Next week, the last nine-member recreation commission in Kansas may make itself a little smaller.
On Monday, the Emporia Recreation Commission will discuss whether to shrink itself to seven members or even smaller. At its current size, at least five commissioners have to be present to do any business. And a quorum has been difficult to get in recent years.
“This is something that has concerned every chairperson we’ve had in the last several years,” said Roger Hartsook, the current chairman. “As recreation programs grow and budgets grow, we have a lot of issues on the table that need to be discussed and voted on. You need a quorum to pay your bills.”
Things reached a peak in June when a sick board member had to join the meeting by cell phone just to get a quorum together.
“They’re always on a lot of other entities, committees, boards, things like that,” said Recreation Director Tom McEvoy. “I know we’ve struggled getting a quorum.”
Those struggles have included changing the meeting day and time, but without effect.
“Why is it happening? I have no clue,” said Jennifer Bennett, a past chair of the commission and current member. “I don’t think any of us know the answer.”
Part of it, she said, may be in who serves on the commission. Of the nine board members, four are elected officials — two from the Emporia City Commission and two from the Emporia school board.
“We’re taking the two busiest groups in Emporia, Kansas, and adding a committee to their schedule,” she said.
Those clashing commitments were made clear earlier this year when the city commission began interviewing city manager candidates, which meant that both city commissioners on the board were effectively out of action.
The other board members are two city appointees, two school board appointees — one of whom is traditionally the high-school principal — and an at-large member appointed by the rest of the commission. There are no term limits. In fact, one member, Harry Waters, recently left the recreation commission after serving continuously for 47 years.
Hartsook and Bennett said that one possibility might be to reduce the number of elected officials on the commission to just one city commissioner and one school-board member. That means only four people would have to be present at a meeting to take action. Reducing the size of the commission would also lighten the load on the city commission and school board.
No course of action has been decided on. Hartsook said that any other ideas offered by the public would be considered.
The membership of the commission is not set by law and can be altered by the recreation commission itself at any time.
“I think seven would be perfect,” Bennett said. “I like that we’re bigger than most boards. I don’t think a five-member board is big enough for the amount of business we do.”
The recreation commission meeting will begin at 4 p.m. Monday at the Lee Beran Recreation Center.