Recreation Committee Votes Unanimously to Reinstate Paper Brochure

 It's a little thing—physically only about 10 standard letter pages—but, apparently, it's a big deal to recreation department employees and participants alike. In response to decisive feedback, the Recreation Commission Monday voted unanimously to once again mail to residents hard copies of its class directory brochure.

"We've actually had several instructors say that this is contingent upon their coming back—that they will not come back if we don't mail the brochure because their numbers have dropped so much," Recreation Director Jan Kaseta reported to the board at its monthly meeting at the Warren Building.

Kaseta added she has received e-mails from people saying they appreciated the committee's effort to go green by posting this summer's brochure online only, but they missed flipping through the paper version with their children. And while the summer registration window has not yet closed, the absence of a tangible packet appears to be hurting signup figures.

Kids' summer camp registrations, for instance, have so far generated $89,898 worth of revenue, according to Kaseta, roughly $20,000 less than they did last year. The Web-only brochure saved the department about $15,000. Even if in the final weeks of registration, the camps bring in enough money to make the year-to-year change a wash, the committee demonstrated high enrollment is its priority by voting to bring back the paper version.

"Parents will find alternative activities for their kids," Chairman Mark Antonelli reasoned, "and once they find those alternatives, it'll be hard to get them back."

The commission plans to explore ways to reduce the cost of printing the fall brochures, such as nixing the document's glossy cover.

In a related conversation, members discussed updating the recreation department's Web page, citing complaints that it is not user-friendly. Antonelli said he will explore what sort of quick-fix changes could be made, at no cost, before the committee's July meeting; if unsatisfied at that time, the body will consider spending less than $1,000 on Web page improvements.

If such upgrades prove popular with the public, the department could revisit the possibility of an Internet-only class brochure, according to Vice Chairman Andy Wrobel.

What appeared to be the most salient item on the agenda, an update about the town's possible purchase and reuse of the St. James the Great Catholic Church property, turned out to be an uneventful conversation. Wrobel said he is continuing to work with the Town Council and the Planning Board to determine how much the 7.85-acre parcel might cost—Concord Square Planning and Development, the Boston-based firm that completed an alternative land use study last month, estimates the price at $3.5 million—and how much the land is worth, to the town.

At present, officials are mulling three options for the property: recreation, housing and office/retail. Naturally, the Recreation Commission is focused on the first. Member Jim Conlin shared a few details about such a project, which would include, among other amenities, an indoor hockey rink, pool, basketball court and soccer field.

The pool, Conlin said, could in fact be two pools: the larger a 25-meter tub with 10 or 11 lanes and a diving board, the smaller a handicapped-accessible pool better-suited for swim lessons and senior activities. He also said officials are drawing inspiration from existing recreation facilities in places as nearby as Brookline and Concord and as far away as Vermont and Connecticut.

Wrobel addressed the rink, the cost of which, according to a preliminary analysis, would outpace its revenue. That assessment, however discouraging, does not mean the rink is a bad idea, he noted. Wrobel said Wellesley Youth Hockey could hold fundraisers to bolster the rink's income and added the value of ice time at an in-town rink might be greater than even the commission realizes.

"I've had conversations, and the sentiment among youth hockey people was 'Boy, we would pay a lot of money to be able to stay here and have some home games,'" Wrobel said. "So we could possibly charge an extra 30 or 40 dollars per hour for rink time."

Other agenda items included a movie night at the library and the possible introduction of a winter carnival. The movie night, according to Program Administrator Tim Kennedy, will likely occur sometime in late August, on the patio outside the door of the children's room at the library. The flick frontrunner appears to be "Where the Wild Things Are."

The winter carnival is an effort to, as Wrobel put it, "have some event because it's a dead time in town." The challenge for the commission is selecting an event. Already discussed are polar swimming, ice skating and cross country skiing, each of which has encountered liability or logistical obstacles. Wrobel suggested a five-kilometer run, but other members pointed out the plethora of 5k races that already fill the local calendar, and Kaseta reminded the commission that a group of town employees have for years staged a Christmas Day 5k, in which they wear Santa Claus hats.

The commission did not reach a consensus and will revisit the topic at a future meeting.