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Resident Aquatics Survey
Results
For Centre Regional Recreation Authority, State
College, PA 16801
Conducted July 2000; Results Presented 19 Dec 00
by Dr. Alan Graefe and Lai-hsin Lai
PSU School of Hotel, Restaurant and Recreation Management
This survey is a component of
the Centre Region Aquatics Feasibility Study, with funding
assistance provided by five participating Centre Region COG
municipalities, the Commonwealth of PA. Keystone Fund, and
the State College Area Family YMCA.
Notes: "General
Households" were randomly selected from un-named address
labels provided by each municipality. Detailed results
by municipality for each question will also be developed.
235 survey forms contained a total of 237 comments from respondents.
Click
here to view the comments added by respondents.
This document does
not contain an analysis of the results.
Centre Region Aquatics Survey Sampling
Report:
| Sample |
Surveys
Mailed |
Surveys
Delivered |
Surveys
Returned |
Response
Rate |
| General
Households |
1920 |
1759 |
647 |
37% |
| Season
Passholders |
320 |
317 |
208 |
66% |
| Municipal
Officials |
44 |
44 |
14 |
32% |
| Total |
2284 |
2120 |
869 |
41% |
"General Household" Survey
Response by Municipality
| |
Surveys
Mailed |
Surveys
Deliverable |
Surveys
Returned |
Response
Rate |
| State College Borough |
364 |
331 |
83 |
25% |
| College Township |
364 |
362 |
139 |
38% |
| Ferguson Township |
392 |
341 |
130 |
38% |
| Harris Township |
372 |
369 |
165 |
45% |
| Patton Township |
392 |
356 |
105 |
30% |
| Not Indicated |
- |
- |
25 |
- |
| Total |
1920 |
1759 |
647 |
37% |
Survey Results
1. How important to your household
are the municipal aquatics programs & facilities offered
by CRPR? (Check one)
647
General Households |
208
Season Passholders |
|
| 22% |
75% |
Very Important |
| 32% |
24% |
Somewhat Important |
| 46% |
1% |
Not Important |
2. In 1999,
how often did members of your household visit a Centre
Region public pool (i.e., Welch or Park Forest Pool)
during the summer months? (Check one)
647
General Households |
208
Season Passholders |
|
| 63% |
4% |
None |
| 13% |
4% |
Once or twice a SUMMER |
| 9% |
6% |
Once or twice a MONTH |
| 5% |
19% |
About weekly |
| 9% |
55% |
Several times a week |
| 2% |
12% |
Daily |
3. In all of 1999,
members of my household attended aquatics programs/facilities operated
by the following:
(Check all that apply):
647
General Households |
208
Season Passholders |
|
| 24% |
71% |
Welch Community Pool |
| 12% |
52% |
Park Forest Community Pool |
| 20% |
28% |
Penn State University |
| 18% |
43% |
SC High School Natatorium |
| 4% |
4% |
YMCA-sponsored programs |
| 2% |
1% |
Other |
| 16% |
18% |
Private Clubs/pools |
| 49% |
5% |
None of these |
4a. In your opinion, how does
your household's overall experience at the Centre Region public
pools compare to other pools available in the area? (Check
one response that best represents your opinion)
647
General Households |
208
Season Passholders |
|
| 1% |
0% |
Much Worse |
| 6% |
7% |
Worse |
| 21% |
34% |
About the Same |
| 9% |
15% |
Better |
| 3% |
16% |
Much Better |
| 60% |
28% |
Don't Know |
4b. In your opinion, how do you
feel about the admission/program fees charged by CRPR for use
of public pools?
(Check one response that best represents your opinion)
648
General Households |
208
Season Passholders |
|
| 0% |
0% |
Far too low |
| 1% |
1% |
Too low |
| 37% |
81% |
About right |
| 11% |
16% |
Too high |
| 1% |
1% |
Far too high |
| 50% |
1% |
Don't Know |
5. During the summer months,
which public pool in the community do members
of your household normally use?
(Check all that apply)
648
General Households |
208
Season Passholders |
|
| 28% |
69% |
Welch Pool |
| 10% |
46% |
Park Forest Pool |
| 2% |
3% |
SCAHS Natatorium |
| 16% |
4% |
PSU pools |
| 1% |
1% |
Other |
| 54% |
1% |
None |
6. Which of the following improvements
would you like to see at either the Welch Pool or the Park
Forest Pool?
(Check all that apply)
648
General Households |
208
Season Passholders |
|
| 20% |
32% |
Spray feature/water playground |
| 31% |
32% |
Pavilions/picnic areas
(Welch Pool) |
| 16% |
16% |
Wave pool |
| 17% |
29% |
Waterslide (at Park Forest
Pool) |
| 21% |
39% |
Expanded hours of operation |
| 28% |
42% |
Deck chairs |
| 18% |
30% |
Full-service food concession |
| 12% |
10% |
Lockers |
| 40% |
40% |
Shade (Welch Pool) |
| 10% |
30% |
Other |
| 23% |
4% |
No Improvement is necessary |
7. Currently CRPR's program registration
occurs via the phone, mail, or in person at the CRPR office.
