Community Packs Chambers to Fight Jefferson County Parks & Rec Cuts

JEFFERSON COUNTY, WA — The Jefferson County Board of County Commissioners’ (BOCC) meeting room reached maximum occupancy long before the 9:00 a.m. start time on March 23. In the hallway, additional people were lined up from the courthouse side entrance to the chamber's doors, waiting to be heard.

By the time the first public comment was given, 49 people had filled the chambers, 64 lined the hallway, and 132 watched online. The topic, a set of budget proposals that would affect the county’s Parks and Recreation department, drew the largest and youngest crowd in recent BOCC history.

Facing a $350,000 budget gap driven by rising insurance costs and unfunded state mandates, county staff presented three grim options to the board. All three involve vacating the Port Townsend Recreation Center—a 70-year-old institution that serves as a hub for youth sports, Zumba classes, free drop-in hours and so much more.

While the commissioners ultimately delayed a final decision due to capacity constraints, the community's message was clear and urgent.

“These programs create magic by bringing people from all walks of life together to recreate, to laugh and to truly build community,” said a parent and local physician named Judy. “We need more of this, not less.”

A budget crisis years in the making

The current crisis, while sudden in its presentation, is the culmination of decades of underfunding and structural challenges.

Parks and Recreation Manager Matt Tyler explained that the department operates on a shoestring budget of just 4.4 full-time equivalent (FTE) staff to manage 23 parks spanning nearly 1,200 acres, 19 miles of trails, and over 82,000 annual participant hours. That number is down from 7 FTE in 2000, while park usage has tripled in that time.

The immediate precipitating factor is a $250,000 (25%) cut, directed by the board in December 2025, to help balance the county’s general fund. However, Public Works Director Eric Kuzma told the board that since that directive, costs have ballooned further. A “true-up” of expenditures revealed an additional $194,000 in unanticipated expenses, including a 35% increase in the county’s risk pool (insurance) assessment and higher utility costs.

“That $250,000 cut really becomes a $350,000 cut,” Kuzma said. “It’s enormous to imagine reducing your services by that much.”

Compounding the issue, the 2026 budget was adopted with an artificial revenue line of $150,000 from a donation campaign that did not yet exist. The department has been “eating into fund balance” ever since.

“We’re not going to be able to slow down the machine in stages,” Kuzma added. “We can’t just cut everything off.”

The three options

The three proposals, developed over the last several months, were laid out in stark detail by Tyler.

Option A (Recommended by Parks Staff and the Parks Advisory Board):

This option “spreads the pain,” vacating the Port Townsend Rec Center and eliminating maintenance on its playground. It would remove portable toilets and trash services from several county parks (Hicks, Irondale Beach, East Beach, North Beach) and end professional maintenance at the new skate park, relying on volunteers to maintain it. Memorial Field would shift to a caretaker model, effectively ending its use for school sports. Critically, this option preserves the countywide recreation program and youth sports.

Option B (Not Recommended):

This option eliminates the entire recreation program, laying off three clerk-hire staff and two full-time staff, and declaring all recreation equipment surplus. Tyler called it “the worst option.”

Option C (Conceptual):

This would shrink the park system to a "core" of regional parks, including HJ Carroll, Chimacum and Gibbs Lake, and divest of all other facilities through sale or transfer. Tyler warned this could lead to permanent loss of parkland and trigger repayment obligations on state grants.

“It’s like asking us to decide which leg and arm we want to cut off,” Tyler said, his voice heavy. “You can’t do it. It’s almost impossible, and that’s because we’re so lean in how we operate.”

A tidal wave of testimony

For nearly an hour, residents of all ages streamed to the podium that morning, each given one minute to speak. The testimony was emotional, personal, and relentless.

Devon Buckham, a father and organizer who helped rally the crowd, noted he learned of the severity of the cuts only days earlier.

“I was on the phone with folks all the way until 10 o’clock last night,” he said. “Half of what I have spent my time doing in the last two days is combating disinformation. Today is my day off. We can do better.”

Frank Adamson, a researcher specializing in public programs, urged the board to reconsider the framing.

“Budgets are often presented as numbers, but at their core, they are statements of values,” he said. “The evidence is strong: structured youth activities improve mental and physical health, support academic success, and reduce reliance on more expensive systems like health care and law enforcement. These programs are not an expense; they are long-term cost savings.”

Nancy, a 10-year skate park user, described the sacred nature of that facility.

