BOE examines facility usage fees for town recreation programs

PINE PLAINS — During the Wednesday, Sept. 21, meeting, the Pine Plains Board of Education (BOE) discussed the price structure for the use of school facilities by outside groups.Since the school district is currently operating under a contingency budget, the district is legally prevented from allowing outside groups or organizations to use the school facilities free of charge if the use will cost the district money due to basic operating costs, such as electricity.The law mandates that school districts running on a contingency budget must recoup some of its operating costs from the use of school facilities and sports fields.The issue was brought up because the town of Pine Plains wants to use the school facilities for its recreation programs, which includes youth sports leagues.Since the programs would run over the course of several months, the cumulative cost of renting the school facilities is allegedly enough to stop the program in its tracks.In a letter sent by the town to the Board of Education, it was stated that the sports schedules had not yet been confirmed, so the board was unable to calculate the projected cost to the town under the current price structure.School Superintendent Linda Kaumeyer said in an interview that the request by the town for a lower price was a legitimate request, but that the information provided was too general for the board to make an informed decision during the Sept. 21 meeting.During the BOE meeting discussion, board member Heather Boucher said that she would be interested in amending the price structure to help lower the cost for groups that use the facilities on a long-term basis.The current price structure was adopted by the board during the reorganization meeting on Wednesday, July 6. It is the same price structure that was used during the 2008-09 school year, the last time the district was under a contingency budget.Michael Goldbeck, assistant superintendent for business and finance, drew up the price structure for the 2008-09 school year after studying the price structures in place at other school districts in the county.The cost of operation — which includes heating, electricity and pay for custodians ­— for each facility was also taken into consideration.Goldbeck said that he made an effort to price the use of the Pine Plains facilities lower than all of the other school districts.He said he has not checked to confirm whether Pine Plains still has the lowest fees for facility usage in the county.The price structure lists costs of renting each individual facility. There is a set price for the first two hours and an hourly rate for any additional time.The price structure has three different fee schedules that depend on the type of organization using the facilities.Since the programs run by the town will take place outside of “normal school hours,” the programs fall under the second schedule, which is a discounted rate.Under that schedule, renting the high school football field would cost $25 for the first two hours, then $10 for each additional hour. Renting the high school gym would cost $24 for the first two hours, then $12 for each additional hour.If the programs took place during normal school hours, they would fall under the first schedule, which does not have rental fees.At press time, a meeting between the town and the Pine Plains School District business office was scheduled, but it had not yet taken place. The purpose of the meeting was to gather further information about the recreation programs, particularly their scheduled length.Since the price structure is based on an hourly rental fee, the number of hours for each recreation program will be the main determining factor in the final cost to the town.The BOE is only allowed to take formal action during official meetings. The next BOE meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 12.The town has already begun using the school facilities under the agreement that the upcoming decision made by the BOE regarding the price structure will determine the amount the town will have to pay for the use of the facilities, said Goldbeck.