Answer: Any person can buy a day pass to either the aquatic center for about $4 a day or the entire facility for about $10 per visit. What a great way to spend your day!

Answer: The project will cost about $15M to build. If the sales tax initiative passes, think of it like this: for every $100 you spend at Woodland Park retailers, the tax will mean an additional $1 to you, the consumer. That $1 goes into the fund to build the YMCA. Initially, we will need to work toward raising $2-4M in a capital campaign, and then the City would secure a bond for the remaining $11-13M that will be paid out with the tax increase. Given the current economic climate, if the tax revenues remained constant, the bond would be re-paid in 20 years, and the tax will be sunsetted once the bond is paid off.

Answer: In preparing the financials and bidding out this project, our City Manager, David Buttery has compared a number of funding options, and the committee agreed that the combination of a capital campaign and a sales tax increase would be the best financing option. His research and planning have included interest costs and the timeline we can anticipate for this process, but obviously, the sooner we start, the sooner we will have a YMCA facility in Woodland Park!

Answer: Sales tax is different from property tax, in that it carries a higher degree of appreciable risk. The financing for this project lies with those who shop in our community – and studies show that almost half those revenues come from visitors and people traveling from outside our community.

Answer: The principal would be repaid simultaneously – the principal and interest are both wrapped into the numbers presented, so there isn’t the potential for a large interest payment coming due and sinking this project. Wal-Mart committed for the long haul, and they aren’t going anywhere. It is extremely unlikely that they would leave this community.

Answer: The question cannot be as simple as whether voters want the facility – they’ve already shown that they want the YMCA facility. The real question is whether they’re willing to spend 1% more in sales taxes to underwrite the costs associated with building this facility.

Answer: The tax increase could be deemed temporary – once the facility is paid for, the tax will sunset and that tax will no longer be collected. There are no services lost or forgone for those living in Woodland Park.

Answer: This tax would be specific to the YMCA, and while no one can predict an end to this economic downturn, it is safe to say that it will get significantly better over the next few years, so the project won’t be in jeopardy.

Answer: The recent Gruen & Associates report shows that approximately half of the sales tax revenues generated in Woodland Park comes from local residents. The remainder comes from visitor and tourist traffic, as well as those who live in outlying areas of the County.

Answer: We will need to obtain signatures on the petition from at least 15% of the registered voters in Woodland Park, roughly 800 – 1,000 signatures, in time enough that the signatures can be verified before the election deadline. Once that requirement has been fulfilled, the election question has to pass with a majority in support of the tax initiative at the April 6, 2010 elections.

Answer: We believe the property adjacent to Memorial Park is the best for for a number of reasons: (1) The City already owns this land – the plans and drawings are specific to this location; (2) One of the goals in building a YMCA here is to draw traffic into our downtown area, and drive more growth in the local businesses; (3) This location makes the facility accessible from all parts of the City, and thus a more feasible option for after-school programming.

Answer: There have been a number of surveys in recent years, and they all point to one thing – residents here want more than just a place to swim. Residents have shared that they want racquetball courts, a track, weight training areas, wellness rooms, climbing wall, family fun pool, and a lap pool. The facility as presented does not include a competitive pool or diving well, as those were among the more expensive options, and knowing that we will likely only draw in two swim meets per year, these options were eliminated from the list because they were not costeffective.

Answer: The YMCA organization is a non-profit entity, and it operates such that any surplus monies are re-invested in the general reserve funds that fund programming, services and equipment. After their overheard costs are covered, any remaining income is used to underwrite capital expenditures and equipment maintenance costs that are not a part of the daily budgets. The mission is to build strong families, not to clear a profit…

Answer: Each YMCA facility is designed to be autonomous within the community where it resides. The members of the community determine the programming, and most facilities are locally staffed. This facility would bring about 100-120 new jobs to the community, of which 10-15 jobs would be full-time. The remaining jobs are part-time, and more prevalent in the summer months (i.e., day-care supervision, swimming lessons, life-guarding). The Y taps into the youth population for these roles, hiring high school and college students.

Answer: The Y conducts an Annual Fund Drive to assist within the community for slidingscale subsidy. Membership Fees account for about 50% of the revenues, Program Fees are another 15%, Charitable Donations equal about 25%, and Day Use Fees are the remaining 10%.

