Center Detractions: More people — fewer, older rec centers has city looking for answers

AURORA | Aurora’s recreation centers have a reputation for being outdated and inadequate for a city of nearly 350,000.

“The nicest thing we have is the water playground at Del Mar,” Arnie Schultz said half jokingly. Schultz is the chair of the Aurora Parks and Recreation Board, and president of the group Aurora Residents for Recreation.

The city has five recreation centers, with one specifically for youth. Beck Recreation Center is the only full-service facility in Aurora. It is also the largest at around 57,000 square feet. It went through a $7.5 million remodel in 2012 that took the city almost a decade to fund without additional revenue, said Tom Barrett, director of Parks, Recreation, and Open Space.

That cannot be said of Meadowood, Moorhead or Expo recreation centers, which were all built in 1975. All three have received minimal, if any improvements.

Princesses take a break from dancing to color in their crowns during Fairytale Princess Camp July 21 at Meadowood Recreation Center. Aurora City Council toured recreation centers this week as part of a study session to look at the state of the centers and what could be done with more funding. (Marla R. Keown/Aurora Sentinel)

Eza Zazueta (front left) and Kira Stookey (front right) show off their dance skills during Fairytale Princess Camp July 21 at Meadowood Recreation Center. Aurora City Council toured recreation centers this week as part of a study session to look at the state of the centers and what could be done with more funding. (Marla R. Keown/Aurora Sentinel)

Kira Stookey show off her dancing skills during Fairytale Princess Camp July 21 at Meadowood Recreation Center. Aurora City Council toured recreation centers this week as part of a study session to look at the state of the centers and what could be done with more funding. (Marla R. Keown/Aurora Sentinel)

City-owned property at South Telluride Street and East Vassar Place is a potential location for a future central recreation center. The Parks Department designed plans that would include a family aquatic space, gymnasium, fitness areas and multipurpose exercise and community meeting rooms. (Marla R. Keown/Aurora Sentinel)

Gymnastics instructor Kendall Fawcett tickles Violet Andrusyszn’s toes during warm ups July 22 at Meadowood Recreation Center in Aurora. Although Meadowood received minimal renovations they started a new gymnastics program this spring. Aurora City Council toured recreation centers this week as part of a study session to look at the state of the centers and what could be done with more funding. (Marla R. Keown/Aurora Sentinel)

Owen Abele laughs away the tickle monster during gymnastic warm ups July 22 at Meadowood Recreation Center in Aurora. Although Meadowood received minimal renovations they started a new gymnastics program this spring. Aurora City Council toured recreation centers this week as part of a study session to look at the state of the centers and what could be done with more funding. (Marla R. Keown/Aurora Sentinel)

Ethan Abele finds his balance on a beam July 22 at Meadowood Recreational Center in Aurora. Although Meadowood received minimal renovations they started a new gymnastics program this spring. Aurora City Council toured recreation centers this week as part of a study session to look at the state of the centers and what could be done with more funding. (Marla R. Keown/Aurora Sentinel)

Charlotte Howard colors in her crown during the Fairytale Princess Camp July 22 at Meadowood Recreation Center. Aurora City Council toured recreation centers this week as part of a study session to look at the state of the centers and what could be done with more funding. (Marla R. Keown/Aurora Sentinel)

“The problem you have with our facilities is you’re confined by the footprint that’s in place. And in order to do something more significant, you have to spend significant money,” Barrett said.

More than half of the Aurora City Council toured recreation centers inside and outside of city limits July 21 as part of a study to look at the state of the city’s recreation centers and what could be done with more money.

The council looked at the city-owned property at South Telluride Street and East Vassar Place that Aurora Mayor Steve Hogan proposed last year could be turned into a central recreation center.

The city purchased the 20-acre site — now a vacant field next to a newer neighborhood in Ward V — in 1998 with the idea to turn the space into such a facility. The Parks Department even worked on a design plan for the site that would include a family aquatic space, gymnasium, fitness areas, as well as multipurpose exercise and community meeting rooms. The design, priced at $33.5 million, was part of a ballot initiative that failed with voters in 2011.

Last October, the council also voted down an initiative by Hogan to spend $2.7 million on design plans for the center. Instead, they agreed to spend $750,000 on laying out a plan to attract outside investors.

“They’re not a moneymaker,” Barrett said of recreation centers in general. “There’s always lots of discussion about public-private partnerships. But there are not necessarily as many willing participants to partner with the city. We want to believe it would potentially work here in Aurora but thus far, we have not seen that success.”

