Quoted from Shadow

Rotterdam started a paid ambulance service how did that work out. They can't pay for the police they have now.

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YWCA pays fees;
tax lien auction
today canceled
    SCHENECTADY — The auction that had been scheduled today of the YWCA has been canceled.
    On Monday, the YWCA paid its overdue sewer and water fees, plus 21 percent compound interest, to American Tax Funding. The tax-collection agency bought the YWCA’s sewer and water liens from the city and threatened to foreclose if the YWCA did not pay.
    The YWCA was able to make partial payments to stave off two other foreclosure attempts while it negotiated for a reduction in interest. But after the third auction notice, the board took out a loan from KeyBank to pay the entire amount at once.

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SCHENECTADY
YWCA struggling with debt
Domestic violence programs need aid
BY KATHLEEN MOORE Gazette Reporter

    The YWCA took on more debt last week to stave off a foreclosure over unpaid sewer and water fees, but that action won’t solve their underlying problem.
    There’s simply not much money in helping women escape domestic violence.
    “There’s not a lot of revenue connected to the service we provide,” said Cathy Lewis, YWCA board treasurer. “We provide valuable services. But the women there are mainly on [Supplemental Security Income under Social Security].”
    As treasurer, she has watched the YWCA’s finances for decades. The crux of the problem at this point, she said, is the amount of debt the agency has taken on as it tried to maintain its programs and its main building, which dates from 1930 and is constantly in need of expensive repairs. Between a mortgage on the building and other loans, the agency owes nearly $1 million, she said. The YWCA has “virtually no” endowment to help it in tough times, so it took out loans instead, she said.
    The agency runs many programs, including a well-known “silver sneakers” fi tness program at the Eddy Center, and child care centers for low-income parents. But those services don’t bring in a lot of money either.
    “We get some revenue, just not significant money,” Lewis said. “There’s a great deal of subsidy required to run these programs.”
    Although she and others have described the fi nancial diffi culties as a cash-flow problem, meaning that they receive revenue after the point at which they needed to spend the money, Lewis said the problem is actually worse.
    Revenues aren’t always matching expenditures, she said.
    In other words: the YWCA needs more money.
    The agency charges $225 a month for women staying at its residence, and Y leaders do not think they could charge much more. But the numbers don’t work.
    “It’s probably not covering the cost of utilities,” Lewis said. “That’s where water and sewer bills come in. You have 40-50 women there, every day — and we’re not assessed like a homeowner with a fl at fee. We’re assessed on the usage.”
    Cutting programs is always a possibility, and the YWCA closed its pool three years ago to avoid costly upgrades connected to a new law about pool drains. The agency has also closed a childcare center and is trying to organize partnerships to share the cost of other services.
    But other nonprofits that would serve as partners are also struggling. Federal, state and local grants have been cut during the recession, and some donors have stopped giving — perhaps due to unemployment. One of the biggest supporters of local nonprofits, the United Way, has cut its grants signifi cantly.
    In 1982, United Way funds were half of the YWCA’s yearly revenue, Lewis said.
    “Now it can be measured in thousands [of dollars]. The percentage is minuscule,” she said.
    And closing the biggest programs that the YWCA is known for is not a possibility. Executive Director Rowie Taylor said she would fi ght to keep open the shelters because there is nowhere else for battered women to go.
    Other agencies would eventually try to open a shelter, she said.
    “But not tomorrow,” she said, noting that it could take years to develop a new domestic violence program if the YWCA shut its doors.
    If partners can’t offer enough help, and local grants can’t cover the cost, what else can be done?
    “If you’ve got people in need, what do you do?” Lewis asked. “It’s very diffi cult.” ...........................>>>>...................>>>>..........................http://www.dailygazette.net/De.....r00905&AppName=1