The city of Mandan has offered to sell its community center to the municipal park district for $1.

The proposed swap of the 35-year-old building went on the table at Tuesday's commission meeting.

Still, it's unknown if the Mandan Park District will accept the deal.

City Administrator Jim Neubauer said the issue of ownership came up during a recent Community Center Advisory Committee meeting.

"The city of Mandan owns the community center. If it were to relinquish ownership to the Mandan Park District, what would the city of Mandan charge the park district?" he asked.

"Our response to you is it doesn't make sense for the city of Mandan to charge the Mandan Park District $1 million for a facility and then have to pay the city of Mandan because it's one taxpayer's pocket going into another taxpayer pocket.

"Our recommendation is if the park district is willing, that the building become a park board facility and that a transfer be made for $1 or a nominal fee, providing the park district maintain the community center in good working condition until the bond issued for the 1999 renovations are paid for."

Neubauer said consideration of dissolving the current ownership agreement would go before the Mandan School District and the Mandan Park District. All three entities pay operating expenses and long-term debts on the building.

"It's up to the Community Center Advisory Committee to come up with recommendations to the city commission, the park district and the school board," said Mayor Tim Helbling, following the meeting.

"This is just an offer at this point. The park district could say, 'We don't want the facility,' or they could say, 'Let's talk it over and look at some of the specifics,'" Helbling said.

Helbling said the city is covering half the improvements of the $1.9 million improvement bond for the building.

The bond is being repaid by the Mandan School District, the Mandan Park Board and the city through 2019. Helbling said the city's annual share amounts to $70,000.

It was clarified that the city would hold to that bond obligation even if it no longer owned the building.

He added there also are the operating costs. "(The city) is contributing an annual subsidy of $50,000,"Helbling said. It takes just over half a million dollars annually to run the community center.

"Each entity puts something in that. Also, we have established a long-term maintenance fund where each entity puts in $5,000 per year in the long-term maintenance fund to handle large (repair items) beams, boilers and roofing."

He said the city may continue owning structure. "We may end up paying for the same things," Helbling said.

The offer may hinge upon input from the park and school districts.

Still, Helbling believes this is an opportune time to give the building to the Mandan Park District.

"Our goal is to shift some of the payments. The city doesn't have a real benefit in owning the community center anymore," Helbling said.

"The events are limited. It's more of a recreational facility. The park district can deal with recreation. The city should not be dealing with recreation."

In a separate matter, the commission agreed to allow $60,000 to be spent from the long-term maintenance fund for a new pool filtration system at the community center.

The governing boards for the school board, park board and the city already have agreed to pay $80,000 each to cover its repair costs. The filtration repairs will total $300,000.

The park and school systems also must consent to spend the $60,000 of the long-term fund for the pool repairs.