Denver recreation center fees to increase dramatically, thanks to vote by city council

Fees to use the city's recreation centers will increase dramatically on September 1, thanks to a bill passed last night by Denver's city council. Instead of paying a flat fee to use all 27 rec centers, users will now buy a pass for one of three tiers: neighborhood (small centers),...

By Melanie Asmar

July 12, 2011

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Fees to use the city's recreation centers will increase dramatically on September 1, thanks to a bill passed last night by Denver's city council. Instead of paying a flat fee to use all 27 rec centers, users will now buy a pass for one of three tiers: neighborhood (small centers), local (medium-sized) and regional (fully loaded). The bigger the rec center, the higher the cost. In some cases, much higher.

Adults ages 25 to 64 will pay $190 per year for neighborhood center. Adults who want to use local centers will have to pay $249, and the cost to use the regional centers will be $369 per year.

In most cases, that's much more than what users pay now. Currently, adult rec center memberships are sold in three-month ($52), six-month ($100) and annual ($190) increments, and all members can use all centers.

The new tiered structure includes a new category of users: young adults, ages 18 to 24. Memberships are less expensive for them, and even cheaper for youth and seniors.

The city's Parks and Recreation Department has also standardized facility rental costs. For example, it will now cost $108 per hour to rent a regulation-size gymnasium and $165 per hour to rent a pool with a kiddie play area.

At that price, Chuck E. Cheese might be a better bet for your kid's next birthday.

Melanie Asmar is a staff writer for Westword. She joined the paper in 2009 and has won awards for her stories about education, immigration and epic legal battles. Got a tip? She'd love to hear it.

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