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CA panel, staff disagree on discounted memberships for senior citizens

A panel of Columbia Association board members has suggested discounting CA memberships for senior citizens, but the association's chief operating officer believes that would cut into revenue and, perhaps, not bring the intended benefits.

The board's planning and strategy committee voted 3-0 on Thursday, Nov. 10, to recommend a 10 percent discount on memberships to its pools, gyms and other facilities for Columbia residents 65 and older, which could be combined with other available discounts.

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Such a move would encourage more seniors to use CA facilities and programs, particularly as the number of people in that age group increases, committee members said.

Members of CA's senior advisory committee also support the proposal. "CA is not capturing the share of seniors who want to keep fit," Paul Verchinski of Oakland Mills, the senior committee's chairman, said at the meeting.

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But Rob Goldman, the association's chief operating officer, said CA is already drawing more seniors than it used to.

CA had a discount until a few years ago, offering 15 percent off new memberships for adults age 65 and older, Goldman said. But what has driven the growth in senior membership has been the creation of programs, facilities and services serving their age group, he said.

In the mid-1990s, the number of CA members who were 65 and older was 650, or 1.1 percent of the association's total membership, Goldman said. That has grown to 3,201, or 5.1 percent of total membership.

"And that's growing every year, so the strategy we've adopted has been successful," he said. "Will a 10 percent discount attract a significant amount of new members? I'm doubtful. I think better programs, services and facilities that are suited to people in that age group will continue to attract more."

Annual prices range from $210 for an individual outdoor pool membership to $3,168 for an unlimited membership at the Hobbit's Glen golf course. The most popular memberships are the Package Plan Plus membership for numerous facilities, which costs $918, and membership to one fitness club, which costs $552.

Goldman said CA would need to sell 567 new memberships to seniors in the first year to make up for the discount, and even more in subsequent years, as more people enter that age group.

Also, he said, census data shows that 66 percent of those 65 and older in Columbia could get CA's income-qualified discount, which is 50 percent. Of the remaining 34 percent, one-third have incomes greater than $100,000, he said, and can easily afford CA facilities.

But Shari Zaret, who represents Kings Contrivance and is on the planning and strategy committee, said losses in revenue now would be made up for in the future.

"CA becomes a place known as competitive with the Y, for example," she said. "I think we can have that strategic longer view and say, 'Will we gain over time, over three years, over five years, as we continue to build and become known and market some of these programs?' I think the answer is yes."

The other committee members are Alex Hekimian of Oakland Mills and Ed Coleman of Long Reach.

The idea also had the support of board member Gregg Schwind, who represents Hickory Ridge.

"I've heard some of the numbers, but what I don't think this is considering is the upside — which is how many more seniors we'll be able to attract with this discount," Schwind said.

The committee's initial proposal had been a 10 percent senior discount for all CA services, not just memberships, a move that Goldman said "would cost the organization considerably more money."

Other board members suggest different discounts, such as 5 percent off, or having seniors "lock in" at the rate they're paying once they turn 65.

The recommendation for a 10 percent membership discount will be discussed by the full board at its Nov. 22 meeting.

Pool discounts

The planning and strategy committee also voted 2-1 Thursday to recommend that residents receive discounted memberships and daily admissions for five of CA's least-utilized outdoor pools: Faulkner Ridge, Jeffers Hill, Locust Park, MacGill's Common and Talbott Springs.

A similar program was in place for about a dozen years until 2008, according to Hekimian, attracting 200 discounted memberships in its first year.

Board member Michael Cornell of River Hill said he was concerned that the pools might be under-utilized for a reason, and that the discounted memberships might only be used by those already attending those pools. If so, the change would just cost CA money instead of attracting more visitors.

Goldman said CA tracked those who had bought the former program's discounted memberships: About half of the 200 had already been paying the full rate to use the pools, which meant CA lost money on them, while the other half, after a year, did not renew their memberships.

Though CA's aquatics master plan process is considering dramatically altering three of the least-used pools — perhaps enclosing one while turning the other two into water-themed playgrounds — the proposed discounted memberships are a stop-gap measure until that work is done, Hekimian said.

Hekimian and Coleman voted in favor of the recommendation; Zaret opposed it.

The committee did not vote on other proposed discounts, including incrementally reduced membership rates for those who have lived in Columbia for more than five years and a 25 percent discount on admissions to facilities during off-peak periods.

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