Eliminating recreation can be a bad decision
A copy of this letter was sent to the Saratoga City Council.
Many hard questions are facing the City of Saratoga, not the least of which is how to maintain city services while balancing the budget. At times like this, it is necessary to critically look at and make cost-effective cuts. Other cities, like the San Jose and Union City, facing this hard task have cut the Department of Recreation or eliminated it entirely in an effort to reduce costs. What they thought was prudent actually turned into a poor decision which is being reversed by those cities.
Recreation is an essential city service that benefits the entire community. Some of those benefits include raising the quality of life in the community, reducing crime and negative social behavior, increasing real estate values, providing wholesome activities for youth, increasing social opportunities for our seniors, developing individual skills and interests, creating a sense of community--and this list can go on and on. The point is that our Department of Recreation provides a quality of life which helps define this community as a desirable place to live.
Recently, the Warner Hutton House was closed in response to a budget cut. Within one year, the community saw the void it created, and the council allocated half the funds to reopen it. The need was and is there, not just for the Warner Hutton House but for all the activities provided by the Recreation Department. There are concerns spreading about possible cuts in or elimination of the Recreation Department, and they are creating alarm in this community.
But the budget problems still remain. What costs would the city save by eliminating the services from the Recreation Department? Because this department operates within an enterprise fund, all of its direct costs and some of its indirect costs are recovered through user fees. The department's 1995-96 budget was $617,000, with revenues generated through user fees totaling $595,000, creating a very minimal deficit of $22,000. Buildings need to be maintained, and other operational support services such as the Finance Department or the City Manager's Office would continue at the same expense to the city; indirect allocated costs would remain. Further, would eliminating almost $600,000 in city services justify a $22,000 savings ?
The Parks and Recreation Commission is willing to work with the city to help the Department of Recreation reduce costs and identify new revenue sources. We hope that when tough decisions are made, we will be included in the process.
Kathryn Weiner
Rick Blomquist
Elaine Clabeaux
Jennifer Crotty
Marianne Swan
Kay Whitney
Parks and Recreation Commissioners
This article appeared in the Saratoga News, January 22, 1997.
©1997 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.