Shannon Coleman stands in a small, cramped room with two other parents at the East Lawrence Recreation Center and watches his 4-year-old daughter Breana participate in a tumbling class, one of many classes offered by the Lawrence Parks and Recreation Department. This is Breana's second tumbling class and Coleman says she loves the instructors. Coleman, a Lawrence resident, says he thinks the instruction is fantastic and that he is very pleased that his daughter has the chance to meet people for so little a price.
"The price is a non-issue for what they get out of it," Coleman said. "I would probably pay twice as much if offered."
With the nation's economy in a decline, Lawrence residents like Coleman have turned to such local services as Lawrence Parks and Recreation to fulfill their recreational needs. As a result revenue for the department has increased. The department has seen an increase in revenue generated by Eagle Bend Golf Course and has also seen a significant increase in the numbers of participants in recreational classes and an increase in adult sports enrollment.
Eagle Bend Golf Course is owned and operated by the Lawrence Parks and Recreation Department. Eagle Bend is expected to generate about $950,000 in revenue for 2008.
Photo by Nick Peterson
Ernie Shaw, the interim director and recreation and operations superintendent for Lawrence Parks and Recreation, said there had been in increase in all of the department's recreational activities over the past two or three years.
"History has shown us that when there is a downturn in the economy, people want to stay in," Shaw said. "They like their quality of life and they want to continue that at an affordable rate."
Shaw attributed some of the department's success to its ability to keep prices low and affordable for Lawrence residents. The recreational side of Lawrence Parks and Recreation is in a revenue fund that receives aid from sales tax. Shaw said that the recreation side has a $3.4 million to $5 million budget and that the department usually brings in about 55 percent to 60 percent of that in total revenue. The rest is then covered by the 1994 sales tax referendum that gave about $1.4 million to help support recreational facilities and activities in order to keep prices down and affordable to the public. Shaw said that if the department were a private organization then it would have to charge people more in order to pay all the bills.
"By the city putting money back into the department we can keep those fees for the public at reasonable rates and not expect a 100-percent return," Shaw said.
Shaw said that the department's current projections for total revenue from all its sources show the department either meeting or exceeding its projected revenues for this year. According to Shaw, the department usually makes around $2.5 million in total revenue.
Eagle Bend Golf Course, owned and operated by the Lawrence Parks and Recreation Department, is currently up $10,000 in revenue compared with September 2007, Shaw said. Shaw expects total revenue for the course this year to be in the $950,000 range. The course made $924,000 in 2007.
Shaw attributed some of Eagle Bend's success to the economy.
"People don't travel as much when the economy is down," he said. "The golfers probably want to stay closer to home by not driving to Kansas City or Topeka. All that's doing is costing you more money to drive."
John Morris, the golf operations supervisor and head pro of Eagle Bend Golf Course, reports twice a month to the city to discuss budget issues. Morris said that the course has a $1-million budget and that it tries to make that through its pro shop, snack bar and the course itself. The course also offers lessons for kids and adults.
Morris said that he and his staff take what they're given and try and make as much money as possible. Morris said that the course has been steadily busy over the past three or four years. According to Morris this makes watching the budget even more crucial because most of the budget is devoted to personnel and staff.
The Aquatics division of Lawrence Parks and Recreation runs the local pools around Lawrence.
Photo by Nick Peterson
"When you are busy you have got to have staff," Morris said. "That's been the biggest thing we've done this year. We're staffed so we can always provide good customer service."
Lawrence Parks and Recreation also offers a variety of recreational classes ranging from aerobics and tennis to karate and art classes. Jo Ellis, the recreation programs supervisor for Lawrence Parks and Recreation, manages everything in the department that deals with instruction. According to Ellis, revenue for the department's recreation classes has increased every year along with participation. Ellis said that in 2007, 6,502 people participated in recreational classes. She said the number of participants in recreational classes in 2008 grew by 12 percent to 7,390. Ellis added that the current figures do not include the months of November or December.
Ellis said that gas prices have caused revenue to go up because people are staying at home. People who used to be on traveling gymnastic teams are now staying in Lawrence and using the gymnastic classes offered by the department, Ellis said.
Ellis also said that the increase in revenue and participation is due to the quality of instructors hired by her and the department.
"We hire very good instructors," Ellis said. "The people we hire are just as good as people in Kansas City. People think cost is everything but they are finding out that we have good, organized and professional instructors for a cheaper price."
Adult sports has also seen increased enrollment. According to Bob Stanclift, the adult sports supervisor for Lawrence Parks and Recreation, this is the first year that he has seen an increase in the total team registration and participation in every sport.
The Lawrence Parks and Recreation Department offers kickball and softball in the spring, summer and fall, volleyball and basketball all year long and dodgeball during the winter. Stanclift said that the enrollment in softball is as high as it has ever been in the past four to five years. According to Stanclift, from April to July, 3,600 people played softball each week. From August to October, 2,500 people are playing softball each week.
Stanclift said the increases in enrollment could be the economy and that people are choosing to spend recreation money locally.
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