Council members, recreation district leaders and Quality of Life staff spent a large portion of the meeting examining how CivicRec scheduling and parish procedures interact with district control of facilities, and whether insurance requirements are preventing routine community use of parks.
Staff and task‑force participants described the CivicRec system as a central calendar where Quality of Life/TPR events are prioritized and districts can then fill gaps; staff said an update is underway so that rec districts will automatically receive email notifications when a booking is entered. Mark Amadee described an initial "hiccup" phase as staff and rec district managers learned the system, but said scheduling "is starting to get a little bit better" and that the intention is to schedule further in advance.
Council members pressed for operational clarity: how far ahead TPR schedules, who has first priority and whether a permit or a supervisor must be present for what the policy calls "organized" activities. Quality of Life staff described the workflow: after registration closes there is a two‑week window to finalize team needs before assigning facilities. Rec district officials and supervisors said local practice varies — some districts lock fields outside season or for sensitive sites, others keep fields open and use portable facilities such as port‑a‑lets for restroom access.
Tammy Knight, who serves on an advisory board, told the panel that special‑event insurance has been a recurring burden and that districts sometimes purchase a blanket special‑event policy and add events as needed. "If we pass by a park and we send 10 or more people at a birthday party, we gotta stop and say, hey. You need insurance," she said, noting an important distinction between casual open play and organized/instructed events.
In response, the parish attorney said he would prepare a written opinion for the committee clarifying insurance and immunity implications for open play versus private or organized events: "I'll put an opinion together, and I'll provide it to you guys." Council members also asked the attorney to include historical information about any insurance claims or lawsuits that might justify existing requirements.
Next steps: the parish attorney will research and provide an opinion on open‑play insurance and immunity provisions; staff said IT changes will enable automated CivicRec notifications to rec districts to reduce miscommunication.
Representative quotes include Tammy Knight: "We do our yearly event... we send it in... and then I get insurance." and the parish attorney: "I'll put an opinion together, and I'll provide it to you guys."