By Jessica Mathews/News@whmi.com


The Howell Area Aquatic & Fitness Center is closing due to financial losses related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The closure was the result of difficult budget decisions made by the Howell Public Schools district. The Howell Area Parks and Recreation Authority handles management and operations of the center. Superintendent Erin MacGregor says they pay Howell Parks and Recreation an annual fee of $114,000 to manage the pool. With a projected $4.5 million reduction in the district’s general fund, MacGregor says the approved 20/21 budget discontinues the payment. At this time, he says they have not advanced a recommendation to the board on the future utilization of the pool.

HAPRA Executive Director Tim Church issued a memo to staff about the closure, stating it was a devastating loss to their staff and patrons but the decision was between education and the aquatic center and he believes the right decision was made. Church told WHMI the school board had a lot of tough financial decisions to make and the management agreement was one of those. He said it’s a disappointing loss for the community right now but pools are very expensive to operate and the school board could not and should not reduce essential student and teacher safety and needs. Church said they’ll continue to be in conversations with the district to see if there are other ways financially the aquatic center could operate in the future but it will take time to work out the details and the district needs to focus their efforts to the concerns of how schools will operate during the upcoming year. The staff memo from Church is attached.