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Are all your meeting or event needs being met in Anacortes?

That’s one of the questions posed in a questionnaire by supporters of a community center large enough to host conventions and large events.

The easy answer: No, as in not even close.

The crying need for such a gathering place has been evident for years (decades?), and ideas have been floated for convention-type facilities along the Fidalgo Bay shoreline and elsewhere. Plans have come, but mostly gone.

If this was easy, and if the numbers were right, private parties would have met this need long ago. But with our short visitor season and relatively small population, Anacortes has been a tough sell for a variety of reasons.

Perhaps as the island continues to grow and evolve into an even more attractive destination, a community center will pencil out for private developers. For now, there’s another effort under way exploring a public partnership that could make something happen.

The Port of Anacortes could be in the middle of things.

The marine skills center planned for a 6-acre piece of port property at Seafarers Way and Q Avenue includes plans for an assembly area for up to 150 people. An independent group of citizens hopes to obtain funds to expand the facility, which could be jointly operated by the center and the port.

The effort is in the early stages to be sure, and the questionnaire is a first step in assessing needs and giving the port a bit more to chew on.

The big question of course is money. People will surely respond that the community needs more and better options for civic events, conferences, tourist activities, weddings, reunions, church events, classes and meetings.

But who is going to pay the tab to operate — let alone build — a facility? What would the rental fees have to be to make this work? There’s no free lunch (or banquet).

Still, this option should be explored fully and the costs and benefits scrutinized. The community needs a bigger and better place to gather, and one that most importantly could draw people here and boost the local economy.