San Mateo County eyes waiving park fees

As proposed, vehicle entrance fees would be waived for county residents who either qualify for County Health’s Access and Care for Everyone plan, a locally funded health care program for low-income earners who don’t qualify for other insurance programs, or CalFresh, the state’s food assistance program. 

The measure is part of the department’s efforts to make the parks system more equitable, including through reducing financial and language barriers. In August, the commission voted to end tour fees at the Fitzgerald Marine Reserve in an aim to reduce cost burdens on schools. 

In the same month, the department also began standardizing reservation rates across all county parks. Rather than charging $10 when booking over the phone, $7 when booking online and nothing when booking in person, the fee will be $7 across the board, amounting to a revenue loss of about $9,500 per fiscal year. 

Vehicle entrance fees at parks drive between $1.1 million and $1.2 million in revenue a year, Calderon said. Under the changes, who Calderon staff believes the department would see little to no dip in revenue while visitorship would likely show strong growth. 

But Commissioner Neil Merrilees argued the department could have a greater impact on equity by doing away with parking fees altogether, pushing for the department to “go bigger.” 

“I know we would lose money if we do that, but it’s for a good cause and the cause is equity,” Merrilees said. 

Rather than present the board with one version of the fee program, Merrilees recommended the commission provide the board with three, one that outlined the costs of ending vehicle entrance fees for everyone at parks and another that showed the cost of ending the fees for only some. 

Merrilees’ request aligns with those made by David Canepa, president of the Board of Supervisors, who also called for all vehicle entrance fees to be ended during a meeting earlier this year. 

While other commissioners shared appreciation for Merrilees’’ recommendation and supported the goal, they shied away from fully backing the idea. 

Commissioner Heather Green argued that removing the fees for people who could afford to pay would be inequitable “at the pocket level.” 

Striking a compromise, Green proposed the commission send the recommendation to the board as presented by Calderon while also including some information on the cost of completely ending vehicle entrance fees. With that information, she argued the board could make a “measured” decision to either push forward the proposed plan, a full ending of the fees or draft a middle ground model. 

Similarly, Commissioner Jorge Laguna, who was named commission chair following the discussion, said the board should be informed that the original model was intended to “meet the spirit” of Canepa’s request. 

Calderon told commissioners he’s had meetings with officials since beginning to draft the plan but noted the decision on whether and how to change the fees is ultimately up to the board who could “go any which way” after deliberation. 

In a 4-1 vote, the commission supported Green’s recommendation. Commissioner Meda Okelo voted against the measure after arguing the county could take a slower, data driven approach to ending vehicle entry fees. 

sierra@smdailyjournal.com 

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