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SARATOGA CITY COUNCIL
MEETING DATE: November 18, 2009 AGENDA ITEM:
DEPARTMENT: Recreation & Facilities CITY MANAGER: Dave Anderson
PREPARED BY: Claudia Cauthorn, Interim Recreation & Facilities Director
DIRECTOR: Claudia Cauthorn
SUBJECT: Review of Facility Rental Fees and Criteria for Non-Profit Organizations
RECOMMENDED ACTION:
Review and comment on the existing Facility Rental policies and rental fees for non-profit
group use.
REPORT SUMMARY:
Recently a few non-profit groups have raised questions regarding the eligibility criteria for
not-for-profit organizations wishing to rent City facilities. This report summarizes current
City policy on this subject and provides Council with comparisons of policies from
neighboring cities. Alternatives to the current policies are outlined and discussed.
DISCUSSION:
The Facility Use Policy that governs the use of all City owned buildings was last revised
prior to 2005. The current policy provides for facility reservations to be made on a first-
come, first-served basis and reservations may not be made more than one year in advance of
the use date. A non-refundable processing fee is paid at the time the reservation is made.
This fee covers administrative time to book the reservation, schedule facility attendants and
make any other follow up arrangements that may be needed. A Security Deposit is also
collected at the time of reservation. This deposit covers additional charges should the user
stay beyond the reserved time, damages to the buildings or contents, overtime for facility
attendant staff or maintenance charges should additional cleanup be required. This deposit
is fully refunded if none of these circumstances occur. If the deposit does not cover the
charges, the user is responsible for any additional charges.
Non-profit organizations are awarded a 50% discount on rental fees provided they meet the
following criteria:
· They must provide evidence of their non-profit status. A copy of their letter from the
California Secretary of State’s office with their non-profit ID number indicated is
required.
· Their membership must be at least 51% Saratoga residents OR at least 51% of the
persons in attendance at their event must be Saratoga residents.
· The event must be open to the public, advertised as such and is for the public benefit
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· Non-profit groups requesting the use of City facilities for the purpose of fundraising
or when an admission fee is charged will pay the regular rental fee.
As an example of how this would work, if a non-profit group wanted to use the Fellowship
Hall every Friday night for 2 to 3 hours and they met all the requirements to qualify for the
non-profit rate, this group would pay approximately $6,000 for the year. If this group did
not meet all of the above criteria (say their % of Saratoga residents is only 21% instead of the
required 51%), this group would pay approximately $12,000 for the same use.
A survey of the policies from other local cities for use of their facilities by non-profit groups
is attached. As can be seen in this survey, virtually all cities have the requirement that the
non-profit group wishing to use their facilities at the non-profit rate must meet a minimum
of 51% city residents in order to qualify. Most of the cities surveyed have the additional
requirement that if a non-profit group wishes to conduct a fund-raising activity or charge
admission (or other fees), that group does not qualify for the non-profit rate for that
particular activity. The group would then pay the same rate as an individual or other
organization. Some cities limit the number of fundraising events a non-profit can host to
one per year and some have a requirement that fund-raising activities are not allowed by
non-resident non-profit groups.
RECOMMENDATION:
The City of Saratoga’s existing non-profit use policy is consistent with the policies that other
cities have for use of their facilities. No changes are recommended at this time.
FISCAL IMPACTS:
Retaining the existing policy will enable the City to reach the revenue goals recently set for
the Recreation & Facilities Department. Easing the requirements for non-profit group usage
of City facilities would seriously impact the City’s ability to meet those revenue goals as
approximately 19% of all uses of City facilities are by non-profit groups.
ALTERNATIVE ACTIONS:
· Alternate A: Should the Council wish to ease the requirements for non-profit uses at
City facilities, a replacement revenue source will be needed to meet the 65% cost
recovery revenue goal. This could be in the form of Council grants to the
organizations.
· Alternate B: Ease the requirements for non-profit group usage and reduce the % cost
recovery for the Recreation & Facilities Department commensurately.
FOLLOW UP ACTION:
Give direction to staff for policy and fee changes. Publish any changes to the policy and
fees on the City website and make it available to the public.
ADVERTISING, NOTICING AND PUBLIC CONTACT:
City Council meeting noticed on November 12, 2009.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Existing Council Policy for Use of City Facilities
2. Survey of Neighboring Cities Facility Use Policies re: Non-Profit Use
3. Summary of Non-Profit Uses for FY 08/09