WATERLOO -- The Boys and Girls Club of Black Hawk County has temporarily pulled the plug on its bingo operations in the Cedarloo Center in Cedar Falls, a source of red ink for the organization.

The bingo fundraiser lost $36,000 in 2005, but was making about $110,000 per year as recently as 2002.

U.S. Internal Revenue Service 990 forms showed the club's bingo revenue declined from $108,000 to $51,000 over three fiscal years through June 30, 2004.

Chris Harshbarger, president of the club's executive committee, said as it looked into the bingo operations, it discovered operational losses and unexplained delays of several months in reporting paperwork to the Iowa Department of Inspection and Appeals, which regulates nonprofit gambling operations.

He said the club hopes to reopen the bingo operations at an undetermined date after restructuring the program to ensure its profitability.

"It turned out that there was more neglect at the club than we originally anticipated, which is requiring more time in preparing the restructuring," he said. "We have been able to isolate those business problems so that programs for the kids are fully operational and new kids are arriving daily."

Years of mismanagement reached a boiling point last month when the club revealed some $500,000 in assets had been depleted over several years. The club serves about 1,500 disadvantaged youths through a host of programs ranging from computers to basketball. To keep the programs running, various businesses and organizations have donated money to pay the bills.

Earlier this month, the Iowa Department of Inspections and Appeals issued an administrative subpoena to the organization for records of its bingo operations.

The bingo operation's closing is one of several actions the club's new leadership has taken since taking over in May. Harshbarger said a job listing for the executive director position was posted this week, but no applications have been received yet. He said there is no timetable on the search for the club's new leader, being guided by the national Boys and Girls Club of America.

Wallace Sulentic, a retired Waterloo Industries executive, is serving as interim executive director and is now vice president for human resources on the executive committee. Michelle Gholston, the club's former executive director, resigned in April after nearly four years on the job to pursue a graduate degree in nonprofit management at the University of Northern Iowa.

An emergency committee, formed by Chris Harshbarger and Mac McCausland, reorganized the board and implemented an executive committee to oversee the club's operations.

Of the old 14-person board, seven continued serving with the club, and the remaining members either quit or were asked to resign.

Contact Jens Manuel Krogstad at (319) 291-1580 or jens.krogstad@wcfcourier.com.