The Madras Aquatic Center is making moves to provide the community with more recreational opportunities in and out of the water, partly in hopes that doing so will put the center on firmer financial footing.

Since opening in 2008, MAC has focused solely on its pool facility, which is the only one in Jefferson County. But financial necessity and a recent $75,000 grant have encouraged the center to expand and take on new duties.

This past spring, MAC temporarily closed in response to a $90,000 operating budget shortfall. By the time it reopened May 2, MAC had made up about $30,000, but the struggle to match membership and program revenues with mounting utility costs remained.

At the time, MAC board members considered asking voters to raise the tax levy that supports the pool, but decided against it out of concern for a struggling local economy.

“We are not going to do that at this point,” said General Manager Bobby DeRoest. “We want to be sensitive to the community. Other businesses are hurting as well.”

The aquatic center gets about 27 percent of its revenue from a property tax levy of 25 cents per $1,000 in assessed value, an amount DeRoest said is low in comparison with other park districts. The rest of its income comes from memberships, swim lessons and other programs.

Keeping the pool going can be a daunting task, DeRoest said, especially in winter, when utility costs can reach $17,000 a month.

DeRoest said the center aims to cut expenditures by another $15,000 by closing earlier in the fall and shutting down again temporarily in the spring.

The center did receive a one-year $75,000 grant from the Bean Foundation in July to promote and develop community recreation beyond the pool, and those programs could help generate revenue.

Since December, MAC has been in talks with officials from the city, county and school district on how it might develop other recreation programs in the community. The aquatic center also has worked to expand its status as a parks and recreation district, which was its legal designation when voters approved its creation in 2004.

Madras Mayor Melanie Widmer said Madras is one of the only Central Oregon population centers that doesn’t have a fully developed parks and recreation district, and the reason for this is funding.

“There’s has been a gap as far as recreation programs go, and we really want to create something more structured,” she said.

MAC already has used grant funds to hire its recreation director, Steve Keever, who, along with a University of Oregon community task force, is looking to develop new programs like fall soccer, softball and scrapbooking.

The center does not have plans to take over the area’s parks, which will remain in city and county hands.

“We’re not trying to take over any programs or push any programs out,” Keever said. “We’re trying to be here for the community as a hub where people can go and find out what’s happening in their community.”

He said the city and county have joined MAC in its efforts and are working out joint land use agreements for future activities.

Keever said the staff is also looking for new ways to attract the area’s Hispanic community, which makes up about 35 percent of the county’s population, and are working to increase the number of grants MAC receives over the next several years.

On the Web

For more information on programs and activities provided by the Madras Aquatic Center, visit www.macaquatic.com.