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Parks & Recreation asks for one front‑desk position, flags special events and bond projects
Summary
Parks & Recreation Director Sam Mitad asked commissioners for one additional full‑time front‑desk position and outlined nondiscretionary cost pressures (salaries, utilities, contracts), LED lighting savings and a busy schedule of bond projects and events over the next 18 months.
Sam Mitad, Director of Parks and Recreation, told the Delray Beach City Commission that Parks & Recreation encompasses a broad portfolio — park maintenance, five recreation centers, the marina, the cemetery, special events, two aquatic facilities, two golf courses and multiple athletic fields — and said most pressure this year is from nondiscretionary costs such as salaries, benefits, utilities and contractual obligations.
"The request for us is pretty straightforward this year. It's very, very simple ... it's increases in our nondiscretionary items," Mitad said, and he asked for one additional full‑time position at the City Hall front desk to avoid frequent operational disruptions when staff members are absent.
Mitad noted the department has achieved savings by converting athletic field lighting to LED and said several large bond projects — including work at the golf course and mausoleum — will keep the department busy for the next 18 months. He also said Parks and Recreation now assumes maintenance responsibilities for backflows across parks (about 300 devices), which has added repair and maintenance costs.
Commissioners thanked Mitad for the presentation and asked whether personnel and insurance increases were incorporated in the staffing projections; staff said those costs were accounted for in the department metrics. Mitad cautioned that special events funding remains uncertain pending new legislation and that staff included the current event funding until the policy question is resolved.
Why it matters: Requests for new positions and the treatment of special event funding will affect operating costs and how Parks & Recreation delivers services. LED upgrades have produced measurable savings but bond projects and maintenance responsibilities impose new operational demands.
Next steps: Parks & Recreation's staffing and event assumptions will be included in the scenario materials and discussed at the June 9 workshop.
