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Home My WebLink AboutIR 0684INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 23-0684 To the Mayor and Members of the City Council April 18, 2023 Page 1 of 4 SUBJECT: EXTENDING COMMUNITY CENTER HOURS OF OPERATION The purpose of this Informal Report (IR) is to provide information regarding potentially extending hours at community centers in the priority zip codes of the One Second Collaborative. This IR will cover the following: • One Second Collaborative (OSC) purpose; • FW@6 program purpose, funding, and existing locations and hours; • Comin' Up Program purpose and locations; • Hiring difficulties in community centers; • Points of consideration; and • Recommendations for analysis. One Second Collaborative The Collaborative is a coalition comprised of the United Way of Tarrant County, Fort Worth Police Department, City of Fort Worth, Tarrant County, and other community stakeholders, working together to use an evidence -based approach to address youth gun violence in Tarrant County, Texas. OSC assessed gun violence in Tarrant County and established priority zip code areas. Councilmember Williams requested an evaluation of facilities, overlaying current late -night operations and programs at community centers with these priority areas. The table below lists community and recreational facilities located in priority zip code areas along with the facilities current operating hours. Facilities in bold are City of Fort Worth Community Centers. Priority Zip Code Service Providers Current Operations & Programs 76010 City of Arlington East Library & Recreation Center Open 91 hours per week 76011 Andrew Doc Session Open 50 hours per week Riverside Open 45 hours per week** 76036 Crowley Recreation Center Open 83 hours per week Chisholm Trail Open 81 hours per week FW 6 76104 Fire Station Open 45 hours per week** Atatiana Carr -Jefferson at Hillside Open 45 hours per week Comin' U Southside Open 50 hours per week Worth Heights Open 62 hours per week FW 6 Boys & Girls Club — Panther Branch O en 45 hours per week 76105 McDonald YMCA Open 91 hours per week Boys & Girls Club — Martin Branch Open 47.5 hours per week Boys & Girls Club — Eastside Branch Open 47.5 hours per week ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 23-0684 To the Mayor and Members of the City Council April 18, 2023 Page 2 of 4 SUBJECT: EXTENDING COMMUNITY CENTER HOURS OF OPERATION 76106 Diamond Hill Currently closed for construction — will be open 80 hours per week Comin' U North Tri-Ethnic Open 60 hours per week** Northside (76164, formerly 76106) Open 62 hours per week FW 6 76112 Handley Meadowbrook Open 53 hours per week** Martin Luther King Jr. Open 54 hours per week FW 6 76116 RD Evans Open 45 hours per week** Como (76107) Open 76 hours per week FW 6 Boys & Girls Club — Las Vegas Trail Open 47.5 hours per week 76119 Eugene McCray Open 53 hours per week** 76133 Southwest Open 45 hours per week** Ryan amil YMCA Open 85.5 hours per week 76134 1 Highland Hills Open 45 hours per week** **Opportunity for expanded hours with additional staffing Program Descriptions FW@6 Program The FW@6 Late Night Program began in 1992 as a response to the increase in gang -involved youth between the ages of 10-18 by providing support for afternoon and evening activities. Programs include afterschool and youth sports as well as extended hours for older youth and young adults. The program provides a safe haven for at -risk youth living in high crime areas. These programs are intended to decrease youth participation in crime and gangs through enrichment and recreational activities. They are designed to reduce crime, stimulate self- determination, and increase community pride. The program focuses on the following five goals, which provide alternatives to youth involvement in crime: Education/Personal Development, Employment Readiness, Recreation, Life Skills, and Community Responsibility. The programs are currently offered at five community centers. The Neighborhood Services Department (NSD) operates Como, Martin Luther King, Northside, and Worth Heights. The Park & Recreation Department (PARD) operates Sycamore and will operate the new sixth location, added in FY2023 at Chisholm Trail, as soon as the last staff are hired. The following table outlines the hours of operation for the centers offering the FW@6. ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 23-0684 To the Mayor and Members of the City Council April 18, 2023 Page 3 of 4 SUBJECT: EXTENDING COMMUNITY CENTER HOURS OF OPERATION Como MLK Northside Sycamore y Worth Heights g Chisholm Trail future hours M:8am-7pm M:8am-6pm M:8am-6pm T-F:11am-9pm M:8am-6pm SUN:lpm-5pm TWTH:8am-9pm T-F:8am-7pm T-F:8am-8pm S:10am-7pm T-F:8am-8pm M:5am-7pm F:8am-10pm S:10am-7pm S:10am-2pm S:10am-2pm TWTH:5am-9pm S: loam-10pm (temporary (temporary FS: 5am-11 pm hours) hours) "when FW@6 is fully implemented FW@6 is fully funded by the Crime Control and Prevention District (CCPD). The decision to fund additional sites is based on crime statistics and documented community need. CCPD expenditures add additional personnel (Senior Recreation Programmer and Recreation Programmer for late night hours) and operating costs totaling: Como MLK Northside Sycamore Worth Heights Chisholm Trail $162,625 $152,864 $147,733 $142,425 $153,854 $207,790* *Vacant positions are budgeted at midpoint The minimum average annualized cost to add a CCPD-approved FW@6 site at other community center locations is $161,215, plus an additional minimum of $35,000 for police security. Comin' Up Program In addition to the FW@6 program, PARD hosts the Comin' Up Gang Intervention program, funded by the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Tarrant County (BGCTC), at Diamond Hill Community Center and Atatiana Carr -Jefferson Community Center at Hillside. The program is designed to positively impact the lives of at -risk and gang -involved youth by providing needs -based services and activities to reduce the level of gang violence. The ultimate goal of the program is to produce life changes with the members served through programming and case management. Members must be Fort Worth residents between the ages of 7-24 (7-12 is early intervention) with an affiliation or connection to any gang. The hours of this program start after the community center closes to the public and the program is staffed by employees of the BGCTC. Hiring Issues Filling vacancies in community centers has been particularly difficult, especially the Recreation Programmer and Community Center Aide positions. This situation is exacerbated when filling late night positions, as evidenced by being in the sixth recruitment process for the Chisholm Trail FW@6 Programmer, and the temporarily reduced hours of operations at three Neighborhood Services FW@6 sites. ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS INFORMAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS No. 23-0684 To the Mayor and Members of the City Council April 18, 2023 Page 4 of 4 SUBJECT: EXTENDING COMMUNITY CENTER HOURS OF OPERATION Points of Consideration The following are thoughts to consider regarding extending community center operating hours: • Do all centers need late night hours? Would the centers be used during these hours in every community? • How would additional late -night programs be funded (General Fund or CCPD)? Additional funding would be required for late -night programs or extended hours. • During late -night hours, will the centers be open to the public or just to youth ages 17 and under? Monitoring and control of this would be difficult. • Are there enough police officers and funding to assign officers to sites? Sites with extended hours require security by FWPD or contracted agency. Sites currently using police officers require a minimum of three hours per shift to report. • Centers serving as Comin' Up sites or hosting other contractually obligated programming would not be available for extended operation by City of Fort Worth staff. Recommendations The following approach is recommended: • Continue to assess the communities surrounding each community center to make decisions on operating hours (i.e. open earlier for senior populations, ensure daytime coverage for after school programs, provide evening hours based on current and desired programming, and add FW@6 or other late -night locations based on crime data, documented need, and sufficient CCPD or General Fund funding). • Include analysis and benchmarking of hours of operation in the FY2024 Community Center Study. • Submit budget decision packages as needed, based on surveys and assessments, to increase staffing levels to facilitate increased hours of operation (base level of 60 hours) at 45 to 53 hour -per -week PARD facilities to better serve the surrounding community. • Work with Human Resources to develop an incentive package for filling late night positions. Please contact Park & Recreation Department Interim Director Dave Lewis at (817) 392-5717, or Neighborhood Services Director Victor Turner at (817) 392-8187, for additional information. David Cooke City Manager ISSUED BY THE CITY MANAGER FORT WORTH, TEXAS