Q&A of the Day – How Florida’s Parks Operate
Each day I feature a listener question sent by one of these methods.
Email: brianmudd@iheartmedia.com
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Today’s Entry: Dear Brian, I live in Jupiter but pay property taxes to Palm Beach County. Why do I and many others have to pay or pay more to play picklelball at Palm Beach Gardens Russo Tennis center and Lilac Park? I assume these sites are funded by my property taxes? Right now, they have expensive fees for non-Palm Beach Gardens residents. They want $750 dollars for the Russo Tennis center and $350 for Lilac Park. These are public facilities and outside not indoors. Does not seem right. Do Palm Beach Gardens residents pay more taxes for this?
Bottom Line: It’s been several years since this type of question has been brought up to me, but it’s an excellent one as the delineation between federal parks, state parks, county parks and municipals parks. Given Florida’s geography, size and climate we’re one of the top states in the country for parks and recreation space. Florida ranks 7th nationally, with 11.4% of the entire state’s geography reserved for parks, wildlife and recreation. All told over 34 million acres are dedicated to parks and recreation statewide, which is the equivalent of over 53,000 square miles. And while national parks, like the Everglades National Park, are world renowned, most of the parks and recreation areas across the state are similar to Lilac Park which is operated by a local government.
Florida has a total of 11 national parks, 175 state parks and thousands of locally operated parks. The way they’re funded is different based upon the type but one thing that all types have in common, is that while many are free, there can be charges for the use regardless of type. Take Everglades National Park for example. While it’s a federal park operating within Florida under the National Park Service, there are still fees to access the park which range from $20 to $70 based upon the type of pass that’s purchased. Similarly, another example at the state level is North Palm Beaches’ MacArthur Beach State Park which is operated by the Florida State Parks Service but that comes with fees which range from $2 to $5 per visit with additional fees up to $100 that can apply based upon what you want to do once you get there. And that takes us to parks at the local level.
Palm Beach County operates 87 parks and recreation centers. Most of the county’s parks and recreation centers, for example John Prince Park, are free to access and use most amenities regardless of where visitors live. There are a couple of exceptions, though as Palm Beach’s Kreusler Park, which charges $3 per hour to park, and Boca’s South Inlet Park which charges a minimum of $3 per hour to park. And that takes us to the myriad of municipally operated parks and recreation centers. Palm Beach Gardens alone operates 16 parks and recreation centers, two of which were cited in today’s note.
And this takes us back to the specific questions in today’s note. While we’re all federal and state taxpayers, as citied in the example, there are commonly still fees with the use of parks. Generally speaking, across the park types, the funding that’s paid for through taxes typically accounts for the personnel who operate the parks, vehicles, equipment, etc. For parks which charge fees, those are generally used for maintenance of parks and facilities. A as resident of Jupiter you’re obviously paying federal taxes, state of Florida taxes, county taxes to Palm Beach and municipal taxes to Jupiter, however your taxes aren’t accounting for the municipal parks and recreation areas within Palm Beach Gardens in answer to your first question. And in the case of the two services that you’re using, the Russo Tennis Center and Lilac Park, fees are charged to Palm Beach Gardens residents as well – at a discounted rate.
For example, the annual rate for a resident to purchase a pickleball annual pass at Lilac is $50, compared to the $350 fee for non-residents. In the case of the Russo Tennis Center, the annual rate for a resident pass is $300 compared to $500 for non-residents. The $750 which was referenced is for an annual family pass which is $450 for resident families. I can’t really speak to whether the fees are reasonable or unreasonable...that’s likely in the eyes of the beholder, however the way they’re being assessed is consistent with the types of facilities they are and with the municipal government operating them. Incidentally, given that you’re a resident of Jupiter... The Town of Jupiter offers free indoor pickleball at the Jupiter Community Center for residents (the cost is $3 per session for non-residents). Also, Carlin Park, which is a county operated park, offers free pickleball to everyone on a first-come first-served basis.
We’re blessed to have so many wonderful outdoor venues to enjoy throughout our area. At one point several years I mentioned a goal of visiting every park in the area. Even though my wife Ashley and I are outdoor enthusiasts, we still haven’t completed it because there are so many which are usually great experiences. It’s a good problem to have. Parks tend to be one of the things that our federal government, state and local governments for the most part get right. Hopefully this has been helpful and good luck with your game!