Brass band chafes at Gateway facility rental fees

A hike in the cost to rent Gateway facilities have some groups calling foul, but school directors say they're looking out for taxpayers.

The school board voted in September to increase rental fees for businesses and for nonprofit groups outside the district.

There is no rental charge for staff, students and most nonprofit organizations based within the Gateway community.

“I've heard from some constituents about the fact that people already are paying property taxes,” said school director Skip Drumheller.

Among those upset is Monroeville resident Chuck Summerville, who spoke on behalf of the Pittsburgh-based River City Brass Band last week.

The group has performed annually in the high school auditorium for nearly 30 years.

The new fee established by the school board would charge the group $800 per hour, which adds up to about $4,000 per performance.

The group had performances scheduled at the high school in November and December of this year.

The band previously paid about $250 to use the auditorium.

The timing of the new policy is unfair, “given the time to find alternate facilities to conduct RCBB performances remaining in the 2012-13 season,” Summerville said.

“As a businessman in the software industry for 49 years, I would be out of business if I treated my customers the way the RCBB is being treated,” Summerville said.

“Other western PA school districts who rent their facilities to the RCBB charge an amount far less than proposed under the board policy,” he added.

The group has since rescheduled its November performance to Beulah Presbyterian Church in Penn Hills, said school board president Dave Magill.

“They're going to move on, and we're going to move on,” Magill said.

The old $250-per-performance fee was agreed upon with a friendly handshake years ago, while each performance cost the district about $1,500 for amenities such as lighting, heat, stage crew, stage manager and custodians, officials said.

“Taxpayers of our school district simply shouldn't be subsidizing noneducational programs,” said school director Steve O'Donnell.

The brass band filed about $1 million of revenue and about $1.2 million of expenses in their 2010 fiscal year, according to federal tax documents filed by the nonprofit organization.

Supporters of the brass band said Monroeville taxpayers and voters look forward to the performances at Gateway each year.

But there also are Plum, Murrysville and Penn Hills residents who attend the shows at Gateway, replied school directors.

The rental fee for the Gateway Sports Complex also has increased, to cover operational costs that were coming out of taxpayer's pockets, in addition to new expenses such as a security guard — depending on the event — and the paperwork involved in issuing the permit, said Gateway Spokesperson Cara Zanella.

In May, C.S. Kim Karate paid $600 in addition to custodial and site manager costs for the entire day, Zanella said.

But O'Donnell said the cost of water, electricity and sewage were not fully covered by what the karate studio paid.

“We know from looking at our general budget ... everything was not covered.”

There also is the risk of property damage when 2,000 people are using the facility — which exceeded the fire code limit, officials said.

Under the new policy, it would cost a private group or a nonprofit group from outside the district about $500 per hour to rent the sports complex.

The school board still is discussing how to distribute new rental revenues.

O'Donnell suggested that revenues be directed toward the district's capital funds, operational fees be directed toward the facilities department and administrative fees be tracked by the business department.

The administrative fee will pay for the logistics of issuing permits, such as staffing, communicating with department heads and contacting the insurance provider, O'Donnell said.

The board was expected to vote on the distribution of fees at its meeting Wednesday, which took place after this edition's deadline.

Kyle Lawson is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 412-856-7400, ext. 8755, or klawson@tribweb.com.