City staff recommended increasing the council approval threshold for instructional and artistic services contracts from $75,000 to $150,000, citing significant cost increases in parks programs since 2018 and the administrative burden of routing numerous routine contracts to council.

Deputy Director Nara introduced the phased purchasing-improvement plan and said the committee would consider categories one at a time; the committee discussed instructional and artistic services in this meeting. Adam O'Sullivan presented data using Nature Vision camps as an example, saying those contract costs had risen "about a 110%" since February 2018 while the Seattle–Tacoma–Bellevue CPI had risen cumulatively about 35%. O'Sullivan estimated administrative costs at about $3,500 per contract to process through the full council approval cycle and said that in 2024 the city reviewed eight parks instructional and artistic-services contracts under the existing thresholds, representing roughly $25,000 in administrative costs.

Staff said the increase would reduce processing delays for programs and vendors, where council approval currently causes delivery delays for camps and classes. Staff proposed that council retain oversight through monthly or quarterly reports listing contracts and costs; staff committed to producing reports and to bringing the updated purchasing resolution to council on Aug. 4. Deputy Parks Director Zach Hohner was present for technical questions.

Committee members expressed general support but asked for continued transparency. Council Member Nueva Camino sought clarity on whether parks or finance initiated the proposal; staff said it was coordinated between departments. Council Member Robert Stewart and the council president said they supported the phased approach and requested periodic informational reports—particularly in advance of seasonal program rollouts—showing how costs compare to prior years and how that may affect participant fees.

The committee indicated no objections to placing the updated resolution on the Aug. 4 agenda for council consideration.