St. Paul Parks Department proposes 2026 cuts to hours and services as tree backlog grows

St. Paul Parks and Recreation Director Andy Rodriguez laid out the department’s proposed 2026 budget and service changes during the Finance and Budget Committee meeting, citing tight city finances, rising utility costs and the need to avoid layoffs.

Rodriguez said the package would include reductions to morning hours at some recreation centers, limits on weeknight joint-use drop-in access at selected sites, a cut or reclassification for a vacant Office Assistant I position, reduced cleaning frequency in some rec centers, and a shift of some design-and-construction capacity tied to project funding. On forestry, Rodriguez said the department will complete its public emerald ash borer response but lacks funding to replant every removed tree, and the 2026 budget does not include new ongoing forestry investments.

Why it matters: Parks runs 26 recreation centers, Como Park Zoo & Conservatory, golf courses, aquatics, and 184 neighborhood parks and is a major city service provider for youth programs, senior activities and public events. Rodriguez emphasized the tradeoffs now facing the department: reduce hours and services in places with relatively low drop-in use or risk layoffs.

Key proposals and data - Visits and participation: Rodriguez cited “over 2,100,000 visits to rec centers last year,” “over 60,000 enrollments,” “over 2,000 activities offered,” and strong demand for aquatics and sports programming. He said many programs are at or near capacity. - Recreation center hours and access: The proposal targets reduced AM hours at lower‑use times and shifts some weekday joint‑use evening closures (for drop‑in access) earlier — with the department stressing that programmed, preregistered activities would continue. Rodriguez said reductions “largely include times that have lower overall attendance and visitorship and do not impact any programming, only drop‑in use.” - Cleaning and maintenance: The plan would reduce park worker cleaning hours inside some rec centers and rely more on on‑site staff for day‑to‑day tasks at sites with lower hours to save costs. - Personnel and FTEs: Parks reported roughly 641.8 total FTEs across its organization chart. The presentation shows a net reduction of 3.51 FTEs across all funds for 2026, with reductions concentrated in part‑time and vacant titles; Rodriguez said the department is prioritizing eliminating a vacant Office Assistant I rather than layoffs. He said forestry FTEs are shifting back to the general fund as a one‑time accounting/catch‑up move following the closeout of a five‑year emerald ash borer partnership. - Utilities and capital: Staff proposed increasing the utilities budget to reflect structural underfunding following years of no increases and noted investments to reduce consumption (geothermal at Como, rooftop solar, HVAC replacements). Capital priorities remain deferred‑maintenance work (HVAC, roofs, courts, playgrounds, trails) and multi‑source funding (Common Sense sales tax, CIB, grants, nonprofit partners).

Forestry, EAB and the tree preservation conversation Rodriguez said the city is moving past the public emerald ash borer (EAB) emergency response but faces a planting backlog. He told the committee the department expects to remove “over 2,000 dead, dying, or diseased trees next year” and currently has funding to stump and replant about half of those trees, which would leave many homeowners waiting roughly five years before replanting. “Bottom line, we know we don't have enough funds to replant every tree that is removed moving forward,” Rodriguez said.

Council members pressed on how a pending tree preservation ordinance would interact with the backlog. Rodriguez said the ordinance could reduce construction‑related removals but would not solve the larger funding gap for dead trees. Members asked the department for a five‑year outlook under different funding scenarios and for comparisons with neighboring jurisdictions; Rodriguez said staff will provide a funding‑scenario outlook showing backlog impacts.

Safety and programs highlights Rodriguez opened the presentation by noting safety incidents across rec centers and a need for more staffing or safety specialists similar to library investments. He highlighted programs and participation growth — e.g., record Right Track applicant pools and youth internships, an expanded free sports and aquatics initiative (just under 3,000 free swim lesson participants through the summer pilot at Jimmy Lee), new community centers (North End Community Center, Pedro Park) and major events that draw visitors (Minnesota Yacht Club Festival on Harriet Island, which Rodriguez said attracted more than 100,000 people over three days).

Council questions, follow-ups and next steps Council members repeatedly asked for detail on: (1) which centers would have changes to specific hours and whether rec center hours would align where buildings share libraries; (2) demographic or qualitative data about who uses the early‑morning hours (seniors, families, etc.); (3) specific fiscal options to close the tree funding gap, including state and federal grant strategies and engagement with the Port Authority; and (4) the HRA transfer that supports Right Track programming (Rodriguez said staff will confirm amounts and program uses).

Rodriguez committed to follow‑up information the council requested, including: a 5‑year forestry outlook with funding scenarios and impacts, detailed lists of which rec centers would see hour changes and the program vs. drop‑in effects, the account‑level activity performance fund reports, and specific revenue/billing details for COMO and enterprise funds.

Speakers quoted or cited in text are those who appeared on the meeting record. Direct quote: Parks and Recreation Director Andy Rodriguez said “Partnerships make the world go round in parks,” and described efforts to “be intentional in our discussions about safety within our buildings.”

Ending The committee took notes and requested follow‑up detail; Rodriguez said staff will distribute the requested five‑year outlooks and account breakdowns to support council decisions on balancing service cuts against staffing preservation.