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HomeMy WebLinkAboutParks And Recreation Board - Minutes - 01/23/2002Call Meeting to Order: President Lance Freeman called the Regular meeting to order at 5:35 p.m. Agenda Review: The Board moved #9 to 45 and added Harmony Park Update after # 11. Items of Note: • Lance welcomed new Board Member Ann Hunt. She said she has lived in Fort Collins for 25 years and has been an active participant in Parks and Recreation programs and facilities, along with her family. • Mary Carlson, referring to the 2001 Attendance Report and the September 2001 Board meeting, requested that the City not schedule Board meetings on religious holidays. Citizen Participation: No citizen Participation Approval of Minutes: On a motion by Mike Gavin, seconded by Dean Hoag, the Board voted unanimously to accept the minutes of the December 5, 2001 meeting. Bennett Road Property Marty Heffernan advised the Board of the Council's action on this item. He explained that the Board reviewed this site when they made a recommendation on the West Central Neighborhood Plan (October 1998). The site that Council has been discussing is a 4-acre parcel on Bennett Road directly north of Bennett School. The City doesn't have enough revenue from development fees in this area of the City to buy and develop this park. If this land is acquired for a park, then the majority of funding has to come from other sources and not Parkland Fund. Last Tuesday, Council reconsidered the question of what to do with the site and will be discussing it at their Study Session of January 29. Parks and Recreation Board V ites January 23, 2002 Page #2 Lance asked for citizen participation. Council Member Marty Tharp gave her position on the need for a park in this neighborhood. She said that the West Central Neighborhood Plan identifies the need for three pocket parks. She explained that the concern that the neighbors have is there is very little open space within that square mile. There is a large number of multifamily dwellings in this Bennett School area and with the high density, there is a need for a pocket park. She referred to the Parks and Recreation Policy Plan and said that Avery Park is the designated neighborhood park. There is little open space in this park for children to play because much of the park is not fully developed. Shields and Prospect isn't a safe intersection for kids to cross and the same with Mulberry and Shields to City Park. She realizes that most of the funding would have to come out of the General Fund. The School District said there is some money to do additional development at Bennett School and they could help fund a portion of the development of the park. Avery Park is hardly meeting the needs of the neighborhood. Citizen Laurie Brunswick said she no longer lives in the square mile that we are discussing, but she has a son who attends Bennett School. According to the census, there are 8,000 people living in that area, primarily college students. Avery Park is not totally usable. She feels that the neighborhood could use another small green area. This neighborhood was developed in the 60's. That area is being penalized because it doesn't have parkland fees in the "bank". However, these citizens paid taxes to the City. Many schools have open space. This school doesn't have a playground area. There is a development planned in that area for 16 two-story homes. She thinks these homes will turn into rental properties given their proximity to CSU. She said the four -acre parcel could even be a detention pond, but keep it open. Citizen Valerie McIntyre said her property backs up to the Bennett Road site. She said there are many seniors in her neighborhood. She said there are 150-200 units planned in the neighborhood creating an even higher density. There isn't any green space left and this is the only open space available in the neighborhood. Additional population calls for additional open space. Her biggest problem is when the West Central Neighborhood Plan was written it talked about the park several times and that the City should look for other sources for funding this park. She thinks there is money available. She has spoken to the Stryker -Short foundation regarding a grant. Mary Carlson said that she might have a conflict of interest as her property borders the Bennett Road property. Lance said that in October 1998, the Board spoke about this when we reviewed the West Central Neighborhood Plan. Mary said that this property needs to be looked at by Stormwater. Ross asked if Stormwater would be interested in partnering with this? Lance asked if the Board members have any questions regarding this matter? Ross asked if the small amount of impact fees collected have been spent at Avery Park? Marty said that we collected $125,000 in this area. We spent $95,000 for Avery Park Parks and Recreation B inutes January 23, 2002 Page #3 • improvements, including the restroom. Approximately- $100,000 will be collected for future development in this area. We would use the money to continue upgrading Avery Park. Marty explained that the Horticulture Center pocket