Waunakee facility committee approves second middle‑school batting cage, staff proposes modest fees for outside users

The Waunakee Community School District facility committee on Monday approved adding a second batting cage to the new middle school and discussed a proposed tiered fee structure to help offset construction costs.

Nick, a district staff member presenting the request, said the district would continue to allow high‑school and school‑based teams to use on‑site cages at no charge, while charging non‑school youth groups $40 per hour and outside private clubs $55 per hour. He said the change would require a modification to the district’s facilities policy because youth groups are typically not charged unless they collect admission fees.

"The only change here then would be that tier 2," Nick said, describing the fee plan and noting it was difficult to find exact public‑school comparables. He added the district has not yet had requests from outside groups for field‑house cages but that a second cage could generate rental interest.

Several committee members and parents cautioned about the financial burden on families. Chris, who identified himself as a parent, said many families already pay for winter training elsewhere and described that expense as a barrier to participation: "For a lot of kids, it's a burden," he said.

Staff also noted ancillary costs: floor protection for the cage area was discussed (about $900), and the district said some protective screens would be provided by high‑school teams and that groups causing damage would be charged for repairs.

Doctor Brown indicated she had authority to approve the second batting cage and stated she was "good to go," and staff confirmed the expenditure could be covered within the owner contingency without a policy change if the board chose that route. Staff recommended bringing any formal fee‑policy changes to the policy committee for further work.

The committee did not adopt a formal fee policy at the meeting; members asked staff to return with details on scheduling, expected hours of use and how custodial costs would be handled.

The district’s middle‑school contingency tracker, provided monthly by consultant Adam at Vogel, lists combined contingency carry approximating $3.2 million; staff said final returned funds will depend on contract savings.