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Fredonia declines to reinstate standalone summer rec program, will explore partnership with Port Washington
Summary
After reviewing options and costs, the board heard that reinstating a village-run summer youth program would likely cost about $100,000 and require hiring staff; trustees supported exploring partnerships with nearby municipalities such as Port Washington instead.
The Village of Fredonia Board on July 17 decided not to revive a standalone village-run summer youth recreation program at this time and asked staff to explore partnerships with nearby municipalities, Administrator Jenkins said.
Jenkins told the board he surveyed similar-size communities and found most run youth programs by partnering with schools, nonprofit groups or neighboring cities rather than operating independently. He said running a village-run program would require finding qualified staff and that even a single full-time summer coordinator could cost roughly $40,000–$60,000 plus benefits. Adding programming, insurance and field-trip costs pushed an estimated price tag toward $100,000.
Given staffing challenges and budget uncertainty, Jenkins said he would not recommend establishing a village-only program now. He suggested the board ask Port Washington whether its recreation program might accept Fredonia children at resident rates (as Saukville has done by partnering with Port Washington) and then the village could subsidize any difference for Fredonia families.
Board members generally agreed that partnering would be more feasible than launching a costly standalone program; trustees noted prior summers when collaboration had worked and said staff should pursue options and report back.
