Council Report #2020-24

Town of Smiths Falls

Service Sustainability Review

Parks and Recreation Outdoor Facilities and Service

Date: May 19, 2020

Community Services

Parks and Recreation Department

Parks and Recreation Service Review 2019

Presented By: Art Manhire, Director of Community Services

Date: May 12, 2020

Council Report: #2020-24

“To systematically examine the Town of Smiths Falls’ existing service

delivery and develop options and strategies that will enable the Town to

match resources to services in the immediate and long-term future in a

sustainable way.”

-Purpose statement developed by Team

Team Members:

• Art Manhire, Director of Community Services

• Jennifer Miller, Manager of Economic Development

• Tana Torch, Scheduling and Administrative Clerk

• Nick Pilon, Community Development Clerk

• Chris Burns, Operations Supervisor

• Kyle Langdown – Arena Operator

• Greg Sonnenberg – Lead Hand

Purpose:

• To provide a comprehensive review of the Town of Smiths Falls’ Parks and

Recreation Department that outlines services, asset/s inventory and to provide a

benchmark for current services that will inform future operational management

decisions.

• This Report will also provide an overview of:

• Services

• Assets

• Organizational Structure

• Service Areas

• Complex Services

• Quality of Life

Background:

Currently, Parks and Recreation does not have a Parks and Recreation

Master Plan that guides its uses. However, a Parks and Recreational

Master Plan is currently being developed and is to be completed as part

of the Strategic Priorities of Council in the 2020 fiscal year.

The Parks and Recreation Department has developed “best practices”

around creating service campuses.

These campuses include:

Lower Reach Park – This campus is predominantly related to sport and active

participation activities

Municipal Arena Campus – This campus is predominantly related to recreational,

social facilities with the arena, senior’s activity centre, Gerry Lowe Memorial Rink

(outdoor rink), skate park, lawn bowling and tennis facilities.

Background Continued:

A “continuum of service” approach was the driving concept behind our

Service Review.

PUBLIC GOODPublic Community Events, free

of charge and open to all.

PRIVATE GOODFor Profit with limited public

benefit

Ie. Tournaments

Children’s Rates – Access for User Groups – Rentals for Events

Comparator Communities:

The following communities were examined based on similar services, assets, population, staffing, expenses, revenue, cost recovery and extended service.

Town of Perth

Town of Kemptville

Town of Carleton Place

Town of Arnprior

City of Brockville

Town of Gananoque

Comparator municipalities’ information was collected and summarized in the following tables and graphs.

Smiths Falls Kemptville Carleton Place Perth

Staffing

Full-time 3.3 FTE’s N/A 6.27 FTE’s 3.69 FTE’s

Assets 78.93 Acres 143 Acres Not Available 15 Acres

• Baseball Field 9 6 4 5

• Soccer Field 10 10 5 3

• Football Field 1

• Rugby Field

• Pickleball Court 9 2 8

• Tennis Court 6 4 3 4

• Basketball Court 3 4 2

• Skate Park 1 1 1 1

• Pump Track 1

• Outdoor Rink 1 2

• Lawn bowling 1

• Bocce Ball 1

• Volleyball Court 1 1

• Splash Pad 1 1 1 1

• Parks 21 2 20 3

• Dog Park 2 2

• Trails 3 9

• Beaches 1 2

• Boat Launches 2

• Public Docks 5 4

• Pool 1

• Play Structures 9 16 3

• Outdoor Fitness Station 1

Staffing V.S Assets

Smiths Falls Kemptville Carleton Place Perth

Expenses $155,873.00 $101,162.00 $2,101,060.00 $169,000.00

Revenue $20,389.00 $40,080.00 $1,336,033.00 $31,000.00

Cost Recovery 13% 39% 63% 18%

$155,873.00 $101,162.00

$2,101,060.00

$169,000.00

$20,389.00 $40,080.00

$1,336,033.00

$31,000.00 13% 39% 63% 18%

$-

$500,000.00

$1,000,000.00

$1,500,000.00

$2,000,000.00

$2,500,000.00

Expenses Revenue Cost Recovery

Graph 1 – Expenses, Revenue & Cost Recovery

Description of Service:

The Town of Smiths Falls owns and operates 78.93

acres of parkland throughout the community and

37.07 acres of land within Hillcrest Cemetery for a

total of one hundred and sixteen (116) acres.

