Recreation & Leisure Services Advisory Committee - 23 May 2024 - Agenda

Published May 23, 2024

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Body: Recreation and Leisure Advisory Committee Type: Agenda Meeting: Committee Date: May 23, 2024 Collection: Council Agendas Municipality: South Frontenac

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation & Leisure Services Advisory Committee Meeting Agenda TIME: DATE: PLACE:

6:00 PM, Thursday, May 23, 2024 Council Chambers/Virtual Via Zoom .

Call to Order

Resolution

Approval of the Agenda

Resolution

Confirmation of Minutes

Resolution

Disclosure of Pecuniary Interest

Delegations

Briefings

Representatives from Sierra Planning and Management will be present to speak to Business item a)

Business

Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

Staff Verbal Report Regarding Events

Motions

Notices of Motions

Correspondence

Questions of Clarity (from the public on outcome of agenda items)

Date of Next Meeting

The next meeting is schedule for August 22, 2024

Adjournment

Resolution

2-6

7 - 77

Page 1 of 77

Minutes of Recreation & Leisure Services Advisory Committee February, 29, 2024

Township of South Frontenac Recreation & Leisure Services Advisory Committee Meeting Minutes Meeting # 01 Time: 6:00p.m Location: Council Chamber/Virtual via Zoom

Present: Karl Hammer, Councillor Ray Leonard, Shane Peters, Councillor Norm Roberts, Paul Wash, Marie Wilkins, Holly Wilson & Michele Zigman. Absent: Marc Goudie, Paige Moreland

Staff: Amanda Pantrey - Program, Events & Education Coordinator & Michelle Hannah - Deputy Clerk 1

Call to Order

Approval of the Agenda

Resolution Resolution No. 2024:01:02 Moved by Norm Roberts Seconded by Marie Wilkins That the agenda be approved as presented. Carried

Election of Officers

Chairperson - Nominations & Election Ray Leonard nominated Holly Wilson. Shane Peters nominated Karl Hammer. Karl Hammer nominated Holly Wilson. Holly Wilson accepted her nominations. Karl Hammer declined his nomination. Resolution No. 2024:01:03 Moved by Norm Roberts Seconded by Marie Wilkins That Holly Wilson be appointed as the Chair of the Committee. Carried

Vice-Chairperson - Nominations & Election Holly Wilson nominated Paul Wash. Paul Was accepted his nomination. Resolution No. 2024:01:04 Moved by Holly Wilson Seconded by Shane Peters That Paul Wash be appointed as Vice-Chair of the Committee. Carried

Confirmation of Minutes

Page 2 of 77

Minutes of Recreation & Leisure Services Advisory Committee February, 29, 2024 a)

Resolution Resolution No. 2024:01:05 Moved by Paul Wash Seconded by Ray Leonard That the Minutes of the November 28th, 2023 meeting be approved. Carried

Disclosure of Pecuniary Interest

a) There were none declared. 6

Delegations

a) There were none. 7

Briefings

a) There were none. 8

Business

June is Recreation and Parks Month Amanda Pantrey presented the report to the Committee. Norm Roberts put forward a motion to have Council declare June the Recreation Month. Shane Peters advised that he has spoken to the Disc Golf community and had conversations about a Disc Golf course, he recommended that if the intention is a tournament to hold the event at Centennial Park in Harrowsmith and not McMullen Park in Verona. Amanda Pantrey advised that it was not the intention to have a tournament but a longest putt. Shane Peters and Holly Wilson offered to help, and Shane Peters noted that McMullen would be suitable for a longest putt. Karl Hammer added that Stock Sport would be willing to put together something on a Friday Farmers Market and have a ‘how to’ or sample of programming in June. Amanda asked if there were any other ideas to celebrate June as Parks and Rec Month. Holly asked if there is an opportunity to highlight the committee and what they are doing in terms of events, turnout and success. Amanda shared there will be a highlights piece to the JRPM highlighting events and services and amenities.

Resolution No. 2024:01:06 Moved by Norm Roberts Seconded by Shane Peters

Page 3 of 77

Minutes of Recreation & Leisure Services Advisory Committee February, 29, 2024 That the Recreation and Leisure Services Advisory Committee asks that Council consider declaring “June Recreation and Parks Month (JRPM).” Carried b)

Q4 2023 and Q1 2024 Municipal and Municipally Supported Events Amanda Pantrey provided an overview of the report.

Summer Program Updates Amanda Pantrey provided an overview of the report to the committee and advised that Day Camp registration will be opening on March 25th, but the compliment of staff for swimming lessons is not at a place where the municipal staff are comfortable offering the full program yet, so the Swim lessons will open May 13th. Norm Roberts inquired about the timing of day camp registration opening. Amanda Pantrey advised that the program has been expanded to hopefully meet some more of the communities needs, but ‘resident first’ sign-up is not in place. The opening of McMullen was to answer the call for such an increased need for programming. Holly Wilson asked what time the registration will open. Amanda Pantrey advised registration will be open at 9:00a.m. and that the swim and day camp advertisement will be ramped up soon. Shane Peters inquired about swim instructor job advertisements. Amanda Pantrey responded that the job ads for swim instructors are are posted on university and college websites, Township electronic signs, and normal advertisement on the website, social media and job boards. Shane Peters inquired about the prior discussions of the shortage of swim instructors. Amanda Pantrey advised that we are in year 3 of a 5-year COVID recovery and the Township is in much better shape with respect to swim instructors, but not back to full capacity yet. Amanda also advised that instructors that are taking certification courses are being reimbursed as per the committees advisement last year. Shane Peters inquired about the geese problem in Sydenham and if the swim program will be taken to a different beach. Amanda Pantrey shared that the swim program will be focused on Battersea and Verona as the geese problem is a concern in Sydenham and if the staffing compliment allows will be expanded to Sydenham. In response to a question from Ray Leonard, Amanda Pantrey advised that Greenshield professionals will be handling the goose deterrent.

Designation of Activity Hubs Amanda Pantrey provided an overview of the report. Shane Peters inquired about what this designation will mean.

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Minutes of Recreation & Leisure Services Advisory Committee February, 29, 2024 Amanda Pantrey advised that the designations is a way of structuring investments in recreation in the community. She advised that the Rec Master Plan made recommendations for designations based on activities, but staff changed it to be mindful of location and size of the parks. Norm Roberts asked about the parks that are missing from the list. Amanda Pantrey responded that no parks will be on the backburner, but the designated hubs will be put forward for more investment, they also have the land and space to expand. The designations are for future planning and not to do with upkeep and current status. Holly Wilson asked how broadly this designation will be broadcast. Amanda responded that this is more for internal use to facilitate a coordinated approach and future investments with respect to Council and Rec committee discussions and budgeting. Paul Wash inquired about Wilmer Park. Amanda advised that there are not immediate plans for Wilmer Park. Resolution No. 2024:01:07 Moved by Karl Hammer Seconded by Shane Peters That the Recreation and Leisure Services Committee recommends that Council designate the following facilities and parks as the Townships primary activity hubs: Indoor activity hubs – Glendower Hall and the Storrington Centre Outdoor activity hubs - McMullen Park, Centennial Park, The Point Park, and Gerald Ball Park. Carried e)

Verbal Update  Recreation Fee and Allocation Study Update  Long Range Financial Plan for Parks and Recreation  Recreation Guide  Q2/Upcoming Events - Volunteers Wanted! Recreation Fee and Allocation Study Update: Amanda Pantrey provided a verbal update about the Fees allocation and noted they are working with the consultants with respect to a structure to moving forward. She noted staff still plan to have a special meeting and meeting with user groups before it goes to Council. Long Range Financial Plan for Parks and Recreation: Amanda Pantrey mentioned the motion that was put forward at the last meeting. She advised there is no concrete plan on how to move forward but that has been added to how staff are reviewing moving forward with the lands for recreation. Recreation Guide: Amanda Pantrey shared that the Recreation and Leisure Services Guide is off to the printers, thanks to Shane for reviewing to make sure nothing was missed. She noted that last year there was discussion about the delivery of the Rec Guide. She advised that it will be distributed to every household with the Frontenac news and there will be extra copies at offices as staff feel a printed copy still holds value.

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Minutes of Recreation & Leisure Services Advisory Committee February, 29, 2024 Norm Roberts asked if they will be providing businesses with copies of the guide. Amanda Pantrey advised that extra copies will be provided to business and offices. Shane Peters noted it is also available on-line. Q2 upcoming events: Amanda Pantrey shared the following information: Recreation & Leisure fair – coming up May 1st is touch the truck at the Point Park. May 25th is the summer kick off music festival with a great line-up from prepared from 4:00 – 10:00 p.m. Amanda Pantrey advised that there are still spots open for participation with respect to music, this event will be held at Centennial Park in Harrowsmith. June 22nd, music in the park and Disc Golf at McMullen Park in Verona. Paul Wash inquired about the Touch the Truck event and Amanda Pantrey advised it will be a quiet event this year and moving forward.

Motions

a) There were none. 10

Notices of Motions

a) There were none. 11

Correspondence

a) There was none. 12

Questions of Clarity (from the public on outcome of agenda items)

a) There were none. 13

Date of Next Meeting

May 23rd, 2024.

Adjournment

Resolution Resolution No. 2024:01:08 Moved by Marie Wilkins Seconded by Michele Zigman That the Recreation and Leisure Services Advisory Committee meeting of February 29th, 2024, be adjourned at 7:08 p.m. Carried

Page 6 of 77

To:

Recreation & Leisure Services Advisory Committee

From:

Director, Public Services

Date of Meeting:

Thursday, May 23, 2024

Subject:

Information Report: Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

Report Number:

2024-005

Summary This report and presentation by Sierra Planning and Management serves to present the draft Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy and to receive comments from the Committee members. The report also provides the remaining process steps for the project. Recommendation This Report is for information purposes only. Background In 2022, Council endorsed the Recreation, Parks, and Leisure Master Plan. The Plan made several recommendations for a comprehensive review of all recreation service fees, facility rental fees, allocation policies, and related procedures, resulting in a Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Project. In 2023 the consulting firm of Sierra Planning and Management was retained through a competitive request for proposal process to undertake this project. Since that time, numerous public/group engagement activities, document review and meetings with Staff and Councillors have occurred. Discussion/Analysis The overarching guiding principles for developing the Fees Policy and Facility Allocation Policy are ensuring fairness and equity in access to Township facilities, and fee rates which promote public policy goals, including:  Universal access  Maximizing community health and wellness  Maintaining the level of service for municipal services  Effective asset management  Fiscal sustainability

Sierra Planning and Management have provided an in-depth report that strives to meet these guiding principles. For the purpose of this presentation, the focus will be on the www.southfrontenac.net Page 7 of 77 South Frontenac is a welcoming and thriving rural community.

Township of South Frontenac Staff Report Number: 2024-005

Executive Summary, Categorization of Groups, User Fee Policy (By-Law) and the Allocation Policy (By-Law). The complete report that informed these elements and includes the situation analysis, project engagement findings/activities will be provided to Council at a later date. Process Steps:  Presentation Slides, Executive Summary, User Fee Policy (By-Law) and the Allocation Policy (By-Law) provided to all groups part of engagement process  Initial presentation to Recreation & Leisure Services Advisory Committee o Consideration to be given to comments received during Committee meeting.  All materials posted to ‘Engage Frontenac’ online consultation platform for further Public input until June 21, 2024  Comment period closes on June 21, 2024 at 4:30pm  Township Staff to provide Sierra Planning and Management with all comments received.  Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy to be updated and Staff Recommendation Report to be presented to the Recreation & Leisure Services Advisory Committee at the August 22, 2024 meeting. o Committee to give consideration to endorsement of the Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy  Sierra Presentation and Report to Council to at a later date to adopt the Allocation Policy and to direct Staff to provide notice to hold a Public Meeting as per BY-LAW 2016-73 in order to receive comment on the Fee Schedule.  Public Comment period on the Fee Schedule  Staff Recommendation report to Council on at a later date to adopt the Fee Schedule  Implementation of Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy January 2025 Relationship to Strategic Plan ☐ Not applicable to this report. ☒ This initiative adheres to the following strategic pillars and directions of the 2023-2026 Strategic Plan.  

