HSVPOA Parks & Rec Director Wiley speaks at Board Retreat

Parks and Recreation Director Terry Wiley presented an overview of his division at the Tuesday, April 23, 2024, Hot Springs Village POA Board Retreat. Wiley discussed divisions of oversight, responsibilities, budget, capital projects, committee help, affiliations, accomplishments, and challenges.

Divisions of Oversight

Parks and Recreation Employees

Wiley stated that Parks and Recreation consists of ten cost centers, employing a total of 21 full-time staff and 45 part-time and seasonal workers, resulting in a combined workforce of 66 employees.

Five or six seasonal employees work at the outdoor pool. The majority of part-time employees handle maintenance at the Coronado Community Center, Fitness Center, Ponce de Leon Center, pickleball and tennis facilities. The full-time staff is comprised of the ground maintenance team (9), and managers of the facilities.

Parks and Recreation Responsibilities

Wiley said that Parks and Recreation is responsible for a variety of tasks.

• Trails maintenance and construction – “We have 32 miles of trails that we take care of.”
• Beaches, parks, playgrounds, and outdoor pool
• Rental facilities and event hosting at Coronado Community Center, Ponce de Leon, DeSoto Recreation Area, and pavilions
• RV park and marina facilities
• Fitness Center, including indoor pool and hot room
• Sports complexes, including tennis, pickleball, lawn bowling, and bocce ball
• Special events such as the Annual Stars and Stripes Festival, Christmas program, and the Solar Eclipse event
• Concert negotiatons and productions
• Marketing and promotion of events, including ticket sales
• Soliciting donations and sponsorships
• Setting Woodlands schedule as liaison for many community organizations
• Outdoor programming such as Farmers Market, Rock Porch concerts, trail hikes, etc.
• Liquor licenses and bar operations

Annual budget / Capital Projects

2024 Budget

Revenue budgeted for this year is $1,343,750 with expense budgeted at $2,767,338. Parks and Recreation subsidy expected for this year is $1,423,588. Wiley said, “I am really proud of that because our subsidy is about the same that it was five or six years ago. The only difference is that five or six years ago, we didn’t have the Grounds Maintenance department in our division. We added approximately $700,000 of expenses to our department and still kept the subsidy the same. We are doing really good as far as making our money back.”

2024 Capital Projects

The 2024 Capital projects are:

• Playground equipment replacement, repairs and upgrades – Wiley said, “This year we bought two more shade shelters for the Balboa Beach Playground. They will be installed in the next month or so.”
• Woodlands improvement: “We are constantly upgrading the Woodlands. We have two 10-foot projection screens on the side walls, which enable us to film a concert and project it on the screen as it is going on. Cupholders will be installed by Norman [Meredith] on the next rain day.”
• Coronado Center flooring – This project is occurring now.
• Library flooring – This was finished Monday, April 22, except for the reshelving of the books.
• Approval was recently given to redo the trail signage and replace all the trail boxes.
• Coronado Community Center pickleball renovation project. This involves the transformation of the old bocce ball courts into pickleball courts.
• Resurfacing Tennis Center hard courts.
• Fitness Center equipment replacement – “Over the last few years we have been able to repair the fitness center equipment, but we have this in the budget in case something breaks and is unrepairable.

Committees / Affiliations

Standing Committees

Buzz Carpenter c hairs the Trails Committee, which supports all aspects of trails’ development, maintenance, and programs. The Trails Committee holds monthly workday events and assists with outdoor recreation events such as trail walks, the 5K, kayak paddles, etc.

Using kayaks, there are plans to clean up Lake Cortez and also the shoreline at the upcoming committee workday.

Affiliations

The POA is a Member of:

• Southwest Performing Arts Presenters – This helps Wiley obtain better show pricing.
• Arts Midwest
• Arkansas Recreation and Parks Association
• National Recreation and Parks Association
• Wiley has certification from Certified parks and Recreation Professional, NRPA

Accomplishments and Challenges

Accomplishments

• Parks and Recreation subsidy was decreased by almost $600,000 from 2022 to 2023. Wiley said that the subsidy decrease occurred because of the imaginative things they do such as Movie Night at the Woodlands, and hosting local groups from Hot Springs at the Coronado Center. Wiley said he is proudest of the Fitness Center, which went from a $224,000 subsidy in 2022 to a profit of $34,647 in 2023. Wiley credits this to staff reorganization; two positions were eliminated. Additionally, gym memberships paid for by insurance was promoted and special events like the 30 for 90. For those members who came in 30 days out of 90, T-shirts were awarded. Also, revenue at the Coronado Center was increased by $70,000 last year. Wiley attributes this increase to the return of the Wine Tours and holding more concerts.
• The biggest project renovations were the Hot Room and the Steam Room at the Fitness Center.
• The Minature Golf Course was improved. “I live across the street from there and it is packed all of the time.”
• Porte Cochere replacement at Ponce de Leon Center.
• Sound and lighting upgrade at the Coronado Commuity Center and Woodlands Auditorium.

Challenges

• Wiley said their biggest challenge (to be addressed next year) is renovating the indoor pool and HVAC system, switching to salt water, repairing the pool plaster foundation, and replacing or repairing the flooring.
• Marketing is also a challenge. “Basically, we don’t have any marketing. The Village Digest comes out every Friday, and that is it. I know we have a great marketing campaign outside of the Village, but internally, we have an email that goes out once a week. 16,000 people live here. Some of them live in assisted living, so it cuts it down. There are about 4,000 to 5,000 people that go to the Woodlands. Some people don’t know the Woodlands exists.”

Report by Cheryl Dowden