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Recreation and Parks seeks 4.5% budget increase as personnel costs rise
Summary
The Recreation & Parks Department requested a modest FY27 increase driven mainly by mandatory personnel costs and restoration of a maintainer position; commissioners debated adding a maintainer and voted to add $2,800 for Quaker Hill property maintenance.
Ryan, director of the Recreation & Parks Department, told the board the department’s FY27 request reflects a 4.52% increase, driven almost entirely by personnel costs tied to citywide cost-of-living adjustments, contractual wage obligations and state minimum-wage changes. He said the budget restores funding for a maintainer-2 position to a full year (it was only funded for six months last year) and emphasized steps to contain costs, including investing in attachments for a universal Ventrak fleet platform that reduces capital and maintenance expenses.
The request includes an increase in park maintenance and fringe-benefit lines; Ryan said roughly $43,604 of the total increase is maintenance and that about 27% of that is the six-month-to-full-year restoration for the maintainer position. He also pointed to line-item clarifications this year, including annual inspection costs for the gantry/crane at Waterford Beach Park and ASCAP licensing for the summer concert series.
Commissioners questioned overtime and staffing. One member noted overtime expense last year totaled about $31,600 and pressed Ryan on why the department relied on overtime rather than permanent hires; Ryan said weekend schedules for beach and recreation activities make some overtime unavoidable but added that restoring full-time staff can reduce replacement and emergency overtime over time. Several members urged the department to prioritize maintenance at Quaker Hill School and nearby ball fields, and discussed ADA shortcomings in restrooms and sidewalks near schools.
A motion to add $60,000 to create an additional maintainer-2 position failed for lack of a second. A separate motion to add $2,800 to line 52420 (maintenance of properties) to address immediate needs at Quaker Hill was seconded, discussed and approved by voice vote.
Ryan said the department will continue to pursue grants and sponsorships — noting a recent $15,000 Dominion Energy sponsorship for the concert series and a small state mobility grant used for bike helmets — and to refine line-item documentation so the board can better assess increases and savings. The Recreation & Parks budget was approved as presented with the $2,800 amendment.
What’s next: Ryan said staff will return with follow-up details on parking-lot snow-clearing priorities, a staffing timeline for the posted maintainer position, and a plan for Quaker Hill facilities and ADA concerns.