park will be constructed to complete our deficit in the neighborhood. Paul Van Valkenburg asked how much this land would cost? Response: Approximately $400,000. Paul said there is a safety issue of having a park across the street from the school. Ann Hunt said the West Central Neighborhood Plan shows closing Bennett Road to Shields. Marry said that the information given to Council states that City Park also serves as their neighborhood park for part of the West Central Neighborhood and the section east of Shields will be served by the Horticulture Center Park. Lance asked if any Board members have any feedback to staff on the issue. Ross Cunniff said that there is a need, however, he pointed out other needs for parkland that are in the community. He is concerned about diverting our development money and if we can partner with another government entity, he would be supportive, but doesn't want parkland fees used. Paul Van Valkenburg said that our original recommendation is that we support the park, but not take funding from parkland fees. Hickory Park is an example of a needed park in the early 90's and we are finally building it in 2002. Funding would have to come out of General Fund money. The other comment he made was that in his opinion the money collected in that square mile should be spent in that square mile. Lance agrees that if Council would like to use General Fund money, he would support that, but doesn't support taking from Avery Park improvements to purchase this park. He added that if General Fund buys this then we need to have the funding for approximately $23,000 annually for the operation and maintenance. If there could be partnerships, he would entertain that idea also. Mary Carlson asked if the neighborhood could get alternative funding, how much time would the neighbors have? Marty Tharp said that Council will discuss this on the 29s' and make a decision of what direction they would like to go at that time. Paul Hudnut said we are all in agreement for more parks, and we would appreciate Council taking the lead on this. Second Sheet of Ice Project Update Recreation Manager Jean Helburg updated the Board on the project. We are under contract with Neenan and that went to Council last Tuesday. It will go back to Council on February 5 on second reading. After February 15, we will start design. She showed the conceptual drawings of the full sheet of ice. There would be one refrigeration room Parks and Recreation Board V ites January 23, 2002 Page #4 and the Zamboni Room would have access to both sheets of ice. We can access both sheets of ice from one room. It requires us to have one Zamboni with one back-up. There would be seating for 200. They are proposing prefab concrete walls. They are proposing it could be constructed and completed by January of 2003. Lance asked how much money? Marty said that Twice the Ice would provide $850,000 and we have over $3,000,000 for the City's share of this. They have enough money to make this work. Mike Gavin asked if the main entrance will still be in the same location? Jean said, yes. Lance asked when this project is done, what happens to the dasher board revenue? Jean said it will be completed when Twice the Ice doesn't lease the spaces any longer. Marty said that whatever they raise has to be spent on the project. The City can then rent the dasher boards once the leases Twice the Ice secured are over. Paul Hudnut thinks we are spending a lot of money on this project and we need to focus more on the needs of the greater recreational community. Lance asked if we are going to be able to operate this rink from the revenues collected? Jean said it won't be self-supporting. She explained that EPIC is about 75 percent self- supporting. Paul Hudnut said that the upper end supports this facility for the private lesson, elite skaters and they need to continue to support this and pay the full cost of the service they receive. Del Price said that in the future we need to look at the cost effectiveness of future projects. Ross Cunniff said that this will have a negative impact on the private sector ice arena. Jean said 30 percent of ice time is designated for open skating. She said that this year we are going to do a survey on recreation fees and charges in the Front Range. Youth Activity Center Gymnasium Jean said that Bob Everitt has been actively working with an architect to design the facility. We have sponsorships and everyone on the committee is very excited to raise money for this project. If someone donates $100 for one square foot, they will have a foot on the wall with their name on it. Once we decide on a conceptual plan, we can have it priced and go from there. Ross asked about usage? Jean said the numbers are picking up continuously. She said there are many activities for preschoolers during the day at the YAC. City Park Pool Jean explained that Risk Management conducted a safety audit of our pools. All of our indoor pools passed inspection. When they audited the outdoor pool, they had many concerns since it was built in 1948. Some significant issues are: Chlorine house is too close to where the swimmers and