It’s been 10 years since an explosion led to major changes along the Des Moines River in downtown Des Moines.
A planned explosion that was. Crews demolished the Riverfront YMCA on Oct. 4, 2015. The building, which was built in 1957, was vacated when the new Wellmark YMCA opened a few blocks away in January 2015.
The demolition was the finale to a yearlong debate about whether the building at 101 Locust St. could be saved or repurposed.
Preservation advocates wanted to save the building because of its civil rights-era murals, mid-century architecture and historical significance as part of the city’s riverfront skyline. They unsuccessfully tried to have the building listed as a local landmark.
Developers, though, have said the building’s boxy design made it too difficult to repurpose.
What happened when the Riverfront YMCA was demolished?
The implosion, just after 7 a.m. on that Sunday morning, started with a massive fireball and black mushroom cloud.
“It was for show, just to make it a little more spectacular,” Dave Zinser, president of D.W. Zinser, the demolition company that conducted the implosion, told the Register at the time.
Zinser said he wanted to add a little flair to the implosion. Contractors demolishing old hotels in Las Vegas do it all the time, setting off pyrotechnic blasts for show at the beginning of implosions, he said.
What happened to the old Riverfront YMCA site?
City leaders hoped to attract a prime development to the spot, adding a crown jewel to Des Moines’ skyline along the riverfront.
After sitting vacant for years, Hubbell Realty, which owned the land, and the federal government announced dueling plans for the site in 2018. Hubbell wanted to build a $75 million condo complex with ground-level retail. The federal government, after a year of exploring the site, wanted to build a new federal courthouse.
Under the threat of eminent domain, Hubbell agreed to sell the land a few weeks later. City leaders, who had attempted to thwart the federal government in the preceding months, convinced the General Services Administration to create a design that’s inviting for walkers, bikers and joggers who use the adjacent Principal Riverwalk.
Construction started on the courthouse in 2019.
The federal courthouse finally opened in June 2025, more than six years after construction began and nearly 10 years after the YMCA was imploded.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: 10 years later, rewatch the YMCA implosion along the Des Moines River
Reporting by Brian Smith, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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