In the swim: City council moves ahead with aquatic center plans
"If you build it, they will come" was the catch phrase at Hillsboro City Council meeting Tuesday evening.
Nancy Ronto, director of operations of Burbach Aquatics, Inc., Keystone, Colo., presented the council with information about building and running a family aquatics center. Ronto began working with the city when Burbach was hired to do a feasibility study of building a new pool almost a year ago.
The feasibility includes three parts — feasibility and design, engineering and design, and construction.
"There is potential to run a profitable aquatic center," said Ronto.
According to Ronto, the profit margin is a combination of two things. An updated facility costs less than an old pool to operate. One reason Hillsboro's 50-year-old pool cannot be run efficiently is the high and continued cost of maintenance.
The way to make an aquatic center profitable is through management.
"You can't treat an aquatic center as a baby-sitting service," said Ronto. "It has a quality-of-life value to the community."
The consensus of the council was the management style of the pool will have to undergo major changes if it is to become profitable.
"The city has the responsibility to offer services to the community," said Ronto, "but the city does not have to give away the services."
"If we think 2006 is going to be the inaugural year for a new pool, we need make changes now in how we manage the pool," said Steve Garrett, city manager.
Rondo told the council she believes there are four components of the day-to-day operation of an aquatic center — charges for daily admittance, programs and special events, concessions, and merchandise.
"You want to attract a broader age-spectrum of pool goers," Ronto said. "People who come early and stay late and spend money on the amenities."
The estimated cost of the aquatic center is $2.6 million which the council proposes partially to pay for with a one-half cent sales tax increase.
The council will hold a work session to iron out the details of the costs of building and operating a new pool before it brings the proposed sales tax increase to a vote.
The council approved a 2.7 percent cost of living allowance increase for city employees.
"The 2.7 percent increase is based on the national economy. We used social security as the marker," said mayor Delores Dalke. "People who get social security are getting a 2.7 percent increase this year. We want to keep city employees' wages on the level of the cost of living."
The council received bids for auditing services for the city. All bids were for a three-year period with Adams, Brown, Beran, and Ball of Hillsboro and McPherson presenting the low bid of $21,750 not including a single audit which would be $28,450.
Knudsen Monroe & Company, LLC bid $22,850 increasing to $24,350 for a single audit. Swindoll, Janzen, Hawk & Loyd, LLC, of McPherson bid $25,158 and $31,158 with a single audit.
The council will make a decision at the next council meeting.
The council approved Ordinance No. 1094 which changes the residential monthly electricity rates from nine and one-half cents to nine cents per KWH.
In other business council:
— approved resolution No. 2004-04 which prescribes the form and details of and authorizes and directs the sale and delivery of general obligation refunding bonds in the amount of $640,000.
— approved ordinance No. 1095 which authorizes the issuance of the city's general obligation refunding bonds in the amount of $640,000.
— approved ordinance No. 1096 which regulates the sale of alcohol and cereal malt beverages and provides licensing and penalties.
— approved $5,094 for safety training for city employees.
— agreed to further research Tim Isaac's request to vacate an alley way adjacent to his property at 108 S. Elm.
