Title
Public Hearing to Consider Adoption of Resolution Amending Master Fee Resolution No. 12191 to Add New and Revise Existing Recreation and Park Fees. (Recreation and Parks 280) [Continued from November 21, 2017 to December 5, 2017]
Body
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Jill Keimach, City Manager
Re: Public Hearing to Consider Adoption of Resolution Amending Master Fee Resolution No. 12191 to Add New and Revise Existing Recreation and Park Fees
BACKGROUND
On January 22, 1992, the City Council adopted Resolution Number 12191, codifying all fees for services into a City-wide fee schedule (Schedule). This Schedule is updated each year, via resolution, to reflect changes in the cost of providing services as well as in the Consumer Price Index for the San Francisco Bay Area.
The Recreation and Park User Fees (Exhibit 1) are reviewed annually by the Recreation and Park Commission with a recommendation brought forward to the City Council. The Alameda Recreation and Park Department (ARPD) reviewed its current fees and made adjustments based on its budget in combination with cost comparisons with other local jurisdictions including San Leandro, Pleasanton, Union City, and San Ramon (Exhibit 2).
The City’s Schedule is updated annually as part of the City budget process, which has a start date of July 1st. Due to the timing of summer recreation programs, the Recreation and Park User Fee Schedule (Exhibit 1) is adopted earlier, with the implementation date of January 1, 2018. However, the school-year fees are noted separately with a start date of August 2018 to coincide with the start of the school year.
DISCUSSION
Fees represent direct costs for program staff time, facility maintenance and utilities, plus indirect costs for administrative staff time and supplies. Fees are intended to recover costs as a whole system while balancing the benefits for the community and individuals. For example, programs that are available to a broad section of the community as well as at-risk populations, such as the free Parks and Playgrounds program, free Summer Rec Baseball, Mastick Senior Center activities or Recreation Afterschool Program (RAP), have a lower cost recovery rate than programs with individual benefit to specific user groups such as facility rentals or adult sports leagues with a higher cost recovery rate to offset and balance the total budget.
The following fees were adjusted for 2018:
|
FEE TYPE |
CURRENT 2017 FEES |
PROPOSED 2018 FEES |
|
R = Alameda Resident NR = Non-Alameda Resident |
|
CHANGES |
|
|
|
Adjustment to most rental and program activities |
n/a |
3% increase |
|
Athletic Field Youth League - Non-Profits |
$3 / Hour |
$4/ Hour |
|
Live Film Shoot - Commercial Educational |
$500 plus hourly n/a |
$750 plus hourly $250 plus hourly |
|
Alameda Point Gymnasium - Entire Facility is 2 or more courts |
$115 |
$115/hr for practices $125/hr for League Games and Tournaments |
|
Portable Toilet Fee |
$85 / Regular $115 / ADA |
At cost from vendor plus admin fee |
|
Krusi and Lincoln (Harrison) Recreation Center |
$90 / hour R $115 / hour NR |
$120 / hour R $160/ hour NR |
|
Admin Fee for Revising Permits |
$15 |
$25 |
|
Summer Bus Rental |
$164/day plus $3.50 / mile plus $20 /hour |
At cost from vendor plus $3.50/mile plus $20/hour |
|
Youth and Athletic Programs |
|
3% increase: • Recreational After School Program (RAP) • World of Wonder (WOW) • Teens • Aquatics • One-Day & Break Camps |
|
|
|
|
|
NEW FEES |
|
|
|
Estuary Synthetic Turf Adult League |
n/a |
$700 R for 10 games $750 R for 12 games $900 NR for 10 games $950 NR for 12 game |
|
Open Gym |
$6 per 3-hour session |
$8 per 3-hour session |
|
Krusi Park Stage |
n/a |
$30 / hour |
|
Center Rental - Non-Resident Non Profit |
n/a |
$55/ hour |
|
Program Transportation Fee |
n/a |
Fee determined based on cost from Vendor |
A 3% one-time increase is proposed to be added to most rental and program activities. This one-time increase will recover transaction fees for ActiveNet, which is a new, user-friendly registration system. Since it is a web-based system, ARPD will now be paying fees based on a per transaction cost rather than an annual fee. Staff determined that this should be incorporated into most rental and activity registrations to ensure that the Recreation Fund does not experience a net loss from transitioning to a new system. Similar to other municipal recreation departments that are implementing ActiveNet and comparable web-based systems, these departments are also opting to roll these fees into the total activity cost rather than as a separate surcharge. This eliminates any confusion regarding the total cost of an activity so users can plan accordingly. The decision to implement this 3% increase was finalized during the ActiveNet implementation and occurred after the Recreation and Parks Commission user fee discussion.
The field use fee was increased in order to better offset the expense to manage and maintain athletic fields, including staff time for maintenance and scheduling, supplies such as fertilizer, infield dirt, equipment maintenance and water costs. The youth athletic organizations have been informed at the field scheduling meetings over the last two years that ARPD intended to incrementally raise the field use fees and were also directly notified prior to the Recreation and Parks Commission meeting. No youth organizations commented on the increase. The current fees annually raise $40,000 in revenue for field maintenance but field maintenance costs are over $120,000 annually; the difference is subsidized from the Parks Maintenance budget in the General Fund.
An hourly rate of $125/hour for the entire facility use of the Alameda Point Gym was added for groups when they host league games or tournaments. These activities bring significantly more users to the gym and increase staff and facility costs. The current fee of $115/ hour is still in place for league practices and provides a $5 discount for one organization to use all four courts.
A higher rental fee is proposed for Harrison Center at Lincoln Park and the new Krusi Park Recreation Center since both have greater seating capacity and updated facilities compared to other recreation centers for rent.
New fees include an adult flag football league rate specific to Estuary Park synthetic turf field. Since this is considered a higher level facility, there are already separate Estuary Park fees in place and this new fee increases the programming opportunities at the facility. The Recreation and Parks Commission recommended that the non-resident fee for this activity be increased to $900 per team from the original staff recommendation of $800 per team per season.
The Recreation and Parks Commission also recommended increasing the adult drop-in open gym fee (3 hours every Sunday) from $6 to $8 for both residents and non-residents.
The Recreation and Parks Commission requested to review the 2018 Recreation and Parks User Fee Schedule again in February 2018 after the Athletic Facility Allocation Policy is updated and approved. If further fee adjustments are recommended then it will return to City Council for final approval.
The overarching goal of the Recreation and Park User Fee Schedule is to provide effective cost recovery with a balanced model of community benefit. The Recreation and Park Department continues to seek and secure additional program and facility funding through partnerships, grants, donations and fundraising events.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
The Recreation and Park User Fee Schedule changes are anticipated to generate a minimal change to the Recreation Fund 280. The proposed new and increased fees are intended to offset additional expenses as described above.
MUNICIPAL CODE/POLICY DOCUMENT CROSS REFERENCE
This action does not affect the Alameda Municipal Code.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
This action is not a project and is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to Section 15378 (b)(4) of the CEQA Guidelines, because it involves governmental fiscal activities (revising recreation and park fees), which does not involve any commitment to any specific project which may result in a potentially significant physical impact on the environment.
RECOMMENDATION
Public hearing to consider adoption of resolution amending Master Fee Resolution No. 12191 to add new and revise existing Recreation and Park fees.
Respectfully submitted,
Amy Wooldridge, Recreation and Parks Director
Financial Impact section reviewed,
Elena Adair, Finance Director
Exhibits:
1. 2018 Recreation and Parks Department User Fee Schedule
2. Fee Comparison Fiscal Year 17-18