FCPS Charging Scouts to Use School Space

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So how much is it?

It's kind of hard to answer that because they charge per use. There's a rental fee, a cleaning fee, then an additional fee to have a staff member there to supervise if your group is over 35 people.

I did the math for my Troop and estimated it to be somewhere between $7,500 and $8,000 for us to use the space we've used in the past.

That's just an outrageous amount to ask a non-profit youth organization to pay. We'll just go somewhere else.

Pay up Scouts, Michelle needs her 4 bodyguard and someone has to pay them.

[Anonymous]

First, again, the janitors are there whether we're there or not. They clean the room every night whether we use it or not. No additional work is being created for them/no additional cost is being created for the taxpayer. Ok, maybe you could make an argument that leaving lights on creates a cost, I don't know. But I'll concede there may be some minimal cost created. Not $7,500 worth though.

As for Overton, sports camps, soccer fields, etc. Yes, there has always been a cost for for-profit organizations. Just as there's a cost if I want to say, set up a lemonade stand in a Fairfax County Park. If I'm doing something to make a profit off of taxpayer funded land/facilities then yes, there should be a fee to do that. Scouts (trust me) does not make a profit.

Regarding Scouts and religion. Yes, there is a religious aspect and how much focus is put on that varies from Troop to Troop. Some are chartered by churches and some of them push religion heavily. Mine is not chartered by a church, we take all faiths, and if the Scouts tell me they're interested in pursuing one of the religious awards, that's great, I get them in touch with the right people and they do their thing.

Scouts is just like any other large organization. You're going to find people who had a great experience and you're going to find people who had a terrible experience.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So how much is it?

It's kind of hard to answer that because they charge per use. There's a rental fee, a cleaning fee, then an additional fee to have a staff member there to supervise if your group is over 35 people.

I did the math for my Troop and estimated it to be somewhere between $7,500 and $8,000 for us to use the space we've used in the past.

That's just an outrageous amount to ask a non-profit youth organization to pay. We'll just go somewhere else.

Pay up Scouts, Michelle needs her 4 bodyguard and someone has to pay them.

You know what? Maybe I could suggest to FCPS that my Scouts will take turns as Michelle's bodyguard for service hours. Or maybe I could see about getting Scouting America to approve some sort of VIP Protection Merit Badge.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:First, again, the janitors are there whether we're there or not. They clean the room every night whether we use it or not. No additional work is being created for them/no additional cost is being created for the taxpayer. Ok, maybe you could make an argument that leaving lights on creates a cost, I don't know. But I'll concede there may be some minimal cost created. Not $7,500 worth though.

As for Overton, sports camps, soccer fields, etc. Yes, there has always been a cost for for-profit organizations. Just as there's a cost if I want to say, set up a lemonade stand in a Fairfax County Park. If I'm doing something to make a profit off of taxpayer funded land/facilities then yes, there should be a fee to do that. Scouts (trust me) does not make a profit.

Regarding Scouts and religion. Yes, there is a religious aspect and how much focus is put on that varies from Troop to Troop. Some are chartered by churches and some of them push religion heavily. Mine is not chartered by a church, we take all faiths, and if the Scouts tell me they're interested in pursuing one of the religious awards, that's great, I get them in touch with the right people and they do their thing.

Scouts is just like any other large organization. You're going to find people who had a great experience and you're going to find people who had a terrible experience.

Overton was NON-Profit- and can agree or not agree whether non-profits should have to pay for school space, but Overton’s non-profit is why new policy for everyone to pay.

[Anonymous]

I run a non-profit organization that is not scouting and we have always been charged to use FCPS building space. And it's a lot. And I know there are other non-profits who also get charged. Why should Scouts get to use the building for free when other non-profits have to pay?

This is not a non-profit vs for-profit issue - it's been an exemption just for Scouts that should end to be fair to everyone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No, in the past Scouts were exempted because of their non-profit status. FCPS recently issued a new policy mandating all groups, including non-profits pay.

Good.

Would you care to expand upon that? I'm genuinely curious why you are happy Scouts will now be charged to use a space that will otherwise just sit empty.

But it may not otherwise stay empty. Also, custodians need to clean up the space. I think it’s fair to charge building use fees.

