Forty people attended a town hall at the Lovelock train depot on Monday night, six of them via Zoom. That's a sizable turnout for a small town. It demonstrates the groundswell of support for a Boys and Girls Club in Lovelock.
Wendy Nelsen hosted the event. Middle school principal Shea Murphy moderated. Michael Wurm and Mark Jacoby came prepared to answer questions. Wurm is the CEO of the Boys & Girls Club of Truckee Meadows. Jacoby is the Director of Frontier Operations. Anything outside the Reno/Sparks area is considered a Frontier location.
The Boys & Girls Club of Truckee Meadows has chapters in Reno, Sparks, Fernley, Ely, Winnemucca, Tonopah and Panaca. Dozens of people want a Club in Lovelock and vow to overcome any obstacle in their path. They face a few.
Here is a sampling of the questions people asked Wurm and Jacoby at the town hall, along with their answers.
What activities will the Club offer?
Activities will be based on a community assessment but will include core programming in character and leadership development, education and career development, health and life skills, the arts and fitness and recreation.
Will the Club be affordable to
everyone?
The representatives say no child will be turned away for financial reasons. The membership orientation video on their website (bgctm.org) says annual memberships are $20 per year per child. That does not cover the program fees. The before/after sports leagues, summer, and break programs are available for additional fees.
The before and after school care costs $160 per month per child. Break programs are $50 per week. Sports league pricing varies.
Financial assistance is available.
About those
obstacles
On May 16, the Lovelock City Council voted 2-1 to grant the Boys and Girls Club $100,000 from ARPA funds to start a local Club. The supporters agreed to raise $50,000. Bonnie Skoglie and Jordan McKinney voted in favor of funding the club.
Jonathan Reynolds voted nay, saying he wasn't against the idea but needed more information. Since then, the supporters submitted a budget. It is available from Tina Gallagher at the Train Depot. The ayes carried the day.
However, on May 19, Mayor Michael Giles sent a memo to the Council members explaining his reasons for vetoing the action. He said the Boys and Girls Club "was not necessary for either the effective operation of the city government nor necessary for the management of city affairs."
There is also disagreement about how ARPA funds can be spent. The mayor says under State guidelines, they must be used for police, fire, public safety, health, buildings, roads and maintenance.
The Washoe County Board of Commissioners didn't get the mayor's memo. In February 2023, they voted to allocate 1.5 million of ARPA funds to the Boys and Girls Club of Truckee Meadows to expand access to childcare.
.In Nov. 2021, Fernley awarded $151,323.00 in ARPA funds to the Boys and Girls Clubs of Truckee Meadows for the Club's operational costs and personal salaries and benefits.
In Aug. 2022, Ely gave the Boys and Girls Club of Truckee Meadows $200,000 of ARPA funds for an after-school and summer program.
The mayor remains unconvinced and outlined another way to fund nonprofits.
"We can use ARPA to supplement the general fund, which then frees up general fund money, which can be used for the Boys and Girls Club and other nonprofits," he explained.
Giles has spoken to the City of Lovelock auditor Teri Gage about attending a Council meeting to monitor the process. So far, the conference is still in the works since she is out of town on business.
Supporters of the Club say ARPA money can go to nonprofits like the Boys and Girls Club as it did in Reno, Fernley, Ely and other places. Therefore, no such meeting is needed. They hope to get started by this fall. Some of the grants Wendy Nelsen and Tina Gallagher seek are time-sensitive.
Location, location, location
Murphy split the attendees into three groups to brainstorm possible locations for Lovelock's Boys and Girls Club. Some possible sites included the Train Depot, City Hall and the Methodist Church Hall.
Pershing County school superintendent Russell Fecht looked at possible spaces for a Club in the elementary and high schools.
On Tuesday, the superintendent said by email there was no room at either the elementary or high school, although that may change. He said he asked Shea Murphy to assess the middle school's building usage and spaces.
If space becomes available at the middle school, the school district would charge the Club according to a fee schedule last adjusted in 2016 and currently under review.
For example, hourly rates would be $10 for a PCMS classroom and $30 for their multipurpose room. Custodial and equipment fees for folding chairs and tables would add to the price tag.
The Boys and Girls Club hopes to open an hour in the morning and four to five hours after school during the school year. They'd be open up to 12 hours a day in the summertime. The fees could be prohibitively expensive.
The Boys and Girls Club of Truckee Meadows operates 31 school sites, 18 in Reno/Sparks, four in Fernley, two in Winnemucca, five in Ely and one each in Tonopah and Panaca. The school districts normally don't charge the Boys and Girls Club a fee.
These are issues that could be addressed in a City Council meeting, but the supporters say they've had trouble getting on the agenda.
"I have to say that I'm disappointed to see that the Boys & Girls Club is not on tonight's agenda. I believe a Council member asked that it be there," said Lee Ann Gallagher at the June 20 City Council meeting.
"We want to go through the right process; do the right thing. We want people to voice their opinions whether they agree with us or not, but if we can't get it on the agenda, we can't have that discussion...We feel as if we're not being listened to - like we're getting the runaround. We're tired of seeing kids die from drugs. We're tired of drug deals in the town. This is a positive thing. Let's join together and save our future."