Members of the Recreation Department summarized a very successful previous year, both in programs and attendance, and introduced their proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2021 at a Greenbelt City Council worksession on May 4. Council and recreation staff agreed that much of what is proposed will need to be rethought in terms of the ever-changing circumstances of the pandemic, something on which staff is already at work. Recreation staff were excited to share the virtual programs now available and anticipated as the department faces these new challenges.
Recreation Supervisor Greg Varda extolled his “resilient and dedicated staff,” saying that the pandemic was at the forefront of their current deliberations on programming. Varda began with a condensed overview of the past year’s accomplishments prior to the onset of the COVID-19 shutdown. These included: a 10- week summer drop-in program at Springhill Lake Recreation Center (SHLRC); the variety-filled Eagle Vision summer program; the free summer lunch program, partially funded by a grant from County Council Chair Todd Turner; the Paradyme Management donation of 10 laptops to the SHLRC computer lab; the STEMtastic partner program with the Greenbelt Library; equipment, class and Wi-Fi additions to the Aquatic & Fitness Center; pre-school enrichment classes; STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics) programs; quarterly art displays, highlighting Greenbelt achievers; exercise/social groups; Black History Month series; 67 SAGE classes; a bike rodeo; and a wide array of sports and arts classes for all ages, as well as for special needs residents. All programs had high rates of attendance and documented success.
Arts Supervisor Nicole DeWald shared some of the arts programs that occurred last year. These included a professional development workshop for visual artists, the artist in residence program (of whom seven artists are also recreation instructors), virtual art classes and field trips, and a virtual Artful Afternoon.
Varda highlighted the achievements of staff, including Cynthia Brown, Rebekah Sutfin, Stephen Parks, Di Quynn-Reno and Anne Oudemans, in awards, certification and postings to local recreation organizations. Staff also received instruction in many areas, including mental health, team building and climate change.
Regarding the new Virtual Recreation Center, Varda was confident that Greenbelt’s version was “the best in the state.” He shared that in the last two weeks there were 1,500 hits on the site.
He noted that the recognition group process to determine yearly funding and resources devoted to non-city Greenbelt organizations, like the Farmers Market or the Concert Band, is on hold for the time being due to COVID-19.
Recreation Supervisor Joe McNeal said that the outdoor pool at the Aquatic & Fitness Center is set to open on June 1. He noted that it was unlikely, due to safety concerns, that the indoor pool would also open at that time. Aquatic & Fitness Center supervisor Stephen Parks was fairly confident that most of the pool staff would return. Social distancing and sanitation protocols will be put in place in the locker rooms.
A July 4th celebration remains uncertain, with neighboring jurisdictions such as Takoma Park, and perhaps Rockville, already moving towards cancellation. Greenbelt Day weekend has suffered cancellations from several of its mainstay entertainments.
Councilmember Emmett Jordan emphasized the need to factor in a three-to-six month closing into the recreation budget to better determine revenue projections. City Treasurer Laura Allen concurred and estimated a $1.3M to $1.5M loss in FY 2020. Councilmember Judith Davis stated that 78 percent of recreation revenue comes from spring and summer programming, which is already being impacted, requiring a revision of the budget.
Jordan strongly recommended outreach to the Greenbelt Station community from recreation staff in order to ascertain their recreation needs. Varda was not ready to announce any alternatives to the traditional summer camps at this time, saying that any virtual option can be problematic as far as preparation is concerned. He added that “we are pretty resilient” and “can change on a dime if we have to.”
In regard to a more typical reopening of city recreation, McNeal responded that a great deal of safety infrastructure and employee testing would need to be in place for that to happen. Councilmember Edward Putens anticipated a phased approach, with safety foremost. Councilmember Rodney Roberts said that even if the state embarked on a broad reopening, the city could still elect to refrain from opening until the pandemic situation is more stable.