Joint With Chairman McKay 

Background: 

Mr. Chairman, throughout the pandemic the amenities of our Fairfax County Park System, including gardens, golf courses, basketball courts, trails and more have provided a much-needed respite and opportunity to enjoy the outdoors for many of our residents. However, the increase in use has taken a toll on these amenities resulting in a substantial increase in maintenance costs. In addition, the Park Authority was impacted by revenue losses from the closure of classes and camps during the height of the pandemic.

The Park Authority has applied to the County for $7,522,122 in stimulus funds in the first round of requests.  While the Park Authority has cited more than $35 million in revenue loss, Park Authority staff realize that it will not be possible to recoup the entire revenue loss, so they are focusing on areas that have an immediate operational impact. Those areas include the following:

• $5,000,000 – Reinvest in operational expenditures of the RECenters to enable all facilities to replace consumable items beyond their useful life and address maintenance needs; and
• $2,522,122 – Invest in deferred maintenance and operating expenses in parks, trails, and non-revenue facilities in disproportionately impacted areas of the County.

This funding will be used to address significant deferred maintenance projects throughout the park system, affecting all districts in Fairfax County. Examples of these projects include the replacement of the HVAC system at the Mount Vernon Ice Arena and the restoration and maintenance of the South Lakes Drive trails. The proposed stimulus funding projects combine both the need to restore lost revenue and to address deferred maintenance throughout the Park Authority’s system. By ensuring that we are addressing needs throughout the system, we will be reaching households that have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic and the resulting economic downturn.

This request is mostly consistent with the $7 million in ARPA Stimulus funding planned in the September 2021 Stimulus Funding Update, page 5 to be directed to the Park Authority.

Motion: 

Mr. Chairman, I move that the Board support the initial staff recommendation to utilize ARPA funds to support the Fairfax County Park Authority and specifically direct the County Executive to allocate $7.5 million for the purposes just described.