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Residents urge council to protect senior centers and indoor pools amid proposed cuts
Summary
A Yakima resident told the City Council the city’s four aquatic and senior facilities serve tens of thousands of visits a year and warned budget cuts would disproportionately affect older adults and West Side residents.
Patty Maggard Bridal, a Yakima resident and regular user of city aquatics and senior facilities, told the Yakima City Council on April 1 that the city’s two senior centers and two indoor pools are “very near and dear” to the community and asked the council to reconsider proposed cuts.
"In 2024, there was almost 68,000 visits to these four facilities," Maggard said during public comment, adding that the Harmon Center alone sees about 275 visitors per day. She noted Lions Pool is the only indoor pool in the area and is used by seniors, early-morning workers and local swim teams.
Maggard said the city’s east-side plans for a new pool are welcome but warned that removing Franklin Pool on the west side would force west-side families to travel by bus to the east side. "How many West Side people are going to be comfortable sending their kids on a bus to the East Side?" she asked.
Maggard provided the council with a handout showing that the four facilities account for roughly 26% of the Parks & Recreation budget and that, she said, those facilities drove more than 82% of total visits to parks and rec locations in 2024. She also cited Yakima’s age breakdown from the 2023 American Community Survey and said about 44% of the city’s population falls into age groups that commonly use those facilities.
The council did not take immediate action during the meeting on Maggard’s comments; her remarks were recorded during the public-comment period before the council moved into scheduled agenda business.
The city manager and council members have previously said budget details will be reviewed as part of the ongoing priority-based budgeting and biennial budget amendment process scheduled for later meetings; no formal proposal affecting the four facilities was adopted at the April 1 meeting.
