Council here has agreed to waive charges for use of the kitchen at the PMD Community Centre for a local figure skating club fundraiser.
Deb Mantler, president of the Drayton Figure Skating Club, attended the Sept. 11 meeting at the request of council to clarify the request to waive fees, which was originally received in a letter to council in August.
The club, which is facing a financial crunch, asked council to waive the kitchen fees for fundraising dinners the club is planning to hold in November and next February. Mantler explained the dinners will be cooked at the hall, but are available only for take-out, so the rest of the hall won’t be used.
“Our club has been suffering financially for a few years and these dinners will greatly help our financial difficulties,” states a letter to council from the club.
“This year we had to cut approximately $8,000 from our budget,” Mantler told council.
In response to questions from council, Mantler confirmed that the Drayton Figure Skating Club is an organization for children, not adults.
While stating he supports the request to waive the fee, councilor Neil Driscoll suggested council should develop a clear policy regarding such requests.
“One of these days we, as a council, have to decide where we’re going to stop and start with these freebies,” he stated.
Mayor Bruce Whale agreed “it’s a difficult issue and it’s not a clear definition.”
However, councilor Mike Downey disagreed that the town’s policy for charging groups for facility rentals is unclear.
“It is clearly defined. It’s a minor variance. They are asking for a variance from policy,” said Downey.
Mantler said she understands the need for the municipality to recover costs through facility rental fees.
“If we weren’t in dire straits we wouldn’t be asking for this.”
Public works director Larry Lynch stressed that municipal staff are not making judgement calls about who pays the hall rental fees and who doesn’t, noting that any such exceptions are up to council.
“I just want to be clear, from a from a staff perspective on fees, we are now asking a fee from every person who comes in and rents a facility.”
A motion to waive the kitchen fees for the figure skating club dinners passed unopposed.
The club will host a lasagne dinner on Nov. 2 from 4 to 7pm and a meatloaf dinner on Feb. 13, 2013 from 4 to 7pm.
