Summary of Sept. 3 board of directors meeting
September 4, 2024
The BPRD board of directors approved an agreement with the City of Bend related to collection of the new transportation fee at the Sept. 3 public meeting. They also met new staff members, reviewed designs for a future Art Station facility, and closed the book on the 2019-2024 strategic plan. A video recording of the meeting is available.
To begin the meeting, there were four new staff members introduced who are supervisors in recreation programs and facilities.
City of Bend transportation fee
In April, the City of Bend adopted a transportation fee and the district’s impacts have been a topic of discussion in recent months to inform an intergovernmental agreement about how to collect the district’s fee. In the first phase of the fee implementation, BPRD will pay approximately $17,000 to the transportation fee. The district is assessed the fee in two ways, first per square foot of building space for building other than incidental bathrooms or other structures, which will total $14,539.65 annually. Second, per acre for parks with off-street parking that will total $2,330.42 annually.
The agreement was approved in a 3-2 vote. The agreement includes language that the city and district will pursue discussions about a potential credit back to the district for the trails operated and maintained by the district that are part of the overall transportation system.
Art Station
In work session, the board was updated on design plans for the future home of the Art Station at Larkspur Park. Since vacating the historic train depot in the Old Mill District in March 2023, the district has offered art programs at Larkspur Community Center, Harmon Hobby Hut and in various Bend area schools. During this same period, district staff explored potential sites and facilities for a future centralized home for district art programs.
Since December 2023, the architectural team and staff have conducted interviews and outreach with key staff to help develop the conceptual plan shared with the board during the meeting. Pending permit issuance, construction is anticipated to start in late 2025 with opening anticipated in summer 2026.
The district’s Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) allocates $3 million dollars for the project. The preliminary total project cost estimate is $4.29 million dollars. Staff will be considering all options to preserve the function of the building while reducing costs through the design process.
The board of directors expressed concern about cost estimates and design aesthetics, which were acknowledged as important input by the architect and project management staff. The board also encouraged seeking grants or alternative funding sources.
Strategic Plan
The district’s just-completed strategic plan was reviewed with the board of directors. The adopted plan included 62 actions. Over the course of the plan implementation, 23 additional action items were added, and two action items were removed, for a total of 83 action items. The additional action items were necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which significantly strained staff resources and required that priorities be shifted to address more immediate needs.
The next strategic plan will be a topic at the next board of directors meeting on Sept. 17.
