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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-03-2021 PRC MinutesCity of San Luis Obispo, Agenda, Planning Commission Agenda PARKS AND RECREATION COMMISSION - MINUTES NOVEMBER 3, 2021 PARKS AND RECREATION COMMISSION Based on the threat of COVID-19 as reflected in the Proclamations of Emergency issued by both the Governor of the State of California, the San Luis Obispo County Emergency Services Director and the City Council of the City of San Luis Obispo as well as the Governor’s Executive Order N-29-20 issued on March 17, 2020, relating to the convening of public meetings in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the City of San Luis Obispo will be holding all public meetings via teleconference. There will be no physical location for the Public to view the meeting. Below are instructions on how to view the meeting remotely and how to leave public comment. Additionally, members of the Parks and Recreation Commission can attend the meeting via teleconference and to participate in the meeting to the same extent as if they were present. Using the most rapid means of communication available at this time, members of the public are encouraged to participate in Commission meetings in the following ways: 1. Remote Viewing – Members of the public who wish to attend the meeting on Zoom: • https://slocity- org.zoom.us/j/82190005204?pwd=ODlNM2ZZaHdlVzJEN3Nld2pxN0s5dz09 • Call In: 669-900-6833 • Meeting ID: 821 9000 5204 • Passcode: 492548 • Find your local number: https://slocity-org.zoom.us/u/kcl64ZD8OJ 2. Public Comment - The City Council will still be accepting public comment. Public comment can be submitted in the following ways: • Mail or Email Public Comment o Received by 3:00 PM on the day of meeting can be submitted via email to advisorybodies@slocity.org or U.S. Mail to City Clerk at 990 Palm St. San Luis Obispo, CA 93401. All emails will be sent to Commissioners and saved as agenda correspondence however we cannot guarantee emails received after 3:00 PM on the day of the meeting we be sent out to Commission or uploaded to the website prior to the meeting starting. • Verbal Public Comment o In Advance of the Meeting - Call (805) 781-7164; state and spell your name, the agenda item number you are calling about and leave your comment. The verbal comments must be limited to 3 minutes. All voicemails will be forwarded to the Council Members and saved as Agenda Correspondence. Voicemails will not be played during the meeting. o During the meeting – Joining the webinar (instructions above). Once the meeting has started, please put your name and the item # you would like to speak on in the chat box. During public comment for the item your name will be called, and your mic will be unmuted. Contact the office of the City Clerk at cityclerk@slocity.org for more information. All Comments/Correspondence received will be saved as part of the record for the meeting. Parks and Recreation Committee Minutes for November 3, 2021 2 | P a g e Wednesday, November 3, 2021 5:30 p.m. REGULAR MEETING Via Webinar CALL TO ORDER: Chair Robert Spector ROLL CALL : Vice Chair Kari Howell, Commissioners Kari Applegate, Rick Blair, Kris Roudebush, Adam Stowe, and Andrew Webber PUBLIC COMMENT: At this time, people may address the Committee about items not on the agenda. Persons wishing to speak should come forward and state their name and address. Comments are limited to three minutes per person. Items raised at this time are generally referred to staff and, if action by the Committee is necessary, may be scheduled for a future meeting. No Public Comments CONSIDERATION OF MINUTES 1. Minutes of the Parks and Recreation Committee of October 6, 2021 Motion by Roudebush to accept the minutes and a second by Stowe. Minutes approved. CONSENT ITEMS 2. SLO Swim Center Operations and Staffing Update (Hyfield) Commissioner Howell: Appreciated the submitted report. Very thorough and appreciated hearing from the community. Thank you, Devin. Commissioner Blair: Thank you Devin. Regarding the Fall Session, what would be total operation hours planned vs. what is offered now? Understand it is a difficult time to hire and retain staff. Is there more we can do to for employee retention? Do we know why they left? Hyfield: Pending hiring challenges, staff will assess and determine if able to expand fall hours. Reduction in morning for the therapy pool. A lot of programming is underway based on current hours. Will get further information later as staffing allows. Aquatics coordinator does a great job and pays a lot of attention to the employees. Many Parks and Recreation Committee Minutes for November 3, 2021 3 | P a g e incentives for employees. Recruitment and retention programs in place. Need to do exit interview survey as City currently only requires it for full time employees’ not supplemental staff. Only four took the Lifeguard class who were interested in working for the City of SLO. Others were from the City of Morro Bay. We will extend hours once the four employees are completely onboarded, and we are in the process of hiring them. One from college, three from high school. Hope to have full hours back by the end of the month. We continue to look forward to adding additional programmed hours as lifeguards