HomeMy WebLinkAbout05-03-2023 PRC MinutesCity of San Luis Obispo, Agenda, Planning Commission
Minutes
PARKS AND RECREATION COMMISSION
Parks and Recreation Commission
May 3, 2023
City Hall Council Chambers – 990 Palm Street
The City of San Luis Obispo has returned to in-person meetings. Zoom participation will not
be supported. For those attending in-person, City facilities will be at limited capacity and
masks are strongly recommended.
INSTRUCTIONS FOR PUBLIC COMMENT:
Public Comment prior to the meeting (must be received 3 hours in advance of the
meeting):
Mail - Delivered by the U.S. Postal Service. Address letters to the City Clerk's
Office at 990 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo, California, 93401.
Email - Submit Public Comments via email to advisorybodies@slocity.org. In
the body of your email, please include the date of the meeti ng and the item number
(if applicable). Emails will not be read aloud during the meeting.
Voicemail - Call (805) 781-7164 and leave a voicemail. Please state and spell your
name, the agenda item number you are calling about, and leave your comment.
Verbal comments must be limited to 3 minutes. All voicemails will be forwarded to the
members and saved as Agenda Correspondence. Voicemails will not be played
during the meeting.
*All correspondence will be archived and distributed to members, however, submiss ions
received after the deadline will not be processed until the following day.
Public Comment during the meeting:
Meetings have returned to an in-person format. To provide public comment during the
meeting, you must be present in the Library Community Room, 995 Palm Street. Zoom
participation will not be supported. The Parks and Recreation Department is located 1341
Nipomo Street, San Luis Obispo. If you have questions, contact the City Clerk's Office at
cityclerk@slocity.org or (805) 781-7100.
Parks and Recreation Committee Minutes May 3, 2023
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Wednesday, May 3, 2023
5:30 p.m. REGULAR MEETING Council Chambers
990 Palm Street
CALL TO ORDER: Chair Bob Spector called the meeting to order at 5:30 p.m.
ROLL CALL :
Present: Chair Bob Spector, Vice Chair Kari Howell, Commissioners, Rick Blair,
Kari Duperron, Toni Kincaid, Adam Stowe. Kris Roudebush (6 p.m. arrival)
Staff: Parks and Recreation Director Greg Avakian
Recreation Manager Devin Hyfield
Recreation Manager Meghan Burger
Administrative Assistant III Lisa Russell
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.
John McKenzie: Friends of SLO City Dog Park. The Righetti Ranch Pocket Park could be used for
a community garden instead. The dog park at Linear Park (bordering the railroad) needs to be bigger
and could be used by both neighborhoods (Righetti, French).
CONSIDERATION OF MINUTES
1. Minutes of the Parks and Recreation Committee of April 12, 2023. Carried 7:0
a. Ayes: Howell, Blair, Dupperon, Kincaid, Stowe, Roudebush, Spector.
b. Noes: None
c. Abstain: None
d. Absent: None
CONSENT ITEMS
NA
Parks and Recreation Committee Minutes May 3, 2023
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BUSINESS ITEMS
2. Receive Staff Report and Update on Righetti Ranch Park System (Avakian/Long – 75
minutes)
a. Review and discuss proposed layouts for the Community Park (Fall 2024), Linear
Park (early 2024), and Pocket Park (Spring/Summer 2024) in the Orcutt Area/Righetti
Ranch Park project.
b. Provide direction to staff and designers on the preferred draft layout options to proceed
with final layout preparation.
c. Presentation by Erica Long (City Project Manager) and Chris Dufour (RRM Design
Group). Preliminary survey results were presented: 975 community responses received
from the survey so far. The survey is open until May 10. The various park options were
reviewed in detail. Two concept options were presented for the Community Park (11.25
acres). Two concept options presented for Linear Park (1.16 acres). One option was
presented for the Pocket Park (0.2 acres).
d. Viewing of the different concept designs by the Commission and the Public took place,
followed by discussion and recommendations.
John McKenzie: Linear Park comments. More parking desired.
Commission comments:
Toni Kincaid: Preferred Option 2 with more parking. Linear Park - No picnic area. More parking.
Pocket Park needs a water station.
Kari Dupperon: Pocket Park - Small tables needed for chess or other activities. Linear Park - What
is the demand for a Community Garden? Community Park - option 2 is preferred. Also, a special needs
playground area.
Director Avakian: Special needs playground areas are being addressed moving forward and are
identified in the Parks & Rec Blueprint (master plan).
Commissioner Roudebush: Community Park option 2 is preferred. Playground accessibility needs
to be considered. Linear Park - More parking is needed, especially for those using the garden plots.
