Arlington proposing to close county gymnastics program

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents will happily pay more, its a good program.

+1

+2

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents will happily pay more, its a good program.

+1

+2

The gymanstics people and the swim people should pay for what the programs cost, including a share of the giant buildings dedicated to your sport that you use for free.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Should the county have a competitive gymnastics team - NO. This program has a million things wrong with it and mostly Carly. For a county sport they stack the teams with older kids just to look like a winning team and play favorites, the favorites being whoever would suck up to carly the most as well as go on her little fun trips where she posted pictures of teen girls in bikinis. They take the winning side too serious its a county gym and the county resides should be allowed to be on the lower levels of the team. Whe my daughter went there we had to try out three years in a row when other commercial gyms would take our kid. We also had to pay for lessons at other gyms. There are plenty in the area. The parents on the board are the worst a lot of elite rich women who think money is no issue just because it is not an issue for them. I hope they just kill the program all together and build a community center.

Your issue with the program is a single person? That's just a grudge.

Arlington already hosts competitive swim (including spending on the ridiculous facility that is Long Bridge) and host fields space for a million other competitive sports.

The swim team, AAC, is also ridiculous. The County should not be employing coaches and paying for competitive teams. They run rec leauges that are first-come, first-serve and that should be it.

AAC is half to one third of the price of comparable club swim programs. I realize the privately owned clubs need to make a profit, but it isn’t 50%! As a taxpayer I’m paying twice for lane space simply because I couldn’t sign up fast enough for AAC.

In an effort to be all things to all people, APS Parks and Rec ends up serving very few people. If they can’t get these programs to self fund, it’s time to shut them down. There is literally no limit to demand when you are charging next to nothing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Should the county have a competitive gymnastics team - NO. This program has a million things wrong with it and mostly Carly. For a county sport they stack the teams with older kids just to look like a winning team and play favorites, the favorites being whoever would suck up to carly the most as well as go on her little fun trips where she posted pictures of teen girls in bikinis. They take the winning side too serious its a county gym and the county resides should be allowed to be on the lower levels of the team. Whe my daughter went there we had to try out three years in a row when other commercial gyms would take our kid. We also had to pay for lessons at other gyms. There are plenty in the area. The parents on the board are the worst a lot of elite rich women who think money is no issue just because it is not an issue for them. I hope they just kill the program all together and build a community center.

Your issue with the program is a single person? That's just a grudge.

Arlington already hosts competitive swim (including spending on the ridiculous facility that is Long Bridge) and host fields space for a million other competitive sports.

The swim team, AAC, is also ridiculous. The County should not be employing coaches and paying for competitive teams. They run rec leauges that are first-come, first-serve and that should be it.

AAC is half to one third of the price of comparable club swim programs. I realize the privately owned clubs need to make a profit, but it isn’t 50%! As a taxpayer I’m paying twice for lane space simply because I couldn’t sign up fast enough for AAC.

In an effort to be all things to all people, APS Parks and Rec ends up serving very few people. If they can’t get these programs to self fund, it’s time to shut them down. There is literally no limit to demand when you are charging next to nothing.

I don't even know the origin story of how these particular sports got these sweet heart deals, but it's crazy. When I found out about AAC when my own kid started swimming I was surprised and now I found out about gymanstics and I'm surprised. I think the gymnastics people might not enjoy the general population's reaction to this as they try to drum up support.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Should the county have a competitive gymnastics team - NO. This program has a million things wrong with it and mostly Carly. For a county sport they stack the teams with older kids just to look like a winning team and play favorites, the favorites being whoever would suck up to carly the most as well as go on her little fun trips where she posted pictures of teen girls in bikinis. They take the winning side too serious its a county gym and the county resides should be allowed to be on the lower levels of the team. Whe my daughter went there we had to try out three years in a row when other commercial gyms would take our kid. We also had to pay for lessons at other gyms. There are plenty in the area. The parents on the board are the worst a lot of elite rich women who think money is no issue just because it is not an issue for them. I hope they just kill the program all together and build a community center.

Your issue with the program is a single person? That's just a grudge.

Arlington already hosts competitive swim (including spending on the ridiculous facility that is Long Bridge) and host fields space for a million other competitive sports.

They rent the fields to the competitive teams in the other sports, which are run by outside groups. And parents pay a lot. A money maker.

I seriously doubt these programs are paying the cost and maintenance of the land. No way.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents will happily pay more, its a good program.

