Melrose Y still under fire

Richard Whitworth, the 30-year Y president, last month announced he will resign, effective Sept. 1. But that has not quieted critics angry at the Y for its response to the arrest of James Conner, 51, a former Y girls basketball coach and an after-school program coordinator.

He is alleged to have raped two girls under age 14 who were on his basketball team, according to the Middlesex district attorney’s office.

Melrose Cares, a community group formed in response to the Y scandal, last week launched an online petition to have Nancy Madden, the Y’s vice president, removed by the board of directors.

“She is just as responsible as [Whitworth] is,’’ said Patricia Wright, a local lawyer who launched www.melrosecares.org. “I’m going to keep the petition up, until either she resigns or the board does the right thing.’’

A Y spokesman said Madden, a 20-year veteran of the Melrose Y, has no plans to leave. “She doesn’t believe she needs to resign as a result of this,’’ spokesman Doug Bailey said.

On June 22, the Melrose YMCA turned in its license for an after-school program at Beebe School to the state Department of Early Education and Care, which regulates after-school programs run by nonprofits. The program was also run in the summer at Beebe, a closed elementary school that the Y leased for its after-school programs for several years.

The Department of Early Education and Care investigated the Melrose Y after Conner was arrested Feb. 12 at his home in North Reading. In April, the agency issued a report, stating that the Melrose Y “failed to protect children from abuse,’’ and ordered the Y to freeze enrollment at the Beebe program and improve staff training and oversight, among other requirements.

By turning in its license, the Y does not have to comply with the order. “They don’t have a license anymore to operate at the Beebe School site,’’ said Constantia Papanikolaou, general counsel to the Department of Early Education and Care. “They’ve closed the program.’’

Instead, the Melrose Y has started a summer camp program at the Beebe site, which does not require a state license. Under state law, summer camps are regulated by a local health department. The Y obtained a permit to run a summer camp at the Beebe through August, said Ruth Clay, the city’s public health director.

Turmoil at the Y has rocked Melrose, where the YMCA has anchored downtown since 1890. Hundreds of residents attend health and fitness programs there each week, generating foot traffic for local business. “The Melrose Y really is the center point of our downtown economy,’’ said Mayor Robert J. Dolan. “It’s important that the Y succeed going forward.’’

Still, troubles at the Y prompted the Melrose public schools to expand after-school programs in the fall. The programs, previously run only at the Hoover and Horace Mann schools, will be offered at all five of the city’s elementary schools, Dolan said.

“It had always been our goal to have it at all the schools,’’ Dolan said. “Obviously, the Y situation was the impetus for this.’’

In February, Conner was charged after his arrest with two counts of rape. Then in April, after a second alleged victim came forward, Conner was indicted on 20 sex-related charges by a Middlesex County grand jury. The charges include five counts of rape by force of two girls under age 14.

He is also alleged to have videotaped the acts, according to the Middlesex district attorney’s office. Authorities say the alleged crimes were committed at his home and at the Beebe School, where he was one of three site coordinators of the after-school program. Conner, who has since been fired from the Y, is under house arrest.

An unidentified man who answered the telephone at Conner’s home last week hung up on a Globe reporter. Alan Tuttman, a Somerville lawyer representing Conner, did not return a call seeking comment.

The Melrose Y in late April issued a response to the state report, saying it reflected an “unbalanced or incomplete construction of facts that does not accurately nor fairly represent the conduct of Melrose YMCA staff members responsible for the health and safety of children ‘in the YMCA Beebe School Site Program.’ ’’

The state investigation also revealed Conner’s troubled employment history with area YMCAs. In 1983, he was hired to work at the Reading YMCA and was fired in 1995 for “inappropriate behavior’’ that included alcohol and drug use with a teenage counselor, the report states.

In 1996, the Andover YMCA hired Conner to work in its school-age program. At the same time, Conner was hired at the Melrose Family YMCA as a maintenance worker, swim instructor, and basketball coordinator, according to the state report.

In 2001, the report said, Conner was fired from the Andover Y for violating the YMCA Code of Conduct, by “playing favorites,’’ with a young girl, whom he would allow to sit on his lap on the Y bus. But Conner continued at the Melrose Y, where he eventually became a site coordinator at the Beebe after-school program.

Current charges against Conner do not relate to his employment at either the Andover or Reading YMCAs, according to the district attorney’s office. But in their response to the state, Melrose Y officials insisted the previous allegations were not confirmed and saw no need to report Conner to the state Department of Children and Families, which investigates complaints of neglect and abuse of children.

Conner’s arrest stunned Melrose Y parents. “He was a warm, cuddly, grandfather type,’’ said Glenn Mistretta, 39, whose two young daughters attended the Beebe program. “I never would have expected it. The program is great.’’

A trial date has not yet been scheduled. “It’s an ongoing investigation,’’ said Corey Welford, a spokesman for the district attorney’s office.

Bailey said the Y is eager for resolution. “We’re looking forward to the conclusion of the criminal investigation,’’ he said. “There is a lot we don’t know. There is a lot we’d like to know.’’

The Melrose Y now is focused on hiring a replacement for Whitworth, Bailey said. Whitworth was paid $151,146 in salary and benefits in 2007, the most recent year for which the Y’s income tax returns are available.

The board of directors - which asked Whitworth to remain until September - has consulted with officials at the YMCA of the USA, the national organization based in Chicago.

“The national franchise has been in discussions with the Y,’’ said Bailey. “That is not unusual in a case like this.’’

The Y is also enrolling youngsters for a new after-school program it plans to start in September at its headquarters at 497 Main St. “We’ve got more than 100 families enrolled so far,’’ Bailey said.

The Y must apply for a new license to operate the after-school child care program at its Main Street location, according to the state.

The Y’s policies, staffing, and training will be reviewed as part of the application process. A site visit will be made to the facility, state officials said.

And the Y’s response to the sex abuse scandal will also be considered.

“Certainly, their licensing history will be taken into account in reviewing any future applications,’’ said Papanikolaou, general counsel to the state agency.

Claudia Burnham, whose two young children attended the Beebe program, plans to enroll her children. “It’s an excellent program,’’ said Burnham, 43, noting that drama, art, and Spanish lessons were taught. “The staff is very caring.’’

Kathy McCabe can be reached at kmccabe@globe.com