Jill Schramm/MDN Mayor Shaun Sipma speaks at a public meeting on a parks district and recreation commission merger as Parks Director Ron Merritt listens at left.

Cost savings won’t be the first thing people see with a merged parks and recreation system, but the consolidation creates opportunities for future efficiencies and more programming, according to Parks Director Ron Merritt.

Merritt explained the merger proposed for Minot Park District and the City of Minot’s Recreation Commission at a public meeting attended by about 40 residents Monday.

“We feel like we have some of the best facilities in the state right here in Minot, and several examples of that. We want to continue that, but we also want to provide quality programs to go along with those quality facilities,” he said. “We feel that combining parks and recreation together is just going to enhance that. We are going to be providing quality programs with the quality facilities so people get the best use out of the resources that we have.”

The city and park district hope to begin the transition Jan. 1. Because both entities have already set their 2019 budgets, taxpayers aren’t going to see any change. The city will simply pass along funding to the park district as the district begins assuming responsibility for the recreation programs.

Unless state legislation is approved that addresses mergers of this type, the park district will be hampered by state restrictions on property tax increases from assuming full control of the financial operation of the merged system in 2020. The city would have to gradually phase out its levy as the park district gradually increases its levy until the transition is complete in about three years.

“This isn’t about saving a lot of money but improving the quality and output of what we are getting for our dollar,” Mayor Shaun Sipma said. “But looking forward, I think we are going to see some very substantial increases in terms of what it is we are getting for our dollar.”

In addition to finances, the park district and city have worked out an arrangement for the park district to be able to absorb city recreation personnel and combine their pay and benefit packages equitably. The park district will be leasing city recreation facilities with the idea that an ownership change could occur at some future time.

Currently, the recreation commission offers many free activities for youth. Merritt said the park district offers some free youth programs but many programs aren’t completely free.

“So we will be looking at programs, especially new programs, going forward that are created and set a price point for those that is fair,” he said. A parks and recreation department also is going to have to look at the products it is providing for those prices, he said.

“So they are getting some kind of value for what they are paying,” he said.

“We are also talking about offering scholarships for kids who are maybe in a category that cannot afford to participate in the programs, to make sure that nobody gets left out,” Merritt added. “We will try and get some sponsors to provide scholarships so that we can make sure everybody can participate and we don’t have to turn anybody away because of the fee.”

A merged organization also could lead to improved marketing, he said. The goal is to publish two guidebooks a year to let people know of the services.

“We are hoping that with us combining our efforts together we are going to be able to provide more for our community and more quality,” Merritt said. “We are excited about this opportunity to combine forces and try to do an even better job than we are doing right now.”

The park board has approved the merger. Sipma said the city council is likely to take it up in January.

People will be able to provide input over the next week by using the comment link available when selecting the parks and recreation calendar item on the city website at minotnd.org.