Old Bill's brought in about $18,000 for parks and rec

Parks and Recreation staff told the advisory board Tuesday that last year’s Old Bill’s campaign brought in about $18,000, a small share of a $9.43 million annual budget. The department said the fundraising effort took staff time that was hard to spare, and it framed the return as too thin to justify a bigger push Parks and Recreation Board Meeting Agenda.

The number matters because the department is already juggling program, facility and capital work, and the Old Bill’s line item puts a hard figure on the tradeoff between fundraising and core operations. The board was scheduled to hear the department report at its Sept. 15 meeting Recreation Board Staff Report, Program and Facility Updates.