Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout03-16-09 Minutes SBBPC OUTH END OARD OF ARK OMMISSIONERS RM EGULAR EETING M16,2009 ARCH The Board of Park Commissioners of the Park District of the City of South Bend, Indiana met on Monday the 16th of March 2009 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. Robert Henry, President Mr. Robert Goodrich, Vice President Dr. Thomas Kelly Mr. Garrett Mullins Park Board members absent were as follows: None Staff members present: Phil St. Clair, Superintendent; Bill Carleton, Betsy Harriman, Administrative Director; Fiscal Officer; Susan O’Connor, Recreation Director; Randy Nowacki, Director of Golf Operations; Terry DeRosa, Zoo Director; Richard Payton, Development Director; Mike Dyszkiewicz, Maintenance Superintendent; Thomas Mannen, Elbel Golf Pro; Dave Firestone, Erskine Golf Pro; Thomas Bodnar, Park Board Attorney I.The meeting was called to order by Board President Robert Henry at 4:03 p.m. II.The first order of business was the interviewing of interested citizens. 1.Ms. Charlotte Wolf, 21439 Osborne Road, Lakeville, IN, of the Michiana Organic Growers Cooperative submitted a letter of intent to the Board. They felt the growing houses at the greenhouse are a critical element in obtaining greater food security for Michiana. They are applying for funds through the Indiana Economic Recovery Act for the growing houses. They are interested in forming a strategic alliance with the City of South Bend and the Botanical Society and generating revenue to preserve the growing houses. 2.Report by South Bend Baseball Club, LLC Mr. John Baxter, Vice President of the Silver Hawks, reported that their first game will be an exhibition April 7 against Notre Dame. Their official home opener will be April 13. There will be seven high school games played at the Cove, as well as the high school regional and semi state tournament. Tickets are on sale now. There will be many promotions this year. They will be broadcast on ESPN 1490 radio. All 140 games will be broadcast for the first time in five years. Preseason sales are pacing last year’s. - - 1 - - 3.Botanical Society Ms. Martha Lewis presented the Board with a copy of the Botanical Society’s plans and the volunteer guide. She reported on the funds that have been raised and spent on the Conservatory. She presented their plan to take over the operation of the Conservatory. She hoped it would include the greenhouses at a future date. She said they support the moving of the two growing houses to the maintenance garage and the filling of the underground growing area to create new parking area for the facility. Director St. Clair asked the Board to look over the plan and if there were any questions to contact him. It is hoped to initiate the plan in April after the next Park Board meeting. The department is supportive of the plan. 4.South Bend Community Gardens- Christa Bailey Ms. Bailey reported on the progress of the community gardens at the greenhouse. They presented a power point presentation of activities over the last year at the gardens. They thanked the Board for their support in the project. III.The next order of business was unfinished business. 1.Request to Reject Bids for Golf Carts- Randy Nowacki Mr. Nowacki requested that due to unforeseen repairs that are necessary at the golf courses, the Board reject the bids for golf carts that were opened on February 10, 2009. Mr. Goodrich made a motion to reject the bids received for the golf carts. Dr. Kelly seconded the motion and it was passed. IV.The next order of business was new business. 1. Arborist License Renewals- The following license applications were presented for approval by the Board: a. Peek’s Tree Experts b. Acorn Landscaping c. Fuerbringer Landscaping & Design d. Underly Tree Service Dr. Kelly made a motion to accept the renewals of the Arborist Licenses and Mr. Mullins seconded the motion. It was passed 2. Requests for Use of Parks- Ms. Harriman requested the Board to approve the following requests: a. LaSalle Park- June 19-21, 2009- Juneteenth Celebration b. Seitz Park/East Race- July 25, 2009- Suicide Prevention Fundraiser c. Coquillard Park- August 7-8, 2009- East Side Reunion d. Kennedy Park- July 4, 2009- Family Reunion (tabled at 2/10/09 meeting) e. Leeper Park- May 24 thru September 6- First United Methodist Church f. Potawatomi Park- September 20- Juvenile Diabetes Walk g. Memorial Park- National Letter Carriers Egg Hunt- April5, 2009 She stated that a, b, c, e, f, and g are returning events and are aware of the insurance - - 2 - - requirements. She recommended approval of these requests. d is the reunion that was tabled last month. After discussion with the requester, she recommends approval. They understand and will meet all our requirements. Mr. Mullins made the motion to approve the above requests and it was seconded by Dr. Kelly. The motion was approved. 1.Opening of Cemetery Maintenance Quotes- Mike Dyszkiewicz Mr. Dyszkiewicz stated that in order to reduce costs of maintaining the city cemetery, he had solicited three quotes from private contractors. The three contractors are Foegley Landscape, Hoosier Cutters, and Talboom Landscaping. He received sealed quotes from Talboom and Hoosier Cutters. Foegley Landscape did not reply. The quotes were opened and read aloud. Talboom- $45,700. Hoosier Cutters- $32,000. Mr. Dyszkiewicz requested the contract be awarded to Hoosier Cutters in the amount of $32,000. Mr. Goodrich made a motion that contingent on approval of the form of the contract by Legal, the contract be awarded to Hoosier Cutters in the amount of $32,000. Dr. Kelly seconded the motion and it was passed. 