YMCA of Southeastern North Carolina Relocates to New Association Office in Soda Pop District, Strengthening Community Impact
Join the Y for an Office Open House Celebration on Friday, January 31, to Explore the New Space and Meet their Growing Team!
In September 2024, the YMCA of Southeastern North Carolina relocated its association team to a larger office connected to warehouse space in the Soda Pop District of downtown Wilmington. Housed in the historic Bottle Works building that was a former Coca-Cola facility, the Y shares the mixed-used building with several other small businesses.
“We are excited to have the Y as a part of the Soda Pop District and have enjoyed welcoming their team to the neighborhood," said Andy Hewitt of Soda Pop Holdings LLC.
The Y's facility includes a 6400 square-foot office and 6700 square-foot warehouse, providing adequate room for the association team to streamline operations. Ginny Dunn of Maus, Warwick, Matthews & Company represented the Bottle Works building in facilitating the transaction.
This move enables the YMCA to enhance its administrative capabilities and support its mission of promoting youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility.
The Y's association team consists of various departments that support the organization's membership branches and program sites across southeastern North Carolina, including food services, resource development, human resources, finance, youth services, and more.
The move has been particularly transformative for the Y’s food services department, which began its transition to the new space during the summer of 2024. The food services department uses the warehouse to store meals for youth programming, including summer camp, afterschool, and preschool, and the organization's summer feeding program. Access to warehouse space is what made the Y's 2024 summer feeding program possible, providing the necessary room to store meals to ensure children in rural areas had access to nutritious food during the summer when schools were not in session. Overall, the Y distributed a total of 244,492 meals in 2024.
"Over the past few months, the YMCA has experienced tremendous growth and expansion of our food services program," said the Y's Chief Operating Officer Meghan Merritt. "We searched extensively for a central location that could support this growth with both office and warehouse space. When we toured the Coca-Cola building and saw the vibrant development in the Soda Pop District, we knew it was the perfect fit for our organization. We are thrilled to establish a presence close to downtown, which will enable us to better serve and expand our impact across the entire community."
Located in an area of downtown Wilmington that qualifies as a food desert — a community with limited access to healthy foods — the new facility positions the YMCA to better serve local neighborhoods. The Y's food services department is working towards developing a food distribution center and installing refrigeration for fresh produce and meats.
In addition to more space for its food services department, the Y's new facility offers more areas for staff, volunteers, and the community to gather. The Y looks forward to hosting educational workshops, meetings, and events at the association office to promote togetherness, learning, and well-being.
This move to a larger facility reflects the YMCA’s commitment to addressing the needs of a growing community and accelerates the Y’s ability to deliver programs and services, furthering its mission to support the health and well-being of southeastern North Carolina residents.
The YMCA's team invites the community to join them on Friday, January 31, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. for an office open house celebration to explore the new space and learn more about their mission to serve. See below for the office address:
Click the button below for additional event details.
