School Use Fees

Does anyone know if the Loudoun Parks & Recs (PRCS) department charges a fee for the use of the schools?

I know that PRCS charges a fee for their staff who have to be at the schools when used by groups ($14 per hour) but do they charge an actual fee for the use of the school?

If they do charge a fee for the school use then under what basis would this be allowed since the schools are already paid for via our taxes.

I know that other school systems around the area do not charge fees for use of the schools (such as Fairfax, Arlington, Manassas, etc.). You just have to pay the PRCS attendent fees.

The genesis for this question is that I was told that PRCS is now charging a fee of $30 per hour to use the schools on top of their $14 per hour fee for a total of $44 per hour to use a school for athletic teams.

Thanks in advance.

 

their websites break it down pretty well- i dont' know the quotes but i remember checking myself some time ago for an event...

 

Well Loudoun Schools need a ton of money to keep operating at the outstanding level they do now. Fees for these types of uses need to be charged so we can keep our taxes as low as possible. The people that use it should pay for it. As we should raise the gas tax to pay for transportation and high gas prices do have a silver lining it would encourage people to buy fuel efficient cars and alternative energy. Tax the users until it hurts and that will bring about efficiency. Same with the users of our school system.

Lee j

 

Sounds good to me...but let's charge everyone equally who use the school after regular hours.

Let's go down the list of activities that schools should be collecting when activities fall outside of the normal school hours:

- School concerts
- Lego competitions
- Boy Scouts/Girl Scouts/Brownie meetings
- Band
- All sports - Volleyball, Basketball, etc.
- Plays
- Political forums
- Voting
- Book clubs
- CASA (current fee only covers supervison cost not the use of the gym and other space)
- YAS (ditto)
- Etc - we could go on all night

Issue is that the government should not charge "taxes/fees" for certain groups as compared to others when using the same county/state owned assets.

I have no problem paying fees for use as long as EVERYONE has to pay.

Would you like to drive on the Greedway know that 1/2 of the folks didn't have to pay.

 

Are you one of these "it's not fair!" people that ruins things for everyone? "if i can't have it, then neither can they!".
ridiculous. i think it's absolutely fine for the principal to allow use at their discretion, and to charge when it seems fit.
I can see the logic in SOME of your listed groups, but not all of them.
If your group was required to pay for the space in the past and need it again but cannot afford it, perhaps you could find a sponsor to pay for it. I would be more than willing to help you with ideas for that as opposed to you ruining a girl scout troops' weekly meetings in order to make things "fair". PM me and I will give you some helpful ideas.

 

As a coach of 6 sports teams in the area, there are those in our community that give tremendously to the development of children and those who don't. Those that "drop and run" their kids rather than actively being involved. Those that care when they see injustice and those that don't.

I for one can afford to pay whatever fees the county wants to dish out BUT as a coach I must think about all of my players some of whom aren't as well off as others.

In response to your position, my answer to this should be to kick all the low income kids off my teams since they can't afford it rather than questioning the rationale behind why the county is charging certain groups fees as compared to others.

Would I do this? Never because it is not the kids fault.

Before you rant and rave about Sponsors, we do have Sponsors for a few kids.

At the end of the day, it just means they get to play less the sports that they love...period.

 

You think it is an "injustice" that a team be charged a usage fee? We don't know the meaning of "drop & run" in this house. I am involved in more than I care to list here- and when we get to use space for free I am thrilled and thankful. And guess what, sometimes the groups I am involved with have fees involved. So instead of complaining "why us and not them" I find a way to fund it. I was being totally serious when I said to PM me. Many people on this forum know that I am not afraid of asking companies for help.
I think it is great when some groups are able to use facilities at low or little cost for childrens activities. Or for whomever, for that matter. But when cost is involved, find help. Not from the parents that can "afford" it. Some parents in this area can afford less than you think. There are lots of creative ideas for helping you not get mad at the schools- and I am offering you my help with finding those resources.

 

Noted but I think you would be a little upset if you were charged for your girl scout meetings and others were not.

With over 60 kids working with me and the county establishing these fees for the first time, our costs of using the gyms is increasing by 314% or an average yearly cost of over $3,960 per team which we did not have in the prior year. You multiply $3,960 per team times 6 teams and we get $23,760 more in county fees this year as compared to the prior year so yes it upsets me when we pay the fees and others don't.

We are pretty good at raising money with over $6,000 in corporate donations per year then we have team sponsors, bake sales, gift cards, raffles, low income subsidy support, car washes, sales teams, etc but that kind of increase is a huge hole to fill.

 

It's a fair question to ask. Thanks for being so involved with kids.

 

My brownie troop doesn't meet there. So it's not a personal issue, it's more that I want to be able to make the system work for me when I can without strict regimented rules being put in place.
And I can see how you feel with fees like that- wow! I guess i would question things with that astronomical number. Sorry to have come off as so defensive.
I can help with fundraising ideas if you feel like PMing me.

 

As a volunteer involved in politics and plays in the area, I know that outside political organizations and theater groups must pay to use the schools.