2.Request to Approve Stadium Use, Management and Operations Agreement By and Between South Bend Professional Baseball, LLC and the Board of Parks Commissioners of the Park District of the City of South Bend 2009- Director St. Clair, Charles Leone Mr. Leone, City Attorney, reported that a one year agreement was agreed to that is essentially the same as in previous years. The team has committed to spend $65,000 on capital improvements to the stadium related to areas of operation. Dr. Kelly made a motion to approve the Stadium Use, Management and Operations Agreement as presented. Mr. Goodrich seconded the motion and it was passed. V.Approval of Minutes Mr. Goodrich made a motion to approve the minutes of the regular Board meeting held on March 16, 2009 as mailed. The motion was seconded by Mr. Mullins and approved. VI.Approval of Maintenance Vouchers A motion was made by Dr. Kelly. to approve maintenance vouchers for the month of February totaling $748,468.19. It was seconded by Mr. Mullins. There being no further discussion, the motion was passed. VII.Business of Director St. Clair 1.Director St. Clair reported that the riverwalk will be extended 1.63 miles north. Construction will start this spring and be completed this summer. It will run from Angela to the Darden area. 2.Annual reports were distributed to the Board. 3.Director St. Clair went over the budget for the remainder of the year based on the “spending plan budget”. This budget reflects the reduction in property taxes as a result of - - 3 - - the implementation of the “circuit breaker” cap on property taxes. VIII.Comments by the Golf Operations Director 1.Mr. Nowacki requested the Board to approve the new agreement with Pro Link, Inc. for the upgrade of the GPS system on the golf carts to the Pro Star version. Mr. Bodnar requested it be approved contingent on Pro Link, Inc. releasing the Park Department from the prior contract and the third party bank releasing the Park Department from our obligation to them. Mr. Goodrich made a motion approving the agreement with Pro Link, Inc. contingent on Pro Link, Inc. releasing the Park Department from the prior contract and the third party bank releasing the Park Department from our obligation to them. Dr. Kelly seconded and it was passed. 2.Erskine was opened on March 6. Elbel is not open yet due to problems with the well at the clubhouse. It is hoped they will be open this week. 3.Because the cart purchase was canceled, new batteries will be purchased for all the existing carts. New tops are being purchased to accommodate the new GPS screens. th 4.Studebaker opened on the 11. 5.Customer appreciation day was a big success. 6.The wall that washed out in the parking lot at Erskine is being replaced. Much of the work is being done in house. 7.Irrigation repairs are being done at Studebaker. 8.Mr. TJ Mannen, Club Pro at Elbel, gave a presentation on the GPS upgrade and advertising packages that are being offered. IX.Comments by Maintenance Superintendent 1.Mr. Mike Dyszkiewicz informed the Board that leaf pick up is underway in Rum Village and Potawatomi Parks. 2.Bowman Creek through Studebaker Golf Course is being cleaned out by the maintenance and tree crews. 3.Parks are being cleaned up for opening. Vandalism is being seen in some parks as the weather gets better. 4.He requested permission to remove the bathroom/storage building in Pulaski Park due to frequent vandalism over the years. 5.He gave the Board a copy of a letter to be distributed to Council Members informing them that tennis courts in their district may be removed and the reason for doing so. He explained that the high maintenance costs for courts that are rarely used are behind this request. He estimated a cost savings of $30,000 to $40,000 per year. Not all tennis courts will be removed. Only courts that are rarely used would be removed. 6.He reported that he is working with a representative from the IBEW Local 153, Mr. Ron Nicholas, regarding the donation of an upgrade to the electrical service in LaSalle Park to 200 amps. 7.The maintenance crews are cleaning the area around Beck’s Lake in LaSalle Park. They - - 4 - - will be working with a community organization in this. X.Comments by the Zoo Director 1.Director DeRosa reported that the remaining improvement projects are getting underway because of the improving weather. 2.He will be meeting in the future with Indiana Correctional Services. They will be planning for how the road crew will be handled in the future. 3.Training for the accreditation is ongoing. 4.Winter Days at the Zoo was March 14 and 905 visitors came to the zoo. 5.Animal shipments are being coordinated now that the weather has improved. XI.Comments by the Recreation Director 1.Ms. O'Connor informed the Board that the ice rink closed for the season on March 4. 2.The Mom/Son Dance is next Tuesday at the Hilton Garden Inn. 3.Kid’s World registration started last Saturday. Registration is down. It is hoped it will pick up the closer to the camp. 4.The Skate Park will open on March 27. It will be open Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays until school is out. It will then be open seven days a week through the summer. 5.The Fitness Center has had 7,558 visits in February. This is higher than last year. 6.Due to cuts in this year’s budget for the summer park program, Loretta Kollar has been looking for sponsors for parks. The Food Bank is adopting Oliver Park. They will train staff to operate the lunch and crafts program. XII.Comments by the Development Director 1.Mr. Payton provided the Board with information regarding the time line of the Master Plan. The finished document will be provided to the Board prior to submission. 2.He will be meeting with our IT staff and Work Force Development to discuss the use of our computer lab for training. 3.He and Director St. Clair will be meeting with Father Malloy to discuss our relationship with Notre Dame. 4.He will be working with the Golf Staff to sell ads. 5.WRBR has agreed to be a media sponsor for the Superintendent’s Golf Outing. XIII.There being no more business to come before the Board the meeting adjourned at 5:41 p.m. The next regular meeting will be held Monday April 20, 2009 at 4:00 p.m. in the Boardroom of the O’Brien Administration Center. - - 5 - - Respectfully Submitted, William Carleton Executive Secretary - 6 -