+1

+2

The gymanstics people and the swim people should pay for what the programs cost, including a share of the giant buildings dedicated to your sport that you use for free.

The buildings aren't being used for free as everyone pays fees. These buildings should be packed with toddler, preschool and little kid classes, as demand is through the roof. If Arlington wants to recover costs, they need to do their jobs and utilize the space. They should be hosting kid gymnastics birthday parties, open gym nights with babysitting, senior workout classes during the day, etc. We have the facility. Parks and Rec just need to do their jobs and fill it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents will happily pay more, its a good program.

+1

+2

The gymanstics people and the swim people should pay for what the programs cost, including a share of the giant buildings dedicated to your sport that you use for free.

The buildings aren't being used for free as everyone pays fees. These buildings should be packed with toddler, preschool and little kid classes, as demand is through the roof. If Arlington wants to recover costs, they need to do their jobs and utilize the space. They should be hosting kid gymnastics birthday parties, open gym nights with babysitting, senior workout classes during the day, etc. We have the facility. Parks and Rec just need to do their jobs and fill it.

More people live in Arlington than toddler, preschoolers, and little kids. Arlington can probably serve a lot more people and more cost effectively if it’s not a gymnastics center. I don’t know why a giant recreation center in a community our size is solely dedicated to gymnastics at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents will happily pay more, its a good program.

+1

+2

The gymanstics people and the swim people should pay for what the programs cost, including a share of the giant buildings dedicated to your sport that you use for free.

The buildings aren't being used for free as everyone pays fees. These buildings should be packed with toddler, preschool and little kid classes, as demand is through the roof. If Arlington wants to recover costs, they need to do their jobs and utilize the space. They should be hosting kid gymnastics birthday parties, open gym nights with babysitting, senior workout classes during the day, etc. We have the facility. Parks and Rec just need to do their jobs and fill it.

They are getting the space for free. At least for swimming, the county and APS charge outside groups rental fees. It makes up a huge portion of the costs for club swimmers. Many of whom I’m sure would be happy to swim for AAC if it didn’t fill up immediately.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Should the county have a competitive gymnastics team - NO. This program has a million things wrong with it and mostly Carly. For a county sport they stack the teams with older kids just to look like a winning team and play favorites, the favorites being whoever would suck up to carly the most as well as go on her little fun trips where she posted pictures of teen girls in bikinis. They take the winning side too serious its a county gym and the county resides should be allowed to be on the lower levels of the team. Whe my daughter went there we had to try out three years in a row when other commercial gyms would take our kid. We also had to pay for lessons at other gyms. There are plenty in the area. The parents on the board are the worst a lot of elite rich women who think money is no issue just because it is not an issue for them. I hope they just kill the program all together and build a community center.

Your issue with the program is a single person? That's just a grudge.

Arlington already hosts competitive swim (including spending on the ridiculous facility that is Long Bridge) and host fields space for a million other competitive sports.

They rent the fields to the competitive teams in the other sports, which are run by outside groups. And parents pay a lot. A money maker.

I seriously doubt these programs are paying the cost and maintenance of the land. No way.

The fields are also widely used by the community, unlike a gymnastics center.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents will happily pay more, its a good program.

+1

+2

The gymanstics people and the swim people should pay for what the programs cost, including a share of the giant buildings dedicated to your sport that you use for free.

The buildings aren't being used for free as everyone pays fees. These buildings should be packed with toddler, preschool and little kid classes, as demand is through the roof. If Arlington wants to recover costs, they need to do their jobs and utilize the space. They should be hosting kid gymnastics birthday parties, open gym nights with babysitting, senior workout classes during the day, etc. We have the facility. Parks and Rec just need to do their jobs and fill it.

More people live in Arlington than toddler, preschoolers, and little kids. Arlington can probably serve a lot more people and more cost effectively if it’s not a gymnastics center. I don’t know why a giant recreation center in a community our size is solely dedicated to gymnastics at all.

It’s not solely for gymnastics. There’s also a workout gym, and classrooms used for dance/martial arts classes at Barcroft. And gymnastics is no less valuable than soccer or baseball, for which the county provides tons of facilities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents will happily pay more, its a good program.

+1

+2

The gymanstics people and the swim people should pay for what the programs cost, including a share of the giant buildings dedicated to your sport that you use for free.

