Leaders gathered in West Tuscaloosa Tuesday to break ground on the new $12 million Benjamin Barnes YMCA after a decade of delays and debates about the facility's future.

The Barnes branch first opened in 1961 at 2939 18th Street in West Tuscaloosa with funds raised by Black leaders to serve their community - the Civil Rights Act did not outlaw segregation until 1964.

The city has entered into a professional services agreement​ for the next phase of work on a new Benjamin Barnes Branch YMCA