At a meeting on Aug. 6, the Cottonwood City Council unanimously voted 6-0 to approved a change in the fee schedule for the Cottonwood Rec Center.
Councilman Ruben Jauregui was absent.
The new rates will go in place on Tuesday, Oct. 1.
The new fees are not a uniform increase or decrease compared to rates mean a price increase for members who live within the city of Cottonwood compared to before, but a price decrease for non-Cottonwood residents, though the differing prices for different time periods mean that is not uniformly true. For instance, where an adult one-year membership used to cost $305 for residents and $385 for non-residents, it now costs $325 for all. A one-month adult membership went down for both residents and non-residents, from $40 or $50 respectively to $35 for both. But day passes went from $6 for Cottonwood residents and $7 for non-residents to $8 for both.
According to City Manager, Ron Corbin, that change was made deliberately in an effort to discourage day passes, since they take up more of the CRC staff’s time than monthly memberships. The price changes are part of a series of efforts by the Parks and Recreation Department to increase the revenues of the CRC, including trying to find a way to get more work done without having to hire more staff members.
When Corbin took over as Cottonwood city manager at the beginning of the year, he tasked the Parks and Rec staff to find ways to make the CRC pay for 75% of its operating costs, as had been intended when the building was proposed several years ago. According to Corbin, the CRC has been so far paying for 60% of its operating costs through fees alone.
“Our goal is to get as close to 75% as possible by the end of Fiscal Year 2020,” Cottonwood Parks and Recreation Director Hezekiah Allen said.
Beyond the fee changes, the city is aiming a slew of changes at expanding the membership of the CRC in order to bring in more revenues. According to city data, CRC membership is disproportionately older, so the Parks and Rec department is seeking to find ways to bring in more younger members. That plan includes expanded classes, featuring some already established brands like CrossFit, as well as revamping the equipment to better serve users.
“One of the things with the facility is that you always have to be current, looking at what’s out there in ways that you can improve,” Allen said.
Already, the CRC expanded its hours, staying open until 10 p.m. instead of 9. According to Allen, the change was made in a way that allowed the department to actually make do with the same amount of staff — by focusing on keeping just certain parts of the CRC open in the early morning, allowing the CRC to have less staff and also to use less electricity.
