Parks department proposes stepped fee increases, cites $4 million annual park visits and growing sponsorships

Kimberly Terrell, director of arts and recreation, outlined parks and recreation operations, usage and a proposed set of fee changes on Aug. 21 as part of the City Council budget workshop.

Terrell said city parks and facilities recorded roughly 4,000,000 visits over the past 12 months, manage 2,500 park acres (about 1,403 developed) and operate 27 maintained parks and 23 miles of trails. The department also manages recreation programming, events, a farmers market and community partnerships.

Why it matters: Parks are heavily subsidized services. The department is proposing stepped fee increases aimed at increasing cost recovery for heavily used facilities, while maintaining subsidized access for public amenities. Staff framed the changes as incremental, monitored adjustments rather than immediate, large hikes.

Key presentation items

Usage and operations: Terrell said the Imperial Park Recreation Center and the T. E. Harmon Center support drop-in and membership activity; current membership pricing is low (noted in the presentation as $12.75 per year) and a restructuring is proposed to create separate recreation and senior center memberships and a higher-tier option. The department reported about 5,000 active center memberships and significant seasonal/event-driven demand.

Sponsorships and partnerships: Parks staff said sponsorships grew from a 2023 projection of about $81,000 to realized sponsorship revenue of $110,000, offsetting part of event costs. The department also moved the Fourth of July event to a partnership with Constellation Field this year; Terrell said contracting the event externally would have saved roughly $200,000 in direct event expenses and freed staff time otherwise consumed by preparation and teardown.

Fee changes and cost recovery: The department proposed to step up pavilion and facility rental fees over three years to increase nonresident cost recovery toward a 75%–100% target for various rental categories. Staff also proposed fees for pickleball and tennis court usage and modest CPI-based increases for other facilities. Terrell emphasized the department will monitor utilizations after increases and adjust as needed.

Other efficiencies

Terrell described in-house design and construction for pavilion, shade and splash-pad projects that reduced consultant and contract costs. Volunteers and partners—such as the Fort Bend Mountain Bike Association—were credited for trail maintenance and event support. The department also cited a pilot parking solution using gravel "grass-grid" surfacing and a pilot misting station installed in-house to provide cooling at parks at lower cost than commercial cooling hubs.

Council questions and clarifications

Councilmember Rob asked about the relationship between park event funding and separate TIRs/TIRZ funding streams; Terrell said $70,000 used in FY25 for certain events was funded through a parking-derived source and is expected to continue in FY26 through a different revenue stream. Councilmember Jim asked whether student volunteer programs were coordinated with schools; staff said students are heavily used for events and projects and that collaboration is ongoing.

Discussion vs decisions

Discussion: Council received the proposed fee adjustments and operational summary for FY26. Staff said they will monitor usage after fee changes and phase increases gradually.

Direction: Staff to implement stepped fee adjustments in FY26 and increase sponsorship efforts and in-house project work to raise cost recovery while minimizing service impacts.

Ending

Terrell said the department is working to balance affordability, access and fiscal sustainability. The farmers market and a growing events program were presented as evidence the parks portfolio is a regional draw that supports local businesses and visitor spending.