The Woodlands Township board of directors will meet May 21 for public hearings on several items previously discussed at the April 23 meeting.
The public hearings will address proposed amendments to park user fees and covenant administration fees, according to the board agenda.
The overview
The goal of the user fee program is 100% cost recovery for the township's Recreation Division and 50% for the Aquatics Operations Division, according to meeting materials. In fiscal year 2025, that amounted to about $8.1 million for program, facility and pass fees. The township's 2026 Parks and Recreation Fees Analysis generated the following findings and recommendations:
- Non-resident fees: Maintain non-resident pricing at approximately twice the resident rate for most facilities.
- Park pavilions: Implement modest increases.
- Commercial use fees: Introduce fees for Waterway Square, Hughes Landing Bandshell and Waterway use such as walks and runs, unless there are 200 documented hotel nights from the event.
- Park and Ride fees: Implement a per-space, per-day fee option for nonprofit use.
- Fields: Increase fees by 8%.
- Courts: No changes to tennis or pickleball rates; add non-resident pricing for volleyball and basketball.
- Indoor facilities: No fee changes recommended; introduce a deposit requirement for full facility rentals.
- Aquatics fees: Increase resident pool pass fees by $5 for the 2027 season.
- Boat House/Texas TreeVentures: Adjust second-hour boat house rental rates to align with the market.
- ActiveNet registration software: Beginning in spring 2027, pass through the approximately 3% transaction fee to users for credit cards.
