Maquoketa builds $6M recreation center

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By Sheri Melvold | Monday, June 11, 2007 1:07 AM CDT | () comments

MAQUOKETA, Iowa — For the second time in just a few years, people in Maquoketa have opened their wallets to help build a major community facility.

The $6 million Area Recreation Center will have an indoor pool and gymnasium as well as exercise equipment and training area. The facility will be managed by the Scott County Family Y when it opens this fall.

In 2004, the town opened the 841-seat Ohnward Fine Arts Center auditorium, built with 95,000 volunteer hours and $900,000 in community donations.

The City of Maquoketa and the YMCA reached an agreement recently for the Y to manage the operations of the facility, as well as the city’s parks and recreation programs.

The center will include a six-lane pool. The original design called for four lap lanes, but the Maquoketa Swim Team asked the council last year to extend it to six lanes to allow for competitive swim meets. The pool is U-shaped, with lap lanes on one side and a zero-depth entry on the other. The lap lanes are 5 feet deep.

A full-sized gymnasium will allow for youth and adult basketball and volleyball leagues and other activities.

A fitness center on the second floor provides an oblong-shaped walking/jogging track, exercise equipment such as treadmills and bicycles and room for exercise classes. A window on each side of the fitness center allows participants to view the swimming pool and gymnasium.

Epic Construction officials told the city they expect the majority of the project to be completed by Aug. 31.

It’s taken several months to iron out the management agreement. City Attorney Mark Lawson said the contract is similar to the one the city has with Alliance Water Resources, which operates the city’s water and wastewater program. A steering committee made up of members of the YMCA and Maquoketa City Council members will oversee the operations.

The city will pay $125,000 per year to the Y to help subsidize the program. In the first three years, the city will provide an extra $75,000 a year to help get the program started.

Frank Klipsch, Scott County Family Y president and CEO, said that in the upcoming weeks, the Y will hire a director and put together the membership rates and programs to be offered.

Klipsch said the Y initially plans to offer a family membership at an estimated $39.50 a month, which is lower than the $56 a month charged in Scott County.

While the initial budget shows 1,100 membership units needed, Klipsch said Y officials are working on a new budget. He thinks the projected numbers are correct, but they won’t be reached in the first few months.

“It may take a year to get up to the numbers,” Klipsch said. “When it opens, it will be fully staffed. But we’ll adjust our costs to match our memberships.”

Programs from fitness to water classes and youth after-school activities will be planned. Klipsch anticipates programs beginning Oct. 1.

“Our programs will be based on our relationship-building and character development,” he said, adding programs might change as the community needs are determined.

Klipsch said the Maquoketa community raised more than $50,000 during its recent Partners With Youth Campaign, and Quad-City residents also got involved. The money will be used to help send children to YMCA camp and provide memberships and scholarships for kids.

The Y will assume the city’s parks and recreation programs. The summer programs already under way will stay under the city and programs will be transferred in the fall to the Y.

City Manager Brian Wagner said the financing package to pay for the almost $6 million project could not be put into place until the management agreement was approved. Now, the city is selling up to $2.65 million in pledge-backed revenue bonds to pay for the structure. The two local banks have agreed to purchase the revenue bonds.

Funding for the project includes revenue notes, grants, more than $2 million in private contributions and pledges and an internal loan. The city received a state Community Attractions and Tourism grant of $825,000.

The three-year contract with the Y contains an option to extend it. The 17-page contract also spells out details such as who maintains the building and cuts the grass. The Y also agreed to assist in collecting the pledges made to construct the building.

Scott County Y is just one of many projects under way

The Area Recreation Center is one of several major building projects in Maquoketa, Iowa.

-- The Maquoketa Community School District is building a 1,650-seat gymnasium and remodeling the existing cafeteria and commons area at the high school.

The $6.6 million project is expected to be completed next year. The cafeteria is the first part, which officials hope is completed by the time school starts in August.

The gymnasium will be sunk into the ground to allow a ground-level entrance, and it will include a wrestling room and multipurpose physical education area.

The project is being paid for with local-option sales tax money.

-- The Maquoketa Fire Station is being expanded to include four additional truck bays and a new training and office area adjacent to the existing structure. The fire department will continue to operate from the station during the construction. Residents passed a $2 million bond issue in the spring to pay for the project. Estimates call for the additions and remodeling to total $1.5 million.

-- Medical Associates is remodeling the former Jack and Jill grocery store for a medical office complex on West Platt Street. The staff plans to move this year from offices near Jackson County Regional Health Center at Vermont and Quarry streets.

-- Smaller projects include St. Mark’s Episcopal Church tearing down its parish house on Maple Street to make way for a single-story fellowship hall. Berthel Fisher is remodeling the former B&C Liquor store on East Platt Street for its offices, which are now located on Main Street.

“Maquoketa is experiencing some changes and growth,” Mayor Tom Messerli said. “The city and school recognize there’s a need to update and keep up with the times. It’s great to see the private sector also making changes.”

The city desk can be contacted at (563) 383-2245 or newsroom@qctimes.com.