Budgetary Issues Prompt Closure Of Haven On The Lake In Columbia

COLUMBIA, MD — The wellness center Haven on the Lake will be permanently closed due to coronavirus-related budgetary challenges being experienced by the Columbia Association. Last month, the association's board approved its fiscal 2022 budget, which calls for opening only 15 of its 23 pools.

According to the Baltimore Sun, the association's $63.6 million budget is 22 percent less than the original 2021 fiscal budget developed before the pandemic. Still, the association will operate some summer camps and bring back its before- and after-school programs for the fall.

“It is safe to say we have all had to change our expectations of ‘normal,’ ” CA President Milton Matthews said in a news release. “While some shifts may be temporary, it is inevitable that some changes will be with CA for years to come. As an organization, we embrace all changes that help us focus on our service to the Columbia community and our role, along with our community partners, to enhance the quality of life here.”

Haven on the Lake offered yoga, Pilates and aquatics classes. It first opened in 2014 but will close permanently April 30. It costs more than $430,00 a year to operate the wellness center.

“We are certainly saddened to have to let this wonderful amenity go, but the cost of operating Haven on the Lake and the outlook for its future — paired with the effect of the pandemic on the overall budget — has become too much to sustain,” Susan Krabbe, the association’s chief financial officer, said in a release.