Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout5- May 16 2016 Park Board Minutes - 1 - SOUTH BEND BOARD OF PARK COMMISSIONERS REGULAR MEETING MAY 16, 2016 The Board of Park Commissioners of the Park District of the City of South Bend, Indiana met on Monday, May 16, 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. Amiee Buccellato Mr. Dan Farrell Ms. Amy Hill Park Board members absent were as follows: None Staff members present: Aaron Perri, Director of Parks; Matt Esau, Marketing Director; John Martinez, Maintenance Superintendent; Susan O’Connor, Deputy Director; Eva Ennis, Operations Coordinator; Ron O’Connor, Finance Director; Paula Garis, Special Events Supervisor; Michael Schmidt, Park Board Attorney I. The meeting was called to order by Board President Mark Neal at 5:05 p.m. II. Approval of Minutes of the April 18, 2016 Regular Board Meeting Motion to approve the minutes of the regular board meeting held on April 18, 2016 by Amy Hill, supported by Aimee Buccellato, motion carried. III. Approval of the Consent Agenda Paula Garis stated that two new events, LGBTQ Center Pride Dance Party and Lest We Forget WWII Landing Craft Rides, have requested use of parks and will give a special presentation to the board. President Neal indicated that these two events will be approved separately from the consent agenda. Motion to approve the consent agenda with exception to items III. B and III. D by Amy Hill motion, supported by Aimee Buccellato, motion carried. LGBTQ Center Dance Party Eli Williams presented the LGBTQ Center Dance Party event requesting use of Howard Park on June 25, 2016 from 3:00 pm – 9:00 pm. The LGBTQ Center has undergone a number of changes and is seeking to become a more integral part of the community to fulfil their new mission. June is Pride month nationwide, therefore the South Bend LGBTQ Center is hosting a number of events in June. E. Williams noted a change to the original request to postpone the parade until next year and focus on the Dance Party and - 2 - extend hours to 9:00 pm. Eli Williams explained that the organization understands that the Parks Department requires liability insurance for the event, which the LGBTQ Center will secure once the event is approved. The LGBTQ Center has secured funding through the Awesome Foundation and has funds set aside in the LGBTQ Center’s budget for the event. Aimee Buccelatto asked if the event liability insurance is required as part of the application. Paula Garis replied that the event liability insurance is not required until after the event is approved. Motion to approve the request to use Howard Park for the LGBTQ Center Dance Party on June 25 by Amy Hill, supported by Aimee Buccellato, motion carried. Lest We Forget WWII Landing Craft Rides Lee Sherwitz presented the Lest We Forget WWII Landing Craft Rides event requesting use of Viewing Park on June 23 and 24. Lest We Forget holds an annual event that offers historical reenactments and education. This year, Lest We Forget would like to do boat rides at the Viewing Park as part of the event. Paul McMinn shared that the group has done due diligence meeting with necessary parties including staff, the Police Department, and DNR. They also have acquired the proper insurance for the event. The event coordinators are taking precautions to address any safety concerns and there will be multiple rescue boats on site during the event. Motion to approve the request to use the Viewing Park for the Lest We Forget WWII Landing Craft Rides on June 23 and 24 by Dan Farrell, supported by Amy Hill, motion carried. IV. Interviewing of Interested Citizens Request for citizen input on items not listed on the May 16, 2016 Park Board Meeting agenda. Jan Muciulski, 117 S. 31st Street, South Bend, IN 46615 Jan Muciulski stated she was surprised and disappointed with the response to the idea of putting the fire station in Potawatomi Park. She is concerned with the noise close to events, the conservatory, and children’s activities. She also presented a copy of the deed when the park was presented to the City, which indicates that the property is to be used for park purposes. She agreed that a fire house is needed and required in River Park, but Potawatomi Park is not the best location. Her biggest concern is children being exposed to loud sirens. V. Report by Organizations South Bend Botanical Society, Bob Hoser Bob Hoser announced that the botanical society completed successful fundraising events to perform renovations on a 1920 greenhouse at the park. He also announced Heidi Gray has resigned from the Botanical Society effective June 1. - 3 - Greg Kil of Kil Architecture also presented the quotes for the green roof and shared that Midland Engineering provided a quote for $29,740 which was within budget. Kil Architecture recommended that Green the Bend accept Midland Engineering’s bid. John Martinez also supported the recommendation. The project will be completed by August at the latest. No approval is required from the board because the Parks Department is not a contracting entity. VI. Unfinished Business 1. Elbel Special Advisory Committee Recommendations Aaron Perri presented an update on the recommendations from the Elbel Advisory Committee. The environmental study kicked off last week at Rum Village and full report will be completed by March 2017. JJ Keegan and Associates will be performing the golf operations review for Elbel, Erskine, and Studebaker golf courses. The kick off for the golf operations review will be May 31 at 6:00 pm. He shared that he is looking for a variety of people who would be able to engage in the study more intimately. The study will be finished by August 2016. Staff has also started to research a subcommittee structure for the board to provide opportunity for resident engagement. VII. New business 1. Agreement for Tree Management Services Michael Schmidt stated that the board of public works executed an agreement to contract with Parks Department to provide tree maintenance for the city for five years for approximately $120,000 per year. Michael Schmitt brought a document to the board for signature. President Mark Neal asked if it is coverage of everything that has been planted. John Martinez replied that the contract covers some that have already been planted, but trees will cycle on and off the program based on their age. Michael Schmitdt added that the city did follow proper statutory provisions in selecting the Parks Department for tree services. John Martinez added that the department will begin hiring and will let hires know that the project has a five year limit. Motion to accept the agreement for tree management services with the City of South Bend by Amy Hill, supported by Dan Farrell, motion carried. VIII. Business by Director Aaron Perri Aaron Perri reported the following updates:  Orbis has started work at Elbel on the environmental study, and Garry Harrington is tracking the process. Orbis will come back with set of environmental recommendations that can be used city wide for parks.  