The Benton Harbor-St. Joseph YMCA and the Niles-Buchanan YMCA will be joining forces on March 1, with the aim to offer members more programs through pooled resources and accessibility to both facilities.
The decision was supported unanimously by the boards of directors for the Benton Harbor-St. Joseph YMCA and the Niles-Buchanan YMCA and announced last Thursday.
The merger comes on the heels of some changes that have been underway for several months, said Mark Weber, CEO to both the Benton Harbor-St. Joseph and the Niles-Buchanan YMCAs.
After the retirement of former CEO Mike Ahern, the two YMCAs entered into a management agreement in June 2016, allowing Weber to oversee both facilities, rather than finding a new CEO to run the Benton Harbor-St. Joseph YMCA.
Ahern has since passed away.
Through the management agreement, Weber said he felt that because the YMCAs use the same sources, including their partnership with Lakeland-Health and funding through the United Way of Southwest Michigan, the merge made sense.
“Instead of incurring the cost of two strategic teams [we can] take savings and put it into programing,” Weber said.
Weber estimated that the facilities would save an approximate $200,000 a year, which could then be used to offer members more classes and health initiatives.

Mark Weber

Weber said that the merger will not come with job cuts and could open up the possibility for new roles as the nonprofit continues to grow its programs base. For example, Weber said the YMCA will be looking at taking on a chronic disease prevention position.
The partnership will also open more doors for grants, Weber said.
In the weeks to come, Weber said staff will continue to assess how to merge in a cohesive manner. One detail to work out is the cost to members.
Because both facilities will be available to members from either YMCA, the cost of the membership needs to be the same. Currently the costs for memberships differ slightly depending on the YMCA.
Currently, Niles-Buchanan customers pay $45 a month for an adult pass and $65 for a family pass. At the Benton Harbor-St. Joseph facility, customers pay $49 a month for an adult and $74 for a monthly family pass. There is also a difference in start up fees. The cost for a membership is based on age.
Weber said that at this time he cannot definitively say which way prices will fall.
“To me I see it is a great opportunity to enhance what we have in our community,” Weber said. “We are a stronger community combined.”
Niles-Buchanan YMCA Marketing Coordinator Alexa Tupper said she sees the merger as an opportunity to have more outreach in Berrien County.
“People seem really excited,” Tupper said in a phone interview Monday. “It is nice that they will have membership at both locations.”
Tupper said she expects this to increase membership, because it will provide to those living in between cities the option of traveling to the YMCA that is closest to their home or work.
The nonprofit association will be renamed the YMCA of Southwest Michigan, but each facility will keep its own name.