Hockey fees could rise as budget boost

Fees for playing on the Lumberjacks varsity and junior varsity hockey teams may increase in the future, as part of an effort by the Cloquet school district to decrease the burden on the overall budget.

During the Cloquet school board work session Monday, March 21, board members and administration discussed the expensive lease agreement with the city for use of Northwoods Credit Union Arena for hockey games and practices.

Superintendent Michael Cary told the board that player fees for the Cloquet-Esko-Carlton boys and girls hockey teams are lower than some neighboring school districts and “significantly” lower than the fees the Cloquet Area Hockey Association charges for playing on its teams.

“I pay significantly more for a child in PeeWees than we charge for this activity,” Cary said.

CEC currently charges hockey players a $250 activity fee per season; most other varsity sports charge $170 but use school facilities or less-expensive amenities such as Pine Valley. The fee for most extracurricular activities other than sports, such as mock trial, theater and robotics, is $85 per season. The fees are halved for students who qualify for reduced lunch, and students who qualify for free lunch pay 25 percent. There is currently a cap of $525 per family per year, with the same 50- and 25-percent fee scale for families who qualify for reduced and free lunch.

Cary asked the board for feedback on the idea of gradually increasing the fees for hockey over the next few years. Board members were amenable to the idea, but said they would like to see a comparison of costs with other regional high school hockey programs.

Board member Ken Scarbrough also wanted to know how hockey costs compared to other sports and how an increase in fees would affect the family cap for extracurricular activities.

Cary said he would have activities director Paul Riess report on the issue at the next school board meeting, scheduled for April 11.

“As a parent, I think it’s completely reasonable,” Cary said, before hastening to add that he is not suggesting the district increase its fees to the level of CAHA costs for players, which can be more than $1,000 plus equipment, travel and hotel costs.

Another major point of discussion revolved around a new contract for Cloquet school district building and grounds director Dylan Carlson. The new contract would have aligned Carlson’s contract with the technology director, as both positions deal with major systems and have to manage groups of people, superintendent Michael Cary told the board.

Board member Hawk Huard said he would like to see Carlson’s previous contract and have some questions answered about his day-to-day duties and his work as a supervisor, among other things. A motion to approve the contract failed to pass on a 3-3 vote, as did a motion to table the action.

Cary said he will meet with Huard, a longtime and now retired custodian for the district, and research the answers to questions before bringing the contract and more information back to the board at its next meeting April 11.

The board will not have a second meeting in March due to spring break next week.