Commissioner Stowe: Community Park option 2 is preferred. Six pickle ball courts and bike pump
tracks are good. Linear Park - Option 1 is preferred with modifications. More garden plots. Pocket
Park - Great design, add more tables.
Commissioner Blair: Linear Park - More parking and more dog space. Pocket Park - very good,
perhaps more tables. Community Park - Basketball courts near the street is a concern. Option 2 parking
is good with some adjustments. A stage or performance area would be great.
Vice Chair Howell: Community Park - Too many pickleball courts. Option 2 is good. Very accessible.
We should be planning for accessibility in all the playgrounds. Linear Park - I really like the picnic
area and engagement activities. Pocket Park - adding water station is good. Art and art installation
could be added. Community engagement in participation of creation.
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Chair Spector: A family friendly theme for all the parks. Central focal areas are needed in all the
parks. Parking is very important. More trees. More seating. Multi-use areas for a variety of events are
needed. Dog park should be bigger if possible. Pickleball court areas could be adjusted/modified. A
gazebo/stage area should be included. Fencing options need to be discussed and looked at as part of
the plan. Including art of some sort would be good. Community garden quantity should be discussed
further. Bike path details are also important.
Chair Spector: Commission final comments? Could Park Maintenance review these plans as they
will be maintaining the areas? Also, a water station at pocket park is necessary.
Director Avakian: Thank you Commission for your commitment and attention to these plans and
goals. Avila Ranch (park system) is coming (soon) and will have a lot of these same amenities.
Accessibility means many things for our community. Transit, connectivity, and art is part of the
blueprint. Noise and lights are things we always consider in the design. Even sports noise is considered.
Lighting regulations and proximity to neighborhoods must be considered as there is a surrounding
neighborhood. Parks Maintenance is part of the planning process and design group.
Chair Spector: Shuttle busses to park events could be possible.
Erica Long: We have met with Parks Maintenance. Skating (roller) areas have also been proposed.
Could be dual purpose with Pickleball or Tennis.
Commissioner Spector: There is value in a multi-use mind set for reviewing the options.
Commissioner Dupperon: Various basket heights are needed for different age groups.
Commissioner Roudebush: Lighting considerations. No later than 9 pm. Lower field lighting may
not be needed.
Commissioner Blair: Need lighting for sports courts (tennis, pickleball, basketball).
Director Avakian: Lighting timelines can be adjusted with technology (e.g, 8pm, 9pm). (Staff need
direction on consideration of which amenities should be lighted is the point).
Vice Chair Howell: Parking areas must be well lit.
3. Receive Report on Current Spring and Summer Program Enrollments and Waitlists
(Burger/Hyfield – 15 minutes)
a. Staff to present and discuss the current enrollment numbers related to spring and
summer program registrations highlighting impacted programs and activities that
traditionally encumber waitlists.
b. Meghan Burger provided an in-depth overview of summer programs, policies, costs,
and staffing. Subsequently, school year 2023-24 enrollment reviewed. Discussion on
a variety of childcare options available, and monitoring waitlists on specific programs
related to childcare and after school programming.
c. Commission asks for follow-up to review the outcome of the summer school
programs.
d. Devin Hyfield provided a detailed overview of the SLO Swim Center Summer
programming and registration numbers for spring and summer. Will also provide an
update at next meeting on waitlists.
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4. Receive Parks and Recreation Department Program and Activities Update (20 minutes)
a. Ranger Service, Project Status, General Department-wide Updates (Avakian)
a. Wilderness Wednesday and partnerships with local agencies. Volunteer
workdays.
b. Budget and financial plan overviewed.
c. Parks Projects review and updated timelines
b. Youth Services, Community Services (Senior Programming and Youth Sports),
Volunteer Program, Public Art (Burger)
c. Aquatics, Golf, Facilities (Outdoor/Indoor Facilities), Citywide Special Events
(Hyfield)
SUBCOMMITTEE LIAISON REPORTS & COMMUNICATIONS
5. Subcommittee Liaison Reports (Chair– 15 minutes)
a. Adult and Senior Programming: (Commissioner Blair) - Expanding programs.
b. Active Transportation Committee: (Vice Chair Howell) - Next meeting May 20.
Working with P&R staff.
c. Youth Sports Association: (Commissioner Stowe) - No report
d. Jack House: (Commissioner Kincaid) - First concert was
successful and included 30+ tours. This Saturday is the next concert.
Communication:
Consideration of summer meeting cancellations based on schedules to be discussed.
ADJOURNMENT at 8:22 p.m.
To the Regular M eeting of the Parks and Recreation Committee as approved by the PRC to
Wednesday , June 7 , 2023, at 5:30 p.m. to be in-person at City Hall (990 Palm Street).
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
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