God's Gym reopens after city intervention

God's Gym, shuttered briefly after a city-employed gang intervention specialist working there was arrested on federal drug conspiracy charges, reopened Monday, this time as a city-run enterprise.

As part of the city's takeover, the parks and recreation department will monitor programs at the city-owned facility that since 1984 has prided itself on offering activities to help keep children off the streets and away from gangs and drugs.

Parks and Recreation Director Randy Reopelle will eventually appoint someone to oversee the building's day-to-day operations, city spokeswoman Sue Olafson said.

On Monday, the city reinstated most of the gym's programs.

But the ones related to gang intervention are on hold for now, since Angel L. Vega, 47, the man responsible for running them, is behind bars and no longer affiliated with the city.

More changes could be forthcoming.

"We're still evaluating all the programs very closely and carefully, but our intent was really about being able to jump back into services to meet the needs of kids," Olafson said.

The city took swift action Thursday after city employee Vega was rounded up in a yearlong drug sting that netted eight related arrests.

Officials shut down the gym the same day and fired both Vega and Joel Perez, a city employee serving as the gym's program supervisor.

Perez, one of the gym's co-founders, was not among those arrested Thursday in the city and federal drug probe.

"I don't know if he knew anything was going on," Olafson said. "We do know his employment was not in the best interest of the city at this time."

The city and the United Way have since yanked funding they earmarked for the gym.

The city, for example, gave God's Gym $150,000 a year -- most of it in free rent -- with the agreement that the facility stay true to its mission, Olafson said.

That lease has been terminated, Olafson said.

City officials have not discussed whether a name change is in the work for God's Gym, given that it's now a city program.

But the nonprofit group that ran the gym is already calling the facility by another name: Elgin's East Side Outreach Center.

"The Elgin Recreation Center/God's Gym is no longer in business and the board has changed the name of the facility to delineate that," said Jarrig Visser, chairman of the Elgin Recreation Center board.

He declined to provide additional details.