We have approximately 18,900.92 linear feet of

prime waterfrontage along the Rideau Canal – a

UNESCO World Heritage site.

The parklands along the canal are largely owned by

Parks Canada and in turn leased to the Town for public

use and enjoyment.

New Dock at Lower Reach

What does the Parks and Recreation Department take care of?:

Maintenance of 78.93 Acres of parkland

Maintenance of 37.07 Acres of Hillcrest Cemetery

The beach as well as the water inflatable located in Murphy Park

Booking of assets

Leveraging in-kind support to over sixty-five (65) community events per

year

Undertaking most strategic priorities of council

Quality of life

Waterfront development & place making

Sustainment of the Towns Building Services Department

Cleaning all facilities

Other duties that arise on an as needed basis

Performance Indicators:

The Parks and Recreation Department delivers services across the municipality in

a variety of facilities and spaces.

To further breakdown our performance measures we compare ourselves to other

municipalities using the following performance measures:

Employee Time/Staffing

Financial Sustainability

Planning for Growth

New Waterfront Inflatable – Murphy Park New Outdoor Fitness Equipment – Lower Reach

Findings:Parks Operations Include, but are not limited to:

Field Maintenance

Grading

Field Painting (ie: Soccer Lines)

Re-Sodding

Lawn/Park Maintenance

Cutting Grass

Weed Whacking

Pulling Weeds

Removing Brush/Debris

Litter Pick-up and Removal – Daily

Planting Trees

Repair and Inspections

Winter Maintenance

Cleaning and Maintenance of Facilities - Daily

Corralling and maintaining the safety of the

swans

Inspection of Watercourses and Debris Removal

Annual Inspections

Bridges and Associated Infrastructures

Natural Areas

Trails and Aprons

Managing Construction and/or Capital

improvement Projects that fall within the

Strategic Priorities of Council

Planting and Weeding all Horticultural Displays

Including 11 beds and 4 nodes

Leveraging 65 Community Events

Setting up Barricades

Delivering Chairs/Tables

Setting up Tents

Building Services – All Town Departments

Moving, fixing or installing items ie. Lights, desks,

boxes, filing cabinets etc.

Findings Continued:

All of the services listed in the previous slide are completed on a weekly

basis. The Operations Supervisor determines schedule based on weather and

service demands

The Parks and Recreation Department has also taken on additional services

and duties within the scope of the Public Works Department and the

Downtown Business Improvement Catchment area including:

Cutting Grass at:

Sewage Treatment Plant

Water Treatment Facility

Police Station

Sweeping Sidewalks

Boulevard Maintenance within the DBA Catchment

Findings Continued – Employee Time/Staffing

The Parks and Recreation Department has 3.3 Full Time Employees (FTE’s)

With an extensively large grass area to cut and whipper snip on a weekly basis it takes approximately 4.12 FTE’s employees per week to cut and maintain 78.93 acres of parkland.

Other services have become neglected or the level of service that has become expected has become unachievable.

Throughout the month of April and the month of August 1.3 FTE’s are also required to also maintain the Memorial Community Centre Ice Operations

Approximately 8.62 acres of new parkland has been added since 2013, with increasingly complex features, which was added for the needed demand and increase park use.

All additional acreage, assets and services has been untaken by the Parks and Recreation Department without additional funding, staffing or resources.

44%

4%

9%

4%

27%

Breakdown of staff allocation hours

Grass Cutting/Trimming

Public Works - Garbage/Grass

DBA - Grass Cutting/Sidewalk Maintenance

Special Events

Other

Employee Time/Staffing

Recommendations:

1. Hire additional seasonal staff to monitor assets, maintain and leverage increased

garbage within our parks due to increased tourism and usage, and to offset the

additional scope of work incurred with additions from Public Works and the

Downtown Business Improvement Association. Recommendation is to increase

staffing by two (2) full-time seasonal employees (April-September), for a total of

2 FTE’s.

This which would bring our staffing levels closer to our municipal comparators

thresholds and maintain the expected level of service. There is opportunity to

pursue supplementary/cost sharing opportunities to cover the cost of seasonal

employees.