“This is an important place for kids who are not in the traditional rec sports programs,” she said. “It’s a place to learn to fall and pick themselves up. I myself have gone on all fours, hands and knees, to pick up dirt and wipe up puddles with the shirt on my back.”

Alex Little, a high school basketball coach and lifelong resident, spoke to the social cost of cutting youth programs.

“The alternative is that kids are hiding behind a screen,” he said. “You just don’t get to figure out how to work through real-world issues with somebody right in front of you.”

Steve Oliver, a Port Hadlock resident, summed up the sentiment of many:

“I think all three of these proposals, with all due respect, are just one way or another to tip over the wagon,” he said. “I encourage you not to do that. It’s hard work to keep the wagon rolling, but you can do it.”

The response

Following the public testimony and the staff presentation, the commissioners engaged in a candid and painful discussion about the county’s fiscal reality.

County Administrator Josh Peters revealed that the county’s general fund is in such a precarious state that it “came close to not being able to make payroll” in early 2026 while waiting for property tax revenue. Finance Director Judy Shepard confirmed that any additional general fund transfer to Parks & Rec would increase a deficit already projected to exceed $1.5 million.

Commissioner Heather Dudley-Nollette, visibly moved by the morning’s testimony, took responsibility for the lack of clear communication about the fundraising component.

“If you’re going to blame anyone right now, you should blame me,” she said. “When we passed the budget, I said if a fund starts, I’ll get behind it. Then I second-guessed it. I didn’t get out there. I will publicly apologize for that right now.”

Commissioner Heidi Eisenhour, who grew up in Jefferson County playing soccer, emphasized the need for a structural solution.

“I came up through the county soccer program. I was one of the first girls playing,” she said. “We have seen the diminishment of opportunity for kids for my entire life. It is heartbreaking.”

Fundraising benchmarks: $85,000 for the Rec Center

A key point of confusion, and hope, emerged during the workshop regarding a community fundraising effort now housed at the Jefferson Community Foundation.

After extensive back-and-forth, staff clarified the benchmarks for community assistance. The amount needed to keep the Port Townsend Rec Center open through the end of 2026 to address the immediate cash flow gap is $85,000. Meanwhile, Parks & Rec faces a total gap of $350,000 to maintain current service levels through 2027 without implementing significant cuts.

“If the community were to reach $85,000 for the Rec Center, would that keep the rec center open for 2026?” asked Commissioner Dudley-Nollette.

“Yes,” Kuzma replied. “If you add $85,000 to the current fund balance, it becomes manageable.”

However, Dudley-Nollette cautioned that fundraising is not a long-term solution.

“It’s not a great policy,” she said. “It’s not long-term sustainability for us to ask the community for dollars. Our job is to stay focused on the permanent solution.”

What’s next

Because the meeting room exceeded fire code capacity during public comment, the board could not take final action on any of the three options. However, they signaled a clear path forward:

1. Special Meeting: The board will schedule a special meeting, likely in the evening at a larger venue (such as the high school or Fort Worden), in early April to consider a first-quarter emergency appropriation to fund Parks & Rec through the interim.

2. Connectivity Summit: Residents are encouraged to attend the Connectivity Summit on March 28. A workshop at 3:00 p.m. will focus specifically on long-term solutions for the county budget, including a potential parks levy lid lift. The assessor’s office has recommended running such a measure twice if necessary to ensure passage.

3. Community Fundraising: The Jefferson Community Foundation fund is now open. Community members are urged to donate to help reach the $85,000 benchmark to save the Rec Center for 2026.

“We are on your side,” Commissioner Eisenhour told the crowd. “It’s just a really sticky wicket right now. We don’t have a money-printing machine.”

“We are here to be part of the solution, not part of the problem,” Buckham told the Beacon in an interview. At the podium, he continued, “The solution to the problem, and not just the immediate problem of funding, but the long-term problem, the problems we face as a county, moving forward, it is this community, and they need to be involved in this process. They need to be reached out to. If we're willing to succeed together, we need to be willing to fail together.”

How to help

A fundraiser has been established with the administrative help of Jefferson Community Foundation to support Jefferson County Parks and Recreation. As of March 23, the fund is open for donations.

Donation Link: https://jcf.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/create/fund?funit_id=3422

Goal: $85,000 to keep the Port Townsend Rec Center open through 2026.

Total Gap: $350,000 to maintain current services.

Get involved

Connectivity Summit: March 28, 3:00 p.m. Workshop on long-term county budget solutions.

Email Commissioners: Jeffbocc@co.jefferson.wa.us