Members of the Grand Marais Park Board spent most of their November 3 meeting discussing and debating campground fees for the 2010 season, but decided to wait until next month to make a final decision.
While the board seemed in agreement with a recommendation from Parks Manager Dave Tersteeg that there should be no substantive increase in fees, there was some uncertainty about the outcome of a county sales tax referendum that, if approved by voters, would tack another 1 percent onto the taxes already paid at the campground. Tersteeg said that in addition to the 6.875 percent sales tax collected countywide, campground users are assessed another 1.38 percent in Heritage and other state fees. However, the Rec Park has been absorbing that additional tax in its budget rather than passing it on to campground users in the form of increased rates.
Now, though, with another 1 percent increase looming — the park board meeting was held on Election Day, so the results were still unknown — Tersteeg said the board may want to think about collecting an extra 1 or 2 percent from campers next year to offset the new tax. The park is already losing 1 3/8 percent of its income to taxes as it is, he said, and that will go up if the referendum passes and the rates aren’t raised.
Thus informed, the board said it would consider increasing the fees to cover taxes, but didn’t want to see a larger increase. Tersteeg said he would do some more research and put together a proposed 2010 rate fee for consideration at the board’s December meeting.
Park staff will also compile a more detailed list of rates charged at other campgrounds for comparison purposes.
Included in the discussion was whether rates should be based on number of people or number of vehicles at the site; should additional cars, boats and tents be factored in the rates, and if so, how?; should there be a rate increase for lakeshore primitive sites due to their high popularity and occupancy rate, or would an increase only serve to decrease their usage?; and, should there be a pet fee?
There were some similar questions about possibly restructuring the marina rates — for instance, should the slip fees be based on size of the boat rather than a flat fee for the dock space—but those, too, were left undecided until next month.
There was one part of the 2010 proposed budget that the board voted to approve. Based on a recommendation by Head Lifeguard Charles Christiansen, pool rates will remain unchanged next year, with the exception that children under age 5 will be charged halfprice. Christiansen said the rate structure is designed to encourage more families to use the pool, and he has heard many complaints and questions about the existing rates, which include full-price admission fees for all children, including infants.
In other business, Tersteeg reported that things went smoothly in preparing the marina and its new docks for the winter, and installing the new de-icers. He said it took only one day to compress all the docks, and the buoys have been removed from the harbor.
The parks manager concluded by saying 2009 was a very good year overall. During the period May through October, the campground took in $744,000 in revenue, a 10 percent increase over the previous year, even though October saw a 3 percent decline over October 2008. Marina usage was also up 30 percent for the year.
Golf Course Manager Mike Kunshier led a discussion about various promotional programs and coupon campaigns that are under way or planned, and said overall the reception has been positive. He said he is working to refine and improve some of the offers, particularly by increasing the amount of advertising done in Canada.
The board approved the proposed golf course rates for 2010, with only nominal increases. For the year, the golf course operated at a $5,700 loss.
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