ROGERS — The fee structure to rent a room from the Rogers School District may change, but the question of what qualifies as a school organization remains.
Rooms that once cost $25-per-hour for a nonprofit rental will jump to $100 and a $33.33 per-hour gymnasium will cost $50 under the new fee structure. A commercial fee structure will also increase and a sliding fee scale will disappear.
By The Numbers
Increases
A sliding scale for nonprofit groups related to the school will be retired and flat rates approved if the policy is adopted as written. Nonprofit groups will receive a discounted rate; commercial events are limited to the high schools and will pay more to rent the space. All costs are per-hour and additional hourly costs for janitorial, supervisory and security apply. A minimum of four hours is required at high school events and three hours at other schools.
High schools
Nonprofit rate Commercial rate building
$225 $350 Heritage High School auditorium, seats 750, was $50 to $187.50
$250 $400 Rogers High School auditorium, seats 1,200, was $50 to $187.50
$200 $275 high school cafeteria/commons, was $50 to $187.50
$100 $175 high school lecture halls, was $25 to $50
Middle school (nonprofit groups only)
$125 cafeteria or commons, was $66.67
$160 main gymnasium, was $66.67
Elementary (nonprofit groups only)
$75 cafeteria, was $33.33
$50 gymnasiums*, was $33.33
*Rogers will no longer rent its smaller gymnasiums as part of the policy changes. Only full-size gymnasiums will available. Elementary schools with large gymnasiums include: Darr, Lowell, Northside, Tillery and Tucker.
Source: Staff Report
The cost involved in providing a facility for rent needs to be covered, administrators told School Board members when the plan was presented Tuesday night.
“I look at it from a financial side,” said Jerry Carmichael, board president.
Money intended for educating children shouldn’t be paying to turn on the lights for private groups after school hours, Carmichael said.
New fees were set based on costs to the district, but also based on prices around the area, administrators said.
“We don’t want to be the highest, but we don’t want to be the lowest. We want to be somewhere in between,” said Dan Caley, district energy manager.
Other school districts in and out of state and event centers such as the John Q. Hammons Center, Walton Arts Center and the Metroplex were reviewed, Caley said.
Every event at the Metroplex is priced differently, said Fredy Romero, owner. Some rooms are rented for seminars, but the ballroom accommodates 1,500 people and his business provides decorations, catering and entertainment for weddings and fundraising galas, he said.
“We don’t just rent the space,” Romero said.
Rooms at the Center for Non-Profits run from $25 an hour for a 18-person meeting room to $100 an hour for McAuley Hall which seats up to 250, said Tom Galyon, property manager. The nine rental rooms are often booked for wedding receptions, reunions and quinceaneras.
Private functions seldom rent school facilities, Caley said. The buildings are more often rented for cultural events, fundraisers, dance recitals or a property owner association meeting.
At the Rogers Activity Center, gymnasiums start at $25-per-hour for a half-court, said Robin Rounds, assistant director. A security deposit and extra staffing depends on the intended use of the room. The center doesn’t allow alcohol or music and requests rentals mesh with the recreation association’s community building mission.
School Board members asked for clarification to a district policy allowing “school-related groups” free use of the building. Those groups currently include parent-teacher organizations and school clubs, David Cauldwell, district business manager, told the board.
Nonprofit groups such as Boy Scouts, Girls Scouts and Girls on the Run would be required to rent the building to use it, be restricted from using classrooms and could only rent three times a year under the policy.
“If it’s an outside organization that has a curriculum, then it’s an outside group,” Superintendent Janie Darr told board members.
Additions to the policy would define rental time from setup through teardown; give the district authority to require security during certain events; and clarify the administration’s current practice of waiving rental fees for public service events. Policy revisions note school or public service groups who qualify to use a building for free may still be billed for custodial services. A $50 application fee will change to a 10 percent deposit.
The Rogers School Board will review the proposed policy during a 5:15 p.m. May 9 meeting in the Joye R. Kelley Administration Building, 500. W. Walnut St.