The council took the same approach to improvements citizens wanted to see at Moorhead Recreation Center in northwest Aurora. Last October, as part of its 2014 budget allocations, the council approved $1 million in seed money to give to outside organizations to expand the center.

“That public-private partnership hasn’t moved forward either,” Barrett said. “That’s a $9-million project and thus far, we have $1 million in the bank. We’re optimistic with the foundation’s assistance on this endeavor that we’ll see success. I wouldn’t be able to forecast whether that success will be in three years or six years.”

As part of the tour, the council visited Meadowood Recreation Center at 3054 S. Laredo St., home to the city’s new recreational gymnastics program. The building is also used for a preschool program and the small gymnasium is split in half to accommodate fitness classes.

“We started the new gymnastics program in the spring, and we had 239 spaces, which we filled with 119 on the waiting list,” said Lori Daniel, manager of Recreation Services for the Parks Department. “This is our farthest south center in Aurora. The only other thing we have as far as a recreation center in this area, is the Summer Valley Ranch. It’s a little farm house where we do preschool programs with two rooms.”

Daniel said some Aurora residents in this part of town opt to use Trails Recreation Center instead.

The Trails Recreation Center, a $17.5 million facility located in Centennial that’s part of the Arapahoe County recreation district, boasts an indoor river walk and play area. That’s in addition to a separate indoor lap pool and outdoor pool. The facility includes an airy, central fitness area with specialized rooms for cycling and other classes. It even has its own pottery studio replete with a kiln.

Its design is modern and open like the Apex Center in Arvada. The opposite of the boxed-in retro feeling of many Aurora facilities.

Julie Holmgren, the recreation facilities manager for the center in Centennial, said the recreation facility’s existence is because of a voter-approved measure in 2004.

According to its website, the district assesses an 8 mill property tax, and from that amount, 4 mills goes back to paying the bond debt.

Schultz said Aurora Residents for Recreation would not pursue petitioning to get a measure on the November ballot for any tax increases to fund recreation centers. That would require 8,000 signatures from citizens, and would need to be completed by September 5.

Hogan said the city may need to negotiate with other recreation districts since voters won’t approve a tax increase.

“It’s terribly frustrating,” he said. “Unless the people of Aurora want us to negotiate in some way with Denver to figure out how Aurora citizens can use Denver facilities, and pay Denver for it, that’s about the only option left. I don’t want to do that.”

Hogan said he was unable to attend the tour. Council Members Bob Roth, Barb Cleland, Renie Peterson, and Marsha Berzins were also absent from the tour.

4 replies on “Center Detractions: More people — fewer, older rec centers has city looking for answers”

JustSayin says:

July 24, 2014 at 9:23 am

Daily visits or monthly punch cards to rec centers cost more than a monthyly gym membership at 24 Hr Fitness, possibly even more than their membership that allows access to most or all of their gyms. It is, like many government-run institutions, inefficient. The voters said no. Let it go. The city does not NEED to provide rec centers because 10% of the population may want to use them.
Silver Fox says:

July 24, 2014 at 10:25 am

Commercial operations like Bally and 24 Hr Fitness are not designed for children and are not even a little family friendly. Old farts like me have converted Aurora from a great place to raise a family into a great place for us old codgers to sit around the Starbucks (or barbershop) and gripe about how bad things are today and talk about how great it was in the good old days. It’s not that folks don’t want family oriented rec centers, the reality is that only old codgers vote and old codgers are too cheap to invest in the next generation like their parents did for them. Old codgers rule in Aurora!
Erin says:

July 24, 2014 at 2:26 pm

I lived in Parker 20 years, then Denver. I have to say my kids really used the recreation centers. Perhaps they don’t seem cost efficient but they do attract families when determining where they want to live. They were used for so much more than just a gym. It looks disgraceful in a city this size to have so few libraries and rec centers. Not family friendly at all. My kids are grown. It’s not a big deal to me anymore but it sure was when I had my own family. It is why I moved from here to Douglas County. And when I was in college I used Denver libraries because Aurora must have the worst library system in the metro area. Even Lakewood had better libraries. Now that’s sad.
Just thinking says:

July 25, 2014 at 4:40 pm

Why didn’t the city buy the Mission Viejo recreation center when they could? It isn’t a huge facility, but it has both an inside and outside pool and an infant wading pool. It has tennis courts, volley ball, as well as exercise equipment rooms, aerobic facilities, child care facilities etc. yes, it needed some work but the basics plus are there. It could have served resident from Yale to smoky hill, Buckley to Parker road and more.