Agenda Item 4.1
DATE: March 3, 2026
TO: Honorable Committee Members
FROM: Hazel Wetherford, Deputy City Manager
SUBJECT:
Phased Adjustments to Sports Field Use Fees for Grass Athletic Fields Prepared by: Jackie Dwyer, Parks & Community Services Director
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
The Finance and Investment Committee will receive a report on proposed phased adjustments to grass athletic field use fees. The adjustments are intended to reduce the structural operating subsidy, improve cost recovery, and establish a predictable long-term strategy while maintaining support for youth sports and community access.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
Receive the report and discuss the proposed phased adjustments to sports field use fees for grass athletic fields.
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
In Fiscal Year 2024-25, maintenance costs of the City’s grass athletic fields totaled $1,604,365.
Field use revenue was $261,854, resulting in a $1,342,511 General Fund subsidy (84%), with current fees recovering approximately 16% of costs.
The proposed fee adjustments would be phased in over five years across three rate cycles (2026, 2028, and 2030), increasing cost recovery to approximately 25%-30% and reducing the General Fund subsidy while maintaining affordability for youth sports and community users.
No budget amendment is required at this time. Additional revenue would be incorporated into future operating budget projections.
DESCRIPTION:
Grass athletic fields are among the City’s most heavily used recreational assets, supporting youth and adult leagues, camps, tournaments, and community programming year round. The City has historically subsidized field use to promote participation and resident access. However, most field Attachment 4
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use fees have not been adjusted since 2012, but General Fund costs has grown significantly due to rising labor, materials, irrigation, utility, and contracted service costs. The City currently recovers approximately 16% of grass field maintenance costs, as demonstrated in Table 1.
Table 1: Grass Field Cost Recovery – FY 2024/25
Category Amount
Annual Maintenance Cost $1,604,365
Total Field Use Revenue $261,854
Annual Subsidy $1,342,511
Subsidy Rate 84%
Non-Profit Dublin-Based Youth Sports Leagues are the predominant users of grass athletic fields, making up the largest share of revenue from all user groups in Table 2.
Table 2: Usage Distribution
User Category
Revenue
% of Total
Revenue
Non-Profit Dublin-Based Youth Sports Leagues $89,883 34% All Other Users $171,971 66%
Total $261,854 100%
The average fee collected is $20.77 per hour, compared to an estimated $69.23 per hour needed to achieve approximately 30% cost recovery. This is based on an average across all usage hours and current fees, Tables 3 and 4.
Table 3: Dublin-Based Youth Sports Leagues – Grass Field Usage Hours by Location Grass Location Hours
Dublin Sports Grounds – Baseball Fields 4,781
Dublin Sports Grounds – Soccer Fields 1,636
Emerald Glen 1,869
Fallon – Baseball Fields 4,553
Total 12,839
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Table 4: Current Grass Field Hourly Rates*
User Group Current Rate
Groups 1 & 2 – Public Agencies: County of Alameda, Dublin-San Ramon Services District, Dublin Unified School District (1). Approved Dublin-Based Youth Sports League Organizations - at least 75% Dublin Residents (2). $7
Group 3 – Dublin-Based Non-Profits and Approved Adult Sports League Organizations (51% residents): Chamber of Commerce, Charitable and Social Welfare Organizations, and Homeowners Associations. $18
Group 4 – Individuals and Other Groups: Dublin Residents and Charitable Groups Not Approved for Group 3. $22 - $26
Group 5 – Commercial: Dublin-Based Businesses. $35
*Unless otherwise noted, all Parks & Community Services Fees listed are for Dublin Residents or Dublin- based Businesses. The fees for Non-Residents or Non-Dublin Businesses (as part of Groups 4 & 5) shall be 20% higher.
Proposed Phased Adjustments
To responsibly address the structural gap, Staff recommends a five-year phased adjustment spanning three rate cycles (2026, 2028, and 2030).
Table 5: Phased Grass Field Hourly Rate Adjustment Schedule Groups Current Rate 2026 2028 2030
Groups 1 & 2 $7 $10 $13 $15
Group 3 $18 $26 $33 $39
Group 4 $22 $31 $41 $47
Group 5 $35 $37 $48 $56
The phased schedule was developed by first establishing a target rate of approximately $15 per hour for Groups 1 and 2, reflecting a movement toward improved cost recovery while maintaining affordability for youth sports organizations. The total increase required to reach this target was then distributed across three rate cycles.
