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HomeMy WebLinkAboutParks And Recreation Board - Minutes - 07/27/2011Parks & Recreation Board Meeting –July 27, 2011 Page 1 of 19 BE A GOOD STEWARD: Protect & Respect your Parks, Trails & Recreation Facilities Call Meeting to Order: Michael Chalona called the meeting to order 5:50pm Agenda Review & Items of Note: Agenda Review: - Add that we are starting the process to change Bylaws - Introduce Bob Adams Items of Note: - Update from Rob on attending the Council Work Session. - Note given to Selena from a neighbor regarding the Taft Canyon neighborhood 38E trail project stating that the Parks staff was extremely helpful, the trail was beautiful and they couldn’t wait to use it. Citizen Participation None Approval of Minutes: No Discussion. Rob Cagen made the Motion to approve the Parks & Recreation Board minutes of June 22, 2011, seconded by Greg Miller – Minutes approved 9:0 AGENDA ITEMS: Introduce Bob Adams, the new Recreation Director Marty Heffernan, Exec Director of CPRE, introduced Bob Adams the new Recreation Director. There was a national search done for this position, and 330 applications were received. They were narrowed down to six very qualified candidates who were interviewed in a two-panel process. Bob was selected and we’re excited to have his skill set and 24 years of experience in recreation to help us move our Recreation Department forward. Discussion Bob – I’m excited to be here. I look forward to some positive changes in Recreation. I was born and raised in Greeley and have been in recreation my entire career Board – What about a new Recreation Center in South Fort Collins? Bob – Greeley had voted a ½ cent tax to fund their fun-plex, and I was heavily involved with getting this recreation center built, so I feel I can take what I learned from that and help to make an even better facility here. Board – Did you know you would be involved in this type of work when you applied? Bob – No, but after talking with Marty it’s why I accepted the position. I enjoy this part of the job. Board – What do you think you’d make better with a Recreation facility here? Bob – I would make it more “green”, alleviate some of the maintenance issues, and work toward making it more revenue generating while cutting expenses. Board – What are some of the maintenance issues? PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD Minutes of Regular Meeting Wednesday, July 27, 2011 5:30 p.m. Council Liaison: Kelly Ohlson Staff Liaison: J.R. Schnelzer, 221-6301 Craig Foreman, 221-6618 President: Michael Chalona Phone: 970-490-2335 (home) / 970-472-8954 x1 (work) Parks & Recreation Board Meeting –July 27, 2011 Page 2 of 19 Bob – At the fun-plex there’s not enough space for parents to watch their kids swim; and it’s very loud; so I would work to make it a more enjoyable for families. There’s also an issue with changing lights over the pool; so I would look at alternative lighting solutions. I also would not include a food court, it’s just not utilized and in fact they are converting that space into a fitness area which is a better use of the space. The Board went around the table and introduced themselves to Bob. Bike Safety Course in a Park Matt Wempe, Transportation Planner, is the “safe route to school coordinator”. There was a Council directive to provide an education program for bike riders, and create a bike safety town through the Bicycle Safety Education Plan. They are hoping to have plans for the bike town done by 2011 and fund and develop the bike town in 2012. Matt is in the process of writing an update to present to Council mid-August and is looking to the Park & Recreation Board for help in determining an appropriate Park location to place the bike town. He is looking to create something simple and maintainable, so it can be integrated into the park. It would be like a miniature city complete with streets, bike lanes, crosswalks, and traffic signs. The City would program classes to teach bike safety for families, children and adults; but targeting children and families and encouraging kids to teach their families what they learned. We envision a flat surface with paths acting as streets and maybe removable signs; like stops signs, yields, etc. that could be easily put up for classes and taken down for maintenance. Currently we are working on a location, planning and design and then Park Planning will start the design process. We are hoping to have this initial process done by November and then we’ll look for grant money and perhaps some additional funding from Council. For further details, please see the PowerPoint presentation (attached). Discussion Board – What parks have you looked at? Staff – We thought about the future SE Community Park, but don’t feel it’s central enough or the appropriate site, since it’s not yet a park. Spring Canyon was another consideration, but again we don’t feel it’s the right fit as it is a highly used park. We feel the best option would be a neighborhood park Board – Is this intended to be used as a class setting, confined to programming? Staff – The survey showed that we should design it for both; so that we can use it for formal classes as part of bike education, but also allow it be used by someone just dropping in, perhaps a parent showing their child how to ride a bike. Board – How would it be scheduled? Staff – It might be something offered through the Recreator, but more than likely it will be offered through Transportation. Board – What about using land at a school? Staff – Schools are heavily used, but we would like to use a park that is next to a school. Board – What’s your favorite site? Staff – The matrix helped a lot, and we feel the best option would be Beattie Park. There is a space where the tennis courts use to be, so it would be very doable. Other sites, like Ridgeview were too hilly and Golden Meadows didn’t have enough space. And, again, the community parks were already heavily used parks. Staff – Beattie is also next to the trail and school and has available existing space, easy to maintain with minimal impact to the park users and neighborhood. Board – Are the neighbors okay with this, we want to avoid negative impact to neighbors by putting this where they don’t want it. Staff – Yes, we did conduct a survey; and it’s still available for comments until August 8. We had 150 responses which is very good for a survey. Board – What other facilities are at Bettie? Staff – Soccer field, two ball fields, and restrooms. The playground is on school property. Parks & Recreation Board Meeting –July 27, 2011 Page 3 of 19 Board – Should we make a recommendation or write a formal letter? The matrix was great; it really showed the best option. Board – Beattie seems a bit out of the way, is the drop in potential there? Board – I think it’s for a particular audience; program users will pass the word. Board – Can there be more than one built? Staff – We want to see how this one is received and used, but there is always a potential for another in the future. Board – I think this type of specific focus gives the neighborhood park more purpose. Staff – Putting new items in an existing park can be difficult; we leave open space in parks as part of the design to allow people to have a place to “play”. That’s another reason Beattie works out well, because we’re able to reuse an area that had once been a tennis court. Board – We shouldn’t think a park is immune to changes; they need to change with use. They need a balance to retain things that are important, but they also need to meet the new needs and safe biking has become important to our community. Motion Motion made by Bruce Henderson: The Parks & Recreation Board recommends Beattie Park as the primary choice for the Bike Town. Should the staff’s final review process and public input negate this site, we recommend focusing on a neighborhood park that is centrally located, and is recommended by staff as the next best location. Seconded by Danna Ortiz Vote: All in Favor 9:0 Staff Updates Park Updates  Southridge Golf Course took a big hit with the hail. All 19 greens had to be refurbished, so the course had to shut down for a day. The Staff did an incredible job in fixing the damage in only one day. We estimated the cost at about $3,000 in lost revenue.  Lincoln Center tree removal was not something Forestry wanted to do, but they are keeping the wood and storing for artists to use and their works will be displayed at the Lincoln Center. Discussion Board - What happened to the swing dance mural? Staff - We’re waiting to hear from Art in Public Places. Recreation Updates  There will be a fund raiser golf tournament to raise funds for Youth Football, which just celebrated its 65 th year.  Working on the Senior Center Expansion. Park Planning Updates  E-bike team working through codes changes to allow for a one year trial for e-bikes to be on trails. Board – Are they going to allow on all the trails? Staff – Yes, there are only 50 or so e-bikes in town, so we didn’t want to limit the trail access because we want to get good data. We’ll talk with the Board in a month or two to let you know the outcome of the code changes.  