Ridgefield Recreation and Community Center

A Recreation and Community Center is coming to Ridgefield!

The City is building a facility in Ridgefield that will serve as a Recreation and Community Center. The YMCA is a great nonprofit organization already working in our community that wants to be a partner to make this project a reality, but they need your help to make it happen.

In the meantime, the YMCA is offering day camps and other activities in Ridgefield to help meet our community’s growing need for recreational activities.

As the City of Ridgefield grows, one community need the City is actively working to meet is building a community hub that provides space for recreation, connection and belonging.

Project Background

A feasibility study for a YMCA in Ridgefield was conducted in 2016. The study concluded that there was a very high level of interest for the Ridgefield YMCA and identified features that would be critical to success. The City began searching for property that could be used for a YMCA.

In 2020, the City was contacted by a local private developer who expressed interest in assisting community with building a Recreation Center. A Public/Private Partnership was re-evaluated with the following considerations:

• City provides the land for recreation center, and funds the site plan design
• YMCA funds building design and manages facility with option to purchase
• Private developer builds facility and leases back to the Recreation management partner with purchase option

The coronavirus pandemic and associated economic instability led to significant construction cost increases and market changes from 2020 to 2023 that delayed the ability to begin construction. The City then began to work with the team to explore the possibility of creating a Community Center, to replace the one lost with the library expansion, alongside the Recreation Center to tie together both of these vital community assets and create a feasible funding structure for the project.

In 2023, the project team presented a plan to build two separate centers, a recreation center and a community center, operating as one, with the entire facility managed by the YMCA. Early design features a LEED certified, two-story building with large windows, two pools, an indoor gym with elevated track, fitness center, locker rooms, programming space and a Community Center with a kitchen. The site is designed to maintain a natural park like setting complimented by a beautiful facility featuring exposed wood and a multi-use trail.

Latest Update - June 5, 2025

Updated Design Presented for Ridgefield Recreation and Community Center

On Thursday, June 5, Ridgefield City Council reviewed the latest design for the Ridgefield Recreation and Community Center during a public study session. The project continues to make steady progress, with groundbreaking anticipated in Spring 2026.

Bringing a family-friendly recreation facility to Ridgefield has been a long-standing City and community goal. Since our last update, the project team has been focused on finalizing design and securing permits in preparation for construction. The updated design preserves key elements identified in the 2016 feasibility study—an open gym, lap pool, leisure pool, and programming space. During design, savings of an estimated $5.3 million have been identified by shifting the building’s placement on the same site to work more with the natural slopes and vegetation

This project has been years in the making. Since 2016, the City has purchased land, funded design work, committed public funding for the facility, and remained agile in response to rapidly rising construction costs to keep the vision alive. The YMCA, a valued nonprofit already active in Ridgefield, is working to raise the funds necessary to partner to build and operate the center, but they need your help to make this partnership possible. While YMCA fundraising efforts continue, the City is advancing the project toward construction. Final partnership agreements are expected to be completed this fall.

Next steps include completing the final design and permitting by the end of 2025. Construction bidding is scheduled to begin in early 2026, followed by an anticipated groundbreaking in the spring.

We are excited to continue progress toward delivering a much-anticipated community resource for health, recreation and fun.

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