After Closure, New La Pine Park Leaders Move Forward

In early October, mounting frustrations, complaints and hefty money troubles within the La Pine Park & Recreation District came to a head, leading to the resignation of all of its volunteer board members and the closure of its office. With a full closure, the board laid off all LPRD employees and, subsequently, left all of the District’s sports, programs and services in limbo.

Shortly after the Oct. 9 decision, the Deschutes County Board of County Commissioners was tasked with appointing five new members to the park board, essentially building the District back from scratch. As a result of the closure, 16 LPRD staff members were laid off.

“Without an administration in place, there would be no one to do payroll. So, the board was obligated to lay off the staff knowing that they could be hired back by the next administration,” said former board member Deren Ash.

Despite years of financial burden, the new board is making changes, moving forward and working with the community to continue offering its services.

Leading up to the previous board’s resignation, complaints from community members and parents with children involved in youth programs reached a boiling point. Contention flowed from both parents and previous board members, as the board found a letter of concerns, written by several local parents, to be “threatening,” according to meeting documents.

In late September, LPRD posted a statement saying it would temporarily close services as a result of staff facing serious harassment. Community grievances, according to current board member Carlos Soto, highlighted a lack of accountability and transparency from the previous administration.

While the District’s closure was, on its face, a consequence of many voiced frustrations, current Board Chair Joel Brader said the District’s issues were much deeper, referring to the community complaints as merely “the straw that broke the camel’s back.”

“There’s always going to be upset parents. I’ve been an upset parent,” said Brader. “That isn’t what broke it. What broke it was they were financially unstable.”

Ash, who served on the board for five years, disagrees, stating the District always had financial difficulties.

“We’ve always worked with it and made it work. The closures and resignations were a result of harassment from concerned parents,” he told the Source Weekly.

A Growing Problem

According to Brader, the District was paying for a number of services, programs and events, while earning very little back. Little by little, Brader said, things spiraled out of control. According to board member Soto, previous attempts to fundraise typically ended up as a loss, while standard office and operating expenses grew out of control.

“The oversight that was supposed to be there wasn’t there,” said Soto. “There wasn’t a common goal.”

Since the new board was appointed, bills from the previous administration have flooded in, some 14 months overdue, according to Brader. With the District’s current income, and the bills it needs to pay, Brader estimates that there won’t be much left of its yearly income to cover additional costs, like monthly building and maintenance expenses.

According to Ash, the District’s financial issues really just came down to an overall lack of funding.

The La Pine Park & Recreation District receives funding from property taxes at a current tax rate of 3 cents per $1,000 of assessed value. Typically, the district brings in about $370,000 a year.

That $370,000 is meant to fund all operations, including LPRD’s programs, services, park maintenance, operation costs for buildings and office expenses. The district’s only other significant funding would come from fundraising, grants or facility rentals.

LPRD’s tax rate was last updated and approved in 2009. Since then, the district has proposed a number of levies to increase its tax rate but has had no success. Its last attempt was in 2021, asking voters to approve a levy of 27 cents per $1,000 of assessed value. It failed with about 62% of votes against it.

With inflation, Brader said it’s extremely difficult for the District to maintain its expenses. However, the new board hopes to grow the District while finding ways to increase funds, whether that be through legislation or fundraising efforts.

“Even with the negative we see every day, we see positive growth toward rebuilding this district,” said Brader.

Building Back the District

To help reestablish LPRD, the new board plans to continue cutting costs, while prioritizing additional ways to fund programs and services. According to Brader, that effort involves renting out office rooms and facilities for group events, searching for grant opportunities and hosting fundraising events.

In the coming weeks, the board hopes to begin focusing on the upcoming year, slowly working to reintroduce feasible programs and services. As of today, the board has hired a new facilities coordinator, rehired a part-time custodian, is operating several parks and is hosting some events at its Community Center.

The board is having discussions with several nonprofits and community groups hoping to lend a hand in operating youth sports and programs. LPRD invites any groups interested in helping to email info@lapineparks.org. The goal, Soto told the Source Weekly, is to have all programs, including adult recreation, after-school programs and youth sports, operating by 2027. Another goal, he said, is to continue gaining back support from the community.

As part of its promise to turn a new page, the new board is hosting an open house on Jan. 11 at the District office.

“The open house is a joint effort for everybody in the community to come in, meet the new board members and ask us questions. Just flat-out transparency,” said Soto.

While trying to improve the District’s relationship and standing with the community, Soto said people are already coming around in support of the District’s plans to move forward.

“We’ve done a really good job at picking up the pieces and putting it back together,” said Soto. “The community has actually started opening up now. They’re starting to come around with this new board, seeing what we’re doing and how we’re making a stand. And that’s basically what we’re doing, is making a stand.”

This article appears in Source Weekly December 26, 2024.