Council to consider proposed rec center fees

A Maricopa family interested in using the city’s new recreation facility set to open this March could be looking at an annual membership fee of $676. For a family that lives outside the city, the proposed price is $845.

These two figures are part of a long list of proposed membership prices city residents and non-residents could pay to use the facilities inside the 52,000-square-foot Multigenerational and Aquatic Center under construction at Bowlin Road and John Wayne Parkway.

The city council will consider approving the fees Tuesday.   

The $20 million center is one component of the Copper Sky Recreation Complex, which also includes a regional park featuring a five-acre lake, eight multi-use fields, a dog park and baseball fields.

Jennifer Campbell, Maricopa’s community services director, said city staff developed the prices by using fees from other community recreation facilities as benchmarks and aiming for a cost-recovery percentage that would assist in covering the center’s operation expenses.

“We wanted to have a 75 percent cost recovery,” she said. “That was my goal.”

Prices were also developed by referencing a 2012 report from Brailsford & Dunlavey, a program management firm contracted by the city to complete an operational assessment of the center, which included estimated operation costs.

According to a city staff report, the center is expected to generate an annual revenue of about $1.49 million. The center’s yearly expenses are estimated at $1.98 million.

The remaining expenses will be covered by money from the city’s general fund, Campbell said.

Memberships will give people access to the center’s fitness area, pools, gymnasium, indoor track, certain fitness classes and a supervised daycare area. Rates will be higher for people who live outside Maricopa.

The proposed membership rates are broken down into several categories: daily, one month, six months, annual and a 20-visit fee.

The proposed daily price for residents is $5 for adults, $4 for seniors and $3 for kids 17 and younger or a person enrolled in school. Residents could purchase a 20-visit punch card for $50 (adults), $40 (seniors) and $38 (youth/students).

A senior would be defined as anyone 62 years of age and older.

For membership fees one-month or longer, adults and seniors could have the option of purchasing two-person memberships. Family memberships – defined as one or two adults and up to four children – would also be available. An additional family member could be added into the family membership for an additional fee.

For a full list of prices, click here. 

Maricopa’s proposed fees are similar to prices in other Arizona cities with recreation centers of nearly the same size.

Cottonwood’s 54,000-square-foot recreation center has the same adult resident daily and monthly prices as the city staff’s proposal. However, the adult resident annual price – $275 – is less than Maricopa’s $338.

Flagstaff’s 50,000-square-foot Aquaplex recreation center charges a $6 fee for adult residents compared to Maricopa’s possible $5 fee. The northern Arizona city has a slightly higher price for annual adult memberships at $341 – only $3 above Maricopa’s proposal. Flagstaff’s recreation facility does not sell one-month memberships.