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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03-03-10 PRC Minutes1-1 Parks and Recreation Commission MINUTES Council Hearing Room, 990 Palm Street San Luis Obispo, CA Wednesday, March 3, 2010, 7:00 p.m. CALL TO ORDER: Chair Jill Lemieux called the meeting to order at 7:01 p.m. ROLL CALL: Chair Jill Lemieux, Commissioners: Craig Kincaid, Gary Havas, David Hensinger, Ron Regier and Steve Davis ABSENT: Kylie Hatch STAFF: Director Betsy Kiser, Marti Reynolds, Shannon Bates, Bridget Fraser CONSIDERATION OF MINUTES: MOTION: (LeMieux) Approve the February 3, 2010 minutes as amended. Approved: 6 yes: 0 no: 1 absent (Hatch) 1. Public Comment Greg Ellis, San Luis Obispo, for ‘One Cool Earth’ in partnership with Lionel Johnson. They work with high school and elementary students to grow native trees within the City. Current focus is on Sinsheimer Park where they are hoping to use donations and volunteer labor to replant row of trees and water and maintain them until established. The project is funded through PG&E and Glickbar Foundation. Currently working with Todd Beights for necessary approvals. Also developing additional program to address shortage of community gardens by creating network that matches landowners with individuals wishing to garden. Model successful in other cities. Plans to canvas funds door to door and hold a fundraiser potluck. Have 15 interested individuals within the county so far. 2. Volunteer(s) of the Month The March Volunteers of the Month are Tracy Phillips and Candice Nosworthy. Both are currently interning with the Parks and Recreation Department. Tracy is working in the Special Events division. She has taken on projects ranging from a Community Garden Best Practices report to the Spring Break Pool Party. Tracy is currently a junior at Cal Poly majoring in Recreation, Parks and Tourism with a Special Event Management concentration, hoping to graduate in Spring 2011. Upon graduating, she aspires to go to grad school for Recreation at San Francisco State to further prepare for a career in planning special events that deal with food and wine, professional sports or concert events. Tracy is also a member of the Rec Club and Gamma Phi Beta Sorority where she holds the position of Philanthropy Chair, getting members involved in local community service efforts and planning large-scale fundraisers. Candice is working with the Public Information Officer. She has completed updating the online Parks and Recreation Commission Minutes March 3, 2010 Page 2 of 5 1-2 community calendars with event and contract class information, assisted with the creation of the Monster Skate program marketing materials and has spent considerable time on the social media policy for Parks and Recreation. Candice is a senior Communication Studies major and will be graduating in June. She plans to enter the Multiple Teaching Credential program in the fall to gain a credential to teach in the elementary grade levels. Candice is also a member of the Communication Studies Club where she sits on the board. Prior to beginning her career as a teacher, she hopes to live abroad and improve her Spanish. Both interns have been a very valuable addition to the Parks and Recreation Department and their willingness to learn and participate in all things Recreation is greatly appreciated. 3. Santa Rosa Restroom Review - Fraser Project Engineer Bridget Fraser and RRM Architect for the project, Pat Bodie gave a PowerPoint presentation to Commissioners on a replacement proposal for the two restrooms located at Santa Rosa Park. The project scope includes demolition of the existing restroom structure and replacement with a new ADA compliant restroom building in generally the same location. The new restroom will contain the same total number of fixtures as the existing restroom (8), however, it will be a smaller, squarer footprint at 25’x27’ than the existing building. Materials will be vandal-resistant, will use composite roofing in lieu of asphalt, provide a security gate, and will add walkway between restroom and picnic area. Upon approval by the Parks and Recreation Commission (PRC), construction documents will be completed and the project will be presented to the City Council for approval to proceed with construction. Construction is tentatively scheduled for summer or fall of 2010. Commissioners discussed the project and inquired about conditions of public works and maintenance concerns, the use of security gates in addition to doors (for added protection from animals and the elements), using less ‘heavy duty’ entry doors in the future, and GFI reset for potential circuit overload. MOTION: (Havas/Regier) Approve the proposed replacement of the restroom building located near the playground within Santa Rosa Park, and including the suggestions outlined in the letter from Public Works, and forward the recommendation to the City Council. Approved: 6 yes: 0 no: 1 absent (Hatch) 4. Staff Report – Bates Recreation Manager Shannon Bates gave a PowerPoint presentation on the recent installation of Public Art piece Bequest by artist Brian Chessmar of Santa Barbara. The new piece was installed at the Monterey and Buena Vista Street intersection where, during an ARC design review to address a traffic problem, it was suggested as a prime location for Public Art. 30 proposals were originally received during the 2008 Request For Proposal process. Design began Parks and Recreation Commission Minutes March 3, 2010 Page 3 of 5 1-3 August 2008. The three resulting sculptures