Pillars: Sustainable Long-Term Prosperity Action Item (If Applicable): Insert Text

Climate Considerations ☐ Not applicable to this report. ☐ This initiative supports climate change mitigation/adaption efforts in South Frontenac; and/or impacts the Township’s resilience to climate change.

www.southfrontenac.net South Frontenac is a welcoming and thriving rural community.

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Township of South Frontenac Staff Report Number: 2024-005

Notice/Consultation Not applicable Attachments 

South Frontenac RAC Presentation 2024.05.23



South Frontenac Recreation Fees and Allocation Policy - Executive Summary



Appendices o Categorization of Groups o User Fee Policy (By-Law) o Allocation Policy (By-Law)

Approvals Prepared By: Tim Laprade, Manager of Recreation and Facilities Submitted By:

Tim Laprade, Manager of Recreation and Facilities Approved By:

Kyle Bolton, Director of Public Services

www.southfrontenac.net South Frontenac is a welcoming and thriving rural community.

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy May 2024

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

Executive Summary Background The Township of South Frontenac provides a high quality of facility care and maintenance and as population growth occurs, will be expected to maintain that level of service. Costs will increase as new facilities are added to recreation services – Storrington Centre expansion being the most recent example. The Township lacks a facility allocation policy that would allow adapting to these changes, the current rental and user fees have not been reviewed in the past 15 years, and most user groups do not pay for facility use. This is unsustainable in the context of growth, higher operating costs and the emergence of new sports and cultural interests. Unless revenues are increased, cost recovery will drop while service standards are expected to rise. Moreover, as regards the current levels of unpaid access to township assets, there is no value attached to these facilities or their upkeep - only recourse to the tax base, which include both users and non-users of the facilities and services. The Township has been active in pursuing a progressively centralized and policy-led approach to recreation service fees and allocation as the Township invests in new services, programs and assets. Building on the recommendations of the Indoor and Outdoor Recreation, Parks and Leisure Master (2022), the Township of South Frontenac initiated a comprehensive review and policy preparation process for recreation service fees and recreation facility allocations of Township owned assets. Notwithstanding these advances in policy and practice, including the centralization of community recreation advocates into a single Recreation Advisory Committee, the landscape of fees and practices in the Township is fragmented, whereas the goal of the Township is one of uniformity of both fees and services. Some of the hurdles to overcome include the following: •

Not everyone and not all groups pay for the facilities that they use;

•

Some have historic usage agreements with the Township, and some of these are expired;

•

Historic use agreements represent another impediment to a fair and equitable approach to fees and allocation;

•

The existing fee schedule is unnecessarily complicated, is clearly a document that has been amended with ad hoc additions over time and the overall relationship of pricing between different categories of use and different types of facility is problematic;

•

Added to this, the fees charged have not be changed in over 15 years – in direct contrast to best practice that is based on fee setting for three (3) or more years on a rolling-basis, with annual fee changes either set-out in advance or automatically increased by a pre-determined escalation factor;

•

The inertia that represents the current fee structure and its stagnation in pricing works against the interests of both the Township and the user groups. The relationship between the provision and quality of facilities, the investment in new facilities and upkeep of the existing assets, and the obligation of the user groups to pay a portion of these costs, should result in annual review and increases in user fees. This process and its results in terms of a clear approach to fees that promotes maximum access to health and wellness, is entirely missing from Township’s decisionmaking;

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

2 •

The prevalence of non-payer use of the facilities has resulted in a revenue profile for fields and community halls that fails to reflect the fee rates that are contained in the approved fee schedule. As a result, the current fee schedule is of no value in helping determine cost recovery. Accordingly, there is a need (as explained in this report) to make fundamental changes to both fee-payment policies and the tracking of booked time by type of activity and length of booking.

Principles The principal goal of introducing a consistent approach to service fees and recreation facility allocations is to achieve fairness and equity in planning for new investment, setting fee rates which promote public policy goals, and improving overall access to facilities owned and operated by the Township. Guiding principles for the development of a Fees Policy & Facility Allocation Policy include: ❑

Universal access;

❑

Maximizing community health and wellness;

❑

Maintaining the level of service for municipal services;

❑

Effective asset management; and

❑

Fiscal sustainability.

This report reviews the current approaches to fee setting and allocation of time in facilities, as well as treatment of special needs groups from youth to low income, indigenous to seniors groups. The report provides a costs and revenue analysis and a Model based on Municipal Service Delivery Goals to meet a universal benefit, which should receive the highest level of subsidy relative to more advanced services, and premium services. The report outlines a policy framework and proposes fee schedules, and allocation practices that enable greater certainty to current and future rate setting, access to facilities and services, achievement of equity for users, and a full understanding of municipal fiscal requirements for cost-recovery. The situation analysis, recommendations and resulting policies build on the results of extensive consultation with the user groups and key stakeholders. The proposed approach to consolidation of policies, fees and other aspects of the recreation mandate builds on the legacy of important community contributions that are measured in years and sometimes decades. The emphasis is on creating a clear and transparent accountable policy process which follows the principles of fairness and equity, efficiency in the use of municipal resources and which provides maximum benefit to the residents of South Frontenac. These policies will hold the Recreation Department in good stead as the Township continues to grow in the next 5 to 10 years. It is certain that the policies and procedures will be subject to change and revision as they are implemented, and lessons are learned.

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

A Framework of Key Recreation User Fee and Facility Allocation Recommendations A: ACHIEVING CERTAINTY

The Township should adopt both a user fee policy and a facilities allocation policy. Both should be established as by-laws.
A revised schedule of fees should be established which includes fees that will apply in the current year as well as each of the following years (i.e. a fee schedule for a three (3) year period).
Fees should be subject to annual increases based on the Township’s preferred choice of escalation metric (for example the consumer price index). For consideration, we suggest that the escalation rate in place for other municipal services, levies and charges, such as Development Charges, be further assessed for its applicability to recreation facility fees which are borne of operating rather than capital costs. B: ACHIEVING TRANSPARENCY
By taking on board the policies governing fee setting, subsidization and allocation of time, the Township will have a transparent process. Any deviation from policy by the Township for either individual groups or classes of groups, will need to be communicated as staff reports and justified as special circumstances.
Any rebate or reduction in fees should be a decision of Council.
Maintaining an annual review of costs and revenues, as well as tracking utilization by the fee category charged, will enable the Council to more accurately understand the financial implication of its decision-making.
The entire booking process should be revamped as part of a committed approach to improving the management of Township assets and customer services.
Develop clear policies with respect to the relationship between the in-kind contributions by user groups and the obligation to pat user fees. C: ACHIEVING ACCOUNTABILITY
The Township should publish annual records of costs, revenues and utilization of each facility under its jurisdictional control. This includes both capital costs and operating costs. The purpose is to present these findings based on the method developed for this study to Council as an annual update to improve decision-making. Decision-making includes the review of cost-recovery, and rate setting for a rolling three-year term.
The cost recovery of recreation should be monitored more effectively through the recommended improvements to data collection and the process for booking time to be followed by all regular users.
The rate of cost recovery should not fall below the average calculated for recreation services as a whole.
Communicate that all historic and out-of-date-use agreements will not be renewed. Any existing agreements which are in-force should be terminated on expiry of the term of the agreement. If the Township does wish to negotiate new use agreements, these should be based on a standardized template.

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

D: ACHIEVING FAIRNESS

Categorization of users achieves fairness through recognizing the value of the group in providing services to target populations and relative to other groups that, while they may provide important services, do not meet the broader policy goals that justify the same level of subsidization of costs.
Centralize the fee paid for fields into a cost per hour rather than per participant.
Ensure all groups identify their space needs per the Allocation Policy drafted for this report.
All groups that require longer-term frequent use should achieve their own insurance coverages per the requirements of the Township and as laid out in the User Fee Policy. For all others, the charge can be added to their rental fee. The Township will, at its discretion, determine how best to achieve insurance coverage to its satisfaction with respect to large one-off events and festivals.
Each and every group should have the right to use any facility in the Township. The Township may, at its discretion, move sports groups around to different facilities based on demand and operational requirements as determined by the Township. E. ACHIEVING EFFICIENCY
The bundle of recommendations contained in the report, if implemented, will enable greater efficiencies: a. Staff time involved in management bookings, reporting and addressing customer issues will be reduced; b. Reporting will be greatly enhanced c. Council will have the capacity to assess the operational success of existing assets as relevant to making important capital investment decisions; d. The public and user groups can be assured of improved assessment that tax-dollars are being used as effectively as possible.

Working with Existing Data to Determine Cost Recovery As a result of the disparity between those who pay for service and those who do not, the consulting team has built a profile of the costs and revenues associated with those facilities that are in-scope. This excludes the Frontenac Community Arena, as well as the recreation programs that the Township operates. For each facility, this financial data was assessed alongside the historic information on facility bookings by group. As a result, the consulting team is able to differentiate between those groups that currently pay, and those that do not, and their contribution to municipal cost recovery. By studying the data, particularly that of the use of facilities by those groups that pay for their access, the validity of the existing fee schedule can be better understood, and appropriate changes to re-set this schedule recommended. And these recommendations include a policy that all groups pay for access to the facilities.

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

Understanding Current Cost Recovery Exhibit below provides a summary of the differentiation between payers and non-payers in terms of their relative impacts on the recreation system as a whole. For ease of understanding, we have coded each metric and describe its importance below. The data are for 2018 which represents a reasonable estimation of usage, revenues and costs that is representative of other years pre- and post-pandemic. These metrics do not change significantly year to year. Indoor Facilities 2018

Facility Year

A B C

Outdoor Facilities 2018

Paying Groups - hours

1,007

1,116

Non-paying groups - hours

2,923

1,572

Total Hours

3,930

2,688

74%

58%

($11,229.00)

($15,228.14)

% BOOKED Time ZERO REVENUE

B/C

Facility Revenue

Revenue per hour (based on actual revenue & hours paid)

D/A

($11.15)

($13.65)

Revenue per hour (based on paid and unpaid hours together)

D/C

($2.86)

($5.67)

Min fee (based on existing fee schedule) Per Hour*

$10.00

$12.50

Revenue Per Hour Booked as % of Approximate Minimum Fee Per Hour

28.57%

45.33%

F/G

45.33% Reference to Cost Recovery

I J K

$129,740.04

$156,025.13

I/C

$33.01

$58.06

J+F

$30.15

$52.39

(Surplus)/Deficit Cost Recovery -All Booked Hours (Paid and Unpaid)

F/J

8.65%

9.76%

Cost Recovery - Paid Hours Only

E/J

34%

24%

Total Cost (Direct, indirect, overhead) Cost per hour to operate (incl. overhead)

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

•

Lines A, B and C summarise the use of (1) indoor facilities and (2) outdoor facilities in terms of payers and non-payers;

•

Three quarters (75%) of booked time across the indoor facility portfolio is non-revenue generating (i.e. no fees are paid). Some of this use pertains to usage originally permitted under user agreements;

•

As expected, the degree of non-paying use of outdoor facilities in lower than for indoor facilities – yet it remains high at over 50% of all booked hours;

•

Lines D and E establish annual revenues and the equivalent per hour revenues from payer groups. A key take-away is that these revenues per hour (Line E) bear a reasonable relationship to the per hour fee that is currently in place. The conclusion being that where fees are paid, they are at least generally following the schedule (some exceptions apply such as the payment of fees for certain ball diamonds by a per participant charge that muddies the revenue picture, but is not likely to alter the conclusions);

•

Line F expresses the reality of such a high degree of uncharged use of facilities – an effective revenue per booked hour of less than $3.00 for indoor venues and less than $6.00 per hour for fields;

•

Lines I and J establish the annual operating cost per hour (all hours, regardless of whether a fee is paid). When compared to the revenue per hour, the extent of current operating cost subsidy is apparent – $30 and $50 per hour (indoor and outdoor facilities, respectively);

•

The cost recovery is 8.65% (indoor) and 9.76% (outdoor);

•

This low recovery reflects the degree of non-payer usage. The cost recovery only for those groups that do pay, is far higher – 34% (indoor) and 24% (outdoor). This represents the cost recovery if non-payers were required to pay the same as payers.

