Council amends city fee schedule; keeps infant cemetery fees unchanged and adopts indoor-playground pass

The Nevada City Council on March 24, 2025, approved Resolution No. 74 to amend and approve updates to the fee appendix of the city code, but the council amended the staff proposal to keep the infant cemetery "Babyland" package fee and the traditional infant burial fee at their existing rates.

Staff presented the recommended fee updates as a package drawn from a survey of seven or eight other communities and internal cost calculations. Parks and public-works staff said the proposed increase to the Babyland package reflected actual direct costs: the memorial stone alone was cited at more than $500 plus the opening and closing service. Staff told the council that many cemetery fees had not been updated in more than 16 years and the recommended changes were intended to align the city with comparable communities.

Council members expressed strong reservations about increasing charges tied to infant burials. One councilmember said raising the fee would place an undue financial burden on grieving families and recommended keeping the Babyland package fee at the existing $5.75 and leaving the infant traditional burial fee unchanged. Another councilmember proposed working with staff to identify exceptions or assistance for families in financial need; staff said they could explore options but presented the fee change based on documented city costs.

During the same resolution debate, staff explained new and revised fees for the city field house and indoor playground: a stand-alone annual indoor-playground pass of $20 per child was proposed, with the playground included in the youth basic pass; a two-hour exclusive rental of the playground space was proposed at $150. Staff said the indoor play surface is soft, requires frequent cleaning, and has higher maintenance and staffing demands than an outdoor playground, and that the $20 annual fee was intended to help cover cleaning supplies and staff time rather than generate profit. Staff also noted that existing youth membership packages would continue to include playground access so many regular users would not pay an additional fee.

A council member moved to exclude the increase for item 5.10.1(3) (the Babyland infant package) and to retain the current infant traditional burial fee; that amendment was seconded and the council voted to approve the fee appendix as amended. The council then approved the other fee changes, including the indoor-playground pass and the rental rate for exclusive use of the indoor play area.

Council members also discussed whether to provide targeted assistance for destitute families; staff said they could work on options but there was no formal policy created during the vote. The amended fee schedule will take effect per the city’s standard code-adoption timing and staff will follow up on implementing any assistance options identified.

Votes on the resolution and the amendment were recorded as a council approval; the audio transcript records the motion, the amendment to retain the infant fees, and the final approval but does not provide a roll-call tally in the public record excerpt.