are hired and availability changes. The Swim Center will be closed for Thanksgiving Day and the following day. As an update to the consent item, the SLO Swim Center Fall programming was set to offer 39 public hours. Due to the staffing challenges, hours were reduced to 26 hours, a 34% reduction, with some pool space not available during all hours. If you consider the closure of the Olympic pool, the total hours would be 22 public hours. Commissioner Roudebush: Appreciated detailed report on scheduling. Seems that hours were scheduled thoughtfully. Encourage recruitment from the retirement community and would be a good idea to pursue. Commissioner Weber: Good report from Devin. Nothing more to add. Chair Spector: I have a different perspective. Had a good system which was working however due to COVID things have changed quickly. And the previous system was not good at predicting oncoming changes and we were left a bit behind. The report needs to address next year more powerfully and moving forward on how to address this issue, so we don’t lose time as things change. Devin, could you address some of these issues such as pay, cost of certification, time to commit to become certified. Appreciate all the staff efforts. This is not just a SLO recreation problem. Hyfield: Appreciate all of the feedback and will continue to provide feedback. Chair Spector: Are there any Public Comments about this issue? Paula Dooley (Public): I haven’t seen the report, however I think there are more issues at the pool that need to be addressed. I echo what Roudebush says in that those schedule changes were made thoughtfully; however operational hours have been reduced. I added up all public hours which is a big cut for this facility. Let’s not let this happen again. Lifeguards leave every summer, so this was visible and predictable and not to be caught out again. Chair Spector: Other public comments? No Public Comments. Parks and Recreation Committee Minutes for November 3, 2021 4 | P a g e BUSINESS ITEMS 3. Review and Debrief of Special Meeting of October 22, 2021 - PRC Park and Facility Tour (Vice Chair Howell - 20 minutes) Advisory Board met with P&R Staff at the Ludwick Community Center. Went to Mitchell Park first. Discussed Grant project and toured the Senior Center. Next was Sinsheimer Park and the SLO Swim Center. Talked to Aquatic staff and looked at the potential location for a Bike Pump Track at the park. Toured Righetti Ranch and the proposed park system. Finished at Laguna Lake Park and looked at potential bike park location and proposed enhancements to the Dog Park. Was very educational, informational, inclusive, and welcoming. Commissioner Applegate: Very informational, welcoming, and informative and obviously a lot of work has been done on the master plan Blueprint and City Staff have been listening to the public and community needs especially in regard to the bike pump track and dog park which have been at the top of our agenda. Had never imagined that area as a bike track and was great to hear the creative ideas from Ranger Supervisor Doug Carscaden about how that could work. Commissioner Blair: Very useful and helpful for things being actively discussed. Would be good to expand and go to additional existing parks and regularly visiting those parks. Hopefully we can schedule visits before another year passes. Commissioner Roudebush: Extremely helpful to be there with staff for context and history and explain the reality and challenges of all of the projects underway and what needs attention. See that the Pump track and Dog park are high on the project list. When Staff is available at least once a year park visits would be good. Commissioner Stowe: Was wonderful to see everyone in-person and appreciated going into the Senior Center and the surrounding area of Mitchell Park to envision what is possible. Extremely beneficial to talk to Shawn Tucker at the pool and what he envisions for future growth, and he has some great ideas for the Swim Center facilities. Liked Laguna Lake Park plans and what’s going on. Great to see the possibilities and what could be a quick build. Agree that we must do this touring again and go to other parks more than once a year and see what’s going on. Will help us in the future with prioritization. Parks and Recreation Committee Minutes for November 3, 2021 5 | P a g e Commissioner Webber: Thanks to city staff. Was a great outing. Enjoyed seeing the Senior Center and Laguna Lake park and take another look. Made me proud to be on the commission and proud of all the work the Commission and Staff has accomplished. Vice Chair Howell: Thank you everyone and to the Parks and Recreation Staff for organizing it. Chair Spector: Thank you to everyone. It was time well spent and all want to do it again. Any community comments? No comments. Director Avakian: Traditionally the tour is an annual event, and we look forward to doing it again. 