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

Projecting Cost Recovery and Link to a Revised Fee Schedule Based on the review of existing practices, the focus of attention in policy terms lies with the non-paying users. Adopting the principle that all users pay, the Township has a choice in how to implement this new policy. The implications of adopting different fees are presented below.

Transitioning Current Non-Payer Groups to Pay

Incremental Revenue

Scenarios of Cost Recovery

Indoor Facilities

Option 1: Current Non-Payer Groups 25% of Proposed Fee Option 2: Current Non-Payer Groups 50% of Proposed Fee Option 3: No Discount for Current Non-Payer Groups

Outdoor Facilities

per hour $2.50 ($7,308.63) ($3,930.00) $5.00 ($14,617.25) ($7,860.00) $10.00 ($29,234.50) ($15,720.00)

Impact on Cost Recovery Option 1: Current Non-Payer Groups 25% of Proposed Fee Option 2: Current Non-Payer Groups 50% of Proposed Fee Option 3: No Discount for Current Non-Payer Groups

per hour Total Revenue $2.50 ($18,537.63) ($19,158.14) $5.00 ($25,846.25) ($23,088.14) $10.00 ($40,463.50) ($30,948.14) Cost Recovery %

Option 1: Current Non-Payer Groups 25% of Proposed Fee Option 2: Current Non-Payer Groups 50% of Proposed Fee Option 3: No Discount for Current Non-Payer Groups

per hour

Indoor

$2.50 $5.00 $10.00

14% 20% 31%

Outdoor Combined 12% 15% 20%

13% 17% 25%

These options present the impacts of charging for the current non-payment of use of the Township facilities – on an annual basis: •

This estimation of potential cost recovery builds off the assessment of current cost recovery outlined above;

•

There are 3 scenarios: initiating a requirement for current non-paying user groups to pay 25% of the typical charge per hour for those groups that currently pay; a 50% charge or a full equivalency of 100% of the rate;

•

The incremental revenues for each option are shown, along with the total revenues (the accretion of current revenues from paying users and initiating payment requirements for current non-payers).

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

As an indication of the fee impacts for both payers and current non-payers if a target rate of cost recovery is established, this is itemized below:

Hourly Charge for All Bookings to achieve the following cost recovery: 40% 50%

Indoor Facilities ($13.20) ($16.50)

Outdoor Facilities ($23.22) ($29.03)

As can be seen, achieving cost recovery above 50% would be highly challenging to implement and may well be beyond the capacity of groups to pay. Part of the reason for there being a ceiling on cost recovery is the nature of the use – the low level of overall utilization of halls and the costs of sports field maintenance coupled with their concentrated use mainly in prime time. This is a typical pattern across many municipalities.

Capital It should be noted that the above metrics are inclusive of all direct and indirect costs associated with the facilities provision as well as insurance and corporate overhead costs. The resulting picture is that of true operating cost recovery, but it does not include the costs of capital associated with the assets. This can include a full range of lifecycle-related capital costs on an annual basis, as well as major equipment purchases and of course planned renovations such as occurred with the Storrington Community Centre. While it would be technically important to relay annual and hourly costs to represent “whole of life” costs for an asset, and in the absence of precise costs could include a contribution to capital reserves, the current analysis does not go that far. However, it should be recognized by all users that the costs of providing the level of service enjoyed by residents for existing assets cannot generally be funded from growth-related revenue streams such as Development Charges (generally only a portion can be if clearly an addition or major functional enhancement). Accordingly, capital, if not sourced from elsewhere, is recourse to the tax base. The resulting rates put in place by the Township are justified in light of the costs of providing services and the cost of capital. Other municipalities have instigated a process of surcharges for capital costs – often in bigger cities where the registrations for various sports clubs are assessed a surcharge payable as part of annual program fees and which are then remitted to the municipality by the user group. The Township could consider something similar for its sport fields user groups. Attaching a surcharge to the hourly fee is also possible. Further discussion with the user groups would be required.

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

Fairness and Equity as the Driver Cost recovery is a metric but it is not necessarily the leading factor in determining the approach to user fees for the Township – however, fairness and equity is the primary policy driver. Accordingly, there is little value in a policy that has a lower fee charged to those that do not currently pay, than those that do. The only defensible position for a tiered set of fees is that the Township wishes to phase in the fees over a period of time and may therefore initiate a lower fee at the outset and ramp up the fee to equivalency over time. This is a complicated policy to implement and monitor and the amount of staff resources necessary to ensure its success may add to the overall administration costs. For this reason, a better approach is to establish different categories of user – not based on an historical division between groups such as whether or not they historically paid fees, but according to the type of user. The fees charges are set according to this categorization.

Categorization of User Groups The recommendations of this study are to revamp the fee schedule using an objective approach to categorizing users. These categories are defined in the body of the report. In summary, Category 1 users represent all those local community groups that provide critical recreation and cultural services to residents of the Township and include all current non-paying groups. Category 2 groups are a smaller subset of local groups that for reasons of age or activity are reasonably deemed to be less of a priority for subsidization; and Category 3 users are a mix of individuals, commercial interests or others (resident or otherwise) that wish to rent facilities for private functions. Non-resident groups are a defined entity and are considered as Category 3, representing fees that do not generate a level of subsidy. Based on the financial assessment above as a guide, the rate for a hall rental in Category 3 should be $40 + per hour and $60 + per hour for a sports field.

Fee Exemptions As is currently in place, fee exemptions are permitted but should be carefully controlled and vetted. Based on our review, fee exemption categories would be based on the activity and not the group. Accordingly, activities where exemptions are permitted should not be subject to vagueness and open to abuse (unintended or otherwise). In our view, exempted activities would include: fundraising events (local only), funerals and celebrations of life (residents only), mobile public services (if free to the public) such as library, blood donor clinics, foodbank activities or any other charitable activity deemed appropriate. All such activities should be one-off events or otherwise clearly infrequent, and exemptions should not include any organization simply by virtue of non-profit status.

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

Non-Residents The adoption of a fee policy that creates categories of users raises the question of how to address nonresident fees. The principle of higher costs for non-residents is established by the Township at present and is utilized in the fee schedule and the allocation policies. In general terms, a group can only be deemed local (or resident) where at least 80% of the membership are resident in the Township (i.e. where less than 20% of the membership are non-local). The current fee schedule adds a non-resident category against all fees. Doing so in the context of categorization will create undue complication in the fee structure and could generate a level of unfairness – for example, a Category 1 non-resident fee being similar or lower than a Category 2 resident fee. In our view, a non-resident group should be a category 3 – where (in theory if not always in practice) there is no taxpayer subsidy (note our point above about capital upkeep of assets, which if not accounted for in fees, may result in a level of subsidy even for category 3 users). In order to simplify the approach to non-resident fees, we suggest the following approach: •

Redefine a resident group as needing to have at least 70% of its registered members (and guest privileges if the group permits) as residing locally;

•

Define a non-resident group as having more than 30% of its registered members (and guests) residing elsewhere. This will potentially reduce the number of non-local groups but for those that are clearly and unequivocally non-local, a much higher fee is charged by an order of magnitude, rather than an arbitrary bump-up of the resident fee without reference to cost recovery;

•

Categorize all non-resident groups as Category 3 and subject, unequivocally, to the highest fee structure. This will create a high degree of certainty that non-local groups should not be overtly subsidized; and

•

Reconsider this categorization only where an adjacent municipality where many of the group reside (e.g. Kingston) is engaged in some partnership, cost sharing or other collaborative pursuit or exchange of access privileges that warrants a different, more inclusive approach to nonresident groups.

Of the argument that Township residents avail themselves of many services in the City of Kingston including its sports and recreation facilities, such that a high non-resident fee is not fair or equitable in the Township, we offer the following advice: •

The decision as to how to charge non-residents is subjective and political in nature. A token increase in fees for non-residents can reflect a recognition of broader mutual benefits such that a hard line approach to cost recovery is not warranted;

•

This report seeks to itemize non-resident groups as subject to a higher bar – increase the percentage of non-local as needing to be higher before a group is designated non-resident, but for those groups that are so categorized, increase the fee more significantly; and

•

This also has the benefit of simplifying the fee schedule.

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

Proposed Fee Schedule The following fee schedule is recommended for Year 1 of implementation, but should be approved as a three (3) year rolling schedule, based on the following for years 2 and 3: •

Escalation of 4% on a cumulative basis in year 2 and year 3;

•

Annual review of the escalation rate and any changes (for example raising or lowering the rate) applied to the successive two years of the three year term;

•

Review the entire policy for fee schedule at the end of year for its ongoing effectiveness and adjust the policy as required based on stakeholder consultation.

Proposed Fee Schedule Category I – Youth, Seniors, Not-For-Profit

Category III – Category II – Commercial Use, Adult Users Non-residents

Rectangular Fields Hourly Rate (7am – 5pm)

$12.50

$20

$60

Hourly Rate (5pm – 11pm) - Lights 20% premium

$15

$24

$72

Tournament (7am – 5pm)

$150

$250

$400

Tournament (5pm – 11pm) - Lights 20% premium

$180

$300

$480

Hourly Rate (7am – 5pm)

$12.50

$20

$60

Hourly Rate (5pm – 11pm) - Lights 20% premium

$15

$24

$72

Tournament (7am – 5pm)

$150

$250

$360

Tournament (5pm – 11pm) - Lights 20% premium

$180

$300

$432

Hourly Rate (7am-5pm)

$10

Hourly Rate (5pm-11pm) - Lights 20% premium

$2.4

$3.6

$12

Tournament (7am – 5pm)

$40

$60

$160

Tournament (5pm – 11pm) - Lights 20% premium

$48

$72

$192

Baseball Diamonds

Courts

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

Category I – Youth, Seniors, Not-For-Profit

Category II – Adult Users

Category III – Commercial Use, Non-residents

Community Halls – Storrington, Glendower, Harris Park, Sydenham Community Room Hourly Rate

$10

$15

$40

$10

$30

$10

$20

$60

Gazebos/ Pavilions Hourly Rate Park Rental – Special Events Hourly Rate

Fees for Lit Rectangular Fields, Ball diamond and Courts include 20% premium applied after 6:00 pm for lights This Year 1 Fee Schedule is to increase by 4% in Year 2 and Year 3.