The Scouts at our school are some of the worst behaved boys and the leaders were never able to keep things orderly. It was total chaos so I guarantee those kids left a big mess thet would not have been there. I am glad Scouts are being charged,

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:First, again, the janitors are there whether we're there or not. They clean the room every night whether we use it or not. No additional work is being created for them[i]/no additional cost is being created for the taxpayer. Ok, maybe you could make an argument that leaving lights on creates a cost, I don't know. But I'll concede there may be some minimal cost created. Not $7,500 worth though.

As for Overton, sports camps, soccer fields, etc. Yes, there has always been a cost for for-profit organizations. Just as there's a cost if I want to say, set up a lemonade stand in a Fairfax County Park. If I'm doing something to make a profit off of taxpayer funded land/facilities then yes, there should be a fee to do that. Scouts (trust me) does not make a profit.

Regarding Scouts and religion. Yes, there is a religious aspect and how much focus is put on that varies from Troop to Troop. Some are chartered by churches and some of them push religion heavily. Mine is not chartered by a church, we take all faiths, and if the Scouts tell me they're interested in pursuing one of the religious awards, that's great, I get them in touch with the right people and they do their thing.

Scouts is just like any other large organization. You're going to find people who had a great experience and you're going to find people who had a terrible experience.

I’d say that groups definitely do create more work- extra trash to take out, tables to clean, floors to sweep. To think that a group of kids eating and creating crafts doesn’t create extra work because janitors are “already there” is ignorant. Schools are facing custodial shortages.

[Anonymous]

Welp, this thread has devolved into the usual DCUM dumpster fire full of uninformed opinions.

Enjoy your day.

[Anonymous]

Could you get the PTA to charter the scout group?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:they should have to pay. Soccer teams pay for fieldspace. Why should scouts get it for free?

+1
All the local rec leagues pay to FCPS fields/ gyms (SYC, BRYC, FPYC, ABC, etc).

[Anonymous]

How is the Scouts any more special than my random group of old guys who reserve gym space once a week to play basketball? We have to pay. We're not a business and don't make a profit.
Every non-FCPS group should pay to use FCPS resources. Why should the county taxpayers shoulder the cost?

[Anonymous]

FWIW it is more work for janitors.

They do all the cafeteria cleanup immediately after lunches, that room is otherwise empty until breakfast the next day. If a group rents it in the afternoon evening it has to be cleaned again. They also shut most bathrooms after school, only leaving ones open near after care. If they have groups in another wing of the building, that’s another bathroom that has to be cleaned late. It pushes everyone’s schedules back. We already have “bare bones” custodial days about 30% of the time where we are told only trash will be emptied, no actual cleaning will occur in our classrooms. Each of these group requests makes it more likely for those to happen unless there is money to hire more custodial staff.

It’s the same with the gyms and why the youth leagues rent it for the whole night and cram practices in at 5/6/7/8 pm. Then they pay 1 cleaning fee.

It stinks that what you have had access to for years is going away, and the prices seem high, but I’m not surprised. I recently looked into renting an empty field for the day at various nova locations and was quoted $1000 for 8 hours for a non profit. Not even for any additional services like bathroom access or trash pick up. Space just costs here. Some troops won’t pay it, some will, and some of those spaces will be rented by others.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I run a non-profit organization that is not scouting and we have always been charged to use FCPS building space. And it's a lot. And I know there are other non-profits who also get charged. Why should Scouts get to use the building for free when other non-profits have to pay?

This is not a non-profit vs for-profit issue - it's been an exemption just for Scouts that should end to be fair to everyone.

+1 I am affiliated with a non-profit, local community organization and we’ve always had to pay to use FCPS space. We also need to show proof of insurance.
Facilities use - especially during times school isn’t in session - does incur custodial and HVAC costs.

[Anonymous]

So the scouts should have been paying all along, from my read of the policy.

[Anonymous]

So in just this week alone, FCPS is in the news for bodyguards for the superintendent at hundreds of thousands of dollars, paid abortions for kids behind their parent's back, and now charges for classroom use for non profits including scouts and I guess also after-school activities by the PTA? Did I miss anything? What a way to say welcome back to school.