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HomeMy WebLinkAboutParks And Recreation Board - Minutes - 12/06/2017Parks & Recreation Board Meeting – December 6, 2017 Page 1 of 5 BE A GOOD STEWARD: Protect & Respect your Parks, Trails & Recreation Facilities Call Meeting to Order: Scott Sinn called the meeting to order at 5:32 PM Agenda Review & Items of Note: None Citizen Participation: None Approval of Minutes: Bruce Henderson made the motion to approve the Parks & Recreation Board Minutes of October 25, 2017. Seconded by Rob Cagen Passed 5:0 Meeting Summary • The Board reviewed and voted on their 2018 Work Plan. The 2018 Work plan was approved by the Board with a vote of 6:0. • Luke Caldwell, Chair of the Bicycle Advisory Committee, presented and solicited feedback, questions & concerns regarding the BAC Electric-Assist Bicycle White Paper the Board. • Staff presented the Board with a conceptual plan for the potential future development of approximately 900 acres of northeast Fort Collins called “Montava,” including the Northeast Community Park, following a week- long charrette. This conceptual plan. PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD MINUTES Regular Meeting Wednesday, December 6, 2017 5:30 PM Board Chair: Scott Sinn – 2017 scott.sinn@ymail.com Council Liaison: Ken Summers - ksummers@fcgov.com Staff Liaisons: Mike Calhoon, 970-416-2079 – mcalhoon@fcgov.com Kurt Friesen, 970-221-6618 – kfriesen@fcgov.com Bob Adams, 970-221-6354 – badams@fcgov.com Parks & Recreation Board Meeting – December 6, 2017 Page 2 of 5 Full Minutes AGENDA ITEMS: Approval of 2018 Work Plan – Board members Approval of 2018 Work Plan: Bruce Henderson made the motion to approve the Parks & Recreation Board 2018 Work Plan. Seconded by Ragan Adams Passed 6:0 Discussion Board – Have we received any feedback from our Council Liaison regarding our Work Plan? Chair – No, we have not. We have sent him the information, but we haven’t reached out to him for comment. I will do that. Bicycle Advisory Committee Electric-Assist Bicycles White Paper - Luke Caldwell • Luke Caldwell is the Chair of the Bicycle Advisory Committee. He is soliciting feedback, questions or concerns regarding the BAC Electric-Assist Bicycle White Paper from several citizen advisory boards. • The effort behind the white paper came about due to a state law that was passed in April & went into effect in August regulating electric-assist bicycles. The change to state law prompted the BAC to compile the white paper to provide information for policymakers as the current ordinance which prohibits electric-assist bikes on paved trails in the City of Fort Collins. • Larimer County allows for Class 1 & Class 2 assist bicycles on their trails. Loveland has an ordinance which they do not plan to alter. City of Fort Collins lawyers are pursuing a possible change to align with the state ordinance. Discussion Board – We do know of concerns regarding speeds on trails, especially considering increased traffic on our trail system and the growth of use due to the increase in trail connectivity between other communities. Board – How fast can a class 1 electric-assist bicycle reach? Presenter – Up to 20 mph. You must pedal for the engine to work. Once you reach 20 mph, the engine will cut-off. If you stop pedaling the motor will also shut off. Board – How fast does the average bicyclist pedal? An average of 10-15 mph. Our trails are marked with a suggested speed of 15 mph. Board – Also, we are uncertain as to how easily they can be identified. Presenter – They should have a sticker to identify the class. But looking at them, it would be hard to tell the class of vehicle. Board – Are these bikes for people who need assistance or for fun? Presenter – Anyone who desires to purchase them. They can be helpful for those with disabilities, the elderly or out of shape, as well as for commuters who don’t want to get sweaty. Board – What does Bud Bredehoft, a ranger, say? Considering they will be charged with enforcement. They cannot give a speeding ticket, but they could address reckless driving. Presenter – Once of the appendices does include a response to questions from Parks, Park Planning & Natural Areas. It doesn’t get exactly into what rangers state, but if they did present their concerns and do not support them on the trails now. There was staff support when it was reviewed under the premise of the Americans for Disabilities Act. Board – Some of the issues we must think about are capacity issues, regardless of if e-bikes are allowed or