Entrepreneurial Revenue

About this measure: Since 2003, the Parks Division has been maximizing business revenues and exploring other actions that reduce the tax subsidy needed for active recreation facilities.

There are two elements to the Division's Business Revenues: enterprise/entrepreneurial revenues and user fee revenues. The Division defines enterprise/entrepreneurial revenues to include a myriad of non-traditional activities, ranging from corporate sponsorships and other creative promotions to special facility rentals (such as the Marymoor concert series, Cirque du Soleil, and yurts). These are generated largely as a result of cultivation efforts and partnerships established by the Division's staff. User fee revenues represent more traditional recreational activities, such as ballfield usage fees, and are generated according to what the market will bear.

This measure tracks the Division's success in reaching its goal, as established in the 2003 Parks Business Plan, of increasing entrepreneurial revenue 5% each year from an established baseline, adjusted for the transfer of high revenue, higher-cost facilities (principally pools).

2010 results
User fees: $2,208,000
Entrepreneurial/Enterprise: $2,495,000
Total: $4,703,000

2011 target
User fees: $2,113,000
Entrepreneurial/Enterprise: $2,701,000
Total: $4,814,000

Influencing factors:

• Overall, the Division's business revenues for 2010 were on target, but were slightly lower than in 2009 and remain below pre-recession levels. Since 2008, the economic downturn has affected the Division's success in pursuing business revenues.
• Business revenues have also been affected by the transfer of facilities, mostly pools, which generated more than $2 million in revenues in past years. Facilities transferred in the past three years include the Renton, Evergreen, and Vashon Island Pool, along with other Urban Growth Area (UGA) parks and facilities that transferred as a result of annexations.
• Enforcement of parking regulations at Marymoor Park continued the increased compliance which began in 2009 with issuing fines to violators of the $1 parking fee. Parking revenues are up another 29 percent in 2010 on top of the 13 percent from increased compliance in 2009, reversing the downward trend in parking revenues experienced over the preceding few years.
• 2010 saw the return of Cirque du Soleil for a successful run, bringing in similar revenues to their last appearance in 2008.
• The Division's fields and facilities (other than Marymoor) brought in 5 percent more revenue in 2010 than in 2009, with this slow but steady growth reflecting the fact that the Division's existing assets have largely been maximized. Preston Community Center and the campgrounds and picnic shelters at Tolt-MacDonald Park showed strong revenues and continue to be some of the Division's most sought-after facilities.

Strategy going forward: The Division anticipates that the challenging economic situation will continue to affect business revenues adversely in 2011, but remains focused on building diverse revenue streams that will lead to steady, sustainable funding in the long term.

Consistent with the Parks Business Plan and other plans guiding its operations, the Division has transferred local parks and recreation facilities and has transitioned to a system focused on providing regional parks, regional trails, and natural area parks including backcountry trails.

In 2004 more than one third of the Division's business revenue came from pools, local parks, and recreational facilities, which have since been transferred to cities and other jurisdictions. While these facilities generated considerable revenue, they cost significantly more to operate. As the chart above shows, the Division has successfully replaced the revenue from these transferred facilities and has increased business revenues by more than 5 percent each year when adjusted for the loss of these high-revenue, higher-cost facilities.

Aside from a few key properties, such as Marymoor Park, Preston Community Park and Athletic Fields, and the Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatic Center, the Division's current facilities offer a shrinking base of direct revenue generating assets. Although the Division remains committed to its innovative partnership and business-oriented approach, this situation will become increasingly challenging for the growth of business revenues in the future.

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