Community Center yearly family membership fees to go up by more than $600

By Leah Shaffer

The fitness area of the new Community Center is set to open by Jan. 2, in time for residents to work off post-holiday pounds. What may be harder to shake off is the sticker shock some residents have felt after seeing the increase in membership fees.

For a household, the annual membership rate is going from $265 to $924.

According to resident Michael Boland, the fee increase puts the amenities “out of reach for the very people this thing was designed for.”

Boland served on the Community Center Expansion Committee, Athletic Programs Taskforce and Outdoor Pool Committee back in 2002-03. Tuesday evening, he took his concerns to the City Council during the open podium portion of the meeting.

Parks and Recreation Director Jay Lotthammer noted that the city has received a couple of letters about that fee increase for families. If a resident wants a membership, they are being asked to pay a rate that’s more reflective of what it takes to include that higher level of offerings, he said.

“The costs in the past have been reflective of the smaller level of amenities,” he noted. There really wasn’t much there to attract people to a membership, so it had to be priced accordingly, he said.

Now that the Community Center is doubling in size with more amenities, “that’s reflective of that price jump.”

Lotthammer noted that the fitness component of the facility is expanding by about four times.

“We’re going from what used to be a fairly small fitness area to more of a feel closer to a health club.”

Affordability

Boland said back when he was on the committees looking at the Community Center expansion, they came to the conclusion that there was a large group of Eden Prairie citizens not being served or being underserved by the private sector for a variety of reasons. That included niche groups like elderly individuals, young families or underprivileged community members, according to an e-mail from Boland.

 “The general mantra was, we have to make this affordable for those people that can’t afford the private clubs, but [we’re not just] giving it away either.”

To address the needs of low-income residents, Lotthammer said staff is suggesting that the city look at extending the “Passport to Fun” program.

Through that program, people who qualify based on financial need have been able to access open skate and open swimming but not the fitness component. If the program is expanded, families who qualify could pay half of the membership fee ($462) to access the fitness facilities.

Other pricing

Lotthammer noted that even with the increase in fees, the city is still subsidizing the Community Center. Based on their projections for 2008 and 2009 with those fees, the Community Center “doesn’t break even.”

Boland noted that when you take into account what neighboring communities are doing, “They’re charging what seems to be a reasonable price,” of $300 to $500 per family per year “and they’re offering open skating and open swimming and Pilates and all the things that are going to draw those young families and older people into the center and make a nice community amenity.”

A quick comparison of other suburbs shows that the Shakopee Community Center offers access to fitness equipment, a gym and open swim at a rate of $240 a year for families. Over at Minnetonka’s Williston Fitness Center residents can pay $630 for access to fitness equipment, the pool and gym.

Lotthammer explained that it’s not easy to compare municipal community centers.

“We’re also getting some comparisons to facilities that are not all that like our facility,” he said.

Some offer pools, some don’t, some offer fitness rooms, some do not, and some suburbs do not operate a municipal fitness center.

“We tried to look at what we thought were atleast fairly similar,” Lotthammer said.

The city looked at Chaska which offers a premier rate of $774 (which includes childcare and group fitness) and basic rate of $374. Eagan and Inver Grove Heights offer similar amenities for $1,032 and $948 per year, he said.Lotthammer noted that a town such as Maple Grove may only charge $330 for access to its community center, but that does not include access to a fitness room. Residents there would have to pay almost $1,800 for a Life Time fitness membership in that case, he noted.

 “You’re getting up towards almost a couple thousand dollars to do at Maple Grove what you’ll be able to do here in Eden Prairie”

Community Center construction on track

The new Eden Prairie Community Center is on track to open its Fitness Center and Group Fitness Studio in time for Jan. 2. Also opening in January will be the expanded men’s and women’s locker rooms.

According to a Parks and Recreation staff presentation, the front entrance will be open on or before March 1. The child-care facilities and inside play structure are set to be open on or before May 1.

Membership includes: use of all the fitness equipment, fitness classes, racquetball, Wallyball court access, open gym, open swim, open skate, discount on room rentals, priority booking for event room, discounts on personal training and specialty fitness classes.

The new fitness facility will include a variety of new pieces of equipment including 15 treadmills, 15 ellipticals, Step Mills, trainers, rowers UBE trainers and weight machines. The Community Center will include new locker rooms, a new children’s play structure and new gymnasium along with a third ice rink.

According to the Community Center Frequently Asked Questions (available at www.edenprairie.org under Community Center) new members can participle in insurance reimbursement programs through BCBS of Minnesota, HealthPartners, Medica, Ucare and Definity. 

If people become members now, they can waive the $25 membership fee, visit www.edenprairie.org for a full list of fees for the new center.