KITCHENER - Many community groups have trouble getting access to meeting rooms, gyms and other space at Kitchener community centres, even though the centres sit empty the vast majority of the time.

Because of this, recreation staff want to rethink the city's policies around how space at the 14 centres is booked, so that it can be used as much as possible by the widest possible number of people in the community.

Recreation staff outlined proposed changes at a council meeting on Monday afternoon, including looking at ways to give other groups more access to centre space and extending community centre hours.

Existing policies, drafted more than 17 years ago, were designed with the idea that neighbourhood associations would provide recreation programs at local community centres.

But in a report to council, recreation staff said the system isn't meeting community needs. First, all of the centres are underused. On average, available space is used only about one-third of the time on weekdays. On weekends, when many groups say it would be the best time to hold programs, the centres sit empty 86 per cent of the time.

Second, many neighbourhood associations, which are run by volunteers, don't have the energy, the people or the money to run a full slate of recreation and other programs.

About five or six of the city's 28 neighbourhood associations are big organizations with revenues of more than $100,000 a year that offer a wide variety of programs, in many cases hire their own staff, and receive the bulk of support and attention from city staff. Other neighbourhood associations have little to no revenue, and are made up of a handful of dedicated volunteers.

Staff and councillors repeatedly stressed that the neighbourhood associations are a valued resource that do an "amazing" job, with volunteers dedicating hundreds of hours every year providing programs for their neighbourhoods.

"We don't want to take away from the good work that neighbourhood associations are doing - in fact, we want to encourage it - but we want to invite other community partners to the table" to help plan programs that best meet community needs, said Steve Roth, the city's manager of community centres.

For example, a neighbourhood might want more programs for seniors, but the neighbourhood association doesn't have the expertise to run such programs, he said.

Community centres are also closed from noon Saturday and all day Sunday, when they're available for rental. Most rentals now go to faith groups who book space regularly every Sunday morning. About 30 per cent are one-time rentals for things like meetings or parties. City staff say ongoing weekly rentals continue, but that other rentals should be a lower priority.

The centres are also underused because the current booking system gives neighbourhood associations, especially the ones that serve the area closest to a particular community centre, first dibs to book space.

Those groups often book blocks of time months in advance. But about 20 per cent of those programs don't attract much interest later and the program gets cancelled, but pre-booked space sits unused.

That system makes it almost impossible for other neighbourhood groups to get space in the centres.

"Some neighbourhood associations treat the community centre as a neighbourhood association centre and they're excluding other neighbourhood groups," deputy chief administrator Michael May said. "We know this is happening."

In some cases, even other neighbourhood associations have trouble getting access. One association simply wanted to book space to run a ball hockey program but was told there was no time available at all, Roth said.

Proposed changes include:

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• testing out expanded hours at three community centres in 2020: weekends at Doon Pioneer Park, later evenings at Chandler Mowat and early mornings at Stanley Park.

• offering a free "community room" that can be booked by community groups for events as a trial in 2020 at Country Hills, Forest Heights and Victoria Hills community centres.

• inviting community groups to sit down with neighbourhood associations to work out what programs - from recreation programs to homework clubs or food distribution programs - would best meet community needs.

• finding ways to share equipment, such as tents, popcorn machines or barbecues, between neighbourhood associations and other groups.

• sharing expertise, from city staff and other neighbourhood associations, for things like outreach or event planning.

• looking at ways the bigger, wealthier neighbourhood associations might share revenues with smaller, more struggling organizations.

"I think it's really important to acknowledge that one size doesn't fit all," Coun. Debbie Chapman said. "We have to look at every individual community centre and neighbourhood association, and assess what's working and what's not, and let them lead the way."

cthompson@therecord.com

Twitter: @ThompsonRecord