Booking Forms Versus Use Agreements The Township should continue to utilize use agreements for those user groups that have regular and long-term use of facilities. In contrast to what exists at present, standardized use agreements should be utilized based on a template of specifications, obligations, length of agreement and other matters that are replicable across the spectrum of users. In this way, fairness and equity is maintained, as well as effective management of recreation services to all groups. As noted, use agreements should encompass the in-force fee schedule and should not include fees and practices that deviate from the approved fee schedule. To do so, invites the re-occurrence of the overcustomization of fees and allocation polices by group that the Township is striving to avoid. Beyond the use agreements, the recreation management software that is used to create and execute the rental agreements, should include an online booking form and a booking receipt protocol that stipulates all of the required obligations of the renter – ranging from the confirmation of the time and place of rental, rental fee consideration, any additional charges, renter obligations, Township obligations, insurance costs if included in the rental fee, and any other relevant, standardized condition of rental. This includes the terms and conditions associated with cancellation of booking. We recommend that the Township review the booking confirmation terms and conditions available when booking ice, sports field, community halls, etc. in other, larger municipalities which utilize an online booking management system. The terms and conditions associated with booking forms for general rental use are generally expected to also apply to long-term use agreements. However, as use agreements are organized between the Township and established user groups, and are typically multi-year, there may be additional requirements as part of long-term use agreements, including separate group insurance as may be required.

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

1 Introduction and Purpose of the Report 1.1 Retainer The Township of South Frontenac has retained Sierra Planning and Management to undertake a comprehensive review and policy preparation process for recreation service fees and recreation facility allocations of Township owned assets. The principal goal of this exercise is to achieve fairness and equity in both the planning for, setting of fees and future planning for fees as well as the overall access to facilities owned and operated by the Township. This is a policy process which will enable clear and purposeful implementation of key principles of fairness and equity which our further described in this report . This emphasis on fairness and equity is necessary as a result of the different approaches to both the allocation of time and facilities, the degree of priority on access to facilities that individual groups may have and the different fee structures that were present in each of the former Townships that now comprise the single Township of South Frontenac. Despite the amalgamation, the discrepancies and lack of equity across the provision of recreation services is apparent and an improvement in overall decision-making and accountability is required. This is the primary goal of the exercise. Clarity on policy development has become blurred and the reality and historical legacy associated with the way recreation was provided and operationalized in each Township remains a relevant consideration. Recreation in a rural setting is about motivating and retaining the high value that is provided by volunteers. The issues that are for standardization across the municipality become exacerbated when organizations have under the course of time provided different levels of service. However, the Township is now largely responsible for maintenance of its sports fields and buildings except for particular instances of preparation of sports fields prior to games (for example lining and dragging of ball diamonds). Surrounding all of these issues is the strong policy supports in place for recreation development as a municipal service accordingly. As directed by Council and the Terms of Reference for the assignment, the study laid out in this report is not a focus on the precise scale of fees and comparability to surrounding municipalities although that is part and parcel of the work plan. To emphasize again, the emphasis is on creating a clear and transparent accountable policy process which follows the principles of fairness and equity, efficiency in the use of municipal resources and which provides maximum benefit to the residents of South Frontenac.

1.2 South Frontenac Antecedents The Township of South Frontenac was incorporated in 1998 as a result of the amalgamation of the former Townships of Bedford, Loughborough, Portland, and Storrington. The development of a centralized approach to the treatment of municipal subsidy for recreation services, the establishment of fee schedules on a multi-year basis and supporting policies for facility allocation in recreation that is contained in this report follows a 25-year history of post amalgamation activities designed to improve efficiencies as offered by amalgamation. As is typical, recreation is not a standardized municipal service, and every former Township would have had a particular approach which leveraged the interest in volunteers of its particular community. It is therefore important that the legacy of these important community contributions is not lost and is part of the reason why any change toward consolidation of policies, fees and other aspects of the recreation mandate takes time to occur - certainly measured in years and sometimes in decades. The Township of South Frontenac is therefore not a typical in this

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

regard. However, the purpose of this report is clear - to create that consolidation approach. It is important however to recognize that the Township has been active in pursuing a progressively centralized and policy led approach to recreation service fees and allocation all the while occurring while the development of the communities that make up the Township occurs in a dynamic setting and new services, programs and assets are developed to serve the population. Some of these important milestones, then development of municipal policy includes the following: ▪

Immediately following amalgamation there were five recreation committee’s overseeing the provision of recreation in the Township. These have been reduced to a single Recreation Committee which operates as an Advisory Committee of Council.

▪

The South Frontenac Recreation Committee established a 5-year Strategic Plan in February of 2010 establishing its mission and vision, the structure of the committee functions, subcommittees and required budgets for a 5-year implementation.

▪

The Township has undertaken a comprehensive Indoor and Outdoor Recreation, Parks and Leisure Master Plan completed In 2022. This is the principal guiding document to inform the Recreation Services Fees and Allocations Policy Process.

▪

The Township has continued to implement a range of new capital projects as well as promoting a range of emerging sports and pursuing events and festivals in each of the four seasons. The Township has been active in its obligations to effective capital and operational planning for recreation.

While it is probably inaccurate to define the establishment of recreation service fees policy and allocation policy as well as any other process related improvements as being the capstone to the work that has been undertaken toward a single uniform approach which is consistent in policy and implementation. The recommendations of this report are expected to go a long way toward creating policies and processes that will hold the Recreation Department in good stead as the Township continues to grow in the next 5 to 10 years. It is certain that the policies and procedures will be subject to change and revision as they are implemented, and lessons are learned.

1.3 Projects Scope and Desired Outcomes As identified in the terms of reference, the outcome of this project is a policy framework, fee schedules, and allocation practices that enable greater certainty to current and future rate setting, access to facilities and services, achievement of equity for users, and a full understanding of municipal fiscal requirements for cost-recovery. These projects require a full understanding of the goals of recreation service delivery and are distinct from other municipal user fee studies addressing hard services. What defines this approach is an adherence to fully understanding the current approaches to fee setting and allocation of time in facilities, as well as treatment of special needs groups from youth to low income, indigenous to seniors groups. From this, a model of cost recovery can be developed, and policies of importance (recreation plan, active living plans, strategic plans, equity-diversity-inclusion plans, and financial targets) can be applied in a clear and concise manner to guide future rate setting.

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

To summarize our understanding of the Township’s objectives: A – Establish costs and revenues by service area / and by building if possible – a current picture of the approach which may be understood as ad hoc and historic in nature can be better appreciated by identifying net costs (subsidy) based on per hour charges for facilities, and per user/registrant or per capita (for parks and other informal access-based amenities and services). To do this requires triangulation of a) revenues by type of activity/program or rental period b) operating costs on the same basis and c) most importantly, the level of use (program take-up, hours rented, etc.). Often a good model is achievable if assisted by reasonable assumptions where accounting and booking systems do not fully align. B – Establish a Model based on Municipal Service Delivery Goals – defining services based on their community benefit and alignment with municipal mandates. In our work, we establish all programs that meet a universal benefit (a benefit to the widest number of people) and which should receive the highest level of subsidy relative to more advanced services (higher level, lower participation programs; adult rentals versus minor sport), and premium services (those which are delivered for the benefit of specific groups such as corporate users, or one-off events). Categorization of current and potential future programs is based on these or similarly agreed categories that set the basis for a) alternative cost recovery targets and b) allocation policies and procedures. Ensuring that emerging sports catering to diversity groups are not miscategorized, that private or not-for-profit providers are not “crowded-out” of the marketplace, and that program demand is not impacted by fee increases are examples of further policy setting. C – Consult: Extensive consultation is best achieved through a broad base of discussion (as identified in the terms) and through the articulation of the various ways to structure cost recovery based on a range of policies. This approach sets up much better conversations with individual user groups that may be initially concerned by the prospect of a new approach to fees and allocation. D – Develop User Fee Policy and related Allocation policies – based on addressing cost recovery targets which take into account direct and indirect operating costs and corporate overhead (if desired), as well as future capital costs by building (expressed on a present value basis). Care needs to be exercise in estimating capital costs as part of this exercise and we recommend doing it both with and without capital expenses. Capital is variable both in the amount and recourse to the tax-base. E – Report – simple reporting which translates into a series of confirmed policies and commitments to rate setting and which established consensus. A review of current contractual and lease agreements and standardization of these documents is also very much part of the implementation and something we have provided other municipal clients.

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

Project Timeline & Key Milestones at a Glance The Fees and Allocation Policy project was launched in Spring 2023 on the Township’s website. The following key milestones have been implemented since the beginning of the project: Timeline

Key Milestones

Conducting a systematic review of best-practices and models in the development of a fee schedule and allocation bylaw;

Process at a Glance

Comprehensive Review

A comprehensive review of all recreation service fees, facility rental fees, allocation policies and related procedures; Establishing costs & revenues by service area and by building (where possible); Consulting - Assessing current and future needs through extensive user groups and stakeholder engagement. Methods: survey, meetings, interviews. Establishing a Model based on Municipal Service Delivery Goals; and Developing User Fee Policy and related Allocation policies and recommendations on an action plan for the recreation service fee and facility allocation.

Consultation

Establishing a Model & Developing Policies

Reporting & Public Review

Fees and Allocation Policy Guiding Principles Guiding principles for the development of a Fees Policy & Facility Allocation Policy are ensuring fairness and equity in access to municipal facilities, and fee rates which promote public policy goals, including: ❑

Universal access;

❑

Maximizing community health and wellness;

❑

Maintaining the level of service for municipal services;

❑

Effective asset management; and

❑

Fiscal sustainability.

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

1.4 Limitations The contents of this report and the analysis herein is based, in part, upon a range of primary analysis and secondary sources of information, supplemented were required by investigative discussions with municipal staff and community organizations as well as public consultations. While every effort is taken to ensure the accuracy of secondary sources of information including information supplied by the Township in relation to operational costs and revenues for in-scope facilities, and the retrieval of facility and field booking information from the Township, Sierra Planning and Management cannot warranty the accuracy of this information. Any analysis of secondary source information, predicated on the accuracy of the secondary source information, is fully the responsibility of Sierra Planning Management to warranty its accuracy. In the event that secondary source information is inaccurate or incomplete Sierra Planning and Management will not be held liable for original errors in data.

1.5 Report Structure – to be finalized The report consists of three parts: ▪

Part A outlines the project rationale, scope and process and outcomes of consultation process;

▪

Part B presents Financial analysis; and

▪

Part C introduces Fee and Allocation Policies and concludes with Recommendations.

