Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout7 - July 18 2016 Park Board Minutes - 1 - SOUTH BEND BOARD OF PARK COMMISSIONERS REGULAR MEETING JULY 18, 2016 The Board of Park Commissioners of the Park District of the City of South Bend, Indiana met on Monday, July 18, 2016 at the O’Brien Administration & Recreation Center, 321 E. Walter St., South Bend, Indiana for its regular meeting. Notice of the date, time and place of the meeting were duly given as required by law. Park Board members present were as follows: Mr. Mark Neal, President Ms. Aimee Buccellato Mr. Dan Farrell Ms. Amy Hill Park Board members absent were as follows: None Staff members present: Aaron Perri, Director of Parks; Susan O’Connor, Deputy Director; Eva Ennis, Operations Coordinator; Paula Garis, Special Events Supervisor; Matt Esau, Marketing Director; John Martinez, Maintenance Superintendent; Michael Schmidt, Park Board Attorney I. The meeting was called to order by Board President Mark Neal at 5:04 p.m. II. Approval of Minutes of the May 16, 2016 Regular Board Meeting Motion to approve the minutes of the regular board meeting held on June 20, 2016 by Amy Hill, supported by Aimee Buccellato, motion carried. III. Approval of the Consent Agenda Larry Clifford shared that the stage at Leeper Park across from the Rose Garden will be cleaned out and the area will be the site of a small event on August 20 where local artists will perform. They are requesting a beer/wine permit for the two hour event Saturday afternoon, which will be catered by South Bend Brew Werks. The event already received an alcohol permit from State. Paula Garis indicated that all paperwork was in order for this event and all the other events listed on the agenda. Motion to approve the consent agenda by Aimee Buccellato, supported by Amy Hill, motion carried. IV. Interviewing of Interested Citizens Request for citizen input on items not listed on the July 18, 2016 Park Board Meeting agenda. There were none. - 2 - V. Report by Organizations Potawatomi Zoo Josh Sisk reported that attendance at the Potawatomi Zoo was up 15,000 visitors last year from previous years, and this year attendance is up 23% from that. So far this year, the new carousel and a new playground in the zoo farm opened. The Zoo also brought in special new species this year and hosted wine tasting event and members picnic earlier this summer. The Zoo is making efforts to be transparent with public on animal treatment. An economic impact study was recently published which Marcy Dean will present at the next meeting. VI. Unfinished Business 1. Update on Elbel Special Advisory Committee Recommendations Aaron Perri noted that all members received a copy of the USGA agronomy report which reviews the status of South Bend golf course conditions. JJ Keegan has hosted a weekly webinar series for the golf course management team and continues to work on his report of golf operations. He will present the final report after the board meeting on August 15. Aaron Perri added that the Park Board will be forming advocacy committees which he will discuss later in the meeting. VII. New business 1. Nick Gaul – Award Quotes for New Roof and Boiler at Pinhook Nick Gaul reviewed the bidding process for a new roof and shared that STA Roofing was chosen with a quote of $29,500, which includes 15 year warranty. The budget was $30,000. Michael Schmidt approved of the bidding procedure for both projects. Aimee Buccellato asked if other materials were considered and if staff looks at long term efficacy of materials used. Aaron Perri replied that Parks Maintenance is looking at the life cycle of all equipment and materials. Nick Gaul reviewed the bidding process for the new boiler noting that Parks Maintenance contacted five companies and selected H&G Herman and Goetz with a quote of $29,984. The boiler will be completed by the fall. Motion to award the recommended quotes for a new roof and boiler at Pinhook by Dan Farrell, supported by Amy Hill, motion carried. 2. 2017 Fees Aaron Perri shared that the first draft of budget has been submitted and part of the budget process is to approve the rate structure for Parks and Recreation programs. Aaron Perri reviewed the philosophy on how parks set rates which comes from the South Bend Parks Administrative Manual as well as the South Bend Parks Master Plan. The policy states that Park Department functions of high community benefit (i.e. trails, playgrounds, open space) are fully subsidized while individual benefit programs (i.e. fitness classes) are self- - 3 - sustaining. Fees should be based on how much each program costs to run and the subsidy level of the program. Dan Farrell asked if staff will come back with the expenses for each programs and the associated fees. Aaron Perri explained staff is working to get the numbers for each program. Katherine Osborn of 517 River Avenue asked about the difference between individual and community benefit programs and gave the example of the fitness center could be viewed as more of a community benefit because it is similar to a playground for adults. She also commented that open space is high community benefit and hard to protect and asked how the Parks Department feels about marketing and defending community space. Aaron Perri replied that everything the Parks Department does is high community benefit, but individual activities are often areas where the private sector competes. 