are 15’, 12’ and 9’ in height with the largest piece weighing ¾ of a ton. A dedication ceremony will be held March 26 at 4 p.m. 5. Director’s Report – Kiser Director Kiser gave the Director’s Report and briefed the Commission on the following projects: • The SLOCAPRA Commissioner’s Workshop was held on February 27. Commissioners gave very positive feedback on thought-provoking presentations on economic constraints and challenges. • Council will appoint the new Advisory Body members on March 16. If approved as recommended, we will sadly lose Chairperson Lemieux, but keep David Hensinger and add Jeff Whitener. Swearing in will take place at the beginning of the April meeting and a new Chair and Vice Chair will be elected. • The water fountain at Emerson Park has been completed. • Rotary Community Garden progress: permits have been issued and workdays scheduled for March and April. • Santa Rosa Park Roller Hockey Rink name change will go to Council on March 16. Demolition can’t begin until there is a period of two weeks without rain. There will be a dedication in the future with Ken Hampian in attendance. • CIP Update: - Throop and Laguna Lake Park playground reports are now circulating and will go out to bid in March. - Roller Hockey Rink renovation has begun with pulling the fence and taking out the tree, however rain has delayed further progress. • Skate Park: RRM Design is currently preparing a report for ARC review; will need to go to the Planning Commission also, due to environmental concerns with noise, lighting, etc. • Fundraising program with Running Warehouse and Plus 3 Network is complete. We’ve raised $4,999. The check will be presented at the March 16 Council meeting. +3 currently looking for additional sponsors for another fundraising campaign with the P&R Department. A new fundraising (brick) program is being developed for the skate park. • Spring softball full with 90 teams; waiting list • Janssen Award recognition at opening ceremonies at Babe Ruth, March 13 at 11 a.m. Parks and Recreation Commission Minutes March 3, 2010 Page 4 of 5 1-4 • Commissioners confirmed that Damon-Garcia is the main update they would like from Parks and Urban Forest Supervisor Todd Beights. 6. Committee Reports Commissioners provided the following reports: Tree Committee – Kincaid Joint Use Committee – Hensinger Youth Sports Association - Davis Jack House Committee – Hatch Open Space – Havas Golf – Regier Bicycle Committee – Havas Commissioner Kincaid stated there was nothing outstanding to report on the most recent meeting of the Tree Committee. Commissioner Davis reported there was no meeting of the Youth Sports Association in the last month. Commissioner Havas had a recent discussion with Natural Resources Manager Neil Havlik regarding Open Space issues. Froom Ranch purchase is close to meeting its goal with narrower shortfall of $50k. Bureau of Land Management has land that may be key to trail between Froom and Johnson Ranch. Johnson Ranch will go through rotational grazing north of creek. Still working on trail for South Hills, waiting for Council action. Stenner Springs discussion with groups. FASTA will become part of 3CMB. Also reported on Cerro San Luis bootleg mountain bike trails, more space for Reservoir Canyon area, Filiponi property, Irish Hills and Council 3/2 vote on Orcutt Specific plan school easement. Commissioner Havas reported there was no recent meeting of the Bicycle Advisory Committee, however, added information from last month regarding development of working relationship with City and County bike planning. Commissioner Hensinger reported there was no Joint Use Committee meeting for February. Commissioner Hatch was not present to report on the last meeting of the Jack House Committee, therefore Jill LeMieux reported. The wood gazebo needs to be replaced soon. An annual review of the work plan shows a need to advertise for more docents/volunteers. Commissioner Regier reported on the Laguna Lake Golf Course, stating rounds were down proportionately and revenues were not off so much due to cell site lease. Seven inches of rainfall was reported for February. Play was down 15% from last year. 3/8 rating process. An RFP will go out this week for a concession operation. Staff completed a CPR refresher. New netting was installed due to storms. 7. Communications Parks and Recreation Commission Minutes March 3, 2010 Page 5 of 5 1-5 Director Kiser was interviewed by the SLO Journal which is featuring Parks and Recreation in their April issue. As a result of a CPRS survey, the new brand “Parks Make Life Better” is being launched for Parks and Recreation this month. Commissioner Havas, under inspiration from one of the presentations at the workshop, asked if there was anything staff feels is important but that hasn’t been placed on a previous agenda. Director Kiser spoke of open communications that already exists with the Chair. Chair LeMieux agreed that the training illustrated an opportunity to be better advocates in asking concerns of staff. Commissioner Regier also spoke of workshop discussion that provoked thought on golf courses and corresponding property values of neighborhood, and that the absence of golf courses or replacement with other kinds of development could end up costing more. 8. Adjourned The meeting adjourned at 8:00 p.m. to the April 7, 2010 meeting of the Parks & Recreation Commission. Approved by the Parks and Recreation Commission on April 7, 2010. /sgd/ ___________________________________________ Martha M.S. Reynolds, Supervising Administrative Assistant