A staff-tendered option to raise fees charged to youth leagues and others using city park amenities by as much as 80% was shot down by Cape Coral City Council Tuesday.<\/p>\n
The elected board quickly rejected the option at its budget workshop after community members \u2014\u00a0including children \u2014 spoke against fees hikes for parks and recreation programs.<\/p>\n
Instead, council told staff to cut vacant job positions that have been listed for 180 days or more and use interest earning to fund a $1.6 million budget deficit going into Fiscal Year 2027.<\/p>\n
Emotions ran high as parents and kids alike shared how important it is to have youth sports in the community.<\/p>\n
The city\u2019s Parks and Recreation Department had sent emails to the presidents of organizations that would be affected by the tendered increase, so their voices could be heard at the budget workshop.<\/p>\n
Cape American Baseball President Deanna Livingston was among the speakers who spoke with high emotion in her voice.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe proposed $24,000 change will devastate the league and mission \u2013 a safe, positive, affordable place to learn the game of baseball,\u201d she said. \u201cOur players learn teamwork, responsibility, sportsmanship, perseverance and what it means to be part of the community.\u201d<\/p>\n
As a nonprofit organization, the league finds sponsorships, holds concessions, and fundraises as the league registration fee does not cover everything, she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAny additional yearly expense, we don\u2019t have any profit margins or additional funds,\u201d Livingston said. \u201cYouth baseball should not be another opportunity children lose because families simply cannot afford it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Stan Toro, president of the Cape Coral Soccer Association, said they have 3,000 players a year. Registration would have to go through the roof if they had to come up with $53,000 for fees to use city fields, he said.<\/p>\n
Members of council said the staff-tendered option to help balance the working budget for FY27 was not dropped in the budgetary mix by the board.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot one council member sitting up here asked for this to be on the agenda. When it comes to the parks and recreation fee adjustments, that is being proposed by staff,\u201d Mayor John Gunter said. \u201cWe asked the city manager to bring back options, so we can keep our millage rate at 5.1471 mills. We are trying to keep the millage rate at the same place it is today.\u201d<\/p>\n
Councilmember Keith Long said it was a shame that the speakers were brought into the process as pawns. He said there are plenty of options and there was no chance that the option to increase fees would pass council muster.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy bring this publicly and generate all this drama?\u201d Long said. \u201cIt\u2019s unfortunate that we got here. I am sorry you all were brought into it.\u201d<\/p>\n
There were questions raised as to where the option originated.<\/p>\n
City Manager Michael Ilczyszyn said there was no clear consensus from council on how to close the $1.6 million funding gap and that he was asked to look at the revenue side.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I am specifically asked to look at how to find revenues, there are very few levers left available to administration and council this far along in the budget process,\u201d he said. \u201cOn the verge of September, when council has to vote on the budget, the only option is locally controlled revenue sources. User fees are locally controlled revenue sources.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ilczyszyn said there are three ways to fund in the quality-of-life programs: fully supported by revenue, partial fee recovery and zero cost recovery. He said when building the budget, he looks at the revenues that are generating zero cost recovery to cut.<\/p>\n
Once the option, No. 2 of three presented was off the table, Gunter threw another option into the mix that council supported. He said he received data from human resources regarding the vacant positions from July 30.<\/p>\n
The information received showed that $9.2 million in funded positions are not filled. <\/p>\n
Some of those positions have been vacant for more than 800 days.<\/p>\n
\u201cThose types of numbers I don\u2019t think we still need to be funding when we don\u2019t have those positions,\u201d Gunter said. \u201cI used anything 180 days or more \u2013 what does that look like. I took public safety out of the equation altogether.\u201d<\/p>\n
The positions vacant for 180 days or more equated to $871,338 allocated in the general fund, a little more than half of the $1.6 million needed. If the same methodology was used throughout the other departments there would be a total of $3.5 million in cuts on positions that are open.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you can\u2019t get someone hired over 180 days, up to 800 days, why are we funding that position?\u201d Gunter said. \u201cWe can use the interest earning money for the $771,000 to get to where we need to be.\u201d<\/p>\n
Long said Gunter has been ringing the vacancies bell for a few years now.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is something I support and hopefully can make it across the finish line,\u201d Long said.<\/p>\n
Ilczyszyn cautioned council that if the positions are cut, the work is not going to get done. He gave the example of stormwater and utilities, which falls under infrastructure maintenance.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are actively trying to increase the level of service. We are adding UEP areas, so if you cut those, and don\u2019t add another position, you are already decreasing the level of service and follow that up with cutting positions,\u201d Ilczyszyn said.<\/p>\n
Council gave the direction to use the $871,338 allocated for positions that are vacant, while budgeting the balance from the interest earning, and adopting the property tax rate at 5.1471 mills.<\/p>\n
Council votes at workshops are to provide staff with direction. Such votes are non-binding unless and until council proves the action at a regular meeting.<\/p>\n
The first public hearing on the budget will be held at 5:05 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 10, to approve the tentative millage rate and proposed budget. The final public hearing will be held at 5:05 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 24, to adopt the millage rates and budget.<\/p>\n