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Two ex-board members say SARC needs fix-up; chairwoman disagrees

Published 5:06 am Thursday, July 19, 2007

By Diane Urbani de la Paz

SEQUIM – Eastern Clallam County’s publicly funded pool and fitness center will soon face competition from a national chain, so its board of commissioners had better get busy fixing the place up, according to two former Sequim Aquatic Recreation Center commissioners.

The two quit in disgust rather than finishing their four-year terms.

“It’s not a question of if competition comes to town, it’s a question of when,” said Dave McArthur, the SARC board member who stepped down last month, following in the footsteps of Bill Black, who resigned earlier this year.

Voters will decide on four SARC positions in the November general election.

  • Position 2, the position vacated by McArthur. Frank Figg has filed for the post.

  • Position 3, now held by Melinda Griffith, who is seeking re-election.

  • Position 4, now held by Bill Hixson, who won’t seek relection. Sequim residents Annette Kuss and Jan Richardson filed for his seat in June.

  • Position 5, vacated by Black. Erica Starks was appointed to the position and is running for election in November.

    “We have not grown as Sequim has grown,” McArthur said, adding that the longer SARC waits to upgrade, the more expensive the construction work will be on the center at 610 N. Fifth Ave.

    The board is “hoarding” the money in its bank account instead of strengthening its facilities, McArthur said.

    When a competitor – Gold’s Gym, Bally Total Fitness, 24 Hour Fitness – sets up shop in one of Sequim’s shopping centers, SARC could lose hundreds of patrons, and the result could be bankruptcy, added McArthur, a self-employed financial adviser who said he has 40 years of business experience.

    The situation, he said, is “insane.”

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