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Categorization of User Groups

Appendix A Page 28 of 77

Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

Categorization of User Groups To meet the principles of maximising the accessibility of basic recreation activities for children, youth and seniors while reducing as far as possible the subsidy of both direct and indirect costs associated with adult sport and non-community group rental of facility space: Category I: comprising programs and services by the Township as well as programs and services delivered by organized community and recreational groups which are based in the Township. Category I includes services provided by the Township and others that focus on children, youth and seniors. It is intended that a range of recreational services be available to all citizens and that no area residents shall be excluded from participating in recreational activities because of an inability to pay. Groups in Category I programs and groups should comprise predominantly children, youth or seniors as primary participants (i.e., at least 70% of primary participants should be within at least one of these categories). Category II: comprising programs and services by the Township and services provided by organized community and recreational groups catering to adult recreation and cultural activity/skills development, as well as the use of facilities that serve non-basic recreation needs (advanced classes for older youth and adults in premium facilities). Category III: user fees that are charged to commercial users (whether for profit or non-profit), private individuals or groups of individuals that do not constitute established community groups and for which public subsidization is unwarranted (weddings, room rentals, private swimming lessons), and use of recreational assets by non-Township residents. This includes eliminating subsidization of activities such as for-profit tournaments and special events. The Township’s Court Allocation Policy distinguishes between resident and non-resident user groups prioritising the use by the former. A group can only be deemed local (or resident) where at least 80% of the membership are resident in the Township (i.e. where less than 20% of the membership are nonlocal). The revised allocation policy suggests lowering this requirement to 70% and introducing a separate category of users that will comprise non-resident groups and rates for commercial uses. Within these categories facility access will be granted in a fair and equitable manner based on the following priority schedule: First Priority:

Township of South Frontenac Programs and Events

Second Priority:

Youth and Seniors Resident Groups / Minor Sport

Third Priority:

Groups Adult Resident User Groups / Adult Sport

Fourth Priority:

Groups Commercial Use / Tournaments

Fifth Priority:

Non-Resident User groups

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

Users by Category: Halls / Indoor Facilities Category I Primarily Children, Youth, Seniors and Non-forprofit | Residents • Programs and services organized by the Township; • Organized community and recreational groups which are based in the Township; • Groups serving predominantly children or youth (at least 70% of primary users are local children or youth). • Groups serving predominantly seniors (at least 70% of primary users are local seniors) • Residents means that at least 70% of primary users are local residents.

Storrington Retirees Association Exercise Group - Seniors Leland Helping Hand Grace Social & Activity Centre Sydenham Book Club Bedford Jam Monday Night Euchre Bridge Card Group Painting Club Sunbury Open Mic Perth Road Crafters Mindful Stitchery KFPL Storrington Fire Department Storrington Fire Association Greater Bobs and Crow Lakes Association Celebrations of Life Funerals

Category II Primarily Adults | Residents • Organized community and recreational groups catering to adult recreation and cultural activity/skills development; • The use of facilities that serve non-basic recreation needs. • Residents means that at least 70% of primary users are local residents.

TOPS VON

Category III – Commercial Use & Primarily Non-Residents • Commercial users • Individuals or groups that do not constitute established community groups • Non-residents - over 30% of primary users are nonTownship residents.

Commercial users (whether for profit or non-profit), private individuals or groups of individuals that do not constitute established community groups and for which public subsidization is unwarranted (weddings, room rentals, private swimming lessons), and use of recreational assets by non-Township residents.

The above list of groups may not include all groups. For any new group the Township will review each group’s profile and allocate groups to categories.

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy

Users by Category: Outdoor Facilities Category I Primarily Children, Youth, Seniors and Nonfor-profit | Residents

Category II Primarily Adults | Residents

Category III – Commercial Use & Primarily Non-Residents

• Programs and services organized by the Township; • Organized community and recreational groups which are based in the Township; • Groups serving predominantly children or youth (at least 70% of primary users are local children or youth). • Groups serving predominantly seniors (at least 70% of primary users are local seniors) • Residents means groups serving predominantly local residents (at least 70% of primary users are local residents).

• Organized community and recreational groups catering to adult recreation and cultural activity/skills development; • The use of facilities that serve non-basic recreation needs. • Residents means groups serving predominantly local residents (at least 70% of primary users are local residents).

• Commercial users • Individuals or groups that do not constitute established community groups • Non-residents means groups serving predominantly nonresidents (over 30% of primary users are nonTownship residents).

Stocksport MT Adventures Kingston & Area Ice Stock Club

Commercial use Private Practice / Tournaments

Thousand Islands Minor Football Frontenac Soccer Association Storrington Minor Soccer Frontenac County Minor Softball Association Grace Social & Activity Centre SHS Tennis Team Frontenac Pickleball Club Sunbury Pickleballers Frontenac Society of Model Engineers Harrowsmith Social & Athletic Club Events Storrington Canada Day Sydenham Canada Day Glendower Canada Day Battersea Pumpkin Festival

Frontenac Farmers Market

The above list of groups may not include all groups. For any new group the Township will review each group’s profile and allocate groups to categories.

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Facility Allocation Policy

Appendix D Page 32 of 77

Township of South Frontenac Recreation Facility Allocation Policy

SECTION 1: POLICY STATEMENT The Township of South Frontenac encourages use of municipal recreation facilities by the community as a means of enhancing resident health and quality of life. The Township recognizes that the provision of access to municipal recreation facilities, parks and trails encourages participation in sport, physical and social activity, personal and family well-being, and directly impacts resident enjoyment. SECTION 2: PURPOSE: To create a fair, equitable and transparent process for the allocation of use of the Township’s owned and/or operated recreational assets by providing a consistent administrative and consultative procedure, supported by policy. Implemented by staff, this policy aims to ensure that the allocation of time at facilities, including the organization of the booking and scheduling process, including priorities for access where necessary, is clear and easily understood. It is recognized that there is generally no insurmountable conflict in terms of the ability of the Township to allocate time amongst the various community groups and other users at its facilities. However, Township-owned facilities are assets of value that serve a range of purposes including their use as venues for community, non-profit, educational, family, cultural and commercial purposes. Accordingly, allocation policies must address the hierarchy or priorities for access to a facility at any given time of day, week, and season. This policy should also be read in conjunction with all other policies, by-laws and published and in-force requirements of the Township regarding the responsibilities of facility users to maintain facilities in good condition and meet all conditions related to their use of the facility. This includes obligations with respect to following booking procedures, cancellation of bookings, and any alterations thereto. Nothing as set out in this policy shall be read to limit, amend, alter or nullify the requirements of the Township and its insurers regarding use of its facilities as set out in the various booking forms, established in the by-laws of the Township or mandated under provincial and federal statute and regulation.

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The Township’s current allocation procedures are based on the historic allocation of hours carried forward each year – while this is entirely community-minded and respects the established traditions in the individual communities, this does not represent best practice as a means to navigate the matter of priority access. This policy document is a shift from the historic practice to a standardized set of policies which govern access. Chief amongst these is the continuation of the enjoyment of access privileges enjoyed by the volunteer organizations and social groups within the Township, but framed by clarity of language in policy that established the principles of use [why these facilities exist and their purpose] and access rights. The implementation of this policy will not have an adverse effect on existing User Groups and their use of the facilities. SECTION 3: GOALS

To outline the timing, process and principles for allocation to allow for maximum clarity on the decision making-process by Township staff.
To provide a forward-planning mechanism which allows User Groups to appropriately plan for their sporting seasons based on the determined process and timeline for allocating facility use.
To advertise the availability of the Township’s recreational assets to improve their utilization by fee-paying users, promote community development and the opportunities to grow volunteerism in the community. Broadening the role of these assets for community capacity development may necessitate an approach to fee setting for some activities that ensures cost is not a barrier to community participation in the delivery of community and recreational services.
To outline the Categories of Users and their priority in relation to the allocation of ice.
To define a process that ensures that new User Groups are given access to facilities appropriate to the associated Category of User.
To minimize allocation conflicts wherever possible.

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SECTION 4: DEFINITIONS Term

Definition

Adult

A person 19 years of age and over.

Minor Sport

Youth aged 18 or under involved in organized sport.

Seniors

Seniors defined by membership of seniors organizations (generally age 65 and over).

Use Agreements / Lease Agreements

Formal agreements to govern long-term, multi-year rentals / use of Township facilities.

Casual Rentals

Refer to those rentals made on short notice (i.e. same day or ‘on the spot’ rentals) by any group or individual. Casual rentals are not on a seasonal basis.

Category I Users

Community Groups prioritized to receive preferred access rights (scheduled time) and highest rate of cost subsidization (refer to Township User Fee Policy for greater detail).

Category II Users

Primarily Adult and Non-Basic recreational programming (refer to Township User Fee Policy for greater detail).

Category III Users

Commercial users, private individuals and others for which subsidization is minimized, and non-resident groups. Allocation of time may be prioritized under defined conditions as set out in this policy.

Commercial Use

A for-profit endeavor (including classes or lessons, friendly competitions, tournaments, etc.).

Community Group

Those sports, recreation and social groups, generally expected to have some level of organizational structure (board) and incorporated status, that are based on South Frontenac.

Prime and NonPrime Time

Defined by particular activity. For example: summer seasonal prime-time use of sports fields may include any time after 4pm weekdays and all day Saturday/Sunday; Community Hall use prime-time may include weekday evenings and all day Saturday/Sunday, year-round; All other time defined as non-prime time; for ease of policy implementation, there are no seasonal variations in this regard for indoor facilities.

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Term

Definition

Non-Resident

Individuals or groups that do not meet the defined requirements of a resident.

Non-Resident Group

User

A group in which the primary participants (more than 30%) are not residents of the Township, regardless of age.

Resident

Individuals and groups that reside in/have a place of permanent or seasonal residence in the Township of South Frontenac.

Resident User Group

A group in which the primary participants (70% or more) are residents of the Township, regardless of age.

Seasonal Rentals

Are those rentals made by any group or individual for a specific and regular block of time on a contract basis for the partial or full duration of the season.

Tournaments

Means competitions between three or more sports teams under the direction of a Community Group. Non-resident community groups (those based outside of the Township that book time for tournament) have a lower priority in terms of allocation of field time.

User Group

A community organization (non-profit and/or volunteer-run group) that primarily provides recreation and leisure services to the residents of South Frontenac.

Youth

A person 18 years of age and under provided they are in school full time.

SECTION 5: OPERATING PERIOD OF FACILITIES The operating period of each facility will be determined by the Township in advance of each season and based on normal practices year to year including policies in respect of operations on statutory holidays. The Township will determine operating times in special circumstances due to weather-related events or for any other reason commensurate with Township responsibilities to operate all venues.

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SECTION 6: PRIORITY USE OF FACILITIES Rentals as well as dedicated and non-dedicated long-term use agreements, as applicable, will be granted in a fair and equitable manner based on the following prioritized Categories of Users and in accordance with Council-approved User Fee Policy. Category I: comprises user groups whose mandate and use of facilities/provision of programs aligns with the Township’s mandate to maximize access and offer a higher subsidization of costs. It is intended that a range of recreational services be available to all citizens and that no Township resident shall be excluded from participating in recreational activities because of an inability to pay. Category II: comprises facility rentals to meet the needs of primarily adult use recreational and leisure use, as well as the use of facilities that serve non-basic recreation needs (e.g. for older youth and adults). Category III: comprises non-residents, commercial users and other for profit users and uses (e.g. forprofit tournaments and special events).

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Table 1: Categorization of Users

Category I

Category II

Category III

Township of South Frontenac User Categories Community Groups

Community Groups

Priority (where necessary) given to those serving Minors and Seniors

Priority over Category III users

Non-residents, Commercial/For-profit Users

Within these categories facility access will be granted in a fair and equitable manner based on the following priority schedule: First Priority: Second Priority: Third Priority: Fourth Priority: Fifth Priority:

Township of South Frontenac Programs and Events Youth and Seniors Resident Groups / Minor Sport Groups Adult Resident User Groups / Sport Groups Commercial Use / Tournaments Non-Resident User groups

SECTION 7: ALLOCATION RULES Overview of Allocation Process For organized Community Groups, the annual process for determining and finalizing the distribution of hours for Township-owned facilities is as follows:

Submission of hours/times/dates requested by each Community Group (their proposed schedule).
Township allocation of time in the form of a Draft Schedule by Facility.
Meeting with User Groups regarding the Draft Schedule.
Adjustment of hours by the Township as required
Confirmation of the rights of the Township to rebook time as needed for any given group should conflict arise in terms of the ability to host a fee paying Category III user. While it is recognized that priority for Category I and II groups exists, the Township will retain the right to accommodate Category III users as long as sufficient advanced notice is provided.
Schedule published and approved.

