The City of Vernon is continuing its process of formally reviewing the policy for setting user fees and charges for Recreation and Parks facilities, programs, and services.
The review, which has been led by an independent third-party consulting group, is taking place based on a key recommendation from the 2018 Recreation Master Plan, with the following reasons for the doing the study:
According to the Master Plan recommendation, the review was deemed a medium term, medium priority, meaning it should take place within five years of the Master Plan being completed, which is 2023.
As part of the review process, the consulting group conducted a thorough assessment of Recreation and Parks user fees and charges with the following steps:
Consultant recommendations
Council received the consulting group’s report and recommendations at its July 17, 2023 Committee of the Whole meeting.
During that presentation, the consultants noted it’s not possible to compare municipalities directly, as each community sets fees and charges in consideration of multiple factors including size of tax base, operating costs, local financial pressures, industry, and more. However, at Council’s request, a comparison of fees from other communities will be presented at the August 14, 2023 Council meeting.
The consultants also confirmed more than 130 facility user groups and interested parties were invited to participate in focus groups; 35 people attended the seven focus group opportunities and 21 completed user group questionnaires.
Some of the key recommendations in the consultant’s report include:
Next steps
In addition to the consultant’s report, Council has also received letters from community organizations, with further input on Recreation and Parks fees and charges, facility operations, programs, and services.
“Now that all this information has been received, Council has directed staff to bring a report back to the August 14, 2023 Council meeting, with recommendations on how to move forward,” said Acting Mayor Akbal Mund.
“That report will include the information from the independent third-party consultant’s findings and recommendations, as well as the letters from the community organizations. All of it will be in front of Council for review and discussion, and to inform our decisions going forward.
“Council wants to reassure citizens we have heard you. The decisions we are making about Recreation and Parks fees, charges, programs and services are not made lightly. Careful and thoughtful attention is being given to all input that has been received and Council is committed to making decisions that most appropriately fund and support the operation and maintenance of Recreation and Parks facilities, programs and services, to best serve the community as a whole.”