3. “Quality of Place” Departmental Alignment Aaron Perri reviewed the departmental alignment that will combine the quality of place services within the city which includes Parks and Recreation, Century Center, Morris Performing Arts Center, Downtown South Bend Inc, Palais Royale, and the South Bend Printshop. The new department will be called Department of Venues, Parks, and Arts (VPA). Dan Farrell asked when VPA will start. Aaron Perri replied VPA will be introduced in January 2017 once the budgets are approved, but the venue operations portion of the department will not be merged until 2018. Jennifer Betz of 511 St. Joseph Street asked where the accountability structures are in this new department model. Aaron Perri replied there are boards associated with these entities that will remain. There is also a PARC (Parks, Recreation, Cultural Arts, and Entertainment) Committee of the Common Council, which oversees these entities. Dan Farrell asked if the Park Department administrative policies could be placed on the website when the budget is submitted. 4. Ecological Advocacy Committee Aaron Perri introduced the resolution to establish the Ecological Advocacy Committee, which was created in response to the Elbel Advisory Committee recommendations. The Parks Department anticipates more committees in the future. The Ecological Advocacy Committee is expanding upon the Tree Advisory Committee to include more ecological needs of the park system. The resolution is in draft form and open for discussion to be approved the next month. Dan Farrell recommended changing the wording to support plant diversity as opposed to just tree diversity. Larry Clifford commented that under city ordinance the Park Board is responsible for all trees in the city. He expressed concern that other city departments are making decisions - 4 - about what trees get cut down that do not have the knowledge about forestry. Mr. Clifford encouraged that the city be stronger advocates of keeping trees in place. Mr. Neal replied that communications between the city’s departments regarding trees have improved and funding has been allocated to take care of trees already planted. Katherine Osborn of 517 River Avenue expressed concern that there is not enough protection for trees and open space, and there is not a lot of incentive for defending these things. She commented that she is supportive of this advocacy committee being a clear place in the city structure to defend these issues. VIII. Business by Director Aaron Perri Aaron Perri gave the following updates:  June 30 was the first annual Parks Pools and Popsicles tour in which Aaron Perri handed out popsicles all the city-owned pools and splashpads.  Aaron Perri played Pokemon Go last weekend and wrote blog about how technology can bring people together through social equity and public health and what consequences does this have for parks. NPRA is going to publish the article.  Aaron Perri will participate in an NRPA Conference in Portland focused on what role parks play in social equity.  The Parks Department submitted the first draft of the 2017 budget.  The city selected Smith Group JJR to perform the Riverfront Parks and Trails Design Plan which will look at the riverfront from Leeper Park to Farmers Park. The public kick off meeting is September 8 at 5:30 pm at Century Center.  Free wi-fi is now available at Charles Black and MLK Centers.  The EPA has begun their work at LaSalle Park. IX. Comments by the Recreation Director Susan O’Connor Susan O’Connor gave the following updates:  July is National Parks and Recreation month. To celebrate, the marketing department created a video highlighting what South Bend parks offers and gave away prizes on social media.  July 8 was the St. Clair Park and Byers Ceremony dedication.  July 9 was Kids Triathlon.  Parks served 8,250 lunches in June.  Movies in the Park has been somewhat successful at some locations but not at others. We will increase marketing efforts for future movies.  City wellness corporate challenge was at the East Race in July.  Aquatics facilities are not having very high numbers during the new nighttime hours.  Senior travel program has been successful.  Charles Black Center gave tribute to fallen police officers by releasing balloons with campers.  The aerial ropes course is set up at Rum Village and should open by mid-August.  Bounce rentals are popular this summer. - 5 - X. Comments by Maintenance Supervisor John Martinez John Martinez gave the following updates:  The maintenance team reviewed storm damage and policies and is currently rewriting the storm damage manual.  Parks Maintenance had a staff retreat on June 30.  The month of July typically requires the most park maintenance resources.  New asphalt was installed at Boland Drive  Madison steam project design  Leeper Park repaving  Seitz Park bench installation  Ravina Park basketball court recoating  Ravina Park sidewalk and sprinkler  Keller Park cleanup  East Bank Trail minor improvements  MLK new boiler and HVAC will be installed in October or November  Parks Maintenance will be adding a horticulturalists on staff to provide an expertise the department does not currently have. Parks Maintenance would also like to add an HVAC tech to staff. No other questions or comments from the Board, meeting adjourned at 6:45 p.m.by President Mark Neal. The next regular meeting will be held August 15, 2016 at 5:00 pm in the Boardroom of the O’Brien Administration Center. Respectfully Submitted, Eva Ennis Executive Secretary