2. Examine service levels to establish thresholds for service expectations and

determine when growth levels trigger the need for additional resources.

Findings: Sustainability

Revenue has remained consistent since 2013, with the exception of 2018

when Operations closed down Aboud Field (football field) for field

renovations.

Key Performance Measures Revenue Per Year (Sports Fields)

2013 $12,396.00

2014 $11,197.00

2015 $12,325.00

2016 $12,917.00

2017 $12,024.00

2018 (Football Field Renovation) $8,497.00

2019 $13,090.00

Reviewing the chart in the next slide in comparison with our comparator

municipalities are fees and charges are significantly lower than lose of our

neighbouring communities.

Service Review

Parks and Recreation 2019Sports Fields, Diamonds & Pavilion Rentals Breakdown

Smith

s Falls

Arnprior

Brockv

ille

Carleton Place

Ganan

oque

Kemptville

Perth

Youth Game $79 per team $15.20 Hour $12.00 Hour

Youth Tournament $95 Day $152.00 Day $179.00 Day

Youth Tournament Friday/Sunday $48 Day (Friday) $228.00 Day $179.00 Day

Youth - Up to (200 Min) $35.48 per child

Youth - 400 Min. $32.21 per child

Adult Game $264 per Team $22.27 Hour $46.00 Game $455.05 per team

Adult Tournament $169 Day $222.70 Day $262.00 Day

Adult Tournament Friday/Sunday $65 Day (Friday) $334.05 Day $262.00 Day

Non-Resident $20.00 Hour

With Lights $17.75 Hour $64.75 Hour

Without Lights $13.75 Hour $47.58 Hour

Youth Game $79 per team $15.20 Hour $15.00 Game $9.00 Hour

Youth Game - Non League Lights $25.76 Hour

Youth Game - Non League unlit) $15.59 Hour

Youth Tournament $95 Day $152.00 Day $91.25 Day $78.75 Day $179.00 Day

Youth Tournament Friday/Sunday $48 Day (Friday) $228.00 Day $179.00 Day

Youth/Little League up to (200 min) $35.48 per Child

Youth/Little League after (200 min) $19.32 per Child

Adult Game $264 per Team $22.27 Hour $15.00 Game $37.00 Game

Adult Game - Non league Lights $38.99 Hour

Adult Game - Non League unlit $25.99 Hour

Adult Tournament $169 Day $222.70 Day $91.25 Day $267.00 Day

Adult Tournament Friday/Sunday $65 Day (Friday) $334.05 Day $267.00 Day

Men's Lob Ball $455.05 per team

Mixed Slo-Pitch $455.05 per team

Non-Resident N/A $20 Hour

With Lights $17.75 Hour

Without Lights $13.75 Hour

Hard Ball Fields $13.75 Hour

School Tournaments $233.46

With Lights $4.63 Hour

Without Lights $2.94 Hour

Non-Contributing Township Annual Fee $96.05

Soccer Fields

Called for

info

May 27, 2019

Follow up

May 29, 2019

Called for

info May 27,

2019

Followed Up

May 29, 2019

Tennis

Ball Diamonds

All Rentals

$78.75 Per

Day

RATES Please Note: Tournament Rates are Per Field, Per Day

Comparator Asset Fee’s Breakdown

TYPE Smiths Falls Kemptville Arnprior Perth

Tournament Rate – Youth $95 Per Day $179 Per Day $152 Per Day Not Available

Tournament Rate - Adult $169 Per Day $262 Per Day $222.70 Per Day $455.05 Per Team

Team Fee’s – Youth $79 Per Team $12 Per Hour $15.20 Per Hour $35.48 Per Child

Team Fee’s Adult $264 Per Team $46 Per Game $22.27 Per Hour $47.58 Per Hour

TYPE Smiths Falls Brockville Perth

Rates without Lights Not Applicable $13.75 Per Hour $38.99 Per Hour

Rates with Lights Not Applicable $17.78 Per Hour $25.99 Per Hour

Tennis/Pickleball – Without Lights Not Applicable Not Applicable $4.63 Per Hour

Tennis/Pickleball – With Lights Not Applicable Not Applicable $2.94 Per Hour

As you can see from the below charts, many of the comparator municipalities use an hourly fee to charge

user groups to help recuperate operating costs.

