By Tracy Ouellette
Editor
The Village of East Troy Parks and Recreation Department reported increased usage for 2021. The Parks Department released its annual report recently and the Village Board received it at the July 18 meeting.
Parks and Recreation Director Vickie Muszynski, in the report, said the COVID-19 pandemic had decimated program attendance in 2020, but 2021 saw an uptick, while not quite returning to pre-pandemic levels.
“I understand the seriousness of COVID-19 and realize it is a very real pandemic. It affected our 2020 numbers and budget immensely, in the most negative way, that I thought I would never see. What 2021 proved is that we are back. We bounced back and people are ready to participate in activities and visit parks. It also opened our eyes to what is important. What we need to do and how to do it,” Muszynski wrote in the report.
The report included participation and budget numbers for the department. In 2019, 1,244 people used the department programs, the following year, 2020, saw that number drop to 293. Last year, participation bounced back to 1,060, which is in line with the 2016 to 2018 numbers, which range from the 800s to 1,200s.
Revenue increased to $68,000 for the Parks and Rec Department over the 2020 low of $42,000, but still down from the $90,000 average for 2017 to 2019.