4. Laguna Lake Dog Park Update - (Avakian – 20 minutes) Recommendation: Review Staff Presentation and Discuss Project Amenities and advise Staff for next steps Dog Park Enhancement presentation: Received presentation on the dog park enhancement ideas for Laguna Lake Park by Director Avakian Commissioners provided advice and input from community members for this plan. • Background of plan, followed by focus on quick build at Laguna Lake Park, showing current infrastructure followed by additional amenity ideas outlined and next steps: fencing, shade structures, seating pavilion, planting trees, hydration stations, puppy area, small and large dog areas, dog play amenities & agility course and lighting. • A lot of projects in the queue and would like to have a staff project manager to drive the project. • Laguna Lake Master Plan, Conservation Plan, CIP Project list, establish community outreach and potential workshops and partner with local groups. Next Steps: Prepare proposal on specific plan with priorities, costs and implementation via phases. Chair Spector: Thank you. Community comments? John McKenzie. John McKenzie: Thank you Greg, great presentation. I represent Friends of SLO City Dog Park and in agreement with your plans for Laguna Lake and I sent in our idea Parks and Recreation Committee Minutes for November 3, 2021 6 | P a g e plans. We are very excited and if there is anything we can do to help with the Quick Build, we are very happy to do that. Glad to see plans moving forward. Chair Spector: Thank you for your plans and participation. Vice Chair Howell: Great presentation. Next Steps. How will this happen and coincide with the building of the bike park at the same time and how do they impact each other. Director Avakian: There will be a tie in. For example, the parking could be expanded for both uses. Will be glad to discuss further in next section of the presentation. Commissioner Applegate: Yes, I wondered about parking expansion as well and usage by both areas. And dog park entrances from parking area. Director Avakian: Yes, good question about access and signage for the specific dog park areas. Lots of opportunities for directional signage and multiple access. Commissioner Applegate: Please talk about fencing. What did you mean? Director Avakian: Perimeter fencing, and specifics will be presented in design phase. Will consult with conservation staff and with consideration for sizes of dogs and a “soft” visual fencing with plants. Inner fencing bordered by plantings. Delineation between size of dog and activity. Commissioner Blair: Agree with what’s been said so far and I agree with Mr. Mackenzie. Groundcover will be important. Would be great if it could be natural. Bark might be okay. Experts will obviously decide what’s best. What about “Agility” area? Good to have an area when the weather is bad. What about the Memorial Circle? Not sure if that’s needed to raise funds. How do we make it available to ALL community members? I’m sure we will receive lots of community input. Very exciting. Director Avakian: Multiple styles of ground cover would be available throughout the area. Currently the area is mostly clay. We will work with the experts. Low maintenance, sustainability and all year around usage are all important. Memorial Circle is an opportunity and needs further discussion about development and what it would be. Lots of opportunities. Park already has memorial tree grove. Staff will include for research interest and what the community input is. Parks and Recreation Committee Minutes for November 3, 2021 7 | P a g e Commissioner Roudebush: Thanks for the great report. I’m very excited for this process to begin. I fully support what’s been proposed. I have one idea to propose which is a dog waste composting pilot program. Perhaps something to investigate. Commissioner Stowe: Think we also need to look at another location so that when this facility is done, we can get started on the next one. I’m not an expert, I approve of all amenities and features and the first three in high priority order would be perimeter fencing, parking expansion and lighting for safety. City should post and enforce parking regulations. Currently RV’s are permanently taking up spaces. Commissioner Webber: Agree, all this is great. And looking forward to seeing the design proposals. Chair Spector: Very exciting. Micro and macro parts of this project. Dog Park and Bike Park. This will change the park complexion. Seems like there could be lots of sponsorship opportunities available. This one is a regional dog park, and the next plans could include some smaller dog parks that could be done more quickly. Commissioner Roudebush: Agree that the complexion of the park will change. Also think that more people will use the dog park and traffic within the park will increase and speeding could be a challenge. Chair Spector: Seems that the Commission is on board with the plan, and we have a consensus. Director Avakian: Thank you Mr. Mackenzie and Commission for your input. This is one piece of a larger puzzle. The current parking area is scheduled to be redone and is scheduled to be looked at after the lake dredging project is finished and with the Blueprint reviews. We want this to be a revitalized park and a sustainable destination. All of these actions will activate and start the momentum, especially with San Luis Ranch Development across the street. The City’s Streets division will definitely be involved with bike paths and roadways as they are the engineers who will help with traffic control. 