Residents living within the boundaries of GH Fire District #11 have been requested to seriously consider whether or not they want the Grayland Fire District to take over ownership and management of the Grayland Community Hall and the 3.5 acres of developed property on which it sits. The grounds include a baseball field, restrooms, a covered picnic area, a singlewide mobile home that has been used for rental income and a graveled parking lot.
The property currently belongs to all citizens residing within the boundaries of the Ocosta School District as automatic members of the South Beach Parks and Recreation District. Grays Harbor County holds funds for all public service districts within its borders, and therefore audits the finances and operations procedures of those districts on a regular basis.
No elected commissioners
As the result of no one remaining on the District’s five-member governing board this spring, and in an attempt to help the district avoid dissolution and loss of the property to the county, Grays Harbor County Commissioners appointed two individuals to Parks and Rec commission positions recently, and those two, in turn, appointed another; those three appointed a fourth and the four appointed a fifth to fill out the board.
Ongoing financial problems
The five new commissioners have met regularly for the past three months in an attempt to grapple with the district’s lack of enough financial support from events staged at the hall and facility use rentals to cover mounting costs to maintain the property and pay for commissioner election ballot costs, let alone provide community recreational programs.
Action options few
The Parks & Rec commissioners essentially have four options to solve their dilemma. One is to cling to the status quo, attempting to produce enough income to finance needed repairs and maintenance — a plan that has not worked effectively since the District’s formation more two and a half decades ago.
A second option would be to attempt a district-wide Maintenance and Operations levy election that could make the District solvent.
Another is to dissolve the District and turn the property over to Grays Harbor County to dispose of it at a Sheriff’s Auction, with the winning bidder doing as he/she choses with the property.
The remaining option, which is currently on the front burner, would be to dissolve the District after signing a quit claim deed to the Grayland Community Hall property over to another public entity for a nominal amount with the proviso that the new public agency will satisfy any District debt and accept liability for the hall and activities held there and on its grounds.
There are a number of public entities that would qualify to take over the hall, including the South Beach Drainage District, the Grayland Water District, any South Beach Fire District, the Ocosta School District, or even the City of Westport. Parks and Recreation District commissioners may not, however, deed the property over to any private non-profit organization, for-profit business or individual.
Last ditch effort
Unwilling to dissolve the Parks & Recreation District and lose the hall from community ownership until all other options are explored, three weeks ago the commissioners approached the Grayland Fire District to see if it would be willing to take over the property.
Careful consideration
According to Grayland Fire Department Commission Chairman, Chuck Wallace, “We have no intention of making a decision on this issue without first getting major input from the members of our Fire District. If we were to take over ownership and management of the property, it would not be a Fire Department holding, but rather a Fire District asset that we would oversee and manage. There is no way that we can take this on unless the citizens of Grayland, and additionally the citizens of the entire South Beach, are willing to step up to volunteer and participate in its management and upkeep,” he said.
Survey online
To get input from Grayland Fire District residents, Wallace has placed a survey online and encourages all Grayland citizens to respond soon. The nine-question survey first asks if residents would support the acquisition and then requests information about events that would entice responders to visit the hall, ideas for fundraising, whether or not respondents would be willing to volunteer for maintenance and cleanup of the facility as needed, current issues and/or problems that need to be addressed with the hall and grounds, ideas for upgrades, willingness to serve on a committee to formulate a plan for the facility and finally, also offers the opportunity for respondents to sign up for electronic updates on the process and/or to volunteer.
To take the survey, go to: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/XY9WXSH
District history troubled
The South Beach Parks & Recreation District, which has suffered from a lack of public financial support since its inception, was originally formed on November 7, 1989 by a vote of citizens residing within the boundaries of the Ocosta School District.
According to its original by-laws, the District’s purpose was to find funding for, construct, and then manage a South Beach community swimming pool. Public support for that project was so poor, a request for public financing of a pool never made it on a ballot.
District gets Hall
The Parks and Recreation District’s focus on the Grayland Community Hall itself did not begin until two years later. Up to that point, the District owned no real estate. In 1991, the Grayland Lions Club, owners of the community hall, decided to disband due to a lack of membership. As one of its final acts, the Lions Club signed over the historically significant building to the Parks and Recreation District.
Election debts mount
In both 1993 and 1994, operations and maintenance (O&M) levies were placed on the ballot in attempts to get funding for a hall and children’s program manager, as well as day-to-day maintenance costs of the building. Both levies failed to validate, leaving the District with the outstanding elections costs and no revenue to show for the effort.
By November of 1995, the Parks and Recreation District owed Grays Harbor County election ballot costs in the amount of $2,140.11. In addition, the District owed about $400 to Pacific County for costs in the same elections.
District dissolution recommended
On Dec. 11, 1996, County Auditor, Vern Spatz, recommended dissolution of the Parks and Recreation District. In a letter to county commissioners, Spatz cited concerns about the solvency of the organization, whether or not there was a quorum of board members, whether or not there had been appropriate controls over public assets, and a lack of appropriate record keeping for District meetings and actions.
A new set of commissioners during that period managed to pull the fat out of the fire, get the debt to the county paid and continue in their attempts to move forward, albeit with very limited and sporadic success, including the problem of finding enough individuals willing to serve on the district’s governing commission to keep the consistent quorum required to take any actions.
History repeats
In subsequent years, sitting commissioners repeatedly have avoided registering for election in an attempt to avoid election costs. Following elections in which no one ran, commissioners have continued to appoint at least enough new members in order to form a quorum to conduct business.
With the recent need for county commissioners to appoint two members to start the ball rolling for filling the Parks & Rec governing board, it has become apparent that the same list of struggles have continued non-stop and the silver bullet to save the historic hall has yet to be found. Dissolution of the Parks & Recreation District and the loss of the property is once again a very real possibility.