not. Also, is the speed limit enforceable? And if e-bikes are allowed on other connecting trail systems, how would the city want to approach or be able to enforce regulations? Parks & Recreation Board Meeting – December 6, 2017 Page 3 of 5 Presenter – I think that a lot of these concerns are directly related to the state of the trails. Spring Creek Trail, for example, is a very narrow, high-use trail. This problem is a function of the success of the City of Fort Collins trail system. As we move forward, we are going to have more and more increased use considering it is a draw for people to our community. Enforcement is an extreme challenge. The e-bikes may not add to the capacity problem. We may even want to encourage more ridership if it replaces car traffic. Board – I would recommend that someone should talk to the rangers and find out their concerns, ideas for enforcement, how big of an issue do the feel bicycle speed is today? What conversations did the county have with their staff regarding their approval? Did that come up in the Longview Trail discussions? Presenter – We did talk to CSU, and they will “never” allow electric-assist bicycles to be used with the motor on while on campus. They can be used with the motor off. Their concern is related to the density of use of their trails. They could provide guidance addressing issues of enforcement, signage & education. Board – Would it be possible to approve some trails and not others? There are some trails that are hard to ride, such as South Ridge. Presenter – During the last discussion, the city had the proposal before Council was to do a trial. That is what Boulder did, and they have yet to have any reported incidents since it began in 2014. The Natural Areas Advisory Board also suggest a trial period. Board – It’s hard to take it away once you allow it, but I do feel that it is appropriate for some trails. Either way, it will be difficult to enforce. Presenter – That’s why we’d like to take an educational approach to influence behavior. We could also reach out to retailers to provide information to those purchasing electric-assist bicycles. Board – I do have some concern about capitulating because other people are allowing them. It’s good to be proactive, but we shouldn’t just allow them because others do. Presenter – I’d like to do a hands-on presentation sometime this Spring so you can gain familiarity with electric-assist bicycles. Board – We would welcome that! Perhaps we could invite the rangers as well. STAFF UPDATES: Parks – Lea Ann Haisch • Since the soft opening of Twin Silo Park, we’ve taken over the maintenance. We’re working on keeping the trees & turf watered. • We have two park technician vacancies and are looking to fill those positions by the end of January. • Forestry had to cut down several large cottonwood trees on E Elizabeth from Stover to Lemay. The will be replanting along that stretch in the spring. • We are all set to renovate the Lee Martinez playground in 2018 for lifecycle replacement. We worked with Park Planning, the Farm, the Museum of Discovery, & Natural Areas to get suggestions on designs. We’re planning on installing it in the spring. We may do an additional phase for resurfacing the following year. We had considered moving it to the east, closer to the trail and the parking area, but we decided not to. • We are renovating the West Field Park (on Seneca south of Horsetooth) playground in 2018. • Rolland Moore Ballfield electrical upgrades are completed. We’re just waiting for the controls to be installed. Discussion Board – Is this a replacement or a refresh? Staff – This is traditional a replacement. Since this is a community park, some funding is coming from Park Planning from BOB 1 as a part of community park lifecycle replacement. Parks & Recreation Board Meeting – December 6, 2017 Page 4 of 5 Board – Why did you decide not to move it? Staff – No one thought we should. We also wanted to save the money for digging, irrigation, etc. and the footprint within the park. Recreation – Marc Rademacher • EPIC Remodel - EPIC Therapy & Wader Pools will be open December 13th • Winter Recreator - October 31st – November 2nd was Winter Registration o 187 enrollments for the Reduced Fee Program o $199,942, up about $9,000 from last year’s registration o 65% registered on the web o The top-performing activity areas were Fitness, Child Development, Aquatics • Pickleball Program - Columbine Health will be running the cities Pickleball program. Three groups bid on it, and Columbine won it. They’ll