Please note that the tennis/pickleball court with lights and without lights are also charged membership fees

in addition to the light charges

The revenue generated through sport field rentals goes to help offset the total unit operational

cost, with a cost recovery of 8%.

With the current revenue we are receiving for sports fields and with the increase of additional

facilities throughout our parks, budgeting pressures have left many park service plan

enhancements without funding. This in turn will make it difficult to achieve park users’

expectations and maintain the high level of service which has become expected.

Many users are using the facilities/assets without booking through the parks and recreation

department, which causes additional work for operations to clean up unwanted garbage,

replace/fix picnic tables and garbage cans and replace locks within buildings.

Previously, staff provided tables, chairs, bleachers, power cables, tents, trailers and man power to

support the 65+ community events per year, free of charge.

New processes have been implemented and community event organizers are now required to go

through the community grant process should they be seeking “free” services.

If the event is granted through the community grant process, an internal transfer from the community

grant budget will be transferred to the parks and recreation department for services

If the event is denied through the community grant process the event has an option of pay for the services

they require.

By changing this process, the operations team is able to leverage community events and help

increase revenue and cost recovery.

Findings: Sustainability Continued

Financial Sustainability

Recommendations:

1. Currently our market value for asset rentals is significantly lower than our

neighbouring municipalities. Asset fees and charges in Smiths Falls have remained

the same for over ten (10) years. With little change in cost recovery, it has become

increasing difficult to maintain, upgrade and resurface assets within our catchment.

As our current rates are the lowest of any comparator, a full rate comparison will

be completed to determine appropriate rate changes to make our rates

competitive with those of surrounding municipalities. Any proposed rate changes

would be phased in over an appropriate period of time. Any rate changes would

come to Council for approval with revisions of the fees and charges bylaw. It is

prudent to improve resource availability and level the playing field for all of the

community.

Additional Considerations:

1. With the increase of assets and equipment there is little room for storage. A new

Storage facility may be required to house equipment and assets should the

existing one on Old Mill Road come unavailable due to redevelopment of the

former water treatment plant and surrounding land.

Findings: Planning and Growth

To help create a better life for residents and visitors alike by leveraging the

wonderful assets we have within our facilities and parks by creating more

opportunities recreational or social activities.

Fostering relationships and partnerships to help level the support needed.

This approach assist the community organizers to achieve a public good and

take ownership for the event or activity.

New Outdoor Fitness Equipment – Lower ReachNew Dock at Lower Reach

Planning and Growth Continued:

Public good is a measure that is, and could be, used as rationale for allocating

department resources and setting fees.

Presumably the greater the public good the more worthy the Town investment.

From a fees perspective the items with the greatest public good would be provided

at the lowest cost while private use of public resources would be charged at a rate

that is based on market value and has the capacity to contribute positive resource

to offset the cost of Department Operations.

The maps below identify maintained parkland as well as all assets within our

community. These maps will be a new feature that will be incorporated into our

new booking software – PerfectMind.

The new booking software will enable users to click on an asset identified by an

icon, and book that space. Not only will this new software enhance the users

experience, it will also provide a visual characteristic of the asset.

This map outlines all community assets and will be a new feature that will be incorporated

into our new booking software – PerfectMind. This software is projected to be available to

users on July 2, 2020. This map will also be incorporated into the Community Services,

Parks and Recreation page on our website for all users to view.

This map identifies maintained parkland as well as Hillcrest

Cemetery. This map will be incorporated into the Town of Smiths

Falls’ website for users to see all of the beautiful parkland within our

community.

Planning and Growth

Recommendations:

1. The first priority is to complete the Parks and Recreation Master Plan to inform

planning decisions and operational needs.

2. Continue to promote Town-wide casual and drop in opportunities (trails, parks,

skate park, outdoor fitness equipment etc.) for residents, families and visitors.

3. Address opportunities within 78.93 acres of parkland through community

partnerships, development, growth and assets.

QUESTIONS?