Charging to park

[bushmaster24]

It kills me to here some of these AD say if you never ran an athletics program you dont know the cost . Well i am sure anyone involved in athletics do know the cost ,I would say very few teachers could run a business.And thats what gets some schools in trouble

[LICKING COUNTY FAN]

Eat at home and not at the games.
Bring your drink with you there are ways to fight the increase in prices.

[bushmaster24]

I would like to asked do the teachers and kids of teachers pay to park? A do they pay to get into games? Maybe if you would fill the pain it would change your mind.And if you pockets are so deep then PAY..Becouse i know you want that 2 nd and 1grd to pay..

[qualified101]

i hope logan doesnt stoop the level of pay to park. season ticket holders can reserve a parking place for a price of 10.00 which is cheap for six games. but i think that is the only cost. i would rather see pay to play than raising ticket prices, concessions and so on. we need fans to attend games. the people that want to play will find the money but schools need the student body to support the teams.

[Zanes-Vegas]

season ticket holders can reserve a parking place for a price of 10.00 which is cheap for six games

And our patrons pay $10 for five games. Yep. Exhorbitant!

Secondly ... the concession folks may not have a choice in their prices after too long. With the cost of "product" rising, they would have to raise prices to help even maintain the revenue they generate through those sales. Basic economics.

Ticket prices, at the high school level, are generally the last thing to rise. I think when our prices were increased, it was a bit of a panic mode. Some (at the middle school level) were eventually reduced.

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bushmaster24:

We have a teacher/coach who is our AD. He also holds a degree in sports administration. He understands business. That's why he's finding even more revenue streams to help fund our sports. One goal is to ELIMINATE the pay-to-participate fee instituted a few years ago. I know him well enough to know he'll get it done. I trust him fully when it comes to the operation of our athletics department -- and since I also have a "sports business" degree, and have been deeply involved in the financial end of athletics for quite some time, I believe I speak with some credibility.

Our teachers/staff/administration all pay for RESERVED seating (and most do). They can use their IDs for two general admission entries (such as teacher and spouse) to anything at which an admission is charged in our district. But a majority of them purchase season tickets. Our students pay a small admission fee to attend our games. The very young ones do not.

And yet, I don't hear complaints. Maybe for where a person's reserved seats are located, but not about cost.

We are fortunate here. We have a very supportive community, through thick and thin. And it's not like we're in some wealthy community. Far from it -- we're not unlike the rest of southeastern Ohio. But it's a major reason why we're well on our way to raising the $1.5 million it's taking to refurbish our stadium.

So here's a question -- let's say you take a family of four to a football game at $5 a pop. That's $20. Let's say, on the easy side, you drop about $20 at the concession stand for that family. That's $40. But that two dollars to park your car on campus is an outrage? Are you kidding me?

[LICKING COUNTY FAN]

The schools charging for parking I wonder will police the parking lot and take responsibility if the cars are broken into? I know there are a few places in the state that cars are broken into like clock work.

[Zanes-Vegas]

To my knowledge, that doesn't happen ON our campus. There have been reports of vehicle break-ins on vehicles parked in the nearby neighborhoods. But that is something that happens in a lot of places.

[fighting_falcon]

So with the econmic times Vegas is talking about should we expect Zanesville to continue to be adhead of the curve and increase prices across the board?

I know we have funded many sports with the athletic department paying for eveything but coaches salaries. Transportation costs, equip cost etc are funded by the athletic department and booster club. Yet we only charge $4 or $5 to get in. The concessions are more than resonable 1.25 for 20oz pop, hotdogs with chilli 1.25 (you get the point) and we do not charge to park either. I would say that maybe your teacher/coach AD may want to inquire how we do it so cheaply instead of just asking for more and more. Then again we don't have to travel the ends of the earth to find basketball team worthy enough to play against.

[Cap'n Scoop]

I have a personal rule: If you charge me to park or an outrageous amount at the gate I will NOT buy from your concession stand. No parking fee, I will eat my dinner at the game. Kind of my own little boycott system.

