A YMCA in one of Jacksonville's developing areas could lead to resurgence in the neighborhoods near downtown.
The newly-rebuilt Riverside YMCA opened its doors in the Brooklyn neighborhood.
Things are growing in the area.
Residents are dealing with traffic, new restaurants and homes. A lot of people say all of the new development is a good thing, but it does have a downside.
“Yeah, it’s busy,” said Kyle Sess.
Busy and hard to move around at times, Sess said.
“Especially around lunch time, you see a lot of people out," he said. "But not just around lunchtime, it’s in the evenings."
Sess recently moved to the Brooklyn neighborhood and enjoys his new home, but said all of the hustle and bustle can be overwhelming, even annoying at times.
"It’s frustrating," he said. "I live so close, but it still takes me a couple of minutes to get to work. A lot of people are moving around, going places."
“The biggest thing for us is we want to make an impact on the community,” said Timothy Burrows with YMCA.
Burrows said the center has been serving the community for the last 50 years and had to accommodate the growth.
That’s why they expanded the old Yates Family YMCA and added the 72,000 square foot facility with the new state of the art equipment and inside track.
All of this is to make room for the crowds.
“There’s a ton to do here, restaurants, but not just restaurants, there are couple of parks around here, which is really nice,” said Sess.
There will be a ribbon cutting ceremony at the gym on Friday at 10 a.m.