Editor’s note: Transcript provided by CoverGov.
Sports Facilities Cos., a Florida developer and manager of publicly owned sports facilities, is the new manager of Hurst’s Central and Chisholm Aquatic centers.
The Hurst City Council approved the agreement at its Dec. 16 meeting. The staff recommended the change, saying the city’s two aquatics centers serve more than 45,000 visitors each summer, but have become increasingly difficult to manage efficiently. Council members approved the change 6-0.
Persistent staffing shortages, escalating costs for repairs and regulatory compliance, and technical demands of meeting standards for water quality management, safety and mechanical infrastructure have “increasingly strained” the city’s ability to manage the centers, the staff told council members in a report for the December meeting.
Local property-tax reform and other budgetary constraints “further underscore the need for stronger cost-recovery strategies and more efficient operations,” the staff said.
Two nationally recognized aquatics management firms studied Hurst’s operations, the staff said, noting the city is subsidizing the aquatics centers with $1 million in property tax receipts and $700,000 from an economic development fund.
City Manager Clay Caruthers told council members the city hopes to save money through the management agreement via “economy of scale and different marketing along with (better) food and beverage offerings,” according to minutes from the meeting.
The city staff told the council the two management firms “provided comparable strategies to improve staffing stability, maintain safety and compliance, strengthen preventive maintenance and asset lifecycle management, and enhance the food and beverage offerings.”
“These companies will leverage their national industry partnerships with specialized vendors, bulk pricing agreements through existing service contracts, established workforce pipelines, and technological resources to implement private-sector pricing and policies,” the staff said.
Sports Facilities “demonstrated the strongest alignment with the city’s operational priorities, particularly in aquatic facility operations, staff transition and hiring, planning, safety management, and community access programming,” the staff said.
The staff estimated the city will pay a management fee of $20,000 per month in the first year of the contract, “with 5% to 7% annual inflation adjustments thereafter, for an initial term of no fewer than three to five years with multiple term renewal options.”
The city will continue to pay for “routine operating costs” in its general fund budget, the staff said.
The city will continue to fund capital improvements through its capital projects process and coordinate them with Sports Facilities to “ensure competitive pricing, warranty compliance and long-term system performance.”
To learn more about how the transcript that informed this report was created, visit covergov.com.
Scott Nishimura is senior editor for local government accountability and a Fort Worth City Hall reporter at the Fort Worth Report.
If you believe anything in this account is inaccurate, please email us at news@fortworthreport.org with “Correction Request” in the subject line.
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