registration
Dunbar Soccer Association - Registration Fees to Increase
It is soccer registration time again and we encourage you to register early to benefit from the early bird fees.
After years of relatively stable registration fees, the Dunbar Soccer Association (DSA) unfortunately needs to increase registration fees for the coming season. This increase is required to allow us to provide quality services to our membership while addressing the significant reduction in provincial gaming grants allocated to our club and our increased operating costs over the past few years. Fee increases will also be required at many Vancouver soccer clubs this coming year.The provincial government substantially altered the allocation of Gaming Funds this past year, and the grant to our community club was drastically cut. Based on previous years we expected to receive approximately $100,000 (or approximately 25% of our budgeted income), however in September we received only $30,000. The Gaming Commission made similar deep cuts to other community sports clubs in the province. With the high rental rates of the UBC artificial turf fields and other significant operating expenses, the 70% cut in our gaming grant has put immense financial pressure on our operations, as it has for other westside soccer clubs.
Throughout the current 2009/10 season, the DSA Board of Directors has sought ways to limit spending while maintaining our core services and the financial integrity of our club. However, the Board felt that access to artificial turf fields is of prime importance to our membership. Since there is no guarantee of any gaming money for the coming year, a difficult but necessary decision was taken recently to increase membership fees for the 2010/11 playing season. Fees have not been substantially raised for several years. With this fee increase we are looking at having more game and practice time on artificial turf for our Divisional, U11/12 teams, and some older House teams, as well as continued pro-coach sessions throughout the season.
We are very grateful for your help and dedication to DSA and youth soccer. A club like ours needs hundreds of volunteers and supportive parents to make it work. Together, we will adapt to this unexpected grant cut, and we will continue to provide opportunities for our youth to participate in another outstanding soccer season.
Dunbar soccer is dedicated to ensuring that soccer is accessible to all youth who would like to participate on a team, so if you find yourself in financial hardship please note the information on the registration page related to applying for financial support. Requests for financial support or for information about financial assistance programs are strictly confidential.
I would also like to take this opportunity to emphasize the importance of ensuring that Vancouver continues to invest in artificial turf fields. The rental cost of the Vancouver Park Board fields is considerably less than we pay at UBC for time on artificial turf fields. The DSA Board urges each club member to keep this in mind and at every opportunity to encourage the Vancouver Park Board, School Board and City Council to support the construction of more artificial turf fields so that our children have high quality fields for their games and practices throughout the season.
Please contact me at "pwdelaney@shaw.ca" if you have any questions or comments regarding the foregoing.
Thanks to all in our Dunbar Soccer community for your continued efforts, support and understanding.
Peter Delaney
President
Dunbar Soccer Association
Register for all Dunbar Programs using the links below:
Receipts for Children's Fitness Tax Credit
Your Child Fitness Tax Credit will forwarded to you after registration has closed for the season in early October.
Volunteers Needed
Please remember as you complete your registration, that our club relies on the volunteer efforts of both players and parents. We deliver a strong soccer program to youth ages 5-18, and are always striving to improve their experience. Please contact us if you have any questions regarding volunteer opportunities.