Cary CCSD 26 staff propose small rental increases and new snow-removal fee for weekend events
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Summary
District staff proposed modest increases to facility rental and custodial fees and a new per-event snow-removal charge intended to offset weekend contractor visits. Board members asked for clarifications on per-visit contractor costs and how the fees would be applied.
District staff recommended modest adjustments to facility rental and custodial fees and introduced a new per-event charge to help cover weekend snow-removal and salting costs, administrators told the Cary CCSD 26 committee of the whole on Feb. 17.
At the meeting, Mr. Shepherd said the district is proposing to raise certain rental rates by "about $5" and to add charges for weekend snow plowing and salting. "We feel that, if people are going to use the facility on the weekend, that they should help cover the cost of snow removal and salting," Mr. Shepherd said.
Mr. Martin described how the district currently handles snow events and why the fee is under consideration. He said the district has been paying for snow removal on weekends and that contractor costs vary: "For Cary Junior High is $700" per contractor visit, he said, and Deerpath contractor visits run "just under $500." In the presentation staff described a proposed per-event fee referenced in the packet as "$2.50" intended to offset per-visit contractor and custodial costs; staff explained it is charged only "if it snows" during a rental window (October through April under the current contract).
Board members pressed staff on mechanics and scale: one committee member asked whether the fee was per weekend or per school, and whether multiple snow events over a weekend would generate multiple charges; Mr. Martin confirmed that every contractor visit would be an additional cost and that the proposed fee would contribute only partially to covering those visits.
Mr. Shepherd said current facility usage receipts have brought roughly $200,000 to the operations and maintenance fund in the past and that the proposed changes would bring district rates closer to those charged by neighboring districts, "so we're not pricing people out, but we're also not providing them such a bargain that we're flooding our facilities with people who want to use them," he said.
The board did not take a formal vote on rates at the committee meeting; staff said a recommendation and materials would be brought back for approval at the next meeting.
The board did not set final prices at the Feb. 17 session; the changes remain proposals pending formal action.