What would be your preference for improving the
CRPR registration process for aquatics? (Check
one)
648
General Households |
208
Season Passholders |
|
| 26% |
31% |
Offer more
classes to reduce waitlists |
| 28% |
35% |
Offer registration
via the Internet |
| 1% |
3% |
Other |
| 45% |
41% |
No improvement
is necessary |
8. Instead of building another
outdoor pool, it has been suggested that the construction of a
water playground or family water park in the region
may be warranted. Do you think that this type of facility would
best be developed & operated by: (Check one)
648
General Households |
208
Season Passholders |
|
| 30% |
22% |
Private Enterprise |
| 20% |
34% |
CRPR |
| 45% |
41% |
Not sure |
| 1% |
1% |
Other |
| 3% |
2% |
Do not favor this (write
in response) |
9. What factors if any keep members
of your household from using the public outdoor pools? (Check
all that apply)
648
General Households |
208
Season Passholders |
|
| 7% |
1% |
Distance -- too far from
my home |
| 33% |
37% |
Pools too crowded |
| 9% |
6% |
Fees |
| 4% |
1% |
Do not know locations |
| 10% |
22% |
Times of operation |
| 2% |
1% |
No transportation |
| 26% |
2% |
Lack of interest |
| 30% |
21% |
Lack of time |
| 15% |
31% |
None |
| 4% |
5% |
Pools do not offer the
preferred facilities |
| 17% |
16% |
Other |
10. The following questions ask
how much you would pay for GENERAL SWIMMING (based on daily
admission, i.e. per person, per visit) for various options.
Specifically, what is the MAXIMUM you would pay for each enhancement
of the recreation opportunity or facility rather than not visit
the pool? In addition, we would like to know what you would
recommend as the APPROPRIATE price to charge. Finally, please
complete the questions for every option listed and also rank
your PREFERENCE (Do not use a number twice. Use 1 for first
choice, 2 for second choice, etc.).
Preference
Rank
648 General Households |
Preference
Rank
208 Season Passholders |
Option
1 |
1st:
25%
2nd: 16%
3rd: 21%
4th: 24%
5th: 14% |
1st:
28%
2nd: 14%
3rd: 13%
4th: 24%
5th: 20% |
Continuing
the improvement of current pool amenities such as
adding shade areas, pavilions/picnic areas, etc.
(This may enhance the quality of experience
but would not help reduce crowding at the two outdoor
pools during the summer nor offset the shortage of indoor
facilities during the school year) |
| $3.44 |
$3.15 |
What is the
MAXIMUM you would pay for general swimming at this
pool
(based on daily entrance fee, per person, per visit)? |
| $2.89 |
$2.78 |
What is the
APPROPRIATE price? |
Preference
Rank
648 General Households |
Preference
Rank
208 Season Passholders |
Option
2 |
1st:
14%
2nd: 19%
3rd: 23%
4th: 24%
5th: 20% |
1st:
13%
2nd: 17%
3rd: 26%
4th: 22%
5th: 22% |
Improving
current pool facilities with new options such as
waterslide (at Park Forest Pool), water playground,
wave pool, etc.
(This may enhance the quality of experience but would not reduce crowding
at the two outdoor pools during the summer nor offset the shortage
of indoor facilities during the school year) |
| $4.02 |
$3.63 |
What is the
MAXIMUM you would pay for general swimming at this
pool
(based on daily entrance fee, per person, per visit)? |
| $3.42 |
$3.22 |
What is the
APPROPRIATE price? |
Preference
Rank
648 General Households |
Preference
Rank
208 Season Passholders |
Option
3 |
1st:
3%
2nd: 16%
3rd: 23%
4th: 19%
5th: 39% |
1st: 7%
2nd: 19%
3rd: 25%
4th: 16%
5th: 33% |
Putting
an air-supported structure over Park Forest Community
Swimming Pool
(This solution would provide an indoor facility for the winter but
would not help reduce crowding at the two outdoor pools during the
summer) |
| $3.75 |
$3.49 |
What is the
MAXIMUM you would pay for general swimming at this
pool (based on daily entrance fee, per person, per
visit)? |
| $3.24 |
$3.12 |
What is the
APPROPRIATE price? |
Preference
Rank
648 General Households |
Preference
Rank
208 Season Passholders |
Option
4 |
1st:
9%
2nd:36%
3rd: 22%
4th: 19%
5th: 14% |
1st: 7%
2nd: 35%
3rd: 22%
4th: 25%
5th: 11% |
Build
a third public outdoor pool
(This would increase swimming opportunities in the summer but not offset
the shortage of indoor facilities during the school year) |
| $3.78 |
$3.54 |
What is the
MAXIMUM you would pay for general swimming at this
pool (based on daily entrance fee, per person, per
visit)? |
| $3.24 |
$3.17 |
What is the
APPROPRIATE price? |
Preference
Rank
648 General Households |
Preference
Rank
208 Season Passholders |
Option
5 |
1st:
58%
2nd: 15%
3rd: 9%
4th: 9%
5th: 9% |
1st:
51%
2nd: 21%
3rd: 12%
4th: 8%
5th: 8% |
Build
a new community indoor/outdoor pool
(This would create a year-round recreation opportunity, help with the
crowding, reduce the program waiting lists, etc.) |
| $4.16 |
$3.87 |
What is the
MAXIMUM you would pay for general swimming at this
pool (based on daily entrance fee, per person, per
visit)? |
| $3.65 |
$3.47 |
What is the
APPROPRIATE price? |
Note: Preference
rankings did not differ significantly between season pass holders
and general households.
Click
here to view the comments added by respondents.
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