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Walker County Commissioner Bebe Heiskell is courting YMCA officials for possible consideration of a new proposed site for the YMCA’s Northwest Georgia facility.

Meanwhile, use of the property where YMCA officials broke ground earlier this year for use of the same pro-posed facility is at a standstill in Catoosa County. Plans stalled after a request from the YMCA to the Catoosa County Tax Assessors Board for tax exempt status.

In response to Heiskell’s comments in favor of bringing the YMCA to Walker County, Catoosa County Commissioner Bobby Winters said he hopes a solution is possible to keep the facility here.

“I am all for it,” he said. “I think it will be an asset for District 2 and Battlefield Parkway. I get a lot calls from senior citizens because they want swimming pools where they can do their water aerobics. I am still hoping they will follow through in Catoosa County. If our county can get the legal issue with taxes figured out. They’d have to do the same thing in Walker. I hope we can get it worked (out).”

Winters said maybe another approach is tax abatement initially and gradual implementations like that done for industry.

Commissioner Jim Emberson said that many Catoosa County citizens will welcome the YMCA, so much so, according to information he gathered, that residents have pledged $750,000 to this proposed facility with a Catoosa site in mind.

“There are several thousand YMCAs all over our country,” he said. “As far as I know all have a tax exempt status. I suspect the one being proposed for Catoosa is similar to the others.

“They work with people with limited means and give them scholarships so they can be members,” he said.

“It would bring in needed jobs for our county. I hope our tax board will take another look at this situation and reconsider the stand. I hope they can work together with the Y and come up with something agreeable to all of the parties concerned. It would be a great loss if Catoosa County were not awarded this facility. They can go most any-where else and get tax-exempt status.

“I feel confident the majority of citizens would welcome it with open arms,” he said.

Catoosa Chairman Bill Clark said a YMCA move to Walker would be its own business decision.

I believe they can get exempt status in Catoosa County, if they show a substantial portion of profits are contrib-uted to charitable purposes," he said.

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