Blackstock concession revenues questioned

BLACKSTOCK -- Unsure of how much money will end up in the Township's coffers, Scugog has delayed making a final decision on who will run the concession stand at the Blackstock Recreation Centre.

In a report put forward on Monday for council's perusal, John Sellars recommended that BBST Enterprises of Blackstock be awarded the contract to operate the concession stand at the community facility.

Scugog's councillors, however, did not readily endorse the suggestion.

Instead, they fired a barrage of questions at Mr. Sellars, the Township's director of parks, recreation and culture, on how much revenue the municipality could expect from the agreement. That figure wasn't made clear in the report and was further muddled by some inconsistencies between Mr. Sellars's Oct. 26 recommendation and the tender application sent in by BBST.

In his report, Mr. Sellars noted the Township would pocket 10 per cent of the total monthly sales, while the proposal by BBST said the Blackstock company would forward Scugog 10 per cent of the net sales. That left Scugog councillors scratching their heads on how much money the Township would actually receive.

"Net can be anything, net can be zero by the time you take costs out," said Ward 3 Councillor Lynn Philip Hodgson. "Based on this discrepancy, we need to take a look at the matter further."

Scugog Mayor Marilyn Pearce noted that Mr. Sellars had estimated revenues of about $1,500 in his 2009 budget but did not include any numbers in his report on what the municipality can expect in net sales revenue. The mayor also questioned him on how he came up with the 10-per cent figure and chastised him for not drafting up a business plan for the concession stand.

Hinting that Scugog may "franchise" out the concession operations at the Scugog Arena, the mayor questioned the director on how much money the Township makes from sales at the Reach Street facility after product costs and staff wages.

"It's decreased significantly from the opening of the Tim Hortons across the street," replied Mr. Sellars, estimating the municipality pockets about 10 to 15 per cent of the revenue from sales at the Scugog Arena.

Mayor Pearce later questioned if Scugog could "make more money putting a couple of students in there to run a snack bar" in Blackstock and whether the recreation centre advisory board had considered that option.

Only two submissions of interest to operate the canteen were received by the Township. The BBST proposal states that the concession stand would be open Wednesday, Thursday and Friday evenings and throughout the day on Saturday and Sunday.

BBST plans to sell a variety of snack food plus pizza, soup, chili, salads and assorted vegetables. They also plan to offer Wi-fi Internet access and a pop machine.

Councillors later voted in favour of deferring any decision on the matter until receiving clarification on revenues.

Mr. Sellars initially told councillors at the Oct. 19 municipal committees meeting he was prepared to award the concession contract but was instructed by Mayor Pearce to bring forward a report for council's review.