The buildings aren't being used for free as everyone pays fees. These buildings should be packed with toddler, preschool and little kid classes, as demand is through the roof. If Arlington wants to recover costs, they need to do their jobs and utilize the space. They should be hosting kid gymnastics birthday parties, open gym nights with babysitting, senior workout classes during the day, etc. We have the facility. Parks and Rec just need to do their jobs and fill it.

More people live in Arlington than toddler, preschoolers, and little kids. Arlington can probably serve a lot more people and more cost effectively if it’s not a gymnastics center. I don’t know why a giant recreation center in a community our size is solely dedicated to gymnastics at all.

That's true for nearly everything the county offers, from senior programs to teen skate nights to playgrounds to bike trails to soccer fields to swimming pools to affordable housing. Lots of offerings are targeted to specific groups. The gymnastics facility (which is only a portion of Barcroft) is heavily used by the community. Certainly no less so than other community locations.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents will happily pay more, its a good program.

+1

+2

The gymanstics people and the swim people should pay for what the programs cost, including a share of the giant buildings dedicated to your sport that you use for free.

The buildings aren't being used for free as everyone pays fees. These buildings should be packed with toddler, preschool and little kid classes, as demand is through the roof. If Arlington wants to recover costs, they need to do their jobs and utilize the space. They should be hosting kid gymnastics birthday parties, open gym nights with babysitting, senior workout classes during the day, etc. We have the facility. Parks and Rec just need to do their jobs and fill it.

More people live in Arlington than toddler, preschoolers, and little kids. Arlington can probably serve a lot more people and more cost effectively if it’s not a gymnastics center. I don’t know why a giant recreation center in a community our size is solely dedicated to gymnastics at all.

Arlington hasn't identified the need for the space for anything else or a shortage of community space. It seems it would most likely sit unused, as there is no plan. Just like when APS purchased the Dynamic facility across from WL, evicted them, and has let it sit empty (except for recent snow storage and some bus parking) for a decade. Total waste of resources.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Should the county have a competitive gymnastics team - NO. This program has a million things wrong with it and mostly Carly. For a county sport they stack the teams with older kids just to look like a winning team and play favorites, the favorites being whoever would suck up to carly the most as well as go on her little fun trips where she posted pictures of teen girls in bikinis. They take the winning side too serious its a county gym and the county resides should be allowed to be on the lower levels of the team. Whe my daughter went there we had to try out three years in a row when other commercial gyms would take our kid. We also had to pay for lessons at other gyms. There are plenty in the area. The parents on the board are the worst a lot of elite rich women who think money is no issue just because it is not an issue for them. I hope they just kill the program all together and build a community center.

Your issue with the program is a single person? That's just a grudge.

Arlington already hosts competitive swim (including spending on the ridiculous facility that is Long Bridge) and host fields space for a million other competitive sports.

They rent the fields to the competitive teams in the other sports, which are run by outside groups. And parents pay a lot. A money maker.

I seriously doubt these programs are paying the cost and maintenance of the land. No way.

The fields are also widely used by the community, unlike a gymnastics center.

The fields are extensive and only used by a portion of the community.

My family hasnt used the fields in years now, so I propose they be sold off to fund other things. Or we can build affordable housing on all of them. That's equitable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Parents will happily pay more, its a good program.

+1

+2

The gymanstics people and the swim people should pay for what the programs cost, including a share of the giant buildings dedicated to your sport that you use for free.

The buildings aren't being used for free as everyone pays fees. These buildings should be packed with toddler, preschool and little kid classes, as demand is through the roof. If Arlington wants to recover costs, they need to do their jobs and utilize the space. They should be hosting kid gymnastics birthday parties, open gym nights with babysitting, senior workout classes during the day, etc. We have the facility. Parks and Rec just need to do their jobs and fill it.

They are getting the space for free. At least for swimming, the county and APS charge outside groups rental fees. It makes up a huge portion of the costs for club swimmers. Many of whom I’m sure would be happy to swim for AAC if it didn’t fill up immediately.

That's the county model. Teams aren't paying the full cost of their field usage either given the value of land in Arlington. We can change the model, but it should be done across the board. In this case, there was never a proposal to change fees.

[Anonymous]

The county should at least calculate the cost of the program (including things like utilities and maintenance for the facility, but not building it as that is more akin to turf fields at this point) and ask the families if they can lay the higher fees. The slash and burn budgeting is going to bite them, and they better not tear down or otherwise use a facility purpose-built for gymnastics for storage or just close it. That would be a waste of already-spent money!