Denver Council considers increased rec center fee structure

Denver City Council's Land Use, Transportation & Infrastructure Committee will meet on Tuesday June 7 to discuss proposed changes that affect the City's recreation centers.

The changes, as proposed by Denver Parks and Recreation (DPR), would create a tiered facitlity and membership structure for the City's rec centers. Rec centers would be classified as Regional, Local, or Neighborhood based on thier size, location, amenities, hours, and pricing.  The recently opened Central Park Rec Center in Stapleton would be one of seven 'regional' centers.  According to DPR, 'the Regional Centers were selected because they are larger centers which house more amenities such as competitive size basketball courts or indoor pools. The will be operational 7 days a week, have been equitably distributed to ensure 7 day a week coverage across the City, and will have a higher pricing structure.'

The DPR documents submitted to City Council propose increases to the individual Adult membership fee from the current $190 per year to a range of $180 to $360, depending on rec center tier. Youth memberships, currently $35 per year, would range from $30 to $95. Two additional changes would be the addition of a Young Adult membership category for those ages 18 to 24 (currently classified as 'adult') and the creation of a Family membership package which would provide 50% discounts to additional members after the head of household.

According to DPR's bill request to Council, 'This new pricing structure will increase DPR's cost recovery model targets by potentially increasing revenue by $900,000 and will bring Recreation fee [sic] more in line with metropolitan Denver municipal proce structures.'

Copies of the bill request, executive summary, proposed tier alignment and fees (obtained from the City's website) can be viewed here.

The Council committee's public meeting will be held Tuesday June 7, 2001 at 10:30am, in room 391 of the City and County Building, 1435 Bannock Street.