Dover Area SD reviews Red Cross facilities-use agreement, asks staff to calculate fees for non-shelter use
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Summary
Board members discussed renewing a 2018 facilities-use agreement with the American Red Cross and whether to charge fees when the organization uses district buildings for command or administrative centers (shelters are excluded). The board directed staff to estimate likely out-of-pocket utility and damage costs ahead of the Jan. 20 voting meeting.
Dover Area School District board members on Tuesday reviewed a proposed renewal of the district’s facilities-use agreement with the American Red Cross and asked staff to develop a fee schedule for uses that are not shelters.
Board members and staff said the draft agreement includes blank items for fees and reimbursements and that a similar agreement the district signed in 2018 did not charge the Red Cross. Speaker 2 summarized the distinction the board discussed: "This paragraph does not apply when the facility is used as a shelter. The Red Cross does not pay fees to use facilities as shelters." The board and administration distinguished shelter use (no fee) from administrative or "central command" uses, where fees could be appropriate.
Speakers pressed for clarity on reimbursing water, gas and electricity and for language addressing repair or damage costs after extended use. Speaker 2 said the district would compare usage during an event to normal usage and seek reimbursement for amounts "above and beyond what normal is for gas [and] water." Several members said that—because the Red Cross receives federal funding—asking for reimbursement for extraordinary costs is reasonable.
No formal approval was taken; the board asked administration to calculate likely costs and proposed fees and report back. The item is scheduled for the district’s Jan. 20 voting meeting where formal action may be taken.