Low cost-recovery numbers for the Gibsons and District Aquatic Centre suggest it's time to start planning for a new facility, Sechelt director Darnelda Siegers told the Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) community services committee last week.
A staff report presented at the committee's Nov. 14 meeting showed the Gibsons pool's cost-recovery rate was substantially lower than other recreational facilities in the SCRD, at just over 16 per cent last year.
The rate reflects net operating revenue as part of expenditures and spells out the level of subsidy each facility receives through taxation.
By comparison, the cost-recovery rate for the Sechelt Aquatic Centre was almost 41 per cent, the Gibsons and Area Community Centre was almost 38 per cent, the Sunshine Coast Arena in Sechelt was almost 27 per cent, and the Pender Harbour Aquatic and Fitness Centre was more than 31 per cent.
With the Gibsons pool seeing increased participation during the past year, staff recommended the committee adopt a cost-recovery guideline of 16 to 19 per cent for 2013 and 2014.
But that figure, Siegers noted, marks an increase in the level of subsidy from previous years.
"Maybe we need to look at replacing this facility," she said. "We're putting in $600,000 over and above our revenue each year for a facility that's getting more costly each year and will require more and more maintenance, changes and capital expenditures. With the revenue coming in at $117,000, maybe it's time to look at whether or not it's feasible to maintain this facility or move it forward."
One possibility that has been discussed is building a pool attached to the Gibsons and Area Community Centre.
"I don't know if we've got room there," Siegers said, "but I think it's something that we should do at this point before we go forward and spend more money on upgrading an aging facility. Sixteen per cent, honestly, is not sufficient. The rest are much better."
Other directors, however, did not share Siegers' sense of urgency.
Pender Harbour/Egmont director Frank Mauro said the cost-recovery rate was important for setting targets, but secondary to "getting the participation of the community and ensuring these facilities are accessible."
Board chair Garry Nohr said he did not see the numbers "as a heavy duty thing," noting that variables such as boiler shutdowns can affect the data.
"It looks to me like you've got goal posts that you can work by, and it looks like we need to work at one particular area a little harder than we are," Nohr said, adding that he would like to see Dakota Ridge included in the breakdown.
Committee chair Lee Turnbull agreed with Nohr that the numbers had to be viewed in the context of recent years' "incredibly ambitious building plans" and program changes.
But Turnbull, who has long argued that the Gibsons facility's drop in usage was due to programs being shifted to the Sechelt pool, also conceded that Siegers had a point.
"I tend to agree with director Siegers that you've got to be starting to look at how much you're investing in old facilities and start looking at what benefits you get from a new one," Turnbull said. "We do have a lot of debt at the moment, so I'm not excited to get into it immediately, but I do think it should be on the planning horizon."
Given the financials, Siegers said she believed it was "required" that staff looks at the issue now, "so they can actually advise us when the time is to redo the pool."
Turnbull said the matter had already been the subject of at least two staff reports.
In his report to the committee, recreation services manager Bruce Bauman said the cost-recovery rate of facilities is a standard measurement used to monitor financial performance, but not the only measure, "as recreation is an investment in the community."
