Part-Time Rec Director Will be in Field, as well as Office

Madison has a new recreation director, but this time on a part-time basis.

Zachary Ellis was officially appointed to the position by resolution at the most recent Borough Council meeting on July 26. The resolution also stated that the position will be for 20 hours per week, for the rate of $20 per hour.

Borough Administrator Ray Codey said that, although the position isn't full-time, he believes it may be able to serve the community's needs better than it was before in certain cases.

"With the new position there is a balance of office work and availability," Codey said.

Codey said that under the prior full-time system, a rec director would be in the office from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. Codey said that presented problems, especially during the school year, because events began at peak activity times directly after the director's office hours. If there were issues with fields and scheduling, there was no one to call in the office at those times.

Codey believes the new position's hours addresses the issue, as 10 of the 20 hours a week Ellis works will be spent at the office, but from 4-6 p.m., allowing him to address issues during the peak use time frame.

The other 10 hours per week will be flex time for Ellis to use as the borough needs most. Codey said that he can now go to fields, speak with sports and activity associations at their meetings, talk to coaches, and even ride along on bus trips to make sure things are running smoothly. The flex time could also be used as needed for Ellis to come to Borough Council meetings to speak on certain subjects.

The move to a part-time rec director has been in the works since late April, when the council moved to draft a resolution that split the full-time position that combined the duties of recreation director and recycling coordinator. The resolution turned the rec director duties to part time and asked that the recycling coordinator duties become a shared service with other municipalities.

The full-time position was held by Doug Smith, who voiced his opposition to the change at the April 26 meeting where the council moved to construct the draft. He was also joined by other members of the community who supported him as director, as well as the full-time position.