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If you’re thinking of renewing your city rec center pass, now is the time. Now, I say!
Come January 1, the cost of belonging to one of the city’s (soon-to-be) 25 rec centers will be among the many Denver Parks and Recreation-related fees that are scheduled to increase.
Instead of paying a cool $150 a year for a rec center pass, adults will have to fork over $190. The cost of a yearly youth membership will remain at $35, but the price of three- and six-month youth memberships will rise, to $10.50 and $20 respectively. Adults will also shell out a bit more: $52 for a three-month pass, up from the $37.50 it costs now; and $100 for a six-month pass, up from $75.
The price of rec center day passes and family swimming pool passes will also rise.
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The increases are the first in three years, says spokewoman Jill McGranahan. Currently, the city only recoups about 12 cents for every dollar it spends on the rec centers — not a very good, or sustainable, return, McGranahan says. The new fee structure will push that return to 18 percent, she says.
And, officials hope, not break residents’ banks in the process — at least when compared to the $370 a year a Denverite could pay to belong to a gym like 24 Hour Fitness. “Even at $190 (for an adult rec center pass), it’s still a heck of a deal,” McGranahan says.
Other recreation-related fees will increase too, such as fees to use Denver athletic fields, reserve parks for special occasions and rent Sloan’s Lake.
That’s right. For $910, the man-made Sloan’s Lake can be all yours for four glorious hours. Tempting. Very tempting.