be running classes & tournaments for adults & children for both indoor & outdoor. Previously it was operated by city staff. • Downtown Ice Rink – The Downtown Rink is now open. We partnered with the Downtown Business Authority again this year, and we made improvements by adding dasher boards. It looks a lot nicer this year. Park Planning – Kurt Friesen • Montava – A week-long charrette was held regarding the potential future development of approximately 900 acres of northeast Fort Collins, called “Montava.” A conceptual plan was developed as part of the charrette and includes the future Northeast Community Park. Staff will continue to work with the developer to make refinements to the plan, including the park site. The developer is going to council on December 13th before submitting this for development review. o Some primary concerns right now with the Community Park plan are the size; it’s about 70 acres which is less than the 110-120 acres our Parks & Rec plan requires. It is divided by a road. We have water and slope concerns. The developer will bring this into development review into the development processes mid to late December. o The city is interested in working with this developer, and there is a possibility this park may be developed early and will be negotiating on funding with the developer. • City Park Refresh – Core Area - The plan for City Park core area continues to be refined with the help of various City departments. Park Planning and Development is working to hire a design team to begin work on the project at the start of the New Year, along with a playground manufacturer and contractor in February. Forestry is working on releasing a digital City Arboretum Tour in the upcoming months and is working with Park Planning and Development to find a location for the interpretive sign within the park. Design for City Park Refresh is still anticipated through the end of 2018, and construction of the first phase of improvements is anticipated in 2019. o We’ve put a request for proposals for a playground designer, architect for the pavilion and a contractor to help with cost estimating. • Reviewed Twin Silo Park Lumination video & photos Discussion Board – How large is the Montava urban agriculture area compared to Bucking Horse? Staff – That’s close to 100 acres. This is on a scale that has never been done. Board – Has anyone analyzed the water needed for an urban agriculture community? I thought this area didn’t have a lot of water. Staff – A certain amount of the property has Coffin wells, which allow as much use as needed. That way we don’t have to augment by replacing water that is used back into the water. That is a primary concern of mine when planning parks. Board – Do you know the number of people this community is meant to support? Staff – I do not yet. The developer hasn’t provided population density information. Parks & Recreation Board Meeting – December 6, 2017 Page 5 of 5 Board –The timing of this project as it relates to Capital Expansion Fees is important. On the working group, parks are rarely defended. Information also hasn’t been presented to the working group explaining the value of parks. Staff – I have the perfect presentation for you regarding the economic impact parks have on communities in the United States. Board – I’d love to see that presentation and share with the working group. Board – I’ve been asked why Silo is not plural. Staff – We started with Twin Silo so that we could put the name of the park on the Silo due to 4 letters in each word. The Silos are also connected. It’s also easier to say. Review City Council 6-Month Agenda for Parks, Recreation & Park Planning Items • Work Session for City Park. It’s not yet on the calendar but will most likely be in March. • Whitewater Park will be going to the URA to request funding. • Montava developer comments on December 13th BAC Report • Refer to the Electric-assist Bicycle White Paper presentation. Schedule of Articles • Everyone appreciated Kelly’s article Bruce Henderson made the motion appoint Kelly Smith the permanent article writer. Seconded by Rob Cagen Pass 7:0 Bullet Points • Approval of the Work Plan • BAC E-Bike White Paper • Montava development • Happy Holidays & New Years Adjournment: 7:01 PM Respectfully submitted, Coleen Elliott Board Attendance Board Members: Ragan Adams, Rob Cagen, Mary Carlson, Bruce Henderson, Jessica MacMillan, Scott Sinn, Dawn Theis Presenters: Luke Caldwell Staff: Marc Rademacher, Kurt Friesen, Coleen Elliott, Lea Ann Haisch Guest: Catherine Carabetta