The El Dorado-Union County Recreation Complex board of directors and Union County officials worked Friday to clear up questions regarding the management contract for the facility.
Union County Treasurer Debbie Ray and Jody Cunningham, administrative assistant in the Union County Judge’s office, told board members that state legislative auditors had raised questions about fees that are listed in the management agreement with the Boys and Girls Club of El Dorado.
The club manages the complex, per a contract for services with the city of El Dorado.
The city and county contribute to the complex’s annual operating budget, and county keeps the books for the facility.
Accompanied by Mike Dumas — chairman of the Union County Quorum Court Finance Committee and president and chief executive officer of the El Dorado-Union County Chamber of Commerce —, Ray and Cunningham said auditors had homed in on a clause in the contract that calls for the BGCE to collect league and tournament fees and submit them to the county.
“And they (auditors) aren’t seeing that revenue,” Ray said.
She and Cunningham also said that complex revenues have declined for the past several years, rebounding from $40,000 to $45,000 between 2014 and 2015, respectively, and dropping to $28,000 in 2016 and $12,000 last year.
The annual operating budget for the complex is nearly $200,000.
It’s an issue that complex board members and city and county officials debated fiercely in 2016 when the county agreed to end a years-long inter-local agreement in which the city and county shared pro-rata expenses for the complex.
County officials ultimately decided to cap the county’s 2017 contribution to half of the $188,786 2016 budget, minus half of the annual revenue that was generated for the facility.
At the time, Judge Mike Loftin said the county would no longer join the city in covering half of any budget overages.
Stacy Scroggins, treasurer of the complex board, said Friday that the complex, which opened in the mid-1980s, was never intended to be a money-making entity.
“And it never will. It’s a draw for the community to bring people to town,” Scroggins said.
City and council officials have made similar statements, which Dumas reiterated Friday.
Clarifying questions
Board members and BGCE representatives said league fees are not collected at the complex.
“It’s working the way it’s supposed to because we don’t charge league fees,” Scroggins said.
Ray said fees used to flow through the county to pay umpires and scorekeepers.
Representing the co-ed, church softball league, Bill Evans said that co-ed and men’s leagues are the only two remaining leagues at the complex.
Evans explained that league teams collect money to pay umpires and scorekeepers, and the money used to be submitted to the county, who in turn, used it to pay umpires and scorekeepers.
Now, Evans said, the leagues directly pay the people who keep the scores and officiate the games, per a decision by the Quorum Court.
“They asked us to pay the umpires and scorekeepers ourselves instead of the county writing those checks,” he continued. “The county provides no administrative duties for our league.”
“If there were rainouts or forfeitures, they would end up with more money, and sometimes there were circumstances where they would end up with less money, but it was all a wash,” Evans said. “If there was any money left, it would carry over.”
Because there was “a little extra money in the pot” this year, the fees from the teams were lowered, he said.
“The number of teams determine how many games there are and the cost for the year,” Evans said.
Ray said league and tournament fees are to be paid to the county, per the terms of the management agreement.
“The auditors will write us up when they look at stuff like that. Like us, they too feel like there should be fees collected,” Ray said.
Scroggins and El Dorado Alderman Dianne Hammond, vice-chairman of the board, said the BGCE just entered its second year as manager of the complex, noting that the first-year contract began May 1, 2017, and ended April 30.
They said one of the charges of the BGCE is to help boost revenue at the complex by scheduling more tournaments.
“It’s going to take time until the Boys and Girls Club develops that skill set and develops contacts and builds those tournaments,” Scroggins said. “It’s a tremendous amount of work, and it’s not going to happen overnight.”
Added Hammond, “It’s the first year the Boys and Girls Club has done this, and we should see more revenue next year.”
Steve Harrell, athletic director of the Boys and Girls Club, said the club attempted to schedule four tournaments this season, but he continuously ran into scheduling conflicts with other tournaments, particularly adult slow-pitch tournaments in central Arkansas and Louisiana.
“That left us with three or four teams, but if we have to throw tournaments with three or four teams, we’ll start small and get bigger,” Harrell said, adding that the club has developed contacts with USSSA (United States Specialty Sports Association) Baseball and the ASA (Amateur Softball Association).
David Lee, executive director of the Boys and Girls Club, said the contract calls for an 80/20 revenue split with the county when the club hosts tournaments on behalf of the complex.
Maintenance and operations
Scroggins said that while there has been a dip in revenue, county officials should have also seen a dip in costs at the complex.
Cunningham said expenditures increased with the $40,000 management contract and other expenses.
“I’m not saying the complex should make its $200,000 budget, but I think it should make enough for the upkeep and it’s not doing that,” Ray said.
Cunningham inquired about a four-wheeler the board recently agreed to purchase for the complex.
Hammond explained that two four-wheelers were needed for the maintenance of the fields, and the group voted to purchase a used one for $1,500.
The city is loaning a second one for a weekend tournament, board members said, adding that second four-wheeler will still be needed once the loaner is returned to the city.
“It’s not a county tournament. Neither the city nor the county are collecting money on that tournament,” Cunningham said.
Hammond said the the equipment is needed for the complex, not solely for use at the tournament.
With an increase in field rental fees for tournaments — the board previously agreed to raise the cost from $75 to $125 per field, per day — comes more services, Harrell said.
For instance, he said fields now have to be dragged every third and fourth game, he said.
“When they rent the fields, we maintain the fields,” Hammond said.
Evans said similar facilities generate income from concession stand sales during major events.
The comments echoed those that were made May 24 during a public forum to seek public input on a master renovation plan for the complex and a pending grant application to the state.
Alderman Mike Rice and Perry Carr, of ETC Engineers and Architects, Inc., — who recently revised a master plan for the complex — said many public recreation and sports facilities operate their own concessions, which bring 100 percent of the revenue directly back into the facilities’ coffers.
Concessions for the El Dorado-Union County complex are contracted out, with the concessionaire paying a monthly rate, and Hammond said Friday that the board will be exploring its options regarding concessions next year.
Mayor Frank Hash asked if the matter regarding the contract had been clarified.
Dumas said he needed to relay information to the Quorum Court Finance Committee about why the facility is not generating revenue to justify the county’s support.
“This is a city-county endeavor, and we all need to be talking, and I want to know about any problems before they’re unsolvable,” Hash said.
Scroggins and Lee said they would work to clean up language in the management contract.
Referring to the master plan, which is still under review by the complex board, Scroggins said proposed improvements and expansion for the complex would help generate more income.
“It certainly would be easier to attract large tournaments if we had full facilities to support it. If we had that and the money to pay for it, then you’ll see that revenue jump up,” he said.
Tia Lyons may be contacted at 870-862-6611 or by email at [email protected].