Presentation

TOWN OF WICKENBURG
Athletic Field Use &
Fee Structure Review
T. Mayerhofer, T. Stuhan, S. Brown, and T. Fischer
December 1, 2025

• Overview & Purpose of Updates
• Policy Change & Gift Clause
• Current Field Use & Community
Programming Needs
• Proposed Priority Structure &
Administrative Standards
• Recommended Fee Structure &
Council Decision Points
Agenda
2

3
History
Previous
• Traditional Event Booking –
Same event for 3
consecutive years = 15
month advance booking
window
• All others = 12 month
advance booking window
October – December 2023
• Presentation and Fee
Schedule Presented to
Council
• Approval of Cost Recovery
Fee Schedule, Resolution
2338
• Waiver for "Local Non-
Profit Youth Sports
Organizations" for
recreational use only. 
• No administrative
standard
• Policy Adoption
• Fee Schedule Effective
Present
• Policy language broad and
did not anticipate today’s
demand
• Heavy use of blanket
waivers → no cost recovery
• Seasonal blocks reserved far
in advance (up to 15
months)
• Block booking of fields by
certain user groups w/o full
use
Resulting Problem
• Policy language and practice
worked initially, but did not
scale
• Increased youth programs,
private school teams, and
outside users exposed gaps
• Council-level policy restricts
the Town’s ability to manage
fields efficiently
• Cost Recovery Fee Schedule
Adoption overall waived
fees for all current users.
• No rental fees for all
current users

4
Why Change is Needed
Ensure fair and consistent access to Town athletic fields
Prevent long-term “holding” or blocking of fields
Align practice with Council role (policy) vs. staff role (administration)
Keep field scheduling flexible and enforceable at the staff level
Update fee structure to reflect public benefit & Gift Clause compliance

5
Proposed Policy Adjustment
Update existing Facility Rental Policy
Clarifies roles but does not change how
fields are used day-to-day
Move athletic field scheduling to
administrative procedure 
Allows staff to manage use, enforce
schedules, and respond quickly
Staff Administers Operations
Internally
Scheduling, allocation, monitoring, and
enforcement handled administratively for
consistency and efficiency
Council Action: Fee Schedule
Approval
Staff will present a cost-recovery based
framework; Council decides final rates,
waivers, and public benefit levels

• Public assets must benefit the
public
• Town must receive proportionate
value
• Fee waivers are allowed only
when access is open to everyone
Gift Clause & Public Benefit
6

• Town programming: adult
softball league
• Why we partner with open-
enrollment youth sports
• Community access and
inclusivity
• Alignment with the Town’s
recreation focus
7
Programming Usage

• Community expectations
o Demographics
o Town-WUSD Partnership
• Increased requests
o Town Sponsored/Partnered
o Community Sports
o Activities
o Regional Programs
• Scheduling conflicts and congestion
8
Programming Demand & Requests

• Fields reserved far beyond actual use
• Over-reservation and monopolization
patterns
• Long reservation blocks with minimal
accountability
• No mechanism to enforce release of
unused time
• Unintended consequence: community
groups unable to reserve fields
Current Scheduling Impacts & Unintended Consequences
9
FULL

10
Current Usage

11
Key Definitions
Town Programs
•Town-run recreation, camps, and events
Public School Athletics (IGA)
•WHS & VPM teams under existing agreement
Open-Enrollment Youth Leagues
•Local non-profit leagues open to any child; access tied to nationally recognized season
Local Non-Profit
•Local nonprofits & tuition-based school programs limited to enrolled participants
Residents, Non-Residents & All Others
•Individuals or groups not falling into categories above
Seasonal Use Window
•Nationally recognized competitive season plus approved pre-season and post-season periods.
Use-It-or-Release-It
•Reserved time is released back to the Town after two consecutive weeks of documented non-use.

12
Seasonal Use Windows - Examples
Each sport
receives field
access only
during its
nationally
recognized
season
Town will allow
pre-season and
post-season
extensions
Reservations
outside the
seasonal
window will be
limited or
charged at
standard rates
Prevents year-
round blanket
reservations
Ensures fair,
predictable
access for all
user groups

13
Seasonal Use Windows - Examples
AYSO
August -
November
NAYF
July (end) -
November
Little League
March -
June

14
Priority Access Structure - Administrative

15
Administrative Use Standards
Nationally recognized seasonal reservation windows
30-day schedule submission
Use-It-or-Release-It after 2 weeks
Town maintains exclusive scheduling authority

• Turf maintenance, irrigation, and electrical
load
• Lighting schedules & field preparation
• Staff support and monitoring
• Current fee waiver practice = no cost recovery
• Taxpayers fully subsidize all user types under
the current system
• When private or selective programs pay
nothing, it shifts costs to residents
Cost of Field Operations & Impact of Waivers
16

Council Action Requested – Cost Recovery
17

Council Waiver Alternative
18

19
Recommended Motion
Staff recommends Council to
adopt Resolution 2386, based
on cost recovery model.

Questions?
20

21
Priority Access Structure - Administrative
National / Season Framework
Town Administrative Scheduling Rules
National / Season: Typically runs 2–4 months, varying by sport
Reservations Allowed Only During the Recognized
Season
Pre-Season: Typically, up to 4 weeks before official season start
Pre-Season Access: Up to 4 weeks prior with
submitted practice plan
Post-Season: Playoff or tournament extensions only if the league
qualifies and schedule allows
Post-Season Access: Allowed only when advancing;
ends when post-season ends
Off-Season: No sanctioned competitive play
No Carryover: Reservations end with the season; no
block-holding between seasons
Governing bodies publish seasonal calendars annually
Annual Verification: Town updates reservation
windows each year based on national calendars
Each sport operates in predictable seasonal cycles
Use-It-or-Release-It: Unused for 2 consecutive weeks
→ released
Seasons are defined, not year-round
Prevents Monopolization: Ensures open access for
other community users

22
Next Steps
Finalize administrative
procedure
1
Update communication
and agreements
2
Meet with youth
organizations
3