Fairgrounds neighborhood, said he joined last week because he was impressed with all the center had to offer and at such a low price, $60 a year for an adult.
“It’s quite a blessing for the city of Dayton to have a facility like this,” Reichard said.
The Kroc Center is the first one completed of 25 centers being built across the country in disadvantaged neighborhoods, the legacy of McDonald’s heiress Joan Kroc, who died in 2003. She bequeathed $1.6 billion to the Salvation Army to create places where children and families could find recreational, educational and cultural activities otherwise beyond their reach.
Besides fitness and recreation, the Kroc includes a “Technology Cafe” with computers and Wii systems, as well as The Children’s Zone, a library-like area where University of Dayton students and education professionals work with children (ages 2 to 6) for up to three hours while their parents are elsewhere on the campus. There’s also a movie theater, summer camps, banquet center and a 400-seat sanctuary for worship.
Asked about competing with other recreation services, including the city of Dayton’s, Duperree replied, “We’re not out to compete with anybody. We’re all about bringing fulfillment to this great vision Joan Kroc had and joining it, blending it with the mission of the Salvation Army.”
Tim Helm, executive director of the YMCA of Greater Dayton, said he isn’t worried about the Kroc cutting into his customer base.
“They will have some potential impact on YMCA membership, particularly at our downtown Y, but I see that as being pretty minimal,” Helm said. “I applaud them for the research they did and what they’re trying to do in that neighborhood; their commitment (to) North Dayton is admirable. But it’s not an area where we were serving a lot of people or had a lot of membership coming from.”
Helm said membership at the downtown Y is stronger than ever at nearly 6,000. He also noted the Y’s sliding-scale rates are income-based — $47 a month for a family making less than $35,000 a year — and assistance is available so no one is turned away. The Kroc’s rate is $120 a year for a family of four; half that or less for individuals.
Helm said he is more concerned about the city of Dayton’s Rec Plex that’s under construction on the grounds of the former Roosevelt High School at 2013 W. Third St. The center could open by the end of the summer.
“It is going to be more of a comparable facility to a YMCA; it’s got a gym, it has a pool, it has a fitness center,” he said. “We serve clearly from all over, but I know we serve more people in West Dayton than we do from North Dayton, particularly from the Salem Avenue corridor.”
LaShea Smith, the city’s director of recreation and youth services, said she’s excited about the recreation services offered in the Dayton area these days, especially in a tough economy. Helm is, too, but said, “I don’t think it’s at a saturation point yet.”
“The reality is there’s lots of people that need to be served,” he said. “There’s particularly lots of kids in Dayton who are struggling and need services and I don’t think any one organization can provide all those.”
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-7408 or agottschlich@Dayton
DailyNews.com.
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