Monday, 14 May 2007 04:41

Recreation Agency Take On New Program

slide16The first draft of the Amador County Recreation Agency’s budget was brought to the agency’s board at their last meeting, and the second draft will be brought for review at the next meeting. However, according to the Amador Recreation Agency’s staff the agency is suffering growing pains, as any new agency does in the first few years, but the outlook of finances leveling off is looking up.

There is however an anticipated increase in the budget, and this is not including park planners or city park managers which could further the increase. The agency board discussed a Contract for a Prevention Program with Health Services that would add income into the agency’s budget. This state program is a community wide drug and alcohol education program which ACRA had put on the agenda to discuss to see if it would fit into the realm of the recreation agency’s mission statement. The funding would provide an extra $66,000 per year in income to the agency; however the program does have guidelines which the agency would need to follow in order to be eligible for the funding. After discussion the Board decided that his program would indeed go hand and hand with the mission of the recreation agency and it was approved.

slide18 A contract will be brought back by the next meeting for further discussion. Staffing for the Summer Programs was discussed. ACRA offers several different types of summer programs including the Summer Camp series. There is already a Memorandum of Understanding in place with Ione and Plymouth regarding the usage of the cities’ pools and maintenance staff. The agency will also be hiring 6 new Recreational Aides and 8 lifeguards at each pool. The contracts will pay for the lifeguards and the user fees will pay for the rec aids. A Maintenance Contract with the Volcano Community Service District Park was discussed as park administrators are interested in contracting with ACRA for maintenance 52 times per year at 2 hours of work per visit. The contract was approved. An Acquisition of a Jackson Creek Riparian Habitat was discussed. The area being discussed is mostly steep hill and does incorporate a part of the creek. Though there are mountain lions and rattlesnakes present, it is something that the Insurance would cover if ACRA were to acquire the land and make it open to the public. The property would go straight to ACRA, it is non-taxable, but it also is also a property which could never be sold. The acquisition was approved with the following stipulations, the Grantors must clean up toxic space and that of any environmental toxic concerns, they must re-fence the property, and sign the area with a warning regarding mountain lions and rattlesnakes on premises.