Mountain House commission tables picnic-rental policy amid concerns over fees and insurance
May 31, 2024 | Mountain House, San Joaquin County, California
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Staff recommended that the Mountain House Parks & Recreation Commission approve a standalone picnic-rental policy and recommend it to the board for adoption, but commissioners voted to table the policy to give staff time to return with more information on fees and insurance.
Laura, the district parks manager, summarized the draft as a separation of picnic-area rules from athletic-field rules and said the policy would move reservations from hourly to an all-day (8 a.m. to dusk) model for clustered picnic areas. She told commissioners that the draft included a deposit equal to the rental fee, a $50 alcohol permit for beer and wine at select parks, restrictions on amplified sound (70 dB as a guide), and online reservation capability. "Staff recommend that the Mountain House Parks and Recreation Commission approve the picnic rental policy and recommend to the board for adoption," she said.
Commissioners pressed staff on costs and equity. Several said current hourly rates make short events — such as a typical three-hour birthday party — expensive once deposits and mandatory insurance are factored in. Commissioners asked whether the city could offer half-day or hourly options, whether insurance requirements could be lowered from the standard $1 million, and whether the city could include insurance in a bundled fee to reduce the burden on residents.
To give staff time to gather the requested analysis, Commissioner R. Singh moved to table the item until the next meeting; Commissioner Green seconded and the motion carried. The commission instructed staff to return with: the risk manager's guidance on insurance limits and alternatives; a fee assessment that separates staff and maintenance costs from registration-system and administrative fees; comparative pricing from peer cities; and examples of deposit structures that could cover alcohol-related cleanup instead of a separate permit fee.
Next steps: staff will consult risk management and assemble the fee benchmark and cost-recovery numbers and return with options on hourly/half-day/full-day structures, deposit adjustments and potential insurance bundling before the commission forwards a final recommendation to the board.
Laura, the district parks manager, summarized the draft as a separation of picnic-area rules from athletic-field rules and said the policy would move reservations from hourly to an all-day (8 a.m. to dusk) model for clustered picnic areas. She told commissioners that the draft included a deposit equal to the rental fee, a $50 alcohol permit for beer and wine at select parks, restrictions on amplified sound (70 dB as a guide), and online reservation capability. "Staff recommend that the Mountain House Parks and Recreation Commission approve the picnic rental policy and recommend to the board for adoption," she said.
Commissioners pressed staff on costs and equity. Several said current hourly rates make short events — such as a typical three-hour birthday party — expensive once deposits and mandatory insurance are factored in. Commissioners asked whether the city could offer half-day or hourly options, whether insurance requirements could be lowered from the standard $1 million, and whether the city could include insurance in a bundled fee to reduce the burden on residents.
To give staff time to gather the requested analysis, Commissioner R. Singh moved to table the item until the next meeting; Commissioner Green seconded and the motion carried. The commission instructed staff to return with: the risk manager's guidance on insurance limits and alternatives; a fee assessment that separates staff and maintenance costs from registration-system and administrative fees; comparative pricing from peer cities; and examples of deposit structures that could cover alcohol-related cleanup instead of a separate permit fee.
Next steps: staff will consult risk management and assemble the fee benchmark and cost-recovery numbers and return with options on hourly/half-day/full-day structures, deposit adjustments and potential insurance bundling before the commission forwards a final recommendation to the board.
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