Following completion of the phased schedule, Staff recommends implementing a biennial increase of $1 across all field types to maintain alignment with maintenance costs and avoid future structural gaps. At this time, no fee adjustments are proposed for artificial turf fields or the Fallon cricket pitch.
Tables 6 through 8 below show projected annual cost for the major youth user groups, with the proposed rate increases in place. This assumes that annual reserved hours remain constant.
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Table 6: Dublin Little League (9,334 hours annually)
Year
Grass Field Fee
(Hourly Rate)
Annual Cost
2025 (Current) $7 $65,339
2026 $10 $93,342
2028 $13 $121,345
2030 $15 $140,013
Table 7: Dublin United Soccer League (1,636 hours annually)
Year
Grass Field Fee
(Hourly Rate)
Annual Cost
2025 (Current) $7 $11,455
2026 $10 $16,364
2028 $13 $21,273
2030 $15 $24,546
Table 8: Cricket at Emerald Glen - Grass (1,869 hours annually)
Year
Grass Field Fee
(Hourly Rate)
Annual Cost
2025 (Current) $7 $13,084
2026 $10 $18,690
2028 $13 $24,297
2030 $15 $28,035
Regional Comparison
An evaluation of comparable jurisdictions shows that even with the proposed adjustments, Dublin’s grass field use fees would remain generally consistent with or below regional averages.
The City would continue to subsidize a significant portion of maintenance costs but would be slowly closing the structural gap.
Table 9: Regional Hourly Fee Comparison
Group
Grass Field Fee
(Hourly Rate)
Livermore Youth Organizations $17-39
Pleasanton Co-Sponsored Groups $3.75 - $50
San Ramon Non-Profit Groups $14.65 - $28.31
ATTACHMENTS:
None.
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Annual Update to the
Master Fee Schedule
April 7, 2026
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Background
• September 2012 City Council adopted a User Fee Recovery Policy (Fee Policy)
• Annual update to the Master Fee Schedule (MFS)
• Update based on changes in Consumer Price Index (CPI) from preceding December
• CPI Index - San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers
• Consumer Price Index (CPI) change for December 2025 was
3.10%
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Background, 2
• Current fee study adopted by City Council on June 25, 2024 (Resolution 72-24)
• Fees are updated annually by the CPI
• Fees are rounded down to the nearest dollar
• Fees effective July 1st unless otherwise noted
• Select Wave Fees effective May 1st
• Grass Field hourly rates effective January 1st
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Master Fee Schedule Updates
• Engineering Encroachment Fee for single-family residential sidewalk repairs
• Sidewalk maintenance
• State law and Dublin Municipal Code
• Staff recommendation
• Revenue reduction vs. improved conditions
• Fireworks Permit Deposit Fee
• Dublin Municipal code amendments
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Master Fee Schedule Updates, 2
• Planning Division Preliminary Application Fee
• Improve clarity and transparency
• Time & Materials
• Code Enforcement Fees
• Add dedicated Code Enforcement Section
• Storage fee for Temporary Non-Commercial Signs
• Penalty fees and administrative citation fines
• Currently authorized in Municipal Code
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Parks and Community Services (PCS) Master Fee
Schedule Updates
• PCS Pricing Policy (adopted 2010, revised 2016) - authorizes the PCS Director to increase rates up to 20% during the year, provided fees are documented in the upcoming MFS, and to establish new rates when new classes are added mid-year
• Grass Fields - tiered increase structure over the next three budget cycles, and then an ongoing ladder
• Have not raised fees in over ten years
• City is subsidizing 84% of total costs
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PCS Master Fee Schedule Updates, 2
• The Wave - fee increases for admissions, rentals, and birthday packages (effective May 1st to align with the waterpark season) • Reasons for the fee increase:
• Staffing costs have increased by about 22%
• Slide maintenance costs have increased 25%
• Benchmarking shows fees remain competitive regionally • Note: No increases for swim lessons or core programs
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PCS Master Fee Schedule Updates, 3
• Dublin Art Center - fees added in preparation for opening • Snack Bar - new monthly fee to offset maintenance and permitting • Summer Camps - fee reduction to align with the current market rate • Processing Fees - transfer and withdrawal fees have been added to the MFS for transparency
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Staff Recommendations
• Adopt the Resolution Adopting an Annual Update to the Master Fee Schedule for Services Provided by the City.
Questions?
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