Gold Center financial plan presented
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A second meeting was held at the Mount Ayr Community School Monday, June 12 to explore the financial plan for the proposed Gold Center and answer community questions.
Daric O’Neal opened the meeting by reviewing the Gold Center floor plan in greater detail, exploring the potential uses and revenues for the proposed spaces including:
• 4,500 SF north entry and lobby with staff offices to the east plus an additional 2,700 SF co-working space for private and shared offices to the west
• 13,000 SF career and technical education area with 4 classrooms on the far east side for automotive, welding, and shop style classes
• 12,600 SF aquatic area with overhead doors to provide outdoor air for the 5,000 SF surface area pool
• 8,700 SF competition sized gymnasium
• 5,400 SF fitness area (weights/cardio space)
• 4,400 SF walking track with 3-lanes (approximately 1/12th of a mile) above the gymnasium
Kim Bishop, the Dean of Student Services at Southwestern Community College (SWCC) then addressed the crowd of nearly 50 people. Bishop encouraged the group consider locating the Gold Center here stating “Ringgold County has an opportunity to serve as a catalyst for the area.”
Bishop then introduced the nine person Gold Center executive board members including the six in attendance:
Brad Elliott, representing Mount Ayr City Council
Kim Greenland, representing Ringgold County Development
Dr. Ann Ionnatta, community representative
Brandi Shay, representing Mount Ayr School Board and the Gold Center finance committee
Mike Kemery, representing Ringgold County Development and the Gold Center finance committee
Jodie Geist, Ringgold County Development Corporation Director
Finances and sustainability figures, drafted by reviewing four similar facilities, were then presented by Brandi Shay.
Approximately 25% of costs for the proposed $20M facility are expected to be covered by grants:
$1M – SWCC Grant
$1M – EDA Grant
$1M – DEKKO Grant
$2M – Other Grants
The remaining funding is expected to come from 5.5M in donations and 2M from the pool bond, leaving 7.5M to be raised by a capital campaign. Shay noted that the finance committee did include the pool bond in their projections, should the Mount Ayr City Council decide to partner with the Gold Center project.
The finance committee, including Brandi Shay, Mike Kemery, and Morgan Waldeier, also presented separate pool operating projections. If the 5-6 million dollar pool was not included with the Gold Center, the facility would save approximately $111 thousand per year according to projections:
$186K pool expenses
$75K pool revenue
($111K) net loss.
Projected operating revenue of $504,050 in the first year is expected to come primarily from memberships (52%)with additional revenue coming from rent (19%), special events (10%), a lease for the pool (15%), and ongoing donations (4%).
The Gold Center executive board aims to serve 500 members in their first year including 200 individual members, 200 families, and 100 seniors/retirees. Membership rates are initially expected to be:
$36/mo – seniors
$40/mo – individuals
$55/mo – families
After the presentation, audience questions were shared anonymously using menti.com and answered by Gold Center executive board members and AMPA project manager Daric O’Neal.
Questions can also be emailed to:
thegoldcenterprojectia@gmail.com
(See next week’s Record News for questions asked and answered during the meeting.)