5. Bike Park and Pump Track Update - (Avakian - 20 minutes) Recommendation: Review staff presentation and discuss project locations and priorities and advise Staff for next steps Director Avakian: Follow up from last month, October PRC meeting. The Blueprint identified opportunities. We currently don’t have anything of this nature. Parks and Recreation Committee Minutes for November 3, 2021 8 | P a g e Per consultants’ recommendation, national standard is one bike park per 50,000 residents. Two significant locations identified: Laguna Lake Park and Sinsheimer Park/ Railroad Safety Park areas. • Bike Pump Track - Hard/multi-use surfaces for bike, scooter, and trikes. Momentum based. • Bike Park - Dirt/natural surfaces and settings. Technical amenities, berms, jumps and bridges. Presentation detailed Pros and Cons and opportunities of both Laguna Lake Park and Sinsheimer Park. Laguna Lake Park: reviewed of map and outline would incorporate areas for different levels of riding and for a variety of ages to allow for younger children as well. Will need significant dirt in order to build these amenities/tracks. Could have a temporary zone and a quick start up to get needs met before a more comprehensive design. Sinsheimer Park and Railroad Safety Trail: reviewed map and outline for pump track. Not considered an open space at this time but restrictions based on nearby housing. South portion/behind stadium/south for beginner level/younger age group. Consideration of connecting the trails and access. Chair Spector: Thank you. Community comments? No community comments. Commissioner Howell: Thank you. Very thorough and an excellent next step. I appreciate it. I’m drawn to the fact that Laguna Lake can start small then develop into a larger plan. I wasn’t very excited about Sinsheimer, and your data supports that. Trust your team and the information provided. Landscape of park will change and glad that is a consideration. Also considering how these projects align and the great community enthusiasm for moving forward. Commissioner Applegate: Agree with Howell’s comments to start small and expand. Mountain bike group is in support of creating this type of bike park and glad to help. Commissioner Blair: Agree and fully support the development of Laguna Lake projects quickly. Question to address is access to Sinsheimer for easily getting to the upper level. Parks and Recreation Committee Minutes for November 3, 2021 9 | P a g e Commissioner Roudebush: Agree with other commissioners and am excited. Agree that starting with Laguna Lake is the best place to start the project. Starting at Laguna Lake, what is the timeline so that people can get started using the bike park ? When can we begin to get more community feedback on a Sinsheimer Park revitalization survey? Director Avakian: Yes, access for Sinsheimer is a challenge, engineers will need to figure out elevation, etc. Timeline is a hard one for staff to answer now, the engineering and conservation team and Public Works Department would need to answer on the impacts and plantings. Likely could be a spring start for the temporary project is reasonable. Full, big picture project is 18-24 months process with engineering and design firms, then construction. So, the in-house short-term build is the first priority. Commissioner Roudebush: Sinsheimer assessment. Director Avakian: Sinsheimer is included in the Blueprint as part of a larger community park. That will need its own “mini” master plan. The current amenities are from the 70’s and is this the best footprint location. All could be moved around and upgraded rather than doing piece meal activities, so that we have long term usage as we incorporate blueprint recommendations. Commissioner Webber: I agree that Laguna Lake is the best spot. Will take a lot of dirt but seems like the best place to start. To represent the skateboard community, I would love to ride my skateboard there, as an older skateboarder. You are on the right track here and I think it will be well received. Chair Spector: I’m more convinced than ever that Laguna Lake is the best choice. All the pros and cons point to Laguna. Mini master plan will take much longer and more complicated at Sinsheimer. This presentation was very helpful and I’m all for it. Commissioner Applegate: Where would you get that amount of dirt? Director Avakian: We will need to research and assure that any dirt we use is safe to incorporate into the Laguna Lake park area. We will be cautious. There are some housing developments we could potentially partner with and do soil testing. Must be appropriate for this setting. Commissioner Applegate: Are we able to keep the walking path at Laguna Lake? Director Avakian: Yes, the goal is to keep the current paths and upgrade them. In addition, could add a nice pedestrian and biker friendly boardwalk area. Parks and Recreation Committee Minutes for November 3, 2021 10 | P a g e Chair Spector: Question, is this the way we want to proceed? Director Avakian: Thank you for all the questions and input. With the holidays approaching, we may not have adequate information by December meeting. All the city staffs that need to do research. We could be prepared with a more detailed report in January. Chair Spector: Maybe cancel our December meeting because only a couple of work weeks between now and them. Would commission consider cancelling December meeting and reconvene on January 5? Commissioner Applegate: