Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

City grabs Park and Rec funds

“They basically just told us this is how it is now."


"They say you can't fight city hall. I say why not?" said Mike Van Etten, Golden Hill Rec Center council chair.
"They say you can't fight city hall. I say why not?" said Mike Van Etten, Golden Hill Rec Center council chair.

After more than 30 years of operating within the communities they serve, city recreation-center councils will no longer have the ability to decide how to spend the funds they collect.

City attorney Mara Elliott’s office recently concluded that “all funds collected by recreation councils are City funds, and therefore subject to Charter and Municipal Code requirements governing the use of City funds.”

Chief of staff Gerry Braun of the city attorney’s office said the decision was in response to the Park and Recreation Department’s inquiry regarding the law governing recreation council funds.

Park and Rec came to us wanting to know, “whose money is this?” Braun paraphrased.

Sponsored
Sponsored

A September 8 memorandum addressed to Park and Recreation Department director Herman Parker details the attorney’s analysis. Without prior warning or discussion, Park and Recreation staff called a meeting with council chairs on September 20. Changes are planned for October.

Place

Golden Hill Recreation Center

2600 Golf Course Drive, San Diego

“They basically just told us this is how it is now, and there’s not much we can do about it,” said Michael Van Etten, chair of the Golden Hill Recreation Center council.

Recreation centers are permitted to raise money by collecting fees for facility use and holding classes that the city would otherwise not be able to offer. Councils use the money to promote activities in the community; support operations, classes, and events; enhance maintenance projects; and fund capital improvement projects at the rec centers. Of the 53 neighborhood centers, 46 of them also do their own fundraising through 501(c)3 foundations.

Since at least 1985, the practice had been to give the council at each center the ability to decide how to use the funds they collect. Under the new arrangement the money will be deposited to the city’s special revenue funds. City employees will ultimately decide how to spend it. Rec-center programming will be “consistent throughout the city.”

With the idea of “One SD; One SD Rec” (on a presentation document), the city cites improved ability to deliver citywide programs, centralized management, and increased scope for existing city contractors. The recreation councils will serve as advisory boards but will not be able to vote on how to use the money.

“It makes our offerings more ‘vanilla’ — it means we can’t decide based on what our community members want, what direction to take the rec center for the benefit of the people who come here and play here,” said Van Etten.

Adams Avenue council chair Dave Rogers said almost $20,000 is currently in the center’s coffers. He is concerned that if the city puts it in a general fund, there won’t be a guarantee that it will be used for the purpose for which it was raised: to pay for projects and activities that benefit kids.

Free or low-cost events like “Halloween Hill” in Golden Hill, with safe trick-or-treating and family fun, are hosted with rec-council funds.

“We have Halloween Hill coming up, and it might mean we won’t be able to hire the vendors — the face painters, the bounce house — because now there is a list of city-approved vendors.”

“This place has gotten as nice as it has with more community involvement,” said Van Etten of Golden Hill’s rec center, on the corner of Golf Course Drive and 26th Street.

“Rec councils provide a buffer of public approval — the community has input,” said Rogers. “The city is basically deleting that.”

Park and Recreation director Herman Parker could not be reached for comment.

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

The vicious cycle of Escondido's abandoned buildings

City staff blames owners for raising rents
Next Article

Tijuana sewage infects air in South Bay

By September, Imperial Beach’s beach closure broke 1000 consecutive days

"They say you can't fight city hall. I say why not?" said Mike Van Etten, Golden Hill Rec Center council chair.
"They say you can't fight city hall. I say why not?" said Mike Van Etten, Golden Hill Rec Center council chair.

After more than 30 years of operating within the communities they serve, city recreation-center councils will no longer have the ability to decide how to spend the funds they collect.

City attorney Mara Elliott’s office recently concluded that “all funds collected by recreation councils are City funds, and therefore subject to Charter and Municipal Code requirements governing the use of City funds.”

Chief of staff Gerry Braun of the city attorney’s office said the decision was in response to the Park and Recreation Department’s inquiry regarding the law governing recreation council funds.

Park and Rec came to us wanting to know, “whose money is this?” Braun paraphrased.

Sponsored
Sponsored

A September 8 memorandum addressed to Park and Recreation Department director Herman Parker details the attorney’s analysis. Without prior warning or discussion, Park and Recreation staff called a meeting with council chairs on September 20. Changes are planned for October.

Place

Golden Hill Recreation Center

2600 Golf Course Drive, San Diego

“They basically just told us this is how it is now, and there’s not much we can do about it,” said Michael Van Etten, chair of the Golden Hill Recreation Center council.

Recreation centers are permitted to raise money by collecting fees for facility use and holding classes that the city would otherwise not be able to offer. Councils use the money to promote activities in the community; support operations, classes, and events; enhance maintenance projects; and fund capital improvement projects at the rec centers. Of the 53 neighborhood centers, 46 of them also do their own fundraising through 501(c)3 foundations.

Since at least 1985, the practice had been to give the council at each center the ability to decide how to use the funds they collect. Under the new arrangement the money will be deposited to the city’s special revenue funds. City employees will ultimately decide how to spend it. Rec-center programming will be “consistent throughout the city.”

With the idea of “One SD; One SD Rec” (on a presentation document), the city cites improved ability to deliver citywide programs, centralized management, and increased scope for existing city contractors. The recreation councils will serve as advisory boards but will not be able to vote on how to use the money.

“It makes our offerings more ‘vanilla’ — it means we can’t decide based on what our community members want, what direction to take the rec center for the benefit of the people who come here and play here,” said Van Etten.

Adams Avenue council chair Dave Rogers said almost $20,000 is currently in the center’s coffers. He is concerned that if the city puts it in a general fund, there won’t be a guarantee that it will be used for the purpose for which it was raised: to pay for projects and activities that benefit kids.

Free or low-cost events like “Halloween Hill” in Golden Hill, with safe trick-or-treating and family fun, are hosted with rec-council funds.

“We have Halloween Hill coming up, and it might mean we won’t be able to hire the vendors — the face painters, the bounce house — because now there is a list of city-approved vendors.”

“This place has gotten as nice as it has with more community involvement,” said Van Etten of Golden Hill’s rec center, on the corner of Golf Course Drive and 26th Street.

“Rec councils provide a buffer of public approval — the community has input,” said Rogers. “The city is basically deleting that.”

Park and Recreation director Herman Parker could not be reached for comment.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Haunted Trail of Balboa Park, ZZ Top, Gem Diego Show

Events October 31-November 2, 2024
Next Article

Dia de los Muertos Celebration, Love Thy Neighbor(Hood): Food & Art Exploration

Events November 2-November 6, 2024
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader