Whether a $731,705 grant request by the Sequim Aquatic Recreation Center Board of Commissioners from the Clallam County Opportunity Fund is approved rest with the Clallam County Commissioners.

Following a public hearing held by the Clallam County Opportunity Fund Advisory Board on Dec. 18, the board unanimously supported a positive recommendation to the board of county commissioners to support the request.

Partners pend grant

“As a YMCA board member this money for the air handler is critical to our success and to our moving forward because I think that a piece of the puzzle is we don’t want to lease a building that has an air handler that’s at the end of its life and that we have a $731,000 bill hanging over our head because we do not have that money and we will not be successful,” Kelly Johnson, told the Opportunity Fund advisory board during the public comment period at the public hearing, “so I think its critical for us moving forward to have this air handler taken care of by SARC.”

Additional YMCA officials in attendance of the hearing echoed Johnson, but SARC board’s partnership with the YMCA isn’t the only partnership that hinges on the funding to replace the 20-year-old decrepit air handler unit.

The air handler is a car-sized piece of equipment required by the Washington State Department of Health and maintains the air quality, humidity and chemicals at a safe balance within the building on an indoor swimming pool, such as SARC, Frank Pickering, SARC board chairman explained.

The original grant request of $760,000 by SARC lowered to $731,705 by the time of the Opportunity Fund Advisory Board public hearing as result of further consultation by Abacus Resource Management Company, an energy services performance contractor and energy engineering firm from Issaquah.

In working with Abacus Resource Management Company engineers and officials with Washington State Department of Enterprise Services via an energy efficiency program, it’s estimated the air handler and water and waste system well suited for SARC could save about $17,750 in annual expenses.

“Air handler units do a lot of heat recover, which is where the majority of the costs go in the cost of these things,” Pickering said.

On Dec. 14 the Sequim City Council unanimously approved a contract to contribute $30,000 a year over three years to YMCA for low income memberships, but only if the grant request by SARC is approved.

“That motion that was approved unanimously is contingent on the request for $760,000 coming through county opportunity funds to help pay for this new air handler unit,” Joe Irvin, city manager assistant and parks manager said during the hearing.

“It’s very important to the City of Sequim that we find a way to reopen SARC,” he said “There’s a lot of jobs at stake in our community, it helps with real estate purchasing, bringing in professionals to the Sequim community and we have definitely worked with SARC and YMCA to bring this proposal to this point and we would like to see a positive motion move forward to the Clallam County Board of Commissioners.”

Lastly, a “very important partnership” in the effort to reopen SARC, which houses the city’s only public pool, is with Olympic Medical Center, Pickering said.

Although Eric Lewis, Olympic Medical Center chief executive officer didn’t attend the advisory board’s public hearing, he submitted a letter.

“Olympic Medical Center would like to express strong support for the SARC’s capital funds application from the Clallam County Opportunity Fund for a replacement air handler,” he wrote. “OMC is committed to partnering with the YMCA to successfully operate the SARC facility for the longterm.”

Within the letter Lewis outlines Olympic Medical Center’s intention to lease space in SARC to offer cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation, physical therapy, sports medicine and other chronic disease management services. By doing so, Lewis notes will generate a “significant” number of jobs.

Aside from the potential jobs created via the partnership and expansion of Olympic Medical Center into SARC, Pickering told the Opportunity Fund Advisory Board about 45-55 full and part-time jobs are to be recovered as a result of SARC reopening.

Concerns voiced

Despite the importance put on the need for a new air handler, Bill Hermann, Opportunity Fund Advisory Board member representing the Port of Port Angeles expressed concern with supporting a grant to purchase a piece of equipment when SARC closed despite its functioning air handler. “We could have a really nice air handling system and still no facility if you can’t figure out how to get the revenue here,” he said.

However, Gary Huff, chairman of the Olympic Peninsula YMCA fundraising board, responded to Hermann assured the Opportunity Fund Advisory Board with a number of reasons why the YMCA is continuing to move forward.

“In any business endeavor there are always guesses and in raising money there is always guesses, but we have long history,” he said. “And it isn’t just raising money either. We are putting together contracts.”

Huff referred to the forming $60,000 annual contract with Olympic Medical Center, the annual $30,000 contract with the City of Sequim and the Sequim School District plan to pay a certain amount for services, too, he said.

The grant application came before the Opportunity Fund Advisory Board after it was first reviewed and deemed appropriate to move forward by the Clallam County Economic Development Corporation.

The positive recommendation by the Opportunity Fund Advisory Board was one of four necessary steps needed to toward reopening SARC, Pickering said. Remaining steps include the approval of the Opportunity Fund grant by the county commissioners, approval of a final budget by both the Olympic Peninsula YMCA and SARC boards and lastly approval of a definitive management contract by the YMCA and SARC boards.

Opportunity Fund status

Alan Barnard, chairman of the Opportunity Fund Advisory Board provided an overview of what monies is expected to come and go from the fund. The grant request from SARC would come from a pool of $1 million the advisory board has budgeted for undesignated projects in 2016. The balance of the Opportunity Fund is nearly $1.5 million, and Barnard anticipates another $950,000 in 2016.

Beginning in 2017, the advisory board must be prepared to begin making an annual payment of about $725,000 from the Opportunity Fund on the loan for to build the Carlsborg sewer collection system until 2032. Additionally, for the next seven years, an annual payment of $48,194 for the loan on the business incubator project.

“Assuming nothing changes, the Opportunity Fund should have about $182,000 per year available to allocate per year toward new requests,” Barnard said.

Reach Alana Linderoth at alinderoth@sequimgazette.com.