[qualified101]

being a business owner myself, i completely disagree. you want more people to come so you can sell your wares. alot of people wont come if you charge them to park, like myself. actually the people you are really hurting are the players parents who not only pay to play, but pretty much have no choice in the matter if they want to see their child play sports, not to mention the fact that they probably already pay property tax of some sort to fund the school. zv, i consider you a legitimate poster, so lets just agree to disagree. good luck this season.

[Onthefence]

If the parking lot is actual school property I have a serious problem with charging to park. I have no problem paying to support a schools athletic program. Charge me an extra dollar or two at the gate O.K. However I should be allow to park at a public school (For free)anytime...

[Zanes-Vegas]

fighting_falcon, you insist on putting words in my posts that do not exist. My meaning is this -- the time will come when those of you who believe your worlds are insular will have to face rising costs. We got there before you did ... and not that we wanted to. No, we do not intend to raise ticket prices. In fact, as I noted, it was among the LAST things we've ever raised. And again, I will contend that concession stand prices will begin to nudge upward. Some of you, however, make it seem we're charging caviar prices for hot dogs or something. And I'll tell you what about our basketball program -- we've always tried to play the best and have traveled across the state to do so. However, my friend, that cost is not covered by our athletic department. The excess costs are covered by our basketball booster club, which does a phenomenal job of fund-raising. Some you folks out there may think we're extravagant. No way. First-class, yes, but extravagant would be a vast overstatement.

qualified, at least I can count on your decency. But let me say this -- I could understand the ire here if schools were charging a much higher sum to park. Two bucks for a carload of fans is not going to send anyone into poverty. As I noted, for our fans, that's $10 for a football season. So for all those who would complain of handing over two dollars to park your car, how many of you also part with money for a 50-50 drawing as you enter your stadium, or for any other "fund-raising" things that go on?

Bottom line is I don't understand why two bucks to park is such a big deal when the average family is already dropping half a C-note on a Friday night.

High school athletics are one of the few remaining "bang for your buck" entertainment values we have left. But let's be honest, people -- high school athletics is just vulnerable to economic pressures as anything else.

I'm thankful to live in a community that supports its student-athletes, and wants the best for them. They always have and just when some of us think they're going to give up, they come through again.

[bman618]

I personally disagree about charging to park at a game, especially when it's a public high school and we're paying for the lot as a taxpayer. But with the economics as they are, I can understand the reasoning.
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I went to a playoff game last year where the venue did not charge to park because they wanted folks to roll up and put down a lot at the concession stand, which is what happened.

[mstangmom]

I think Home playoff games are the only ones that should charge to park.

[bman618]

Disagree about the home games because the home team makes more money - programs, tickets (home fans buying, get slice from OHSAA), concessions, etc. than a neutral school does (they don't get the home tickets). But I can understand why the charge in the economic times but it adds to the cost and might make the neutral or fringe fan think twice about going - attendance has been declining for the past couple of years. Definitely not an easy situation.

[YOU'RE TIGER BAIT]

WE'VE HAD SEASON TICKETS FOR OVER 30 YEARS. AND THERE IS PLENTY OF PARKING AROUND THE TANK MEMORIAL STADIUM. 2 BUCKS TO PARK AT NEXT DOOR CENTRAL CHRISTIAN CHURCH, VERY WORTHY DONATION. 3 BUCKS, BEHIND THE STADIUM, IN THE OHIO UNIVERSITY LOT. SHOULD BE THE SAME 2 BUCKS THOUGH. SEASON TICKETS REASONABLE ENOUGH, AND CONSESSIONS ARE GOOD AND VERY FAIR PRICED. NO GOUGING IN TOWN. BUT I WOULD LOVE TO SEE IMPROVED RESTROOMS. AND THE BLEACHERS BE CLEANED BEFORE HOME GAMES. ESP. FOR THE SEASON TICKET SECTION. LARGER VISITING TEAM LOCKER ROOMS. YTB.

[YOU'RE TIGER BAIT]

WHERE DID MY POST GO.

[bman618]

Don't think parking charges affect the solid fill-in-the-blank team fans or even diehard HS football fans. If they have the money, they will be at their game or a game thar appeals to one of the diehards that does not follow a particular HS. Where the charge does have an affect, along with items like long distance to games, is the borderline fan. If they are spending 10 bucks per person before they get in the door on parking and tickets, they may think twice, especially in times like this.