Delta’s Parks Recreation and Culture department is recommending a new fee structure for city’s facilities.
A recent report to the parks commission notes that while Delta's Restart Plan moves forward, a focal point in developing new fees and charges is to encourage residents and community groups to return to their activities within parks, recreation and cultural centres.
“The pandemic has reduced revenues significantly. It will take some time to build community use back to pre-pandemic levels. The proposed fees and charges are designed to reengage the community into the use of Delta facilities and to have community sport organizations return to their activities,” the report states.
During the pandemic, discounted passes for frequent users were eliminated.
If supported, Delta residents will find that fees and charges will, for the majority of uses, be equal to or better than the rates included in the current bylaw.
There is no change to the Delta First Policy with preferred or free access to Delta residents, however, the number of fee options would be reduced.
The report, which still has to go to council for approval, notes an analysis was undertaken of the number of people served in each type of admission category and staff found in many cases there were only a handful of sales in a particular type of admission.
Single admissions represented the biggest sales volumes, followed by one-month and the 10 and 25 punch pass options.
The proposed new fee structure retains the single admissions, a time-based 30-day pass and introduces a new flex pass, which offers 20 visits within one year, to replace the punch pass.
Both the time-based 30-day pass and the new flex pass will allow patrons to receive a further discount over a single admission price, the report explains.
Other changes include reducing the number of patron categories.
The new proposed bylaw will include three types of fee categories, Child and Senior, Youth and Adult. Super Seniors (free admission) previously age 85 and above, is now proposed to be age 80 and above.
The proposed rental rates for groups remains the same as the current bylaw fees.
In some cases, the rental rates are slightly lower in order to assist community groups to return to their activities.
There are no admission fees recommended for the Douglas J. Husband Discovery Centre and the North Delta Centre for the Arts, but there are proposed rental facility rates for an individual or groups who may wish to use those facilities when they are finally opened to the public as soon as COVID-19 pandemic health and safety protocols allow and Delta decides to open them to the public.
A report on the proposed new fee structure was to be discussed at council this Monday but the report was pulled by staff for the time being.
