Surveys Point To Surging Demand For Indoor Facilities, Trail Enhancements, District Says
BY MARK DEE
After 50 years on the job, the Blaine County Recreation District is asking voters for a raise.
The BCRD is seeking an additional $3 million annual levy this November, a move that would nearly triple taxpayer support for an agency that has operated off the same levy since its founding in 1976.
“In that time, the services we’ve given the community haven’t shrunk, they’ve grown—by a lot. And the community has grown—by a lot,” said BCRD Executive Director Mark Davidson. “This is a moment in time to not only celebrate 50 years, but to look ahead at opportunities. The only way to do that is by adding money through a levy.”
As it stands, about a third of the BCRD’s budget comes from its foundational tax levy. The district charges $7.81 per $100,000 in taxable value. The proposed permanent override levy would add another $13.34 per $100,000 to that for a total of $21.15 per $100,000. For an $875,000 property—roughly the median assessed value across Blaine County—the proposal would add $116.47 in new taxes, bringing the total paid to the BCRD to $182.82 per year, according to the BCRD’s own levy calculator. (You can find your cost online at bcrd.org/levy.)
The levy would help the BCRD “meet current and future demand for recreational facilities and services,” the ballot language states, focusing on:
• Summer and winter trail improvements, repairs, and
infrastructure, like bathrooms, parking and grooming.
• Galena Lodge upgrades and infrastructure.
Quigley Trails Park.
• Sports fields and infrastructure, including construction of
multi-use facilities usable year-round.
• Staffing, equipment, and maintenance of BCRD facilities.
These priorities came from a suite of community surveys, said BCRD Executive Director Mark Davidson. The takeaway: Most people wanted more, not less. And the ideas that garnered the most excitement—particularly indoor facilities for team sports and winter pickleball—will require serious capital. The new levy would provide a “consistency of funding” that the BCRD could leverage to finance multi-million-dollar projects while still maintaining what it already does.
The amount, according to BCRD Board Chairman Mat Hall, would allow the BCRD to expand without going back to voters on a project-by-project basis.
To Hall, the BCRD has been good at “bootstrapping” much of what it does. It rents offices and shop space for its groomers.
“We could lose that tomorrow,” he said. “All the programs that the BCRD delivers that people love—we have a lot of infrastructure behind that.
“I think this levy is going to help us really grow the roots in the community that we’re going to need for the next 50 years.”
Both Hall and Davidson describe the ballot question as a “proactive” levy. Bolstered by program fees and donations, the BCRD’s budget is balanced, they said. But raising program fees risks pricing out families, and donations fluctuate year to year, the district states. Without additional taxpayer support, they said the district would face tough choices as to what it can support.
“We’re trying to ensure that we have the long-term sustainability we need to meet the needs of our next generations,” Davidson said.
As a permanent override levy, the ballot measure needs a supermajority to pass: 66.67%. Early and absentee voting runs from Oct. 14–31 at the Blaine County Courthouse in Hailey. Election Day is Nov. 4.
