by Alex Brooks
HAYC3 Vice President Rick Tinkham came to The Hoosick Town board meeting to tell anyone who wanted to know what’s going on with HAYC3. Not much was discussed on that topic during the meeting itself, but after the meeting he spoke at length with this reporter and County Legislator Jeff Wysocki about the situation with HAYC3
Tinkham said the situation has stabilized a lot in the last month since HAYC3 found itself in a financial crisis. He said the organization does not have the resources to hire any staff, but it is able to keep the Armory open. He said income from the Town and from a tenant on the third floor is enough to keep the building going for the time being, and there may be additional revenue from events in the drill room, or maybe from a new project using the kitchen, although he couldn’t discuss any details about that, as it is still in the formative stages.
Tinkham said the response from the community since the news broke that HAYC3 is in financial trouble has been overwhelmingly positive. He said many people have contacted him with concern, offers of help, and ideas for the way forward. “This is a great community,” said Tinkham.
The HAYC3 Board is working with various local organizations to try to keep some of the programs going that HAYC3 was known for. One of the most significant is the after-school day care program. St. Mary’s Academy has agreed to take over that program, much to the relief of parents who had children enrolled in it.
Tinkham said his Board is working with the Youth Center Board and Hoosick Rising and others to explore collaborations on community projects. He said the drill room has been changed over from a room set up primarily for arts programming to one that can accompany sports programming. It is currently set up for pickleball, and may eventually accommodate a basketball court.
Tinkham said the building is in very good shape and is fully code-compliant at this point, after significant investments by HAYC3 over the years. He said HAYC3 may have to hire a part-time custodian to manage the building and make sure maintenance is taken care of, but that is still under discussion.
Tinkham said discussions about the future of the Armory are beginning soon. The HAYC3 Board does not want to make a decision on its own about that, but rather to consult a wide variety of community leaders and try to get a consensus on what’s best for the future. There is a possibility that ownership of the building might be passed on either to the town or to another non-profit organization.
He is trying to set up a meeting with community leaders in the near future to begin this conversation, and later in the process there will be public meetings to allow residents to participate.