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EDUCATION Sticker shock: Medford schools impose facility fees for AAU, YMCA, others Youth programs will be charged $10 a hour to use gyms, classrooms Comment By Teresa Thomas Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Teresa Thomas Mail Tribune Posted Aug. 24, 2015 at 6:50 PM Updated Aug 25, 2015 at 12:54 PM By Teresa Thomas Mail Tribune Posted Aug. 24, 2015 at 6:50 PM Updated Aug 25, 2015 at 12:54 PM » Social News The Medford School District’s decision to charge independent youth-oriented organizations to use its facilities could mean steeper program fees for many families. In June, the Medford School Board decided that all non-district organizations should pay a facility rental fee, including those offering youth programs. Previously, only organizations offering programs for adults were charged the fee. The Rogue Valley Family YMCA, Amateur Athletic Union teams, Manny’s Basketball Association and other local organizations are now waiting to find out whether they will be granted an exemption or need to raise their own rates to cover the additional cost. According to the district’s rental fee appendix, youth programs would be charged $10 an hour to use a gymnasium or classroom, $20 an hour to use one of the high schools’ tracks, $40 to use North Medford High School’s auditorium and $50 to use South Medford High School’s theater. In the past, the district has allowed youth organizations unlimited use of its facilities for free, said Brad Earl. However, it's expensive to heat and cool the buildings, and the district recently had to add custodial staff to keep up with the demand, he said. In one instance, the district relocated two outside summer programs to different schools, and the utility costs at those buildings went up $2,000 a month. “I think unlimited usage with no contribution was unmanageable because we were paying high utility costs and adding custodial staff to keep our facilities up for our own use,” Earl said. The district notified organizations Aug. 14 of the changes to the policy and is now having conversations with those organizations to determine how they will be impacted and whether they qualify for exemption. If the school district offered to host a particular program, it may be granted exemption, Earl said. Currently, the YMCA offers an after-school program at several campuses, a preschool program at Ruch school and day camps at the schools on holidays, as well as basketball, flag football, volleyball, and track and field programs. “If the school district doesn’t waive the fees, then the total cost for all the programs that the YMCA offers on school grounds would be about $150,000,” said Brad Russell, executive director of the Rogue Valley Family YMCA. “And we would have to pass those fees along to parents.” Russell said he spoke with district staff and was told that the YMCA’s after-school program “most likely” wouldn’t be affected. “But that has yet to be confirmed,” he said, adding that he’s written district officials and asked that they postpone charging fees until all the details have been figured out and a work session with the School Board has been held. “We’ve had a partnership with the school district for about 35 years, dating back to the ‘80s when the district was in terrible financial shape and called on the YMCA to provide elementary school sports, which we still do to this day, and to provide after-school programs and enrichment opportunities,” he said. Currently the school district utilizes the YMCA’s pools for its high school swim and water polo teams, as well as for independent physical education options for students. Manny’s Basketball Association (MBA), a local nonprofit, uses the school district’s gymnasiums all year to host basketball clinics, camps and leagues for kids ages 7 to 18. There were 40 teams signed up last fall and about 60 teams in the winter and spring, said Manny Crump, who founded and oversees the program. “I have teams using the gyms for practice in the evenings and then Saturdays from about 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sundays from about 1 to 7 p.m.,” he said. “I understand that the district has to do what it has to do, but in order to cover that cost, I would have to raise the fees,” he said. Several years ago, the school district began charging adult programs for use of its facilities. As a result, the City of Medford Parks and Recreation Department stopped using the school district’s facilities for its adult sports program. “It would have tripled the cost of registering a team for the league,” said Rich Rosenthal, Medford Parks and Recreation assistant director, who said the department does not currently utilize any of the district's faclities. Earl said the district doesn’t want to damage any of its community partnerships and is still ironing out the details of the new policy, which goes into effect Sept. 1. Reach education reporter Teresa Thomas at 541-776-4497 or [email protected] . Follow her at www.twitter.com/teresathomas_mt . By Teresa Thomas Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Teresa Thomas Mail Tribune Posted Aug. 24, 2015 at 6:50 PM Updated Aug 25, 2015 at 12:54 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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