Minutes 02-10-2026 - Work Session

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16 Commissioner Carter asked if staff knows how many out of county users there are at DEAPR. She asked if there a way to identify that information so that a tiered fee structure could be implemented, if desired. Kirk Vaughn said you don't see a many out of county users for the youth programs. He said you might see it more for adult athletics as people can drive other places to join a league. David Stancil said they have different facility rates for county and out of county users. In relation to Commissioner McKee's comment, he said DEAPR does not do any senior recreation. He said adult recreation can have really low numbers of athletes, just 6 or 7 participants, and it's hard to spread recovery costs among such a low number. He said they have over 1,000 youth participants and about 125 total adult participants. Commissioner Bedford supported increasing the alcohol permit fee. She said she wanted to subsidize youth athletics. She asked if there is a state or Medicaid rule that says the Youth Enhancement Fund cannot be used for summer camp. Kirk Vaughn said the Youth Enhancement Fund is county money. He said DEAPR has its own program which uses OCS free and reduced lunch certificates, and that is not applied to afterschool, summer camp, and preschool. Commissioner Bedford asked for clarification. David Stancil said the Youth Enhancement Fund in DSS is county money and helps pay for children's activities. He said they use the reduced lunch certificates as a way to provide a discount for classes and programs. He said they don't have a way to cover themselves for afterschool, summer camp, or preschool. Commissioner Bedford said foster children, and kids on free and reduced lunch should have the greatest subsidy the county can provide. She said she would not want to increase fees there. She said not having fees at Central Recreation encourages people to come out play and not engage in criminal activity. David Stancil said this conversation was held by the Board 15 years ago. He said there was a charge of $3, but the commissioners at the time did not want to discourage anyone from coming in to play basketball. Commissioner Bedford said she supported keeping it if possible. She discussed the tennis court reservation concerns from the public. She said she'd like DEAPR to find a way to work that out. David Stancil said users are paying double what they did a few years ago. He noted the complexities of the conversation about usage of facilities and when they are being used. Commissioner Carter asked for clarification on adult athletics. David Stancil said any recreation for seniors is handled by the Department on Aging. He said the adult athletics programs are tai chi, martial arts, basketball, and volleyball. He said there are 10 times as many youth athletes as there are adults. Commissioner Carter said she supported Commissioner Bedford's comments about providing for youth programming. She said she'd like the county to review adult athletics fees. Commissioner Bedford noted the issue of balancing administrative costs and setting fees. David Stancil agreed and gave an example of establishing out of county vs. in county users. He said reviewing addresses takes up considerable staff time and may not be worth setting a specific out of county fee. Kirk Vaughn said subsidy programs can have administrative costs, but it can also be invasive. He said it often comes down to income verification. He said peer counties provide subsidies in varying ways, such as sliding scale, but that might be difficult to manage for a county of our size. He said if the Board is interested, they could look at expansion of subsidy programs and making sure they are supporting those who need it the most. Chair Hamilton noted the Board's agreement of his comments.