Cutting hours at community centres, such as the Hillcrest Aquatic Centre which a reader says is dirty and overcrowded, will only encourage paying customers to go elsewhere resulting in reduced revenue for the park board.
Photograph by: photo submitted , for Vancouver Courier
To the editor:
Re: "Cut hours," Central Park, Dec. 19.
The Vancouver park board needs to take a business perspective on their facilities. I have a 10-day pass that I use once a week at Hillcrest. The brand new facility is usually dirty and overcrowded. I have two friends with Park Board Flexipasses, although one has just left for Anytime Fitness (a 24-hour gym), citing the better hours and being tired of watching his dues go up every six months.
When the community centres shorten their hours, or close completely for a day, they a) prevent pay-per use customers such as myself from using their facilities, denying themselves the income, and b) reduce the value to pass-holders, encouraging them to switch to places like the YMCA and Fitness World.
All this to save $50,000? Have any of the commissioners asked themselves how much this will cost?
Daniel Gore,
Vancouver