sunbathers are; depths are not deep enough by the diving boards; and slopes are too severe. We are trying to come up with options to mitigate these problems so that we can open the pool safely this summer. The bigger issues are being investigated at this time. Del asked if there have been any safety issues Parks and Recreation B inutes January 23, 2002 Page #5 r1 L at the outdoor pool? Jean said there haven't been any significant injuries. Dean Hoag asked what the revenue is at that facility? Jean said the outdoor pool generates $90,000, but this does not cover operating costs. Lance said the outdoor pool is a very important part of summer recreation in Fort Collins and the history of City Park and the community. We have always rated it high for replacement on Capital Projects. Sheldon Lake Update Craig Foreman said that the City just received $175,000 from the Wilkins Trust to continue Sheldon Lake improvements. They also gave the Elks Club $125,000 for this project. The City will add $125,000 from Community Parkland fees. We will build a boardwalk around the lake and improve the planter beds, provide landscaping and better walking paths around the west and south lake shore and buy new paddle boats. The Elks Club will use their funding for materials and will volunteer their labor. If any money is left over, we will use it on City Park Center. Marty Heffernan added that the Trust has a strong interest in City Park. This is a wonderful donation and their money is creating a better place for the community. Homestead Park (formerly People of the Clouds) Jeff Lakey explained that Homestead Park is located west of College, east of Shields and south of Trilby Road on Avondale Drive. This will be a 6-1/2 acre neighborhood park. He showed the Board the conceptual drawing recommended by the neighborhood. He explained the amenities of the park as follows: restroom and picnic shelter, playground, general tree planting and turf for passive recreation, along with a soccer field. The neighborhood asked for many, many trees and our budget allows for additional trees. There will be pedestrian trails. The park is adjacent to Thompson School District land that will be an elementary school in the future. There are 20 parking spaces. We will have a used windmill on site for a feature, along with an old plow to compliment the Homestead Park theme. Jeff explained that we are planning on bidding this out in the spring. This is funded through Neighborhood Parkland Fees. Mary Carlson asked why there isn't a "pick up" softball field. Jeff said we are trying to meet the needs of the neighborhood and we heard that at the neighborhood meetings. Craig added that we will try to fit that in. On a motion by Mike Gavin, seconded by Mary Carlson, the Board voted unanimously (9-0) to accept the conceptual drawing of this park. Fossil Creek Community Park Craig Foreman gave the Board an update on the park construction. The earthwork will continue through February and then the construction will begin in April after the contract has been awarded. We are on budget and on time. We should receive very competitive bids on this project. Paul Hudnut asked if we should be taking advantage of building Parks and Recreation Board V ites January 23, 2002 Page #6 more parks while the contractors are competitive. Marty -explained that we have so many projects on the drawing table right now that we can't move any faster. Harmony Neighborhood Park Craig Foreman explained that Harmony Neighborhood Park is adjacent to Traut Elementary and Preston Junior High School. The park was started in January and staff is very pleased with the contractor, and the construction is two weeks ahead of schedule. They will start structures (restroom and shelter) in the next month and it will be seeded in June. A Building Community Choices ballfield is also in this plan. Gateway Park Jeff Lakey said that the park shelters are built and the prefab restrooms will be installed soon. Craig gave an update on the access road. This road should be completed in May. We will have a local contractor pave the road and we will have to repave a section of Highway 14 to comply with CDOT. The project should be completed by the end of May and open the park in June. Mary Carlson asked if the restrooms will be closed after dusk? Craig said that Gateway is a day use facility only. We will have a gate that we will shut when the park is closed. Paul Hudnut asked about the status of the dam and will it be open to bikes, pedestrians, and horses? Marty said that mountain bikes will not be allowed at the reservoir. The Forest Service is concerned about this activity. Soft Gold Park Located on Hickory Street, this 10-acre park is funded through the General Fund. Staff had a public meeting on site in December. The neighborhood asked about a dog park and a BMX track for the kids to ride their bikes. We are going to design a neighborhood dog park and a miniature BMX track on the site. We are planning to construct this with a 2003 opening. Del Price asked about irrigation in this park? Craig said we are investigating securing water rights. There are two mobile home