We will soon begin constructing an Aquatics Center on Condit
Road just south of the existing soccer complex.
We will soon begin constructing an Aquatics Center on Condit Road just south of the existing soccer complex. This facility will include several recreational pools, a sprayground, a 50-meter competition pool, locker rooms and picnic areas. It is scheduled to open in May 2004.
In addition to the Aquatics Center and the already-opened Community and Cultural Center, we are adding an Indoor Recreation Center that includes youth and senior facilities, a new police station, an outdoor sports complex and a new library. In short, we are building the facilities that our community needs and deserves. By investing in quality public facilities now, we will reap rewards for generations to come.
Some in the community have asked the valid question of how the city can afford to develop the Aquatics Center given the current economic struggles that all levels of government are experiencing. The answer to this question is really two-fold.
First, in terms of construction costs for the facility, the funding to build the facility has been allocated from the city’s Redevelopment Agency (RDA) funds which cannot legally be used to support ongoing operations. While some may argue that RDA funds could be used for other construction or assistance projects, there is certainly no question that a significant number of Morgan Hill residents enjoy aquatics sports and that this wonderful facility will meet a longstanding community need. An aquatics facility was specifically called for in our Communitywide Visioning Process.
It is the second half of this question, how to fund the ongoing operations and maintenance of the facility, that is significantly more complex and has received the lion’s share of the City Council’s attention. In answering, it is important to recognize that the aquatics facility will serve two separate, yet compatible, types of uses. By designing the operation of the center strategically around the different needs of both recreational swimmers and competition swimmers, the city’s operational expenses will be minimized.
Recreational users (folks that enjoy lap swimming, beginning swimmers and children playing in the sprayground) will primarily be using the facility during the summer when school is out and the weather is hot. Competition users (swim teams, water polo teams, and swim meets) will be using the facility year-round. Since staffing and operating the entire facility year-round would be inefficient, the city is pursuing a dual operations model which meets the needs of both types of users without draining the city’s coffers.
The city’s Recreation and Community Services Division will be responsible for operating the facility during the high-usage summer months. During this time, the entire facility will be open for all types of aquatic recreation. Similar facilities in other communities have found that the user fee revenues from recreational users are adequate to cover the facility’s operational expenses.
The Morgan Hill Aquatics Foundation will raise funds and operate the facility during the remainder of the year. During this time, only relevant parts of the facility will be open for use. While it is expected that the facility will have net operational costs during the first year or two of its operation, it is expected to break even in subsequent years. City staff will be closely monitoring the facility’s cost recovery so that we can minimize the city’s costs and, if necessary, close down the facility during low cost recovery periods.
Many years from now, we are confident that this first decade of this new millennium will be regarded as a highlight in Morgan Hill’s history as we build public facilities that will serve us for decades to come. I invite you to watch our rapid progress on the Aquatics Center in the coming months and look forward to seeing you next May at the grand opening.
Dennis Kennedy is mayor of Morgan Hill. Readers interested in writing a guest column should contact editor Walt Glines at ed******@mo*************.com or 779-4106.
