In the wake of Friday’s announcement that BizKid$ was pulling out of a deal to use the Queen Anne Community Center gym for its production studios, we’ve been trying to find out what the decision means for the gym next year. The mayor’s budget called for the gym to be closed during 2011 with some extra revenue coming from the BizKid$ deal. That deal would have added $75,000 in revenue to the city. But BizKid$ pulled out following community backlash, telling KING 5 they received “unpleasant” emails from people who didn’t want them taking over the gym.
Today, we learned the City Council has asked the budget office to come up with a new plan to address the $75,000 shortfall within the next week. But a staffer in Councilman Tim Burgess’ office tells us the mayor’s decision to close the QA gym was unrelated to the decision to bring in more revenue through BizKid$. Bottom line: the decision by BizKid$ to pull out doesn’t change anything for the gym, other than leaving the parks department with even less revenue. We’ll continue to keep you posted.