A Google User
August 17, 2018 15:02
Shameful what bad management and ill-trained staff can do to such a beautiful YMCA.
I grew going to the YMCA. I learned how to swim and play tennis at the Magdalena YMCA in Encinitas as child. Always had great experiences and made me think very highly of the YMCA.
No doubt, this is a great facility in terms of amenities and features, but if those amenities aren't maintained, then was it worth the investment?
Compared to other YMCA's, the big noticeable difference with this location is the general upkeep of the Locker Room. I can't speak about the Women's locker room, but the Men's locker room is not well maintained and generally in poor condition. Looking back, in other locations I recall always seeing the cleaning staff coming in and out of the locker rooms. In all my visits here, I do not recall ever seeing an attendant inside the locker rooms.
In general, they have a good selection of group exercise classes and a good schedule. My wife and I did several classes and enjoyed most of them. The only classes I often found lacking inspiration were the Spin classes. So if you are thinking of joining for that, I wouldn't recommend it.
It's a great facility, but not very large. The weight area is a bit tight and it can get pretty crowded. I found myself doing free weights in the outside workout space to avoid the crowds. Not the best option if its cold or too hot.
What finally made me cancel my membership was that my locker was broken into and everything was stolen. The fact that it happened wasn't why I cancelled, but how it was handled is why I cancelled. My locker was pried opened and the initial statements from the staff member were the following:
- "Are you sure that was your locker" : while looking at a broken empty locker*
- "Yeah, this has happened a couple of times in the past few weeks" : So you know it's happening and nothing is done to prevent it?
- "Well there's nothing we can do": Why even have cameras at all? Why check badges? I'm sure people taking there families there want a sense of security.
In my conversation over the phone, the Director offered nothing more than canned and scripted answers. No empathy (Even if its fake!), no solutions and no assurances. They didn't bother looking at the cameras. They just said the police had to do. SD Police in City Heights has bigger things to worry about then locker room theft. I filed a police report, but of course, nothing was done.
For those wondering...Within 30 minutes of me finding my locker broken into, I had almost $1,000 dollars in charges on my debit and credit cards from nearby places like GameStop, Bob's smoke shop and Vons. Whoever is breaking into the lockers, obviously knows what they are doing and they know the YMCA is a soft target.