Scotts Valley City Council has taken the next step in addressing a $700,000 deficit in recreation funding by approving new facility rental and special-event fees.
With Vice Mayor Derek Timm joining the Nov. 6 meeting remotely from Hawaii, council members unanimously adopted a revised fee structure meant to boost revenue while keeping charges fair.
This was the second in a two-step process to modernize the City’s fee menu. Back in June, user fees were agreed to. Afterward, City officials turned their attention to tweaking facility rental and special-event fees.
Staff said the new numbers came out of a workshop with other Greater Bay Area municipalities, which allowed local officials to learn new strategies for raising revenue while keeping things fair for users.
As expected, the new fees were approved unanimously—but not everything is going up.
For example, the typical damage deposit will remain at $500, and the administrative fee for gazebo or garden plot rentals will still be just $9. However, while there wasn’t an admin fee for facility rentals before, that will now run you $33.
And, if you need to change your reservation, that will now cost $20 (whereas this was free before).
Cleaning fees will now switch to an “actual cost” model, instead of a flat rate.
For the Community Center (three-hour minimum rental), the weekday hourly rate is going up from $124 to $165 (it’s jumping from $1,237 to $1,320 for the weekday daily rate). The weekend hourly rate is rising from $124 to $215 (the daily rate is going from $1,237 to $1,720). The kitchen rental fee is new ($45), as is the patio/backyard rental fee (also $45).
For the Senior Center (also a three-hour minimum rental), the weekday hourly rate is jumping from $84 to $115 (the daily rate is going up from $835 to $920). The weekend hourly rate is rising from $84 to $145 (the daily rate is being hiked from $835 to $1,160).
Here, too, the new kitchen and patio/backyard rental rates will be set at $45.
For events with fewer than 50 attendees at Hocus Pocus and Skypark playground gazebos (two-hour minimum), there’s actually a reduction in the weekday hourly rate (dropping from $37 to $35). The weekend hourly rate is going up from $37 to $40.
And for Siltanen, Skypark Large Gazebo and the MacDorsa gazebos (two-hour minimum) the per hour rate is going up from $37 to $45, with the weekend hourly rate jumping from $37 to $50.
For a single field at Skypark, you’ll now pay $30 (per field, per hour), instead of $14. That goes for fields at Siltanen, too. However, the rental of the athletic field lights will remain at $22.
A new fee has arrived in the form of a $33-per-day charge for the Snack Shack concessions room.
Other new fees include an $8-per-hour charge for use of the bocce ball court, a $12-per-hour charge for use of a tennis court, a $7-per-hour rate for the pickleball court, $12-per-hour rate for the basketball court, and $33 per hour for the skatepark.
The actual garden plot rental fee was not reduced from the $1-per-square-foot price that’s been in place.
Outdoor teaching permits have been introduced with a $50 price tag ($18 per class).
If you want to use inflatables in outdoor spaces, that will run you $18 now (another new item).
If you want to hold an event with more than 50 attendees—or with sound or other entertainment—you’ll pay $275 instead of $235 for application review.
Senior Center memberships will cost $35 per year (up from $20). Non-members will pay $5 per activity (up by $1). The member price is also rising by a buck—to $3 per activity.
However, for classes, it will still cost $7 per class for non-members. The member price for classes won’t change either (it’s $5).
For requests that aren’t set out in the services menu, the City has the right to determine the appropriate fee to be charged.
Scotts Valley is also able to pass-on costs incurred from the use of external service providers if required to process the application.
Staff said they were hopeful the new rates would add revenue to City coffers, but added it’s hard to tell as things are only just now returning to pre-pandemic levels of service.
