City extends pool deal with YMCA

New facility?

We had a committee of ten people and had two locations pinpointed, but when we closed our day cares in Donnellson, we had to put those on hold.”

Ryan Wilson, YMCA Executive Director

FORT MADISON – The Fort Madison YMCA and Fort Madison City Council are so happy with the agreement in place to manage the city pool, they’ve extended it five years.
At Tuesday’s regular City Council meeting, YMCA Executive Director Ryan Wilson said this is the fourth time an agreement has been reached and 2024 was another great year.
“If you think pools make money, you’re in the wrong business. We get a management fee along with a payment to offset some losses,” Wilson said.
“When we met in September, we made some changes. The agreement will now be a five-year agreement instead of three. Things have been going really well, so why not extend it?”
He said some language has been cleaned up around utilities, which are also picked up by the city. There was also a small change to the insurance coverage that was upgraded to a $3 million policy.
“Every year has been a good year. Last couple years we’ve done some morning events and Donut Dunks with sponsorship from Fareway. We’ve done some local swims sponsored by businesses on Saturday and Sunday only and usually have about 200 swimmers on average for those community swim days,” Wilson said.
Because of the success of the programs, the cost to businesses went from $400 to $750 dollars.
“It's been great. We have our year-round pool with lifeguards all the time with day passes and memberships, and it makes sense for us to continue with this outdoor pool.”
Wilson said city staff has been great to work with and any issues they've had, the city has handled promptly.
Mayor Matt Mohrfeld asked about where plans are at for a new YMCA and recreational facility.
Wilson said he met with City Manager Laura Liegois in June to discuss the issue.
“We did some community analysis and created a stakeholder group. We had a committee of ten people and had two locations pinpointed, but when we closed our day cares in Donnellson, we had to put those on hold,” Wilson said.
He said when those buildings are sold, the conversations will start up again when the YMCA can put some money back in their coffers.
Liegois said the agreement with the YMCA is a good one and works very well for the city.
The management agreement was motioned and approved 5-0 with two councilmembers absent.