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All other rentals will be accommodated based on the availability resulting from the office schedule and subject to the final approval of the Township. Registration & Request Deadlines a) Special Events Across the facilities, the following items are expected to impact allocation of time in facilities: ▪ ▪ ▪

Special Events (Category III events scheduled in advance); Special Events (Category III events not scheduled in advance); and Individual request (Category III user) for allocation of time (non-scheduled).

If, at the time of establishing all seasonal and calendar schedules (as appropriate by facility), the Township is in receipt of requests by Category III users to host fee-paying events, the Township will seek to accommodate these users within the overall schedule. It will do so for the following reasons:

Accommodating such uses will maximize revenue potential;
Such uses may offer discernable benefits to the resident community or business community and promote the Township and its assets;
By receiving requests in advance (including the use of social media and existing Category III renter contacts to notify such past or current renters of the upcoming scheduling process), the Township is able to maximize its capacity to schedule all facility requests while minimizing the risk of conflict and/or compaction of use at facilities. For those rental requests that are made to the Township at short notice, the Township cannot guarantee that the requested time will be available if it conflicts with time allocated to Category II and III users. The Township will reserve the right to rebook Category II and III user time if, in its sole discretion, it considers the proposed event to be of community benefit. b) User Groups In the interests of effective management of allocations of time as well as the correct application of the User Fee Policy, the Township will require that Registration numbers for each sports group, as well as membership numbers for all community groups be provided to the Township for record keeping. This is a requirement before any time booking is approved.

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Secondly, where user groups have membership or registrants that are Non-Residents, the number of such registrations or members should be provided to the Township on an annual basis for purposes of applying the Non-Resident pricing as part of the User Fee Policy. This primarily applies to those rentals of fields and courts where participants include those residing outside of the Township. In the case of community hall rentals it is less significant but for the purposes of consistency, resident/non-resident membership information should be monitored. Consequences If the Township of South Frontenac learns that any Organization has embellished their registration numbers in order to accumulate more hours allocated, they will risk losing their allocated times. Exclusions This Allocation Policy does not extend rights to User Groups beyond the rental of facilities and scheduled bookings. This policy does not include rights to permanent access or the dedication of portions of a facility to a group. These are addressed in other Township policies and procedures. New User Groups Preference in the allocation of time will be given to established/regular users, which have had a Seasonal or calendar year profile of regular rentals/use of facilities for a minimum of 3 consecutive years. New user groups will be prioritized for consideration in cases where a group/program caters to an under serviced segment of the Township’s population or such a program was not previously made available through existing organizations. Once a new group has been approved, the Township will work with the Schedule to ensure the needs of all are accommodated. Cancellations The Township of South Frontenac retains the right to reschedule, cancel or withdraw any and all of the time allocated, as may be necessary in the event of tournaments, special events or in the case of an unforeseen circumstance or emergency. Time is therefore reserved and not guaranteed. All reasonable efforts will be made on the part of the Township to provide early notification to the effected User Groups and/or parties in the event that such change is warranted.

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Individuals or organizations wishing to cancel their time must do so by giving the Township 10 (working) days’ notice of cancellation. If sufficient notice is not given, the individual or organization will be responsible for the cost of the cancelled time. SECTION 8: RIGHTS OF THE TOWNSHIP OF SOUTH FRONTENAC The Township of South Frontenac has the right to cancel a Rental Agreement under the following conditions:

A group repeatedly fails to provide the Township with sufficient notice (i.e. 10 working days to the rental date) that the allocated time is not to be used.
For all intents and purposes, rental agreements are non-transferable. Should a permit holder (renter) sell or transfer the allocated time without the approval of the Township of South Frontenac, this will result in the cancellation of the rental contract and potentially the long-term use agreement, as applicable.
Any situation that may arise that the Township deems to be a breach of policy, including, but not limited to a breach of the Township of South Frontenac I By-laws and policies that may be applicable. Additionally, User Groups that repeatedly fail to comply with this or any other Township policy/procedure may lose their rental agreement and the ability to request new agreements/permits in future.
If the rental agreement holder is not in good standing with the Township of South Frontenac including but not limited to, the falsification of information, adherence to all policies and procedures, etc.
An outstanding account balance, unless prior arrangements have been made with the Township.

SECTION 9: OTHER CONDITIONS & REGULATIONS All rental contracts note the conditions and terms of use. Applicants and User Groups are required to ensuring compliance to all the terms and conditions outlined within the rental agreement. Conditions regarding the use and rental of Township facilities may be deleted or otherwise amended at the discretion of the Township of South Frontenac.

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Township of South Frontenac Recreation Services and Facilities User Fee Policy

Appendix E Page 42 of 77

Township of South Frontenac Recreation Services and Facilities User Fee Policy

POLICY PURPOSE The Township of South Frontenac Recreation Services and Facilities User Fee Policy (also referred to as the Policy) is intended as a general mechanism for effectively allocating public funds for recreational services and facilities. Pricing of facility rental, user fees and programs should be undertaken in a fair, equitable, consistent and formalized way. By providing a consistent approach to setting these fees, the policy also seeks to provide a standardized format for agreements and contracts of all kinds regarding the use of Township-owned facilities. This policy recognizes that certain recreation and culture services are more essential than others for the achievement of critical recreation, health and wellness goals of the Township acting as a provider of recreation facilities, services and programs. While the term “essential” is not intended as a defined term, those recreation services which represent those fees for which the highest level of public subsidy will be permitted in setting the fee schedule: •

Are accessible by the widest number of residents;

•

Are specific to target groups such as Minors and Seniors; or

•

Are otherwise deemed to be facilities, services or programs appropriately provided by the Township (acting as a provider of the first resort) rather than other organizations.

Notwithstanding, it is also the intent of the policy to ensure that a reasonable and equitable proportion of the costs to deliver recreation programs and services are recovered through user fees. With specific regard to recreational facilities, a significant portion of such assets represent sunk capital costs by virtue of the age of these facilities. However, capital costs associated with the ongoing upkeep and repair of these facilities, as well as major renovation of existing assets represent necessary expenditures which are part of the overall subsidy of recreational facility rental, user fees and programs provided by the Township. In addition, investment in any new recreational assets can be expected to represent, in part or in whole, a burden on the tax base, and as such should be subject to consideration for cost recovery through facility rental, user fees and programs. This document establishes the balance between cost recovery though the installation of user fees versus resort to the tax-base. In this way, the Policy establishes the relative level of subsidization that is appropriate for different services and different users.

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Page 2

COST RECOVERY TARGET The policy does not recommend a specific ratio of cost recovery in in the provision of recreation services and facilities: •

In part, because the Township does not yet possess the administrative resources to measure the link between type of service offered and the revenues generated by each individual fee category. The consultant report on the development of a harmonized approach to fee setting and facility use allocation recommends improvement in the way revenues and utilization by type of fee category are tracked; and

•

In part, because such targets are the outcome of a number of economic, municipal fiscal, operational and special policy considerations that may change year to year. The consultant report associated with the Policy set out general guidelines that should be followed in targeting improvements to the recent historical levels of cost recovery for recreation services and facilities.

SCOPE OF THIS POLICY This policy applies to current Recreation fees defined within the existing schedule of user fees in the Township [Note that the resulting fee schedule should be established as a by-law]. New initiatives of the Township that result in new categories of recreation-related fees will be evaluated and priced in accordance with this policy.
RATIONALE FOR APPROACH TO USER FEES Fostering Sport for Life and Healthy Lifestyles ▪

The Township will encourage active lifestyles, sport participation and long-term athlete development throughout every stage of life.

▪

The Township will aim to provide a range of recreational facilities, programs and services for all residents, irrespective of age and ability, to help foster healthy lifestyle habits and active living. This includes the facilitation of introductory activities for all ages and abilities.

▪

The Township will facilitate health and wellness via a range of passive and active pursuits – empowering each resident to maximize/optimize opportunities for recreation in their daily lives.

Township as the Provider of the First Resort ▪

For some services and facilities (existing or future services and facilities), the Township will be the “provider of the first resort” where there is unlikely to be an alternative provider of services and facilities or a limited range of providers in the market area. An example of this is the provision of public parkland or indoor aquatics. Fees (if any) set for such services and facilities should promote broad-based community access.

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▪

Where there are alternative service providers that can ensure the same or greater public access compared to municipal services (such as the provision of private fitness facilities, children’s camps and a range of niche recreational, sporting and cultural activities and programs), the Township should set fees and/or constitute services (including non-provision of services) so as to avoid the unintended consequence of “crowding out” alternative providers.

Children and Youth ▪

The Township will strive to promote health, wellness and active living for children and youth by offering a range of recreational and cultural services.

▪

The Township will strive to provide a number of basic services for children and youth at a subsidized rate (e.g. group swimming lessons, rental of certain arenas, sports fields and community space).

▪

The Township will strive to ensure programs, services and facilities used by children, youth and parents/caregivers are affordable. This may entail continued subsidization of the direct and indirect costs of some programs and services.

▪

The Township will seek to encourage participation of youth in non-essential programs and activities (e.g. Advanced or Specialty programs or use of Premium facilities as these opportunities become available in the Township).

Seniors ▪

The Township will strive to promote health, wellness and active living for seniors by offering a range of recreational and cultural services, primarily in the form of access to Township-owned facilities.

▪

The Township will strive to provide a number of basic services for seniors at a subsidized rate (e.g. access to recreational facilities for regular drop-in, and program-related activities delivered by third parties including local senior’s associations).

▪

The Township will strive to ensure programs, services and facilities used by seniors are affordable. This may entail continued subsidization of the costs of programs and services.

Community Groups in General ▪

Community groups serving local communities in the Township shall continue to be supported and nurtured by the Township through a range of policies and funding including the use of existing grant programs as applicable and the favourable treatment with respect to facility access and the payment of user fees.

▪

Community groups can be broadly defined as organized association for sport, recreation, leisure or cultural activities. These groups overlap with the specific population groups identified for support in this Policy including seniors and youth.

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Emerging Markets ▪

The Department will strive to accommodate emerging recreation and cultural trends and new user groups.

Access ▪

The Township will seek to ensure that sufficient facility space, allocations of time and programs are offered to enable the broadest participation possible amongst the public at low costs (currently recreational swimming and children’s camps).

Maintain a Community Development Model for Recreation ▪

The Township will continue to support the delivery of programs and services largely by volunteer organizations and non-profits.

▪

With the development of new recreation facilities, the Township will consider the potential for direct municipal programming to maximize the full benefit of facilities. Fees for such services will be established based on the guidelines for rate setting contained in the Policy.

▪

Regarding pricing, the Township will aim to be the provider of the first resort for recreational facilities and services that are generally not provided at an affordable rate by the private sector.

Quality in Recreation Delivery ▪

Township will endeavour to provide accessible, high quality and integrated services to the community in a manner which is responsive to current and future needs.

▪

The Township will strive to provide a level of customer service and facility maintenance, which maximizes participation in recreation including through timely communication on programs and services.

POLICY STATUS This policy stands aside from any other policies, which exist regarding cost recovery of individual services of the Township. This policy is intended to provide an important vehicle for delivering a more sustainable and standardized approach to setting user fees, and is a basis for transacting agreements with local organizations in recreation, culture and other fields of interest represented by organized non-profits, societies, or residents.

