Mundelein High may raise fees

Some community groups, athletic leagues and local residents will have to pay more to use fields and facilities at Mundelein High School under a plan being considered by the school board.

The proposal doubles the fees for many types of organizations that use the campus' auditorium, cafeteria, ball fields, gyms, dining room or other amenities.

Student and staff groups would continue to be allowed to use the facilities free of charge.

The school's rental fees haven't been revised since 1996, Superintendent Jody Ware said.

The changes will not significantly boost revenues for the school, however, because so few organizations actually rent space there, Ware said. The changes still won't cover the cost of operating the school during rental hours, she said.

Ware did not have revenue projections for the proposed fee increases.

The school's facility rental procedures split users into three categories:

•Student groups, employee groups and community groups directly affiliated with the school.

•Tax-supported organizations operating within the school district, such as park districts, village governments or youth groups, as well as nonprofit groups supported by voluntary contributions and charitable organizations operating in the district.

•Organized adult athletic leagues, business groups, political organizations, for-profit groups and private citizens.

Groups in the first category don't pay to use Mundelein High facilities now, and that won't change under the proposal.

Groups in the second and third categories pay different rates now and would see their fees double.

For example, a group in the second category that rents the auditorium on a weekday would pay $20 an hour, up from $10. A group in the third category would pay $50 an hour for the same space on a weekday, up from $25.

The auditorium is the most popular rented space in the school, Ware said.

Rental rates for a baseball field, cafeteria, classrooms, the media center, the gyms, the tennis courts and other areas would similarly double.

Additionally, security fees will increase $10 an hour if the plan passes. The rate will be $40 an hour on weekdays or $50 an hour on weekends.

The proposed fees may only apply to new renters, Ware said, and not existing contracts. If approved, the changes likely would be effective Jan. 1.

"We're not in a rush," Ware said.

Fees may continue to be waived for some renters, such as other government agencies.

"We don't want to exchange dollars with other taxing bodies," Ware said.

The proposal includes some new nonfinancial rules, such as one requiring any group using an outdoor physical fitness facility to provide its own automated external defibrillator and to have someone present who is trained in CPR and knows how to use an automated defibrillator.

The school board reviewed the proposed changes Tuesday night. The panel could approve the new rates at its next meeting, scheduled for Oct. 13.