It’s the same story as last year with the park district’s budget �” not enough money to complete projects and buy new equipment; just enough for maintenance and paying employees.

“The biggest concern is, we’re in another year of status quo,” park board President Larry Grondahl said in an interview Thursday.

Compared to the 2009 budget, the park district has $140,465.63 more in expenses and $162,324.31 in revenue for its 2010 budget. It plans to levy $157,619.63 more for 2010 than it did for 2009.

The total budgeted expenses is $1,755,393.65 and revenue is $1,778,381.21, with $1,120,828.21 to be levied for 2010. Grondahl said most of the money concerns lie in utility costs and health insurance increases, as well as being able to pay employees decent salaries.

Although a more current estimate isn’t available, Grondahl showed a breakdown of expenses at the Raymond Family Community Center for Fiscal Year 2007. Out of the $176,693.72 in expenses, $58,086.80 was in utilities, or 30 percent. For that same year, $72,931.92 went to salaries at the Raymond Center, or 41 percent of the community center budget. With entities like the community center and Eckert Youth Pool, the park district doesn’t expect to make money, “yet, it’s one of those things that’s important to the community,” he said.

In Fiscal Year 2007, the park district made $95,520.25 at the community center, compared to the $176,693.72 in expenses. Park district officials plan for a similar situation in the 2010 fiscal year, as they’re planning for $271,457.62 in expenses, but $85,975 in revenue.

For Eckert Youth Pool, the park district is anticipating $87,417.13 in expenses, but $34,550 in revenue. The start-up and shut-down process of the pool is expensive, as well as paying the lifeguards. Like the community center, the park district doesn’t want to charge an exorbitant fee for use. It’s typical for pools not to make money, he said.

“There’s not a pool in the Upper Midwest that makes money,” Grondahl said.

The budget leaves no money for necessities such as a new mower for the parks, one for the golf course, playground improvements and renovations at the community center, he said.

Raises also are to be minimal. Seasonal staff has been laid off and the full-time staff has had to pick up the slack, he said.

“We’ll barely get through the year,” he said.

If the park district were to be approved for a 1-cent sales tax, such a tight budget could be avoided. For nearly a year, the park board has tossed around the idea of implementing a 1-cent sales tax once the Williston Public School District 1 sales tax ends.

Some ideas behind the sales tax include dropping all, or nearly all, of the park district’s mill levy and having the tax instead. This would lower property taxes and set aside $400,000 for a matching grant fund for Williston and surrounding communities for various improvements.

With a sales tax, the park district would receive about $2.2 million a year, with $1.3 million for operations, $250,000 for projects, $150,000 for equipment, $100,000 for reserves and $400,000 for the matching grant fund. If it kept its pension, Social Security, special assessments, construction and recreation levies, the total budget would go from $2.2 million to $3.3 million.

Park district residents pay 8.5 percent of their property taxes to the park district. That 8.5 percent would either no longer be applied, or it would at least go down by 3.5 to 4 percent if not all the levies were dropped, he said.

Raymond Center projects to be completed include siding, upgrading exercise equipment and the concessions area and skate park upgrades at a total cost of $1,635,000.

Driving range improvements, clubhouse repairs and more cart storage totals $901,000 at the golf course.

Park improvements including renovating bathrooms, playground surfacing, irrigation and fencing and upgrading locker rooms, lifeguard stands and the filtration system at Eckert Youth Pool have an overall cost of $2,279,000.

The park board is in the process of getting a committee together of community residents, along with parks and recreation officials, to research the 1-cent sales tax.

One shining light in the situation is the fact there’s a few private entities working toward projects the park district isn’t required to invest a lot of money into. These projects include the Dakota Winter Park and Williston Bark Park at Spring Lake Par and the Williston Community Builders playground project and the Tom and Shirley Davidson Tennis Complex at Davidson Park. For the most part, the park district has only had to approve land for these projects.

“Those are things that are going to make our park district better,” Grondahl said.

The park district budget is available for public inspection, and the final budget is to be voted on at the Sept. 15 park board meeting. The meeting begins at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall.