Lack of funds worries parks and rec officials

Trimming the fat is only healthy for so long.

That was the argument a board member for the Gainesville Parks and Recreation Department made Thursday as department officials told the City Council about a weariness with balancing declining revenues with higher demands for their services.

“We’re sort of in a bad situation,” said Sam Richwine, chairman of the city parks and recreation board.

For years, the department, like many in local government, has dealt with smaller allocations as the government weathered the economic recession.

But unlike the city’s community development department, which has fewer demands for service with a recessed economy, parks officials said Thursday that the troubled economy has sent more people their way.

“More people are looking to us for their recreational pursuits,” Deputy Parks Director Michael Graham told the council Thursday.

City officials are currently cobbling together their budget plans for the next fiscal year,

Article source: http://www.gainesvilletimes.com/section/6/article/66711/

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