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Councilmember Terry Bishop asked, "What's the smallest community you've done this fort?" The answer was New Richmond.
The Y Consultant continued, "You'll draw from a larger area than Victoria. Lifetime Fitness is geared towards young-er people and singles. A big portion of our membership is families with kids six months to ten years old. We have lots of summer programs for kids. The Y comes at it from a family perspective. It's a whole different environment. The Y is a nonprofit and it's really good at it. It's a different market. People are less self con-scious at a Y. We're a good match for a community center."
Mayor Jerry Bohn asked, "How many members would it take to make it work?" The Y Consultant replied, "Probably a couple thousand." To another question he replied that the market study would cost approximately $25,000, to be shared by both the Y and the City of Victoria.
"Part of the study is a timeline that can make it work," he said. "The pool, the childcare, the fitness all provide the synergy to make it work."
"Pools don't cash flow. They cost money," said Anita.
Councilmember Richard Tieden asked how responsibilities would be divided between the pool and the Field House. The Y consultant replied, "You could put it together or keep it separate, and it may change over time. The Y's goal is to be a contribution to the commu-nity but we need to break even. The issue is protection of the kids … We would probably need one main access to the facility for that reason."
Councilmember Richard Tieden said the Field House is running "pretty close to capacity right now" with 400 members.
Said the Y Consultant, "I'd hardly call that capacity. You're just using the hard hours. We're talking about increase-ing your membership times six."
"They would be Y memberships?" asked Councilmember Bishop.
"Yes," replied the Y Consultant. "We're interested and we're prepared to commit time and money. The market study would center on how can you increase membership and how much would it cost to operate. We'd like to reduce what you're spending. The market study should show that. If it doesn't, you shouldn't do it. We want accurate infor-mation."
"We would be offering to pay for half a market study if we did think it could happen," he said. "You are providing ser-vices for your community that, frankly, every community subsidizes."
Kristy Mock, Victoria Park and Rec Supervisor, asked about cost of member-ship for the Y.
Yvonne, another Y representative, stated, "About $89 per month for a family membership, about $52 for one adult. Typically there is a $10 fee for swimming lessons."
Councilmembers realized this meant over $1,000 for an annual membership. Stated Anita, "Most of our people pay on a month to month basis. $89 is not a great value for a fitness center, but it's not bad for a pool and adventure space. And not everyone has to be a member to partici-pate in a Y."
"How did we get to this point?" asked Councilmember Tieden. "There are other options for us. We can build a pool on our own." Richard also inquired how the Y came to spend so much time and effort on such a detailed plan for Victoria.
Stated Tom the Y Consultant, "We are not coming here with an agenda. We've only taken a concept and set it on a site. It's only been a half day's work. Our mistake was probably not knowing who to talk to."
Stated Anita the Y Vice President of New Development, "When I left here this past summer, I thought people were look-ing for some kind of partnership."
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After the YMCA representatives left City Hall, councilmembers discussed the proposal among themselves and referred to the Y's partnership with the City of Andover.
Said Councilmember Bishop, "Ando-ver has 20,000 people to help pay for it and they're not breaking even."
It was reported that each taxpayer in Andover is contributing $40 to $50 annu-ally in taxes to pay for the joint venture. Currently, each taxpayer in Victoria is paying close to $60 annually to support the Field House - without a pool and without a partner.
Referring to the YMCA proposal, Councilmember Bishop stated, "If we levy for it, our houses will be burned down. And if we do a referendum for it, our houses will be burned down. I don't think we can enter into an agreement … This is somewhat of a new concept. We know how the Y does it. We don't know how the cities do it. Going from $200 or $300 for membership up to $1,000 is a lot. Our constituency wants a pool; they don't want to pay for it. The Y gets the benefit of breaking even. We don't. I think we'd be leading people down a primrose path."
Councilmember Mary Thun made a motion to thank the YMCA for coming forward and to ask the Victoria Field House board and staff to look at other partnerships.
OTHER NEWS FROM NOVEMBER
NEXT ON THE AGENDA: BAYVIEW STREETS
*Council scheduled a public hearing on the 2006 street, drainage, and utility improvements for the Bayview neighbor-hood for Thursday, December 8th, at 6:30 p.m. There are 17 assessable units. Total street and stormsewer cost is $423,000; per unit assessment is $12,400. Total municipal water cost would be $105,000; per unit assessment would be an addition-al $6,200. Terry Bishop suggested that financing be allowed over 30 years rather than 15 years if all improvements are ap-proved. Bayview residents are currently on private wells.
*Resident Gene O'Brien said the City of Victoria should consider posting warn-ing signs at the Lake Virginia culvert be-cause of the city's current potential liability.
*Resident Lawrence Williams said that the property in front of his house has been torn up and sodded three times, re-lated to location of the sewer stub. It has also cost the homeowner.
*Council accepted a feasibility report for two sanitary lift stations that would serve a large area to the west of Victoria. They are proposed to be located within the Krey Lakes development.
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