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Ryan Eashoo
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Time to close?
Base Camp faces biggest challenge yet MUNDY TOWNSHIPTHE FLINT JOURNAL FIRST EDITIONTuesday, June 05, 2007By Melissa
Base Camp Challenge Center
Origin: The 14,000-square-foot facility was completed in November 2001 at a cost of $1.3 million. It was paid for with GASC Technology Center funds saved over time.
Location: GASC Technology Center, 5081 Torrey Road, Mundy Township.
Ownership: Owned and operated by the Flint School District. Funding for the technology center and Base Camp comes from property taxes levied by the 21 local school districts in the Genesee Intermediate School District.
Features: A training and development center with an indoor high- and low-ropes course and rock climbing wall. The facility is available not only for students but also can be rented for such events as birthday parties and corporate outings.
At issue: Some Flint Board of Education members believe the facility should be closed due to operating losses in recent years.
Sources: Flint School District and Flint Journal files
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MUNDY TWP. - With the Base Camp Challenge Center's mounting operating losses and competition from similar and cheaper area programs, a Flint Board of Education member says it's time to close the training facility at the GASC Technology Center, 5081 Torrey Road.
The Flint Schools District owns and operates the skill center and Base Camp.
"I've just been concerned about whether it's a significantly valuable program to continue when we could perhaps be doing more productive things with the money," said school board member Paul Jordan.
Jordan's idea is supported by board Vice President Herbert Cleaves, who sits on the skill center's administrative advisory council.
"Since we have the fiscal responsibility, I don't know how long we're going to keep putting money into a program that's losing money," Cleaves said. "The place has lost too much money, and we need to be looking at enhancing the offerings at the skill center, like interior/exterior painting, landscaping, stuff like that."
Base Camp, a not-for-profit facility completed in late 2001, has suffered losses every year, with a total loss of $1.13 million in five fiscal years. That includes a loss of about $450,000 during the 2005-06 year, according to a report issued in July by then-Chief Financial Officer Robert Allen.
Current school year usage and financial information for Base Camp are not yet available, said Beverly Brown, school and business liaison for the GASC Technology Center.
Brown said skill center students across Genesee County regularly use Base Camp for team building and to improve their communication skills.
"It would be very disappointing to lots of people if Base Camp closed, and that's why we're going to do everything in our power to prevent that from happening," Brown said.
Brown said seven full-time staff members, including two teachers, work at Base Camp.
Tech center Principal Douglas J. Weir could not be reached for comment, but he previously has said the facility would one day make about $1 million a year to benefit other skill center programs.
He also has said he expects Base Camp's $1.3-million building cost to be recovered through revenues in five years.
Base Camp revenue comes from fees paid by individuals, businesses and schools that use the facility's ropes courses and rock-climbing wall.
The camp's revenues came under scrutiny when Mundy Township tried to collect more than $130,000 in back taxes on the facility, contending it was a business.
The state Court of Appeals recently decided not to hear the township's appeal of an earlier decision that Base Camp doesn't have to pay property taxes because it is a school.
Jordan said he questions what vocational educational purpose and benefit Base Camp has, and he said other ropes courses are available for students, such as those at Camp Copneconic or the Ligon Outdoor Center.
But Kristen Asiala, who teaches money and banking at the skill center, said Base Camp has helped her students challenge themselves.
She said the team-building and problem-solving exercises at Base Camp translate back into the classroom when students are faced with a difficult math assignment or multiple projects.
"Not only are you learning subject matter, you're learning life skills," she said. "We're trying to prepare students here at the skill center for life in the working world."
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Flint Michigan Resident, Tax Payer, Flint Nutt - Local REALTOR - Activist. www.FlintTown.com |
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Tue Jun 05, 2007 10:29 pm |
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Ryan Eashoo
F L I N T O I D
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People always complain in Flint/Genesee County that there is nothing to do, while a World Class Facility like this goes under utilized?
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Flint Michigan Resident, Tax Payer, Flint Nutt - Local REALTOR - Activist. www.FlintTown.com |
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Tue Jun 05, 2007 10:38 pm |
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