The Bach administration tried to move City Council questions about a decision to award a sole-source contract to the YMCA of the Pikes Peak Region behind closed doors Monday.

The city’s Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Department went before council Monday to formally present the details of a proposed five-year contract with the YMCA, which is poised to take over operation of six city-owned aquatic facilities.

The council will vote on the proposed contract on first reading Tuesday.

(Should the city award a sole-source contract to operate city pools to the YMCA? Vote in poll.)

When council President Pro Tem Jan Martin asked whether anyone else had expressed an interest in operating the facilities before the city opted for a sole-source contract, Laura Neumann, who is Mayor Steve Bach’s chief of staff, requested a private discussion.

“Is it possible, Pro Tem Martin, that we wait until the closed session to talk a little bit more about the process of going with a single source and what happened with the prior vendor? Is that possible?” she asked.

Martin resisted the request, saying the two issues were different.

“Did we hear from anyone else?” Martin asked.

Kim King, parks administration manager, said the city received “a couple of calls.”

“But they were not looking at all of the facilities,” King said. “There was not a defined plan for those facilities or to the scale that we were able to do with the YMCA.”

Council President Scott Hente said he shared Martin’s questions and concerns about the contracting process but that he would respect Neumann’s request to talk in private.

“But I’ll reserve the opportunity to maybe ask them (Tuesday) in the open session because some of the questions that I’ve been asked were not my idea. They came to me from constituents,” Hente said. “The public has an interest in knowing.”

Despite the questions, council members seemed supportive of partnering with the YMCA.

“I’m just thrilled to see the pools being opened again,” Martin said.

Under the proposed contract, the YMCA would operate Cottonwood Creek Recreation Center, Aquatics and Fitness Center at Memorial Park, Portal Pool, Wilson Ranch Pool, Monument Valley Pool and Prospect Lake Beach at Memorial Park.

The city will subsidize the YMCA for any year-end shortfall “to the point of a break-even status” under the proposed contract. The 2012 subsidy “is estimated at no more than $632,350 for 2012,” city documents state.

In 2010, the city signed a five-year agreement with the Colorado Springs Swim School to operate the Aquatics and Fitness Center and two outdoor pools. The city terminated the contract when the swim school asked for help to pay for utilities. The swim school did not receive a taxpayer subsidy under its agreement with the city.

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