BENTONVILLE -- The Parks and Recreation Department recovered 62 percent of its expenses in 2018, which is more than double the national average, David Wright, parks and recreation director, said Monday.
The department's revenue totaled $3.96 million for 2018. Its expenses tallied $6.3 million, according to the department's annual report, which the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board approved at its meeting.
Next steps
The Bentonville Parks and Recreation Advisory Board approved the 2018 annual report Monday. The report will go before City Council either Feb. 26 or March 12.
Source: Staff report
The cost recovery average rate for parks and recreation departments across the country is 29 percent, according to Wright, who cited the National Recreation and Parks Association.
"I still think there's ways that number can go up," Wright said of his department's 62 percent cost recovery rate. "At the end of the day we want to keep our fees as affordable as we possibly can."
He mentioned reviewing how the department is staffed. The department contracted some mowing work out to other services last year, which saved money and didn't hinder the parks' aesthetics, Wright said as an example.
Personnel costs were the largest of the department's expenses being 54 percent of the $6.3 million. Operating expenses were about 44 percent while the remaining 2 percent was categorized as "other."
Revenue is generated through program and event registrations, rentals, membership fees and sponsorships.
Fee increases for nonresidents who participate in city programs were implemented in January. There is an additional $25 for any program with a registration fee of $75 or less and an additional $40 for any program with a registration fee of $75.01 or more.
Department revenue is expected to increase $155,000 with the fee increase, Wright said after Monday's meeting.
"That's what they cost us," he said. "We built a fee structure that would just recover our cost. We didn't want to make any money on it."
There's the chance participation numbers will decrease if nonresidents choose not to participate because of the increase in cost. Then the department's overall expenses would decrease and the cost difference should even out, Wright said.
About 52 percent of program participants live outside the city, Wright said.
There were 415,756 people who participated in the department's programs and events last year, according to the annual report. Nearly half of those participants were in youth programs, and just more than a quarter of them were in fitness programs.
Board members briefly discussed how they were approached by community members opposing the increase.
Courtney Carlson, board member, said she spoke to a Pea Ridge resident who understood the need behind the increase and that to pay a lower price was an "unwritten benefit" to people who choose to live in Bentonville.
"At the end of the day, none of us wanted to raise the fee, but our programs were at capacity," said Mayor Stephanie Orman, who was on City Council and voted in favor of the increase when council made the decision in June last year.
Wright also commented on the 50,240 maintenance hours worked that's highlighted in the annual report.
The most impressive number in the report is the 72 percent of those hours being spent on preventative maintenance, he said.
"There's anywhere between 2.5 and 3.5 million people using our parks a year," Wright said. "We're not a department that's having to react, react and react all the time."
Many of the city's parks are in high-traffic areas, and people see them being used, said Whitney Sutherland, board member.
"The city, the reputation we have, is because our parks look amazing," she said.
NW News on 02/05/2019