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For more than 100 years, YWCA Laniakea has offered group exercise classes, a fitness center, and access to a unique pool on its downtown campus.
For decades, YWCA members have been swimming at Laniakea Pool under wide open skies, surrounded by archways and palm trees in a historic Spanish-style building by renowned architect Julia Morgan.
But that will soon come to an end as the YWCA scales back its health and wellness programs.
The last day of group fitness classes, including aqua aerobics, disco line dancing, yoga and tai chi, will be March 31st. The fitness center and swimming pool will be closed to Health & Wellness members on June 30th.
“This was not an easy decision,” said YWCA Oahu CEO Noriko Namiki. “The board and management team reviewed the numbers over several years.”
Given the cost of maintaining facilities in historic buildings, it is no longer economically viable, she said. The numbers don’t add up, and the COVID-19 pandemic didn’t help either.
“Membership was basically going down, so we were watching it closely,” she said.
Membership in the YWCA Health and Wellness Program has plummeted from about 1,000 people pre-pandemic to just about 250 people now.
Of its 250 members, only about 50 are actively using the facility, she said.
“A lot of the people who were working out here were people who worked downtown,” she says. “These were people who already had parking. They were coming here to exercise before work or after work.”
When pandemic-related restrictions were lifted and in-person classes were offered again, many members did not return and canceled their memberships because they had already shifted their lifestyle to exercise elsewhere. I let it expire.
It is said that a significant number of office workers have not returned to downtown Honolulu.
Many downtown businesses still have employees working from home full-time or in a hybrid work environment, working from home part of the time and in the office only a few days a week. I’m holding it.
“People’s lives haven’t fully returned to normal, and we really don’t know if things will ever go back to normal,” she said.
Enrollment in the health and wellness program is just $40 per month for members. Many enrollments are subsidized by health insurance, which is capped at $30 per month.
Namiki said the YWCA has considered various scenarios, including raising monthly fees or extending the fitness center’s operating hours by shortening the current 6 p.m. weekday closing time, but the financial situation remains unclear. He said that it has not become.
If business hours were extended, the YWCA would need to hire security guards because the area would be emptied and safety would become more of an issue, she said.
This announcement was posted in January YWCA websitewill be sent to members via email, followed by a hard copy letter.
Repercussions and recovery efforts
Rick Handy of Kahalu’u, a longtime member of Health & Wellness, said he was disappointed in the program’s demise.
Handy works across the street at Merrill Lynch and goes for a 30-minute swim during his lunch break.
He has been swimming in the pool for more than 10 years, and before his recent injury, he swam five days a week. He said it was a perfect pool in an architecturally stunning location and would be greatly missed.
“The stock market closes at 11 a.m. half of the year, so you can walk here, swim, come back, have lunch and go back to work,” he said. “I will definitely miss the staff. Everything (about it) is pure aloha. … It’s all about family.”
Romala Radcliffe of Honolulu was also saddened to hear of the closure, and she and others started a group effort to save it.
Save Health and Fitness at the Y is a special group of more than 50 members who want to save the program and believe it is financially viable. says.
They have launched a website, sent a letter to the YWCA Board of Directors and Gov. Josh Green, and plan to meet with district representatives to support the program.
In a letter to the governor, the group said health and wellness programs have served the physical, mental and social needs of multicultural, multi-age communities for more than a century.
“This is a great asset for downtown. We’re concerned because we want to see the revitalization of Chinatown and downtown,” Radcliffe said. “It’s a great place to meet different communities that you wouldn’t normally meet, and you can develop great friendships.”
Radcliffe said she loves that classes at the nonprofit YWCA are more community-oriented and the instructors range in age from 30s to 80s.
They believe they have the potential to increase enrollment through marketing, and volunteers are happy to help in this effort.
“We want them to continue their work and we would be happy to help them find grants or pay more,” she said.
A century of history
When prominent California architect Julia Morgan designed the YWCA Laniakea Building at 1040 Richards Street in 1927, she included a swimming pool as a place women could go.
At the time, Namiki said, women were not encouraged to exercise because they were considered too frail and were generally not allowed to swim in public.
YWCA Oahu began offering women’s fitness classes as early as 1906, including recreational and exercise programs such as tennis and swimming programs.
However, YWCA Laniakea did not close and continues its mission to “Eliminate Racism and Empower Women.”
We continue to operate a number of programs, including our Dress for Success program, which has been running for 20 years, and the Patsy T. Mink Center for Business & Leadership, which offers a variety of services.
There’s also the Enterprising Women of Color Business Center, which provides resources, training and counseling to diverse women entrepreneurs, thanks to a grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Minority Business Development Agency.
Laniakea also acquired and operates the Bella Project “Shop YWCA” A platform where people can buy products from local, women-owned small businesses.
Several maui business Namiki said they are participating with funds to support workforce development and recovery.
Café Giulia is also open for lunch on weekdays, and can be reserved for events such as weddings.
The pool will continue to be available for rent to school swim clubs, community groups and lifeguards.
Swimming programs at the YWCA’s Kokokahi facility in Kaneohe are not affected.
“Right now, we really want to support our members through this transition period,” Namiki said. “We understand that it’s difficult and we understand that it’s a big change in their lives.”
