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HomeMy WebLinkAboutFebruary 18 2019 Park Board MinutesSOUTH BEND BOARD OF PARK COMMISSIONERS REGULAR MEETING FEBRUARY 18, 2019 The Board of Park Commissioners of the City of South Bend, Indiana met on Monday, February 18, 2019 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 Ms. Consuella Hopkins Park Board members absent were as follows: Mr. Dan Farrell VPA staff members present: Aaron Perri, Executive Director of VPA; Eva Ennis, Operations Coordinator; Kari Bumgardner, Experience Director; Annie Gawkowski, Chief Development Officer; Amy Roush, Volunteer Coordinator; Jonathan Jones, Recreation Director; Rose Kaufman, Senior Programming Director; Amanda Yasko, Wellness Coordinator; Jeff Jarnecke, Executive Director of Venues Other city representatives present: Clara McDaniels, Assistant City Attorney; Sharon McBride, Common Council Member I. Call to Order President Mark Neal called the meeting to order at 5:02 pm. II. Approval of Minutes Motion to approve the minutes of the last regular meeting on December 17, 2018, by Aimee Buccellato, supported by Consuella Hopkins. III. Arborist Licenses Aaron Perri noted that the arborist applications have a favorable recommendation from the forestry division. Eva Ennis noted that all applications are renewal applications which was incorrectly noted on the agenda. Motion to approve the arborist licenses by Aimee Buccellato, supported by Consuella Hopkins, motion carried. IV. Use of Parks – New Events Vicki McIntire presented her plans for the Studebaker Fountain Unveiling Event at Leeper Park this July. The fountain will be complete in July and installed at Leeper Park. Motion to approve the use of park application for the Studebaker Fountain Unveiling at Leeper Park on July 21 by Aimee Buccellato, supported by Consuella Hopkins, motion carried. V. Interviewing of Interested Citizens Mark Neal opened the floor for public comments. There were no comments. VI. New Business 1. Beverage Supplier Update Jeff Jarnecke, 120 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr Blvd, explained that VPA went through a bid process to find a beverage provider for all VPA facilities. VPA selected Pepsi as the beverage provider. Jeff Jarnecke reviewed the main points of the contract and provided a document highlighting these points. 2. Potawatomi Concert Series Bands Agreement Template Rose Kaufman reviewed that 10 bands are scheduled for the 2019 concert series. The board needs to approve the standard contract for the bands. Mark Neal asked if the variety of performers is consistent from previous year. Rose Kaufman explained that she is using same bands from last year since it is her first year organizing the concert series. Motion to approve the Potawatomi Concert Series contract by Consuella Hopkins, supported by Aimee Buccellato, motion carried. 3. Diamond Tours Services Agreement Rose Kaufman explained that she has been working with Diamond Tours for 12 years to host the senior trips annually. This contract documents the City’s agreement with them. VPA is doing two tours this year to New York and the Ark Encounter. Clara McDaniels developed the agreement template based on our regular agreement template. Rose Kaufman added that the City still has not heard back from Diamond Tours with their comments on the agreement, but there are no issues that the City is aware of. Motion to approve the agreement for services with Diamond Tours by Aimee Buccellato, supported by Consuella Hopkins, motion carried. 4. Facility Use Agreement with Red Cross Clara McDaniels requested the board ratify this agreement for facility usage with the Red Cross. Aaron Perri acted within his administrative powers to sign the agreement already because there was an emergency situation which required that the agreement be approved immediately by City executive administrators. The agreement should now be ratified by the Board of Park Commissioners. The agreement requests that the city be used as a Red Cross facility during weather emergencies. Mark Neal asked what the logistics and mobilization effort is for activating the spaces. Aaron Perri replied that the Red Cross only will activate a space if there is an imminent emergency need. Consuella Hopkins asked how we ensure that the facility is not damaged. Clara McDaniels replied that there are protections built in to the agreement for this. Motion to ratify the Facility Use Agreement between City of South Bend and the American Red Cross by Aimee Buccellato, supported by Consuella Hopkins, motion carried. 5. Memorandum of Understanding with Saint Joseph Health System (Health in Action Lifestyle Program) Amanda Yasko explained that St. Joseph Health System approached VPA about putting on a diabetes program at Pinhook Park. There is already a 55+ club that meets at Pinhook that has expressed interest in this program. She added that there are discussions to adding Spanish speaking class on the Westside as well. Motion to accept the MOU by Consuella Hopkins, supported by Aimee Buccellato, motion carried. VII. Business by Executive Director Aaron Perri Aaron Perri gave the following updates: • Annie Gawkowski, VPA’s new Chief Development Officer, started at VPA in January. • VPA staff checked on the Mobile Recreation Unit construction progress a few weeks ago. The vehicle will be named Boomer and should be ready by the St. Patrick’s Day Parade. • Tomorrow, a group of staff are attending IPRA Conference. VPA is hosting two sessions at the conference – one on My South Bend Parks & Trails and another on Best Week Ever. • Aaron Perri attended Winter Cities Shake-Up Conference in Saskatoon, Canada, which provided insights on how to form allies with winter and design a city that people want to love in all four seasons. Aaron will host a presentation at Rum Village on things learned at the conference on February 27. • VPA is currently looking for a Director of Booking & Events for the Morris Performing Arts Center. • Daddy-Daughter Dance happened in early February and was well attended. Mom-Son Dance is coming up on February 26. • VPA staff went on a retreat to start thinking about Howard Park operations. Staff visited ice rinks at Maggie Daley Park in Chicago and Valparaiso. • VPA restroom facilities will be upgraded starting at the end of February. • VPA is hosting a summer job fair on March 13 at the Century Center for part-time and seasonal positions. Mark Neal asked about the status of Seitz Park. Aaron Perri replied that legal is working on a 3-way agreement with University of Notre Dame, Stephenson Mills, and City of South Bend to work out the logistics between the three parties. Notre Dame did start early work to deconstruct the park. No other questions or comments from the Park Commissioners, meeting adjourned at 6:04 p.m.by President Mark Neal. The next regular meeting will be held Monday, March 18, 2019, at 5:00 p.m. in the Boardroom of the O’Brien Administration Center. Respectfully Submitted, Eva Ennis .