Plan Fort Collins – are trail standards okay for commuters? We’ll go through some turns along the trail to see where they need to be widened to help all users, and we’re looking to update the signage. Parks & Recreation Board Meeting –July 27, 2011 Page 4 of 19 Transportation has about $5,000 to help with trail signs. There are three types of signs; 1) regulatory signs (like stop signs); 2) informational signs (like a sign showing distance to next location); and 3) educational signs. These are more difficult to get right; they’re signs to help educate like “stay right”. David’s group is looking at making them humorous in some way so that trail users find them memorable. Discussion Board – How did the open house go for Staley? Staff – Really good, but the only problem is we can’t come up with a name, so it’s hard to come up with a design that captures the “character” of the park. Board Communications Sub-Committee Update Bylaws Change Rob Cagen attended the City Council work session on Tuesday, July 12, 2011. Rob’s update: I was given an opportunity to speak with the Council, and I expressed the Boards desire to increase our abilities as a Board, specifically with communication. The Council seems receptive to this, and thought it was a good idea. So I think our next step will be to have staff help modify the City Code and we should modify our bylaws. We can make a proposal to specify language in our bylaws tonight, and then staff can send this to Ingrid Decker for City Code modification. We should probably have Michael Chalona visit with Kelly Ohlson again before the City Code change is presented to Council. The ordinance change is subject to Council approval. Motion Motion made by Dawn Theis: The Parks & Recreation Board would add the following sentence to the Parks & Recreation Bylaws, based on wording that is already in place for the Landmark Preservation Commission: The Parks and Recreation Board’s function shall further include promoting awareness and understanding of, and appreciation for, the value of parks and recreation as a resource contributing to the quality of our City. Seconded by: Brian Carroll Vote: All in Favor 9:0 Bicycle Advisory Board Liaison Update The bike safety town was mostly discussed at the Bike Advisory meeting as well. But the other discussion was from Tim Anderson with the Fort Collins Velodrome Association. They are looking to fund a velodrome and expand this to a velo-park where there would be a race track, cycle cross course, velodrome, bike recreation facility for bike activities and events. It is a vision right now and a private endeavor. http://www.fcvelo.org/ Other Board Work Plan Items  NISP – Council thought we had only heard one point of view from Brian Werner with the Northern Colorado Conservancy District regarding the NISP Project. So, perhaps; since it’s been a few years, we should invite folks from organizations such as Save the Poudre to hear their point of view of NISP. It’s good to have a point of view from all outside sources. Attached is information on NISP compiled from previous minutes Discussion Board – Can Council really stop this project from happening? Staff – The Army Corp of engineers controls the project and they want input. Board - Does it make sense to see information before the Environmental Impact Study (EIS)? Parks & Recreation Board Meeting –July 27, 2011 Page 5 of 19 Staff – With new Board members coming in January, a meeting about this in January might be more appropriate. Board – Maybe we could have meetings in January/February to hear all the sides, so when we get the EIS in March the Board will be up to speed. Board – There are other Board with an interest in NISP, perhaps we can have some joint meeting. Staff – John Stokes and his team would have information about the other Boards and other organizations involved in NISP, so perhaps he could help coordinate those people to come to a joint meeting of the Boards. He would also be able to give us an overview of the project from the City’s perspective. Board – Perhaps John could come in January and then other groups in February/March. The key will be review time.  Rob was also able to talk with Council about funding for the Great Lawn at the Gardens and the Senior Center expansion. It sounded like the Council supported both of these projects.  Rob also spoke about the lack of cooperation with PSD in not allowing the Recreator into schools. The Council had a concern with this. Staff – Bob Adams is already working with staff and PSD to set up some meetings. Board Bullet Items  The P&R Board welcomed Bob Adams, the new Recreation Director. Bob was the Director of Leisure Services for the City of Greeley and has 24 years of Recreation experience.  