parks that are adjacent and this park will serve a total of three mobile parks in the neighborhood. Lance Freeman complimented the staff on the components they are putting in the park. Mike Gavin agreed and said that staff listened to the neighborhood. Mary Carlson asked how many kids this park will serve? Mike said there's a large group of kids who use Northside Aztlan Community Center from this neighborhood. Dean Hoag said Hickory Mobile Home Park has a lot of kids and they need this park. Del said that we need activities in our parks for kids in the age group 8-13. What are we providing for kids who aren't in baseball or soccer? Marty addressed this and said we need to give this park even more thought. Mike Gavin said that the multi -use pad at Cottonwood Glen Park is an example of a good facility for this age group. Dean added Parks and Recreation B�Minutes • January 23, 2002 Page #7 that Hickory is a neighborhood where the kids can't afford to play organized sports. This is a neighborhood where the RAD Van visits. Jeff said that there's a playground manufacturer that has products designed for this 8 to 13 age group and we are looking at that for Harmony. We are looking at serving the middle school kids also. Lance added the our park planners are planning some creative features and not building cookie cutter parks. He commends the staff for their creativity. Parks and Recreation Boards 2001 Annual Report Marty explained that the Board is required to submit an annual report to City Council summarizing their year. He asked the Board if they had any comments or changes. The following editing comments were made: People of the Clouds needs to be changed to Homestead Park; Northside Azdan Community Center needs to be reworded; note that a trails subcommittee was established. On a motion by Mary Carlson, seconded by Mike Gavin, the Board unanimously accepted the 2001 Parks and Recreation Board Annual Report with revisions. Trails Subcommittee Report Lance said that the group has been working on a matrix describing trails and categorizing them. The point to this is that we need to take an inventory of how many miles of trails we have and the various types of trails. Paul added that different trails provide different recreation values for various activities. There is concern that 10-foot wide paved trails through natural areas are not always appropriate. He doesn't think the group needs to meet monthly. There is a tremendous opportunity for our community and there needs to be a recreational voice in this. Our community has doubled in the past 10 years and we need to keep pace with the trail usage. All the surveys indicate we need more trails. He further explained that the group has been working on trail signage and management ideas. Del said he thinks that this group needs to meet quarterly. Lance asked the Board to get back to him or Paul Hudnut if any Board member is interested in representing the Parks and Recreation Board at a Trails Subcommittee quarterly meeting. Poudre River Enhancements Ross Cunniff gave the Board an update. He was at the Poudre River Design meeting as the representative for the Parks and Recreation Board. This design area was narrowly defined between Linden and Lincoln along the Poudre River. It was focusing on priorities and features. How should people access this? There will not be much access Parks and Recreation Board P" nes January 23, 2002 Page #8 from the south side of the river. All or most access will. -be on the trail side of the river. Suggestions were to raise the berm and relocate the trail and still have some quiet spots. Marry said the intent is to have EDAW design and then have it open to comments to the general public. Oxbow area development is unknown at this time. EDAW will come back with three conceptual drawings and present them to a wider audience. A preferred option will emerge from those discussions. Then we need to find the money to fund it. Design fees are from Conservation Trust, Natural Areas, and Water. Election of Officers Lance asked Board members to submit to Jackie Rael or Marty Heffernan nominations for officers. Lance will not serve as President again. At next month's meeting we will vote for officers. Other Business Mike Powers' Resignation — Marty said that Mike announced his resignation in December. There is a national search being conducted to find his replacement. • BCC and PSD — Craig reported that the improvement of sports fields at Webber and Blevins are under construction. • Status on Northside Aztlan Community Center — Marty reported that Mike Powers is working with the City Manager to free up some money for a site analysis. This will be brought back to the Board in March. Adjournment: The Board voted to adjourn at 9:00 p.m. Respectfu�,ll�,yensubmi d, I�-ci Ckie Rael Executive Administrative Assistant Meeting Attendance Board Members: Mary Carlson, Ross Cunniff, Lance Freeman, Mike Gavin, Dean Hoag, Ann Hunt, Del Price, and Paul Van Valkenburg Staff: Craig Foreman, Marty Heffernan, Jean Helburg, Jeff Lakey, and Jackie Rael Guests: Council Member Marty Tharp, Laurie Brunswick, and Valerie McIntyre