2021/09/29 Council Minutes - Laserfiche WebLink

• September 29, 2021 opportunities for the public, repurpose or recondition park assets, decrease costs to the City, and possibly generate additional revenue. That led to some partnerships we're really excited about. Some of these include: Management of the Carl Gipson Senior Center by Volunteers of America (VOA). We are thrilled to partner with VOA to restore programming at the center. This pandemic has been especially difficult for our seniors, and I know they have missed being able to connect and engage with others in our community. VOA will be a great partner —they have experience serving older adults and their mission and values are aligned with what we want for the future of the center. In the first full year of the agreement, we'll save more than $280,000 over the cost of running the facility on our own. These savings will grow over the life of the 14-year contract. This is a win win win. The City saves money. VOA delivers on its mission. And • seniors benefit from the restoration of services and being able to connect with each other again. Another happy partnership is with T&L Nursery, which is now leasing the greenhouses at Legion Park, keeping them in productive use while providing revenue to support our Parks Department. We're also pleased to have the YMCA as a partner in providing programming at Camp Patterson for kids in our Everett community. Those are just some examples and we're eager to explore additional partnerships in 2022. Another way we'll improve efficiencies and reduce waste is by adding a full-time resource conservation manager to the City. This is a new position within our Parks and Facilities team; their role will be to evaluate how we're using energy, water and other natural resources and recommend opportunities for efficiency and conservation to not only achieve cost savings but also ensure we are being good stewards of the environment. 13