Bike Town Motion: The Parks & Recreation Board recommends Beattie Park as the primary choice for the Bike Town. Should the staff’s final review process and public input negate this site, we recommend focusing on a neighborhood park that is centrally located, and is recommended by staff as the next best location.  Change to Parks & Recreation By Laws Motion: Add the sentence, based on wording that is already in place for the Landmark Preservation Commission: The Parks and Recreation Board’s function shall further include promoting awareness and understanding of, and appreciation for, the value of parks and recreation as a resource contributing to the quality of our city. Adjournment: Meeting adjourned 8:10pm. Respectfully submitted, VtÜÉÄ etÇ~|Ç Carol Rankin Administrative Support Supervisor Parks Department Board Approved the minutes, of July 27, 2011 – 7:0 Board Attendance Board Members: Rob Cagen, Brian Carroll, Michael Chalona, Shirley Christian, Bruce Henderson, Greg Miller, Selena Paulsen, Danna Ortiz, Dawn Theis Staff: JR Schnelzer, Craig Foreman, Carol Rankin, Bob Adams, Marty Heffernan Guests: None Parks & Recreation Board Meeting –July 27, 2011 Page 6 of 19 Parks and Recreation Board July 27, 2011 Park Planning and Development work items: Policy Plan: The draft of the Environmental/Sustainability Best Management Plan Manual has been completed and staff is reviewing. Budgeting for Outcomes: The 2013/14 BFO process will begin in the spring of 2012. Building on Basics (BOB) Park improvement funds – 2009 funds to Roselawn Cemetery for improvements. Park improvement funds will be available in 2015. NISP: Staff is anticipating the Supplemental EIS to be ready in the spring of 2012? Park items: 1. Waters Way Park: Construction has started on the park. 2. Tennis court plan for neighborhood courts is being reviewed by management. 3. Registry Neighborhood Park: Construction has started on the park. 4. Staley Neighborhood Park: Park is in the pilot program for The Sustainable Site Initiative program. Trails: 1. Poudre Trail at Nix Farm: Staff will be developing the tree resting area design. Natural Resources have seeded the area with native grasses. We are sensitive to this costly effort and will plan our construction of the tree resting area for a later date to minimize disturbance to the new grass. 2. Power Trail: Keenland underpass of the UP in approval process and in the second step of the railroad approval process. 3. Fossil Creek Trail along Stanton Creek north of Carpenter Road planned for fall 2011 construction. 4. Poudre Trail at Lemay: Mulberry Bridge to be replaced by CDOT. The design team has incorporated our trail bridge needs downstream of Lemay into the floodplain analysis. Latest from CDOT is they are planning for construction to start in the fall of 2013. The MPO has awarded $368,375 toward the construction of the $530,000 trail project. The City is working to add funding to the bridge project to create a “gateway” affect in this area. 5. Fossil Creek Trail and underpass at Highway 38E: Project is under construction with completion planned for early August. GOCO grant. 6. Poudre Trail to Timnath: Scoping of the project in 2011. 7. Staff will start to work with CSU/Environmental Learning Center for an easement for the trail to extend to Drake Road. 8. County Road #11 and trail underpass on hold due to limited Street Oversizing funds. 9. Spring Creek Trail east of Centre Avenue to the railroad tracks. R.O.W. is working with CSU (CSURF) about the new trail easement process. We hope to acquire the easement in 2011. 10. New: Staff is working with the City Bicycle, Natural Resources, Communications Office and Park Maintenance staff on a plan to update our trail signage. 11. New: Plan Fort Collins action item – Trail Design Standards Amendments in 2011 and 2012. Update bicycle/pedestrian trail design standards to address use of trails for commuting/transportation purposes without impacting the recreation value of the trail system. Designate which trails these new standards would apply to and avoid impacts on environmentally sensitive areas. Staff has started a process for gathering user counts on the recreational trail system. Miscellaneous: 1. Electric bicycle process to determine if they should be allowed on the trail system occurring in 2011. New: Council Work Session on e-bikes gave direction for a one year trial period. 