Council reviews 5‑year renewal to maintain Sheridan Recreation District

Park Superintendent Steve Gage presented a staff recommendation at the Aug. 11 study session to renew a five‑year agreement between the City of Sheridan and Sheridan County School District 2 to establish and maintain the Sheridan Recreation District.

Gage said the Sheridan Recreation District was established in 1974 to provide recreational facilities and programs. He told the council that on Nov. 16, 1989, the city and Sheridan County School District 2 entered an agreement to establish and maintain the recreation district and its board of directors; that agreement and subsequent amendments have guided the district’s operation for decades.

Gage reviewed key terms described in the contract: employees of the district are employees of the Sheridan Recreation District and its district board (not city or school district employees); the district board has sole authority as the employer to hire, train, supervise, discipline and compensate district employees; and the board of directors consists of seven members with staggered three‑year terms and limits on consecutive service (no appointee shall serve more than nine years in succession). The agreement also provides that the city shall have at least one member on the district board and the school district shall have at least one trustee on the board of directors.

Gage identified the current district board as led by Councilman Weitzel. He said staff missed the planned July 1 effective start date and that the new effective dates for the renewal would be July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2030. Gage said staff sent the draft to the school district and were waiting for a response from "Scott," whom he said had received a copy by email.

Staff recommended the mayor and council approve the five‑year renewal; no formal vote was taken during the study session.