Discuss Municipal Center Meeting Room Revenue for Building Maintenance Staffing Needs

At the regular Personnel Committee meeting on Tuesday, January 22, 2013, the Committee discussed hiring a part-time building maintenance worker for tasks and coverage at the Municipal Center.  As the attached (draft) meeting minutes attest, discussion relating to the need for the position was identified as driven in large part by public demand for meeting space within City Hall.

The consensus of the Committee was to table the case until more information was brought back to the next Personal Committee meeting with information relating to existing revenue generated by meeting room rental - as well as proposals for better alignment between the real cost of providing the public rooms, with the cost of maintenance.

Staff is in the process of updating several facility use policies with attendant rental rates; with the park and tournament policies on City Council's consent agenda for February 12th, 2013.

Pursuant to the Personnel Committee's direction, Staff has revised the proposed rate schedule for meeting rooms at the Municipal Center as part of the general facility use policy revisions.  Attachment #2 is Staff's recommended 'MUNICIPAL CENTER FACILITY USE & RENTAL POLICY'.  The rental rate schedule has been modified considerably to provide more options in matching users with logical room rental rates.  Additionally, there would be a 'new' Minimum Maintenance Fee proposed for those users whose room rental is waived (non-profits and business networking groups).  Further, general resident meeting room rates are proposed to be lower.  

Lastly, the schedule also lists new fees; a one-time audio visual if requested by the users, and an after hours/weekend rate.  The table representing the above proposed changes is on page 3 of the attachment, with 'after hours' clarified in the paragraph below it.

The existing Municipal Center facility use policies and fees are contained within attachment #3 for reference. As a point of clarification, the Personnel Committee is not being asked to approve the facility use policy or fee structure per se, but is receiving it so as to demonstrably see that a modest and rational change in the city's rental use can make up the approximate $3,000 funding gap for the part-time building maintenance position.  Perhaps equally important, the proposed new rental rates and charges more accurately reflect the true cost of serving the public for City Hall's rooms for rent.

It is anticipated that the proposed MUNICIPAL CENTER FACILITY USE & RENTAL POLICY would be placed on the February 26, 2013 City Council work session for discussion, with the policy adopted by Council at the regular City Council meeting that evening; as well as the authorization to fill the part-time building maintenance position.

Staff will be recommending City Council approval of the proposed facility use policy and rates changes; and accordingly, would recommend that future revenue from these improvements be considered as a funding source for the part-time building maintenance position.

This case does not require funding, but rather identifies future funding for the following case on the Committee's agenda.

Please see Management Analyst Patrick Brama's revenue projections (attachment #4) for the rental rates if/when adopted by City Council - the summary of which is as follows:

• Adding a minimum maintenance fee for non-profits and business networking groups of $5 nets an estimated $3,156.
• Adding an audio visual (technical and set up) fee for those users requesting it nets an estimated $576 annually.
   

The above estimates are somewhat conservative, and the after hours rates are not included in the annual revenue forecast below. Using these numbers, and assuming that room rentals (for paying individuals and entities) are the same for future years as 2012, Staff estimates the total meeting room revenue for the Municipal Center to be a minimum of $6,732 annually, (or as high as $7,521, excluding after hours fees), if the proposed changes are approved by City Council.

No action is needed at this time.  Subsequent action will be based on the City Council's discussion at the February 26, 2013 work session.