Mission city officials are worried about the long-term financial “viability” of Sylvester Powell Jr. Community Center.

Use of the center, 6200 Martway St., has been trending downwards for years, following the opening of a Planet Fitness nearby and improvements to other neighboring cities’ community centers, according to city documents.

Cost-recovery levels — that is, the amount of funds raised by the 24-year-old community center in order to cover its expenses — bottomed out during the pandemic, bouncing back slightly last year but still falling well below even.

The city recently paid a consultancy $40,000 to conduct a feasibility study and put together a business plan to figure out how to bring that cost-recovery rate closer to even.

Current cost-recovery levels are ‘not sustainable’

• The community center’s annual cost-recovery rate pre-pandemic was between 75% and 85%.
• That fell to 34% in 2020, the first year of the pandemic, and 31% in 2021
• The rate jumped back up to 55% as of 2022, but that was largely due to a grant that offset the community center’s expenses for camp programs.
• “This is a community asset, and if we want it to stay a community asset, then we have to be very sensitive to the financial viability and sustainability of it so that we can do that,” City Administrator Laura Smith said.

An action plan targets a 70% cost-recovery goal

• Leon Younger of Indiana-based PROS Consulting, Inc., presented the results of the feasibility study to the city council during a recent work session
• Younger laid out an action plan that calls for the community center to “maximize program options,” ramp up recreational offerings and events at the the center for users of all ages and increase the use of the space.
• The plan urges city to adopt a business model for Sylvester Powell to track “elements of use, participants, revenue and expenses.”

The council is wary of adding burden to center staff

• After Younger’s presentation, Councilmember Ken Davis said he worries about setting a 70% cost-recovery goal and then beating up on community center staff for not reaching it.
• Smith, the city administrator, said a clearer cost-recovery goal may actually alleviate pressure on staff because the goal posts wouldn’t change as new councils take over.
• Mayor Sollie Flora said she hopes staff knows their best interest is at heart for the city council, and that that was demonstrated by keeping everyone on board even through COVID-19 shutdowns.
• “Where we succeed, it’s because of amazing staff and where we don’t succeed, it’s on us,” Councilmember Ben Chociej said. “I think that’s the attitude that we all share.”

What are the next steps?

• A committee will take up the information and discussion during a future city council work session for final review.
• Smith said after that committee meets, the plan is to come back to the city council to share a programming list and a financial pro forma.
• This information should be available starting in May as the city council kicks off its 2024 budget discussion, Smith said.

Go deeper: Watch the entire March 29 city council work session below.