Higher fees likely cause for shrinking membership
By Kyle LoJacono
Increased fees kept after-school programs in Hillsborough County alive the last two years, but that price increase might end the day care option.
Two years ago, about 6,000 children went to after-school programs at county parks, but today that number has been cut by two-thirds and now sits at around 2,000. During the same time span, the number of students in a similar program from the Hillsborough School District has seen its membership jump from 4,000 to 10,000 children.
“If our partners, like the school system and the YMCA, are able to supply equal or better services to the county, we need to take a look at that and possibly change the structure of the program,” said county commissioner Kevin Beckner.
The suggestion by Beckner is the parks department could do away with the after-school program, shifting the children to either the YMCA or school’s equivalent.
“I think we’d need to bring on a few new people, but we should be able to handle the increase if needed,” said Hillsborough School spokeswoman Linda Cobbe. “Hopefully the kids would be somewhat spread out because if they’re all from the same area, it would be difficult.”
The cost for a week in a Hillsborough after-school program is $48 per week, but that number can be reduced to $10 for needy families. Two years ago the fee was $20 for a week. Mark Thornton, parks department director, said the cost for a week at either the YMCA or the Hillsborough School District’s after-school program is also $48.
“It’s not like our price is out of line,” Thornton said.
Hillsborough Parks, Recreation and Conservation Department spokesman John Brill said while the numbers have dropped significantly, other areas have remained consistent.
“The numbers seem to be much lower in the urban areas like in Tampa, but they’ve remained closer to normal in the suburbs,” Brill said.
Brill did not know why the numbers have remained somewhat flat in the suburbs, such as at Nye Park in Lutz. Carol Legan, Nye Park’s director and recreation specialist, said the numbers for the summer program dropped from 125 in 2009 to 118 in 2010. The difference in the after-school program has been similar.
“We were in survival mode last year with the budget crisis,” Brill said. “The department was just trying to stay afloat. At all our budget meetings, the people who attended said they favored fees over closing parks and reducing services. The higher fee is letting us offer the same good after-school programs to county residents.”
The current after-school program costs about $7 million per year. County administrator Mike Merrill recently stated that is too expensive to keep going under the current budget conditions. Merrill said recent projections for property value suggest Hillsborough will be facing a $65 million shortfall for the next fiscal year.
This stark budget reality comes when numbers in the county school’s after-school programs is booming.
County commissioners will continue to discuss budget possibilities leading up to the new fiscal year, which starts in the fall. For more information on Hillsborough parks, visit www.hillsboroughcounty.org/parks.
