Clearfield council approves broad fee schedule changes for recreation, fitness and solid waste

The Clearfield City Council on a unanimous vote approved Ordinance 2025-09 to amend Title II, Chapter V of the citys consolidated fee schedule, changing recreation and facility rental fees, altering aquatic and fitness center membership pricing, and enacting a green-waste fee.

City staff told the council the package is intended to increase usage of city recreation facilities and to respond to rising costs at solid-waste vendors. Eric (Community Services staff) and Rich (staff) presented the changes, which include reduced hourly theater rental rates, small across-the-board adjustments at the arts center, new sponsorship pricing and new vendor and event fees for the Fourth of July, plus a restructure of membership options at the Aquatic and Fitness Center.

The changes to recreation and rental fees include a $25-per-hour reduction for the theater compared with the previous schedule, roughly $10 adjustments across many arts center fees, elimination of a separate charge for tables and chairs, and a $5-per-hour increase for field lighting. The city plans to add a $30-per-hour scoreboard rental that includes a staff operator, and a new sand-volleyball court rental at $10 per hour with a $100 deposit. Fourth of July vendor fees would rise in some categories (for example, food-truck fees from $100 to $175), with other vendor fees increasing by about $20 and the refundable cleaning deposit doubled.

Sponsorships are newly priced as annual items: $300 for outfield fence banners, $7.50 for pickleball-court banners, $1,000 for Aquatic and Fitness Center banners, with a $50 renewal discount for repeat users; event sponsorships are tiered by exposure at $500 (basic), $750 (medium) and $1,000 (high), the presenters said. The city will purchase and provide banners and offers a discount for reuse.

On membership changes, staff said the city will begin advertising prices before tax (bringing the city in line with other providers), introduce a true monthly-pass option, eliminate ongoing enrollment and cancellation fees, and create a standing equipment-replacement allocation inside the membership price. The presenters described an annual-model option that can be paid monthly (with a one-year commitment), a one-time $25 enrollment charge when a membership is reactivated after a lapse, and a $5 monthly per-person add-on for additional family members on monthly plans. Staff said the rollout target for membership changes is about May 1, with a promotional tie-in to the centers 20th anniversary on June 6.

Solid waste and green-waste changes were presented as separate items tied to vendor price increases and the addition of opt-in organics service. The city will add a $10.50 per-container green-waste fee (billed in June), a $25 container-removal fee for customers who discontinue service, and a 2% annual adjustment for fire-protection standby fees. Presenters also noted known contract-driven increases from Waste Management and Wasatch Integrated that will raise the per-can rate (examples in staff materials moved the first can from $16.75 to $17.75 and the second can to $17.00). The council set the effective date for solid-waste fee changes at Jan. 1.

Council members asked staff to clarify schedule language in the packet (hourly vs. annual listings), and a council member requested that rental rates explicitly state when fees are hourly. The ordinance was moved and seconded with the clarification added; the roll call vote recorded unanimous approval.

The city said it will monitor membership revenue and usage for several months and retain flexibility to adjust equipment-replacement allocations or rates if uptake differs from projections.