Eva Ennis, Operations Coordinator, and Matt Esau, Marketing Director, are new employees Parks and Recreation department.  Riverfront parks and trails planning process will begin this summer. The City will engage with firm to do master planning for all the trails and parks along the river. Although there is funding to do projects along the river, there is not a plan in place - 4 - yet. The two finalists in the selection process are Smith Group JJR and Rundell Earnstberger. Howard Park Master Plan will be a part of the process.  Howard Park Ice Rink farewell event took place on May 6.  The Niles Avenue Dog Park dedication event is Thursday, May 19. There will also be a dog park advocacy group meeting on June 8 at 5:30 pm at Howard Park.  There was nothing to report on the Fire Station # 9, other than the City is continuing to evaluate locations for a new fire station and solicit feedback from the community.  Parks Maintenance has helped the city by mowing city owned lots. The city has contracted a private firm to mow redevelopment properties, but there was a delay is starting so the Parks maintenance helped out to catch up on mowing.  The EPA will be at Charles Black Center for a public meeting to discuss testing at LaSalle Park on Tuesday, May 24 at 6:00 pm. The EPA will be performing tests throughout the summer. The Park will remain open, but one acre will be closed during the day while they are working. Mark Neal asked if the neighborhood associations and those actively using the park are aware of the situation. Aaron Perri replied that the Parks Department has been notifying the public and that is also the intention of the public meeting on May 24. Mark Neal asked if the bond proceeds are held in reserve until the analysis is finished. Aaron Perri replied that the bond proceeds will be held until the testing is complete and the project can begin.  Leadership of St. Joseph County created an urban tree initiative to make a more sustainable program for replacing trees.  The Mayor took the Mayors’ Monarch Pledge at Leeper Park by planting milkweed plants with Madison Elementary Students. IX. Comments by the Recreation Director Susan O’Connor Susan O’Connor gave the following updates:  All of the events for It’s Been Great Since ’58 were well attended.  The summer program and event brochure is completed and available to the public.  Movies in the Park is a new event this year which will show movies at various parks with activities related to each movie during the event.  Programmers are hiring and starting orientation with new summer employees.  Summer Softball League started earlier this May. On July 8, there will be a ceremony to honor Phil St. Clair at the softball fields.  Edge Adventure is building the rope course platforms and bringing them to Rum Village later this week. The rope course will be open at the end of June, and a grand opening event will be in early August.  This summer there are extended hours at the pools: Wednesdays at Potawatomi Pool from 2:00 – 8:00 pm and Thursdays at Kennedy Pool 2:00 – 7:00 pm. East Race season will also be extended. X. Comments by Maintenance Supervisor John Martinez - 5 - John Martinez reviewed how Parks Department works with Code Enforcement to manage mowing properties that violate code. John Martinez also gave the following updates:  Proposals for the Freemont Park splash pad are due May 24 and will be reviewed internally with a scoring matrix.  4 out of 6 splash pads have been turned on.  Edge adventure will be putting a container at Rum Village to store materials.  John Martinez also reviewed a number of special projects that the maintenance team worked on including features at the dog park, additional walkways at a playgrounds, and new furniture at the Elbel clubhouse.  The first portion of Park bond went towards the Kennedy Park basketball court pad. Rotary Club donated surfacing and benches to finish the court. There will be a court dedication sometime in early June. The Nature Center roof was replaced with funds from the Park Bond, as well. XI. Comments by Golf Director TJ Mannen TJ Mannen gave the following updates:  The construction of Elbel’s pro shop and clubhouse was well received and the opening event was well attended.  USGA Agronomy Team did a report on Elbel and Erskine and found the courses in good condition considering the city’s resources. The full report is available on the Dropbox for the board to review.  A disc golf course has been plotted out at Studebaker, which will open up an additional revenue stream at the golf courses. There seems to be a lot of interest in a course like this.  Revenues compared to last year are up in most fields. Elbel daily and season pass play has increased significantly. Dan Farrell asked if there was any identifiable reason for the increases. TJ Mannen replied that opening earlier in March may have led to an increase in sales this year.  Drainage at the golf courses is being reviewed because it has caused problems with golf carts not being able to get through certain parts of the courses. No other questions or comments from the Board, meeting adjourned at 6:40 p.m.by President Mark Neal. The next regular meeting will be held June 20, 2016 at 5:00 p.m. in the Boardroom of the O’Brien Administration Center. Respectfully Submitted, Ron O’Connor Executive Secretary