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RENTAL AND LEASE AGREEMENTS The policy of the Township is that of standardization with respect to all practices for establishing fees and allocating space to user groups. This includes moving away from existing long-term facility space rental agreements unless such agreements are based on a standardized template that reflects a fair and equitable approach to fees and allocation applicable to all users based on the categorization of users. Pursuant to the execution of this policy in the form of a municipal by-law, all existing and expired historic facility rental agreements and lease agreements will be subject to review within 12 months of the passing of this bylaw. The review will result in a defined point in time when the existing agreements (verbal, written or otherwise claimed) are either terminated or replaced with a standardized agreement and the payment of associated rental or lease fees in consideration of the agreement. It shall be the intent of Council to ensure that agreements for the dedicated occupancy of space by a rental party or lessee on a long term basis, are based upon the reasonable payment of facility space operating costs by the rental party or lessee, as determined by the Township. For clarity, this may require the group to pay a fee pursuant to the published fee schedule for all recreational services, programs and facilities offered by the Township, and subject to review and approval annually. Moreover, the Township shall not be precluded from receiving other rental revenue, service or program fees associated with this space if the facility is to be shared with other users who are not themselves under a longterm rental or lease agreement for shared use of the space. This includes revenues associated with short term rental (daily, weekly or monthly bookings of space). Township Council shall have the right to provide an exception to the timing of commencement or the specific provisions of the new agreement template contingent upon a bona-fide rationale for deferral or exemption submitted by the party subject to the rental agreement.
PREFERENTIAL ACCESS RIGHTS Pre-existing, informal access rights to Township facilities, by individuals and groups, represent a legacy of the historic development of the recreation services in the Township. With the advent of new recreational infrastructure, these arrangements will be replaced by formalized rights of access. Formalized access will be achieved by the allocation of time in each facility, or standardized facility use agreements and/or through program registrations. In no circumstances will unapproved rights of access be permitted or the continuance of use of facilities free of charge, even if the user in question has charitable status or is otherwise targeted for subsidy and other support by the Township. It is important to create and maintain a consistent approach to access rights. Any exemption to such agreements is only permitted by Council acting reasonably and on the advice of Township staff. In cases where the termination of these arrangements would, in the discretion of Council, result in hardship or otherwise detrimentally affect the capability of the group to operate its programs in the short term, Council will maintain the right to implement alternative requirements.

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OPTION OF DIFFERENTIAL PRICING The recreational assets of the Township comprise facilities in a range of conditions. Should the Township develop new recreational infrastructure that improves the quality of the playing environment and other amenities including the enhancement of spectator viewing, improved training facilities and other benefits, the Township will maintain the right, in its sole discretion, to price these facilities higher to reflect these the improved standards compared to existing infrastructure. This includes not only new facilities but those undergoing incremental or substantive one-off renovation which also improves facility conditions for the end user.
UNIVERSALITY OF FEES The application of the Policy rests on the principle of the payment of fees in respect of the provision of services. All users are required to pay. The basis for payment of fees is further codified through the following: •

The prioritization of users by reference to categorization. Categorization will help guide the Township in its decision-making regarding fees and time allocation for access to facilities;

There is currently a significant discrepancy between the revenues generated at each facility, the utilization (hours) booked at each facility, and the amount that should by charged per hour according to the published fee schedule. Revenues are considerably lower than the posted fee when compared on an hourly basis. A variety of reasons may explain this including the use of facilities by groups that, by written agreement, currently do not pay fees, those that pay alternative fees by agreement with the Township or by historical precedent, and time that is recorded as utilization but for which there is no rental fee assigned – i.e. non-programmed access to the facility. Notwithstanding, it is likely that rental involving users other than local community groups, do pay in amounts that more closely resemble the posted fee schedule. It is also the case that field usage more closely aligns with the posted fee schedule of charges compared to the use of halls for which there is considerable non-paid access.

USER FEE SURCHARGE At the discretion of the Township, user fees, rental charges and program rates will be subject to a progressive surcharge expressly identified for the purposes of funding necessary capital replacement of facility systems (excluding equipment or other chattels). The Township may identify a capital surcharge to be added to all indoor and outdoor facility user fees or limit a surcharge to user fees for specific facilities which have undergone significant capital investment over an above regular annual average lifecycle capital investment. This includes newly constructed facilities. This policy includes an annual surcharge of 5% of user fees of all kinds and is applied annually commencing in Year 1 of the Policy.

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APPROACH TO SUBSIDY The Township will adopt the following principles in setting both rental and program fees for its recreation facilities and services:
Fees increases (for non-priority groups) over and above the increase in fees due to the application of an agreed annual rate of escalation, will be based on a 3-year phase-in of rate increases.
Reducing the current level of subsidy for Adult use of facilities and participation in programs relative to rates charged for minor sport use.
Reducing the current level of subsidy for non-resident users and program registrants (those who do not pay property taxes to the Township) of facilities through higher fees for persons or organizations selfreported (or otherwise identified) as based outside of the Township.
Minimising the level of subsidy for commercial rental of facilities.
The Township will maintain its preferential pricing of facilities and program fees for minor sports, based on the principle of maximizing youth participation.
The Township will adopt the following categorization of user and program fees to meet the above principles of maximising the accessibility of basic recreation activities for youths while reducing as far as possible the subsidy of both direct and indirect costs associated with adult sport and non-community group rental of facility space: a. Category I: comprising programs and services by the Township as well as programs and services delivered by organized community and recreational groups which are based in the Township. Category I includes services provided by the Township and others that focus children, youth and seniors. It is intended that a range of recreational services be available to all citizens and that no area residents shall be excluded from participating in recreational activities because of an inability to pay; b. Category II: comprising programs and services by the Township and services provided by organized community and recreational groups catering to adult recreation and cultural activity/skills development, as well as the use of facilities that serve non-basic recreation needs (advanced classes for older youth and adults in premium facilities); c. Category III: user fees that are charged to commercial users (whether for profit or non-profit), private individuals or groups of individuals that do not constitute established community groups and for which public subsidization is unwarranted (weddings, room rentals, private swimming lessons, and use of recreational assets by non-Township residents). This includes eliminating subsidization of activities such as for-profit tournaments and special events.

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Exclusions to the payment of fees are at the discretion of Council and are generally limited to the following types of activities: a. Specific, time-limited on-site fund-raising events conducted by established community organizations; b. Funerals, celebrations of life or other public service uses as determined by the Township; c. Special events, hosted by community groups based in the Township, and promoted to the general public for which there are no entry fees or other charges (example: community volunteer days); and d. Special events of an infrequent nature with significant public benefit (example: CPR, First Aid classes).

Most Subsidized

Least Subsidized

Category I

Category II

Category III

Existing Township User Fee Categories + Corresponding User Type Sports Field Rental – Minor Sports

Sports Field Rental – Adult Sports

Community Halls – Community Groups based in Township; services to Minors and Seniors or at-risk groups

Community Halls – General Access by community groups for adult use

Commercial Use of Sport Fields or parkland, courts or other recreational amenities (no subsidy) Commercial use of halls, rentals by private individuals; higher rates for non-residents (no subsidy)

Dedicated / Non-Dedicated Use Agreements and Level of Subsidy Long term agreement for local community groups serving target groups (minors, seniors)

Agreements with community groups serving adults

Agreements with commercial entities (no subsidy)

Future Considerations Commensurate with New Programs/Facilities Emerging Sports/ Cultural Activities – Minors and Seniors Direct Municipal programming for minors and seniors

Emerging Sports – Adults Advanced programming for youth and adults

Commercial and non-resident rental of new facilities (no subsidy) Commercial events on Township parkland (cost recovery based on consideration of the economic impact benefits to the Township)

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•

The Township will charge fees for the Category I services based on the application of the approved fee schedule subject to annual increase based on a defined escalation rate.

•

The Township will terminate and replace existing long-term use agreements with new standardized agreements (following expiry of any in-force agreements). Fees will be based on the approved fee schedule and the categorization of the user group.

•

The Township will seek to recover a portion of indirect costs (on an average cost per hour basis) for Category 2 services through more aggressive increases in user fees, subject to annual review.

•

The Township will seek to recoup all Direct Costs (if any) and all Indirect Costs (on an average cost per hour basis) associated with all Category 3 services (subject to necessary confirmatory analysis as to the feasibility of significant cost recovery).

DEFINITIONS User Fee: A fee paid directly by a user to gain access to a specific service (e.g. program registration fee, admission or membership fee, facility or equipment rental charges, special service charges). Lease: Formalized agreement for dedicated occupancy of Township space for a specified period under terms and conditions and in consideration for a lease payment per annum. Direct Costs: Costs directly attributable to a specific program or service (e.g. materials, equipment or program supplies and wages of instructors. Can include additional costs of building staff as a result of rental). Indirect Costs: Costs not directly attributable to one particular activity (e.g. facility operations and maintenance, administration, and potentially corporate overhead if accounted for by municipality on a facility basis). Subsidy: The amount of direct and/or indirect costs not paid by the consumer of a program, service or facility, but paid for by the Township, principally from the tax base.

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PAYMENT POLICY ▪

Hall Rentals: 50% of the facility rental cost must be paid within 1 week of booking to reserve the date. Full payment is required 1 month prior to the event. All hall rental with alcohol or big events must provide proof of liability insurance in the amount of $2 million that names the Township as an ‘additional insured’ for the event.

▪

Tournaments must be pre-paid, in full, 1 month (20 working days) prior to date of rental.

▪

Regular (large field users must pre-pay for the season by the 3rd rental of the season. Field users wishing a refund for any rentals not used due to rain must notify Recreation Administration staff within 48 hours of the rain date by phone or e-mail

▪

Cash, MasterCard, VISA and interact are accepted as payment methods. Corporate or Association cheques are accepted. However, personal cheques are not accepted.

CANCELLATION POLICIES: The full rental fee will be charged if notice of the cancellation is not received 10 working days prior to the rental date. If the notice of cancellation of a rental is confirmed with Recreation Services Administration staff with more than 10 working days to the rental date there will be a $25 administration fee charged. Notwithstanding the above, a cancellation fee of $150 applies to all commercial bookings or events involving alcohol. Failure to pay rental fees may result in a restriction from future bookings and/or legal proceedings.
DAMAGES AND ADDITIONAL CHARGES: Costs associated with damages, misuse or abuse of facilities will be charged to the lessee. All halls rented for an evening event must be vacated by 3am, otherwise additional fees will be charged.

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South Frontenac Recreation Service Fee & Facility Allocation Policy Presentation to Recreation Advisory Committee Township of South Frontenac May 23, 2024 Page 53 of 77

OUTLINE

PURPOSE

2 CONSULTATION

3 COST RECOVERY

4 POLICY DEVELOPMENT

Process

Costs | Revenues | Utilization

User Group Categorization

Outcomes

Informing Policy Choices

User Fee Policy Allocation Policy

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SOUTH FRONTENAC VISION

ABOUT THE PROJECT

South Frontenac is a welcoming and thriving rural community

RECREATION SERVICE FEE & FACILITY ALLOCATION

A comprehensive review of all recreation service fees, facility rental fees, allocation policies, & related procedures

SOUTH FRONTENAC MISSION To provide efficient and responsive public services, foster sustainable growth, and enhance the quality of life for all residents.

A user fee policy recommended in the 2022 Recreation, Parks & Leisure Master Plan Page 55 of 77

The user fee policy is in line with the Township’s strategic priorities

STRATEGIC PILLARS & DIRECTIONS 1.