Has fencing been considered for the bike park? Director Avakian: This will be considered when risk assessment is done for all locations during the design phase. Staff Report (Director Avakian - 15 minutes) Staffing Updates - A lot of staffing changes and transitions with promotions and resignations department wide. Meghan Burger, Recreation Manager – a. Youth Services Division has a new Supervisor, Michelle Rolle. Katie Carrillo has replaced Michelle Rolle in the Coordinator role. All 5 school sites with 90 children enrolled at each for childcare for the day. Still having a hard time recruiting staff. Many kids on the waitlist because we don’t have enough staff. b. Public Art: Maria Molteni’s new mural on the back of the Fremont Theater continues with expectation to be complete in mid-November. Local artist group, Marmalade Design (Amy McKay) is finishing a mural project on the Marsh St. bridge. c. Community Services - Chris Woods was promoted to the new Community Services Supervisor. This has left a vacancy for the Recreation Coordinator position. We held the Haunted Walk last Friday. Was a phenomenal event. Great work by our team. Gobble Wobble will be virtual in partnership with the SLO Food Bank. d. Youth Sports - Pickleball continuing and basketball clinics coming up. e. Jack House/Senior Center - getting contract classes ready for Winter/Spring. f. Community Gardens - no new updates Parks and Recreation Committee Minutes for November 3, 2021 11 | P a g e Devin Hyfield, Recreation Manager - Aquatics, Facilities and Golf Aquatics • We continue to look forward to adding additional programmed hours as lifeguards are hired and availability changes. • For some additional clarification, the swim center had enough staff to work Fall hours, but some staff chose school over work. • Lifeguard retention at the Swim Center has been better than other aquatic facilities with some guards working for close to 5 years. • The Swim Center will be closed for Thanksgiving Day and the following day. Facilities • All fields will be closed for its annual renovation, with Santa Rosa Softball fields closing next week. • Damon-Garcia Complex, Fall season will conclude with AYSO this month. The kikuyu grass installed over three years ago is holding up well this season. Maintenance has recommended reduced programming for Field C, but not a full closure. Golf • On October 10, the Laguna Lake Golf Course installed a new software system that improves the registration and transactional process for both golfers and staff. Unfortunately, the system was unable to work with the current credit card system, so the course has been cash only for the last month. Staff is hopeful to have a new system in place by mid-November. Once installed, the new system will allow fast pay features including apple pay, among others. • With Daylight savings starting on November 7, the course will transition to its Winter hours of 8 am – 5 pm. • Frost and rain delays for the course will be more prevalent in the upcoming months. • Night Golf continues to see very high numbers every Thursday. • The Golf course will be closed on Thanksgiving Day. Chair Spector: Any other questions? Parks and Recreation Committee Minutes for November 3, 2021 12 | P a g e SUBCOMMITTEE LIAISON REPORTS & COMMUNICATIONS Subcommittee Liaison Reports (Chair) - 15 minutes) a. Adult and Senior Programming: Commissioner Blair They have a candidate to be their President. November election. Status quo with their ongoing programs status quo. b. Active Transportation Committee: Commissioner Webber Continuing with master plan and evaluating programs. Big, completed section of all their completed projects. Pavement plan ongoing. Very busy. Website has all the plans. A lot of cool and creative programs. c. Jack House Committee: Commissioner Applegate Meeting next week. Not many changes to report. Exploring new signage project. Meghan will provide updates to staff. Upcoming Victorian Christmas event. d. Youth Sports Association: Commissioner Stowe NA Director Avakian: Night hike program at Cerro San Luis Open Space is still being reviewed and scheduled to present environmental findings to City Council on Nov. 9th. City Council will vote either continue the program, modify, or suspend the program. Communication Chair Spector: Proposal for Cancellation of December meeting. Majority voted to cancel December meeting and we will reconvene in January. Thank you everyone. ADJOURNMENT To the Regular Meeting of the Parks and Recreation Commi ttee as approved by the PRC to Wednesday, January 5, 2021 , at 5:30 p.m. The City of San Luis Obispo wishes to make all of its public meetings accessible to the public. Upon request, this agenda will be made available in appropriate alternative formats to persons with disabilities. Any person with a disability who requires a modification or accommodation in order to participate in a meeting should direct such request to the Parks Parks and Recreation Committee Minutes for November 3, 2021 13 | P a g e and Recreation Department at (805) 781-7300 at least 48 hours before the meeting, if possible. Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (805) 781-7107. Meeting audio recordings can be found at the following web address: http://opengov.slocity.org/WebLink/1/fol/61014/Row1.aspx