By Greg Chandler
Zeeland Record
It could soon cost you more to rent out the Howard Miller Community Center for that upcoming business meeting or wedding reception.
Amanda Hanson, director of the community center as well as the Howard Miller Library, has proposed a 25 percent increase in rental fees, effective July 1. Hanson made the request during the City Council’s discussions on the 2026-27 fiscal budget March 31.
If approved, the weekday hourly rate for renting out the community center’s banquet room would increase from $50 to $62.50, while the weekend hourly rate would rise from $75 to $93.75. The weekday full-day rate would jump from $400 to $500 while the weekend full-day rate would increase $600 to $750, Hanson said.
If the new rates are adopted, renting out one of the community center’s three activity rooms on an hourly basis would increase from $25 to $31.25 on weekdays and from $31.25 to $39 on weekends. The full-day rate would rise from $200 to $250 for weekdays and from $250 to $312.50 on weekends, Hanson said.
Hanson requested the increase to keep up with the community center’s rising operating costs. The rates must be approved by the City Council.
The proposed fee increase would be the first for the community center since 2019, Assistant City Manager and Finance Director Kevin Plockmeyer said.
Hanson points out that the community center’s rental fees are much less than other large-scale gathering spaces, such as the Holland Civic Center and Holland Township’s recently-opened community center.
The Howard Miller Community Center hosted 504 events during the 2024-25 fiscal year, a 7.5 percent increase from the 2023-24 fiscal year, when 469 events were held there. The community center has hosted 297 events so far in the 2025-26 fiscal year, through the end of March, with a reported attendance of 10,373, Hanson said.
Nonprofit organizations that rent the community center pay only 50 percent of the regular rental rate under a policy adopted by the city in 2023, Plockmeyer said.
Hanson also brought up the topic of whether the city should look at establishing rates for residents versus nonresidents, but did not recommend adopting a policy at this time.
“I would like to leave it for a future consideration,” she said. “I didn’t want to tack on an extra charge at this time when we’re raising rates for everybody.”
Plockmeyer suggested the city look at a resident-versus-nonresident fee structure for the community center in conjunction with adopting a similar structure for renting park facilities. The city currently has a resident-versus-nonresident fee structure for cemetery plots and burials, he said.
The council is expected May 4 to vote on a resolution approving the rental fee increases, Plockmeyer said.
Zeeland Record
It could soon cost you more to rent out the Howard Miller Community Center for that upcoming business meeting or wedding reception.
Amanda Hanson, director of the community center as well as the Howard Miller Library, has proposed a 25 percent increase in rental fees, effective July 1. Hanson made the request during the City Council’s discussions on the 2026-27 fiscal budget March 31.
If approved, the weekday hourly rate for renting out the community center’s banquet room would increase from $50 to $62.50, while the weekend hourly rate would rise from $75 to $93.75. The weekday full-day rate would jump from $400 to $500 while the weekend full-day rate would increase $600 to $750, Hanson said.
If the new rates are adopted, renting out one of the community center’s three activity rooms on an hourly basis would increase from $25 to $31.25 on weekdays and from $31.25 to $39 on weekends. The full-day rate would rise from $200 to $250 for weekdays and from $250 to $312.50 on weekends, Hanson said.
Hanson requested the increase to keep up with the community center’s rising operating costs. The rates must be approved by the City Council.
The proposed fee increase would be the first for the community center since 2019, Assistant City Manager and Finance Director Kevin Plockmeyer said.
Hanson points out that the community center’s rental fees are much less than other large-scale gathering spaces, such as the Holland Civic Center and Holland Township’s recently-opened community center.
The Howard Miller Community Center hosted 504 events during the 2024-25 fiscal year, a 7.5 percent increase from the 2023-24 fiscal year, when 469 events were held there. The community center has hosted 297 events so far in the 2025-26 fiscal year, through the end of March, with a reported attendance of 10,373, Hanson said.
Nonprofit organizations that rent the community center pay only 50 percent of the regular rental rate under a policy adopted by the city in 2023, Plockmeyer said.
Hanson also brought up the topic of whether the city should look at establishing rates for residents versus nonresidents, but did not recommend adopting a policy at this time.
“I would like to leave it for a future consideration,” she said. “I didn’t want to tack on an extra charge at this time when we’re raising rates for everybody.”
Plockmeyer suggested the city look at a resident-versus-nonresident fee structure for the community center in conjunction with adopting a similar structure for renting park facilities. The city currently has a resident-versus-nonresident fee structure for cemetery plots and burials, he said.
The council is expected May 4 to vote on a resolution approving the rental fee increases, Plockmeyer said.
