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Parks board reviews qualifications for facility design contractors
After spending more than an hour Wednesday evening evaluating the qualification packages from firms interested in renovating the City-County Community Center and selecting the three top firms to come back Feb. 3 to make presentations at a special parks board meeting, Matt Schneringer, Osage Prairie YMCA executive director, surprised most of the board members, as well as parks director Robin McHugh, by proposing that the YMCA add onto their facility and take over the day-to-day operation of the community center, with the city paying to furnish the facility.
McHugh told the board that she thought Schneringer wanted to talk to the parks board about co-operative recreational activities, not the community center.
Jim Novak, parks board president, said that he invited Schneringer to make his pitch to the board.
"We need to look at all options," Novak said.
Schneringer told the board that he thinks the YMCA can build a 13,500-square-foot facility for about $2.2 million and then lease the facility, which would be open the same hours as the YMCA, from 5 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., to the city.
The city would than pay the YMCA an administrative fee to run the facility.
He said the YMCA would continue to allow free access to the gymnasium and they would work with he city to determine a rental price for a community room that will handle about 200 people. He said they will also take an unused racquetball court and turn it into a teen center as part of the project.
"We think we can provide a better facility cheaper and reduce the parks department budget," Schneringer told the park board.
He said that by the YMCA borrowing the money and then building the facility, instead of the city building it, they can save money by not needing to pay prevailing wage, like the city.
In response to a question from McHugh, Schneringer said that while some of the current community center staff could transfer to the YMCA, most of the operation of the facility could be done with their existing staff, saving the city money.
However, before the parks board takes a serious look at this proposal, Harlan Moore, interim city manager, said that Schneringer should meet with him to see if the idea is even possible.
Moore said that he wished that Schneringer had met with him before bringing it to parks board, since they are better equipped to research whether the idea is feasible.
The parks board proposal included closing Walnut Street, and adding a double gymnasium on the north end of the current facility, which they plan to renovate. The project is one of those approved by Nevada voters when they renewed the city's 1/2 cent recreation sales tax for nine years. The park board has budgeted about $3.5 million of that sales tax money to do the renovations and build the new gym.
The parks board also spent nearly three hours reviewing and setting fees at the Frank B. Peters Municipal Golf Course. They decided to leave the green fees and cart rental fees, junior season passes, additional adult season passes and cart storage fees unchanged. However, they approved increases in several other fees at the golf course, including: Increasing an adult season pass from $435 to $475; increasing the senior season pass from $325 to $355; increase the trail fee from $354 to $400; raise the cost of 75 balls on the driving range from $4 to $5 and 25 balls from $2 to $3.
At the urging of Novak, the board established a new package for golfers who own their own golf cart. These golfers who purchase a season pass, trail fee and use the city's cart storage, would not have any increase in those fees from 2008, which will be $989 for an adult and $878 for a senior.
They also approved a new marketing tool to get more people using the course.
Between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., Monday through Friday anyone who rents a golf cart for 18 holes will get a free round of golf.