Sustainable Long-Term Prosperity

Municipal Service Excellence

People and Partnerships

Why a Policy Response is Essential

• Not all groups pay; those that don’t have the highest level of use – counter to the philosophy of a balance between tax support and user fees; • Out of date user agreements that perpetuate inequity; • Fee schedule is a relic, ad hoc and stuck in time; Page 56 of 77

• Cost recovery that inhibits future commitment to full service and new capital investment.

Project Principles RECREATION SERVICE FEE & FACILITY ALLOCATION POLICY Principles for developing a Fees Policy and Facility Allocation Policy are ensuring fairness and equity in access to municipal facilities, and fee rates which promote public policy goals, including: ❑ Universal access

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❑ Maximizing community health and wellness ❑ Maintaining the level of service for municipal services ❑ Effective asset management ❑ Fiscal sustainability

SOUTH FRONTENAC VISION South Frontenac is a welcoming and thriving rural community

MISSION To provide efficient and responsive public services, foster sustainable growth, and enhance the quality of life for all residents.

VALUES Financial Sustainability Environmental Stewardship Collaboration Engagement Community

SCOPE: Facilities Under Review Glendower Hall A

Municipal Facilities under review

All bookable spaces at the following municipal indoor facilities are included in this study

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A. Glendower Hall B. Harris Park Hall C. Princess Ann Community Centre D. Storrington Centre E. Sydenham Library

Harris Park Hall BB Princess Ann Community Centre C

C E

Sydenham Library E

Storrington Centre D D

SCOPE: Parks Under Review All bookable spaces at the municipal outdoor parks and facilities Municipal Parks

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Battersea Ball Diamond
Dave Bowes Memorial Ball Park
Centennial Park
Davidson Beach
Gerald Ball Memorial Park
Gilmour Point Beach
Glendower Park
Harris Park/Hall
Inverary Ball Park
Latimer Community Park
McMullen Beach Park
Point Municipal Park
Tett Park
Willmer Ball Park

8 14

6 1

12 2 9 10

2. CONSULTATION

Process Page 60 of 77

Outcomes at a Glance

Key Takeaways

Consultation Touch Points

ENGAGE FRONTENAC PROJECT WEB-SITE

USER GROUP SURVEY May 22- June 25, 2023

IDEAS RECEIVED ANALYZED

COMPLETED ANALYZED

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USER GROUPS MEETING Sept 13, 2023

STAFFCOUNCILLOR INTERVIEWS

TOWNSHIP STAFF

MEMBERS OF COUNCIL

EXTERNAL STAKEHOLDERS

Consultation Outcomes 1 ENGAGE FRONTENAC PROJECT WEB-SITE AWARE PARTICIPANTS

333

Aware Actions Performed

Participants

Visited at least one Page

333

ENGAGED PARTICIPANTS

Engaged Actions Performed

Participants

Contributed to Ideas

Asked Questions

INFORMED PARTICIPANTS

115

Informed Actions Performed

Participants

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Visited Multiple Project Pages

101

Contributed to a tool (engaged)

Visited the Key Dates page

Consultation Outcomes

SURVEY RESULTS AT A GRANCE

35 groups - informed and invited to participate in the survey via direct email:

2 USER GROUPS SURVEY

• •

15 indoor user groups (community groups, hobby/interest groups, etc.) 20 outdoor user groups (sport/fitness groups, events, etc.)

Responses Received

• 32 completed surveys • 23 unique user groups (72%) Page 63 of 77

•

9 (out of 15) indoor groups (60%) 14 (out of 20) outdoor groups (70%)

Consultation Outcomes 2

Facility Use: Frequency

On a weekly basis

58%

USER GROUPS SURVEY Several times a month (but not every week)

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How often does your group use Township-owned indoor/outdoor recreation & community facilities or parks?

50%

29%

A few times per year/season (but not necessarily every month)

10%

Once per year/season Seasonal facility use

Year Round facility use

20%

40%

60%

Consultation Outcomes 2

Level of Satisfaction with Facilities

Overall quality of the facility

38%

47%

Maintenance of facilities

38%

44%

USER GROUPS SURVEY

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How would you rate the facilities/parks you use in terms of meeting your group’s needs? (n=32)

Poor

Functionality of the space for your group

22%

Convenience of location for your members

28%

69%

Availability (ability to book sufficient and convenient time)

28%

66%

Average

69%

Good

20%

40%

60%

Excellent

80%

100%

Consultation Outcomes Groups that currently do not pay fees were asked if in principle, they would be willing to pay a nominal user fee or rental rate for your current use of facilities/parks? (n=17)

2 USER GROUPS SURVEY

Does your group pay fees / rent?

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Yes No

Responses 44% 56% Answered

Fees Current & Future

Does your group charge fees?

14 Yes 18 No 32

Responses 66% 34% Answered

11%

44% 44%

Yes

21 11 32

Answer Choices Yes No Maybe

Maybe

Responses 11% 44% 44% Answered

2 8 8 18

Consultation Outcomes

Fees Current & Future

Would your group consider paying a user fee or rental rate for an improved facility? (Answered: 32)

2 USER GROUPS SURVEY

24 responses (75%) would consider paying a user fee or rental rate for an improved facility, of them: Page 67 of 77

 50% Yes  50% Maybe

8 responses (25%) - NO

Types of user groups that answered this question: Yes/Maybe 24 (75%) No 8 (25%)

Sport groups (incl. soccer, softball, Stock sport, pickleball) Fitness groups Social groups Hobby, Arts & Crafts groups Play groups

Consultation Outcomes

KEY TAKEAWAYS

User Group Meeting Participants Agreed: • Priority for residents, health & wellness programming

• Regular users to be given same access (allocation) as before • User group agreements are important • Distinguishing between different types of uses/users for fee rate and allocation priority is a good idea Page 68 of 77

• Benchmarking fees in other municipalities is not important • Willingness to pay fees / pay an increase in fees is split – similar to survey findings

2. Cost Recovery

Costs / Revenues

Utilization

Page 69 of 77

Cost per Hour Estimates

Cost Recovery and Utilization Facility

A B C D

Year Paying Groups - hours

Non-paying groups - hours Total Hours % BOOKED Time ZERO REVENUE Facility Revenue

B/C

Indoor Facilities

Outdoor Facilities

2018

1,007

1,116

2,923 3,930 74% ($11,229.00)

1,572 2,688 58% ($15,228.14)

Revenue per hour (based on actual revenue & hours paid)

D/A

($11.15)

($13.65)

Revenue per hour (based on paid and unpaid hours together)

D/C

($2.86)

($5.67)

Min fee (based on existing fee schedule) - Per Hour*

Page 70 of 77

Revenue Per Hour Booked as % of Approximate Minimum Fee Per Hour

•

F/G

$10.00

$12.50

28.57%

45.33%

•

75% of booked time across the indoor facility portfolio is non-revenue generating (i.e. no fees are paid). Some of this use pertains to usage originally permitted under user agreements; As expected, the degree of non-paying use of outdoor facilities in lower than for indoor facilities: over 50% of all booked hours; As a result, revenue per hour is very low; As a result, the is NO relationship between the CURRENT fee schedule and revenues received.

Cost Recovery

•

The cost recovery is 8.65% (indoor) and 9.76% (outdoor); The cost recovery only for those groups that do pay, is far higher – 34% (indoor) and 24% (outdoor).

Page 71 of 77

This represents the cost recovery if non-payers were required to pay the same as payers.

Reference to Cost Recovery $129,740.04

$156,025.13

I/C

$33.01

$58.06

(Surplus)/Deficit

J+F

$30.15

$52.39

Cost Recovery -All Booked Hours (Paid and Unpaid)

F/J

8.65%

9.76%

Cost Recovery - Paid Hours Only

E/J

34%

24%

Total Cost (Direct, indirect, overhead)

Cost per hour to operate (incl. overhead)

4. Policy Development Policy Goals ❑ Certainty: A rolling 3-Year Fee Schedule ❑ Transparency: A set of clear policies to guide Council ❑ Accountability: Track data, report data and cost recovery annually ❑ Fairness: equality in fee setting; equal access rights; upfront process of creating allocation schedules ❑ Efficiency: Improved level of service, reduced staff admin time, better reporting Page 72 of 77

Note: Achieving a better framework for fees, allocation and value for services (balanced cost recovery) necessitates ongoing investment in booking software and administrative processes

4. What level of Cost Recovery is Appropriate Using the nominal rate of $10.00 per hour for analytical purposes (Note: Excludes consideration of Capital Costs): Cost Recovery %

per hour

Indoor

Outdoor Combined

Page 73 of 77

Option 1: Current Non-Payer Groups 25% of Proposed Fee

$2.50

14%

12%

13%

Option 2: Current Non-Payer Groups 50% of Proposed Fee

$5.00

20%

15%

17%

Option 3: No Discount for Current Non-Payer Groups

$10.00

31%

20%

25%

4. Decision-Making Recommendations

Page 74 of 77

Everyone Pays – as a principle Categorization Adopt Subsidization Policy and create By-Law Adopt Allocation Policy and create By-Law Non-Residents – Groups defined as paying Non-Resident Fees require >30% of members to be non-resident.

The RESULTING FEE SCHEDULE IS:

Modest in Fees
Creates a Rationalized Approach
Defines Fee by Category of user
Is a 3 year model with years 2 and 3 subject to escalation

4. Council Prerogative Maintained 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Council discretion in setting fees is always maintained Our advice is to adopt and champion the policies put forth With cost recovery as low as it is, change is less about $ than it is about philosophy of access and policy-led service provision All of the existing access rights are maintained Use Agreements can be used – and standardized

If implemented, the result is:

Page 75 of 77

Fair, Equitable, Certain, Transparent and Accountable Process and Outcomes

Proposed Fee Schedule Category I – Youth, Seniors, NotFor-Profit

Category II – Category III – Adult Users Commercial Use, Nonresidents

Rectangular Fields

Category I – Youth, Seniors, Not-For-Profit

$12.50

$20

$60

Hourly Rate

Hourly Rate (5pm – 11pm) - Lights 20% premium Tournament (7am – 5pm)

$15

$24

$72

Gazebos/ Pavilions

$150

$250

$400

Hourly Rate

Tournament (5pm – 11pm) - Lights 20% premium Baseball Diamonds

$180

$300

$480

Park Rental – Special Events

Hourly Rate (7am – 5pm)

$12.50

$20

$60

Hourly Rate (5pm – 11pm) - Lights 20% premium Tournament (7am – 5pm)

$15

$24

$72

$150

$250

$360

$180

$300

$432

Hourly Rate (7am-5pm)

$10

Hourly Rate (5pm-11pm) - Lights 20% premium Tournament (7am – 5pm)

Page 76 of 77

$2.4

$3.6

$12

$40

$60

$160

Tournament (5pm – 11pm) - Lights 20% premium

$48

$72

$192

Hourly Rate

Courts

Category III – Commercial Use, Non-residents

Community Halls – Storrington, Glendower, Harris Park, Sydenham Community Room

Hourly Rate (7am – 5pm)

Tournament (5pm – 11pm) - Lights 20% premium

Category II – Adult Users

$10

$15

$40

$10

$30

$10

$20

$60

THANK YOU

Sierra Planning and Management Page 77 of 77

Township of South Frontenac

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Recreation &amp; Leisure Services Advisory Committee - 23 May 2024 - Agenda

Document Text

Recreation & Leisure Services Advisory Committee - 23 May 2024 - Agenda