Answer: Membership for an Individual costs $60 per month; for a Family the dues are $80 per month; Youth or Teen Memberships are $25 per month; Senior Adult membership costs $34 per month. Visit www.ppymca.org to use the YMCA’s membership calculator to determine your specific household membership rate.

Answer: More and more often, this collaborative approach is the norm.

Answer: There are comparable sized facilities in Monument and Pueblo, but it is more difficult to make the comparison, because the surrounding communities are significantly larger in number than Woodland Park.

Answer: Using the Pueblo YMCA as an example, they first pursued a commitment from the City and the County, and then went to a number of foundations to request grant funds to further their progress. It is definitely more beneficial to be able to show foundations and corporate donors that the community is already vested in the project before they agree to buy in for the capital campaign.

Answer: As a non-profit entity, we cannot speak to what a particular foundation or group would give towards this project. We can share what we know about their giving history with the YMCA facilities in the Colorado Springs area, and then go from there. Unless we can demonstrate that the public is behind the project, it doesn’t make sense to pursue it.

Answer: The only comparison for the timeline is the Tri-Lakes facility, which took about 13 months. Its realistic to expect our project may take 16-24 months to complete, given the potential construction delays with winter weather in Teller County, and any obstacles with the capital campaign.

Answer: One to two years, again, dependent upon funding for the capital campaign and potential weather delays.

Answer: As a non-profit, its not ethical for us to lobby for the tax increase because we aren’t taxed in the same manner as a retailer or consumer. However, we can offer materials that address our programming and policies in great detail, pieces that explain about the services we offer, and often times, we find that these materials can sway those folks who aren’t “sold” on the idea.

Answer: The facility, as drawn, would have some flexibility to expand, but if we are talking about taking up more of the space at Memorial Park, then the community has to vote to approve that change before we can commit to it.

Answer: It’s not too late – we can still revisit the design options, but there is a certain amount of value-engineering in moving or relocating some things. Again, the advantages here are that this is City-owned property, and that this is an opportunity to draw visitors into our downtown. The requests for qualifications were submitted by a number of construction firms, and the bid was awarded to Nunn Construction. They typically bid out about 75-85% of their jobs, and this would bring work to local contractors from Woodland Park.

Answer: Given the timing, we may opt to alter a few things, but the components the committee has selected are essential to the success of the facility. We’d like the construction to follow the drawings as closely as possible, as they represent the wishes of those in the community.

Answer: Yes, the fitness center would be located on the second floor.

Answer: A competition pool adds $2M to the price tag of this project, and with only two swim meets anticipated per year, the community cannot re-coup its investment. There’s a very small percentage of Y members who prefer to lap-swim – this is a good place to cut back on the front end, and when the community grows, the competitive pool could be added when its more feasible.

Answer: There would be no competitive lap pool, but the compromise is a section of 3-4 lanes roped off specifically for lap swimming.

Answer: Hopefully the capital campaign has laid the financial foundations before construction begins. Yes, the donations do slow down once he build begins – people see the progress and think, “Looks like you’re rolling right along here, why do you need my donation?”

Answer: No, if the tax initiative passes with a citizens’ referendum, then it takes effect immediately. If it passes on the ballot April 6th, it is likely that retailers will begin collecting the tax as early as May 1st.

Answer: The Y will help us prepare our marketing materials, and we hope to have them at the same time as the petitions, next week. The marketing pieces will address their questions, and direct them to the website for more detailed information.

Answer: The way this usually splits out in other communities, is that the Y manages the indoor programs (i.e., swimming lessons, basketball, etc.) and the local Parks and Rec Department manages the outdoor activities (i.e.s, baseball, soccer, volleyball, etc.) It is important to stress that we are not using tax dollars for the purpose of competing with previously established private enterprises, and the Y facilities offer much more than a traditional health club. The local gyms will likely see a difference in their clientele, as many adults prefer to work out in an environment without children present. The Y’s primary service is that they are a large afterschool-care provider. Consider the example of UPS and Federal Express – they compete with the post office every day, and continually raise the bar or overnight delivery.