Their goal is a brand new aquatic center, recreation and health facility in Port Townsend.

After two years of discussions and study, a collaboration of local government and non-profit recreation advocates has concluded that Jefferson County is capable of constructing and supporting an $11-13 million state-of-the-art facility at Mountain View Commons in the center of Port Townsend.

The effort has been spearheaded by the Jefferson County Family YMCA, which would build and operate the facility. It can be self-supporting within the first two years, said Kyle Cronk, chief executive officer of the Olympic Peninsula YMCA, based on an expectation of at least 1,300 family memberships.

"We think this is operationally sustainable," he said.

However the rough estimate of $11-13 million in construction costs would have to be raised by the community, Cronk said. There are not yet specifics about a building complex, but an early estimate places its size at 33,000 to 46,000 square feet.

"We need a feasibility study to see where the money is coming from," he said. "We're not ruling out any sources," including local fundraising, grants and assistance from state coffers.

Among the leading partners of the collaboration is Jefferson Healthcare. Chief Executive Officer Mike Glenn has been deeply involved in the discussions. He said the YMCA facility would be embraced by the JHC as a central component for physical therapy and health services. While JHC would likely not put money directly into the capital construction, it would probably become a prominent renter to use the aquatic center and other health equipment for rehabilitation, physical therapy and wellness programs.

"We will be an enthusiastic supporter and a tenant," Glenn said. Current off-site physical therapy and rehabilitation clinics could be moved and expanded at the YMCA complex, he said.

OTHER PARTICIPANTS

Other leading participants in the discussions have been Port Townsend City Manager David Timmons, Port Townsend School District Superintendent Dr. David Engle and Dr. Earll Murman, who has been a longtime proponent of an aquatic facility first through Make WAVES and now through the Jefferson County Aquatic Coalition.

"This is a big play," said Glenn. "But the reason we're so enthusiastic is that all the stakeholders are sitting around the same table, and we can support this to make it happen. There are 99 ways it can go wrong and one way it can go right, and this (collaboration) is that way."

Erica Delma, director of the Jefferson County Family YMCA, organized and facilitated the discussions.

"There is this overwhelming sense of relief and hope, of 'my goodness, this could work!'" said Delma. "People know the Y, and there are so many partners that it takes the pressure off any one entity."

Philip Morley, Jefferson County administrator, has been involved as have, over the months, various elected officials and other agencies, including the Port of Port Townsend.

MARKET FEASIBILITY

This week the group, which met under the moniker of Collective Impact, is releasing the results of a market feasibility study performed by an Alabama survey specialist on YMCA projects, Daxko Consulting. Based on a telephone survey of 805 Jefferson County households, the study concluded that there is adequate support for a new facility, that the aquatic center is its most popular component, and that the Mountain View campus is the location that would have the greatest countywide support, among other things.

The survey also asked about a Port Hadlock location which also generated strong support, but the Port Townsend location had double the support among those surveyed.

Mountain View is owned by the Port Townsend School District and is leased to the City of Port Townsend for 15 years, renewable for another 15 years. It already hosts YMCA programs, along with the indoor non-regulation size pool built in the 1960s, the Port Townsend Police Department, the food bank, KPTZ radio, American Red Cross and other nonprofit entities. The envisioned capital plan would involve substantial new construction.

RECREATION PROGRAMS

According to a YMCA description, "the facilities would offer activities for all ages including a gymnasium, health and fitness equipment and programs, an indoor aquatic center, onsite physical therapy operated by Jefferson Healthcare, youth and teen programs, and community outreach programs."

Based on this description, 39.5 percent of the 805 survey respondents said they would be very interested and 14.7 percent said some interest. A total of 33 percent said they had no or little interest. (See related story of other survey results.)

Murman said the public support shown by this feasibility lined up with the results of a Make WAVES market study done a few years ago, even though the methodologies were different. He and other aquatic center proponents are fully on board, he said.

"There is a huge advantage with being involved with the YMCA," he said. That nationwide entity is well-known, has a history with many residents, and has planning and operational expertise, he said. An existing multi-use YMCA facility and aquatic center in Silverdale is a good example of what could work in Jefferson County, said supporters.

"What Silverdale has built is an almost perfect solution for what Jefferson County needs," said Glenn.

The YMCA facility in Port Angeles that Cronk currently manages has 1,000 member units but does not have an aquatic center. The community-owned Sequim Aquatic Resource Center (SARC) has a pool and some indoor recreation facilities.

Statewide, the YMCA has built seven new facilities in recent years, said Cronk.

CAPITAL PROJECT

The capital expense is daunting, said the key planners, but they expressed optimism that it could be done.

Glenn noted that Jefferson Healthcare is about to engage in its own capital construction project which it expects to do without a tax-supported bond. The Port Townsend School District plans to come to voters in 2015 or 2016 seeking support for a major bond to substantially rebuild the elementary school and make improvements to the high school campus. The City of Port Townsend is looking at an early 2015 vote to support repairs at the current Mountain View complex and the Carnegie Library building focused on roofing and HVAC systems.

Dr. Engle's support of the pool project is in part tied to the district's shift to a maritime-based curriculum, which includes ensuring that all Port Townsend students learn to swim and are comfortable in the water. The district would also benefit from expanded after-school services offered by the YMCA, Delma noted.

NEW & EXISTING

While no decisions have been made about the facility, Glenn said it likely will be a hybrid of existing and new structures. According to Murman, some of the facility planning that went into the failed Make WAVES aquatic center effort can be used by the new project. Make WAVES had planned its facility at Kah Tai Lagoon Nature Park, which generated environmental opposition.

Glenn said the facility could become the key piece of an ongoing revitalization of Jefferson County's social and health services. Noting he's "in the weeds with this," envisioning how Jefferson Healthcare's wellness programs can expand to contribute to community health, he added that he also has a longer view.

"At the treetop level, it's really exciting," the hospital administrator said. "There is a community social service renewal going on, I would argue it's not a minute too early." A health-oriented complex would help current residents and attract the next generation of residents, including younger families for whom robust health and recreation facilities are increasingly important, he said.

The group has realized, however that "nobody is going to rescue us," said Murman. "It's up to us."