Groups would be able to rent the Boise Depot for a six-hour time period instead of five hours.

Instead of charging only for a hockey team of 14-18 players, the city would offer a small team option — up to 13 players, plus a goalie — that costs $1,400 less.

Largely, the new fees — being considered by the council Tuesday night — are aimed at enhancing user flexibility and stem from feedback that customers have provided about how to make the city’s facilities more inviting, said Doug Holloway, interim director of Boise Parks and Recreation.

One new fee on the proposal would charge park users to replace sod. Holloway said the fee is not related to last August’s Barley Brothers Traveling Beer Festival, which the city said caused nearly $4,000 of damage to Ann Morrison Park’s turf.

“Generally we don’t have to replace sod,” Holloway said. “That means there’s an area that we believe is beyond repair.”

Proposed increases to existing fees are driven by a rising cost of doing business. Gas, train rides to mountain towns, caterers, movie tickets, art supplies — they’re all getting more expensive, Holloway said. Many rate increases are simply a matter of the city transferring cost increases that private vendors have assessed, he said.

Sven Berg: 377-6275