"The biggest fear is the seniors will be without any center," said Kenneth Neal, chairman of the Rose Park Community Council.

The concerns were prompted by a collaborative effort between the city and Salt Lake County to plan for the aging facility, which includes a center for senior citizens. Built in the 1960s, the facility at 1300 W. 300 North was not designed to be a recreation center.

The two agencies are paying for a study to determine the facility's future, whether that be a remodel, a move elsewhere on the city's west side or demolition and reconstruction. Any improvements to the recreation center likely would be funded through the county's Zoo, Arts and Parks tax - commonly known as ZAP tax, which taxes one-tenth of 1 percent of all sales made in the county.

The tax can be used for everything at the center but the senior wing.

"They couldn't use the ZAP money to fund senior centers," said Brent Cameron, a deputy attorney for the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office.

That doesn't mean other funding can't be tapped. Other communities have built senior centers and then turned operations over to the county, said David Turner, the county's senior-centers program manager.

"That's not a decision that can be made now," Turner said, explaining that parks and recreation needs to first determine the future of the Northwest Recreation Center.

The center was built to offer social services, including a medical clinic, classrooms and job-training resources, according to Bruce Henderson, the county's recreation section director. But as funding for the programs decreased, the facility transformed into a recreation center.

In addition to the senior center and recreation programs, the center offers child care and a food bank. Whether all those functions will remain hasn't been determined. A master plan for the facility - as well as another for the aging Central City Recreation Center at 615 S. 300 East - could be complete as soon as September, Henderson said.

During the last election cycle, Salt Lake County residents re-approved the ZAP tax, which was set to expire in 2006. The vote means the county will get a fresh cycle of millions of dollars to put toward projects.

jsantini@sltrib.com