SR-032508-1G~r
~;tYo, City Council Report
Santa Monica
City Council Meeting: March 25, 2008
Agenda Item: I -~
To: Mayor and City Council
From: Barbara Stinchfield, Director, Community and Cultural Services
Subject: Adoption of a resolution establishing use fees for surfing instruction and
youth sand camps on Santa Monica State Beach
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that Council adopt the attached resolution establishing use fees for
surfing instruction and youth sand camps operating on Santa Monica State Beach.
Executive Summary
The City Council, on January 22, 2008, adopted revisions to Santa Monica Municipal
Code (SMMC) sections 4.08.025 and 4.08.060 authorizing the regulation of commercial
surfing instruction and youth sand camps on Santa Monica State Beach and requiring
permit holders to pay a fee and/or percentage of gross receipts to the City. The
proposed Permit Fee of $150 is based on actual staff time required to evaluate and
process applications for both Surfing Instruction and BeachNVater Activity Permits. The
proposed Percentage of Gross Fee, which per SMMC 4.08.060 applies only to Surfing
Instruction Permits, will be a minimum of ten percent. By utilizing a "percentage of
gross" fee structure, the fee is directly proportional to the volume of business and hence
amount of public facilities and services used by each permittee. Both fees are in line
with the type and scale of fees charged by other beach managing authorities. Revenue
will go into the Beach Fund and be used to offset expenses related to the administration
of such permits and maintenance of beach facilities.
Discussion
On January 22, 2008, in an effort to address beach use conflicts and water safety
issues, the City Council approved revisions to SMMC 4.08.025 and 4.08.060 to:
1) prohibit surfing instruction, training, or coaching for compensation, without a
permit issued by the City;
2) require groups of more than 20 children, if entering the water, to obtain a
permit; and
3) require payment- of application fees and/or percentage of gross receipts,
depending on the activity.
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The revenue collected will go into the Beach Fund and be used to off-set expenses
related to the administration of such permits and for maintenance of beach facilities.
Staff recommends the Permit Fee for both Surfing Instruction and Beach/Water Activity
Permits be set at $150. The proposed fee is based on all anticipated costs to the City,
which include only anticipated staff hours required to develop a Request for Proposals,
evaluate proposals, and process permits as follows:
Hourly Rate Anticipated Staff
Position incl. benefits Hours Associated Total
with Process
Open Space
Management Division
Staff Assistant III, Ste 2 $25.39 4 $101.56
Open Space
Management Division
Senior Administrative
Anal st, Ste 5 $50.75 1 $50.75
$152.31
Surfing Instruction and Beach/Water Activity Permit Request for Proposals, applications,
and permits will be developed and processed by a Staff Assistant III and a Senior
Administrative Analyst. Along with development of an annual Request for Proposals,
each permit will require four hours of a Staff Assistant III's time and one hour of a Senior
Administrative Analyst's time to review and evaluate the proposal, check references,
examine financial statements, collect and review the required certifications and
insurance, coordinate site assignments with the Lifeguards, prepare and issue the
permit, maintain records and respond to inquiries related to the permit. The resulting
cost of each permit is $152.31. Staff recommends rounding off the cost to $150. The
proposed fee is similar to the fee charged by Los Angeles County for surfing instruction
permits throughout the rest of LA County.
The Permit Fee shall apply to permitted providers of surfing instruction and youth sand
camps. In addition, pursuant to SMMC 4.08.060, surfing instructors also must pay a
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percentage of their gross receipts, which at a minimum shall be ten percent. The exact
percentage of gross receipts will be proposed by each applicant during the public
bidding process and will be considered during proposal evaluation. Greater
consideration will be given to proposers with the highest percentage of gross receipts
bid. Typically, surfing instructors bid between 10-30% of gross receipts to the managing
authority. Because gross receipts reflect the volume of business conducted on the
beach, utilizing a "percentage of gross receipts" fee structure will establish fees
proportional to the use of public facilities and services.
Financial Impacts & Budget Actions
Adoption of the proposed fees, including the Permit Fee and the Percentage of Gross
Fee, will create a new revenue source for the Beach Fund. Staff estimates FY 2008/09
revenues to be $39,700. Because these fees are being established late in the fiscal
year, revenues collected during FY 2007/08 are expected to be approximately one third
of those projected for FY 2008/09.
Attachment: Fee Resolution
Prepared by: Trinie Garcia-Valdez, Community Use Administrator
Callie Hurd, Open Space Manager
Approved:
Forwarded to Council:
A~ ~-~ ~
Barbara Stinchfield n well
Director, Community and Cultural City ager
Services
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Reference
Resolution No.
10277 (CCS).