2. Veteran’s Plaza at SCCP. Info can be obtained at the web page of the Community Foundation of Northern Colorado, News and Events section, and into Veteran’s Plaza page. 3. Disc Golf: The design of the course holes has been completed. Staff will now start on the design for the new access road to our parking lot from County Road #42C. We are proposing using Conservation Trust funds for the development of the course and are hopeful the disc golf community can find grants and help with construction. The GOCO grant was submitted. 4. Water Craft Course – NISP impact unknown at this time and fund raising very slow. 5. Old Fort Collins Heritage Park stake park lights – Group of users are attempting to find funding to supply lights at the skate park. 6. Discovery/Museum Center – we are coordinating on this project. 7. New: Bike Safety Town location determination is moving through the public outreach process and interested Boards. Parks & Recreation Board Meeting –July 27, 2011 Page 7 of 19 Parks & Recreation Board Meeting –July 27, 2011 Page 8 of 19 Parks & Recreation Board Meeting –July 27, 2011 Page 9 of 19 Parks & Recreation Board Meeting –July 27, 2011 Page 10 of 19 Parks & Recreation Board Meeting –July 27, 2011 Page 11 of 19 Parks & Recreation Board Meeting –July 27, 2011 Page 12 of 19 Parks & Recreation Board Meeting –July 27, 2011 Page 13 of 19 Compilation of NISP/Glade information from previous Parks & Recreation Minutes September 26, 2007 Minutes Other Business: November 28, 2007 Minutes Project Updates: January 23, 2008 Minutes Guest Speaker: April 23, 2008 Minutes Project Updates: Parks & Recreation Board Meeting –July 27, 2011 Page 14 of 19 May 28, 2008 Minutes Other Business: Parks & Recreation Board Meeting –July 27, 2011 Page 15 of 19 June 25, 2008 Minutes Updates: Parks & Recreation Board Meeting –July 27, 2011 Page 16 of 19 July 30, 2008 Minutes Updates: August 27, 2008 Minutes Other Business: Draft MEMORANDUM DT: July, xxxxxx TO: Mayor and City Council Members TH: Darin Atteberry, City Manager FR: Parks and Recreation Board RE: NISP Parks and Recreation Board Review (Introduction paragraph or two of the Board’s thoughts) The following are the Board’s comments on the Proposed Project’s impacts on recreation: 1. Potential impact to the delivery of irrigation (ditch) water to parks by the proposed action. The City currently irrigates numerous parks with irrigation (ditch) water and the effect of leased water by NISP on these diversions is not addressed in the DEIS. Diverted and or stored water could affect our ability to get water through ditches to Parks & Recreation Board Meeting –July 27, 2011 Page 17 of 19 our parks. The magnitude of this impact could be financially major if the City has to use domestic water, at a much higher cost, to irrigation parks than the less expensive irrigation water. 2. Potential impact by the proposed action on trail and park users and planned improvements. This conclusion is not well supported in the report and runs contrary to the City’s findings. Park and trail users enjoy the river during all periods; but particularly visit the river during times of increased flows in the spring and early summer. The Poudre River will experience further “miniaturization” from the proposed action causing less flow variations and ecological diversity resulting in a reduced aesthetic experience. The impact of reduced river flows on projects, such as the, planned Discovery/Museum Center in Lee Martinez Park is not addressed in the DEIS. A visual representation of historic and anticipated flows in the river should be provided to show the aesthetic impact caused by the reduced flows. Reduced flow moves the aesthetic resource away from a desired condition of an aesthetically pleasing river that is vital to Fort Collins. 3. Potential impact by the proposed action on boating (tubing to kayaking). This conclusion is not well supported in the report. The river through Fort Collins receives considerable tubing and other boating use when flows allow. Additional analysis is needed to determine this impact particularly in the dry river flow conditions on tubing and other water craft use. Reduced flow moves boating (tubing to kayaking) away from a desired condition of an important recreation feature in the City. 4. Potential impact by the proposed action on the planned Water Craft Course. Additional information on the water craft course design indicates a minimum flow of 200 cfs is a more realistic value for a viable course. Additional analysis is needed to determine the magnitude of the impact on the water craft course. The District effort to move the Lake Canal intake is significant to the river through Fort Collins. The intake move must take place or the District should be required to provide the 50 cfs (or more) by other means as part of the required mitigation in the FEIS. 5. Potential impact by the proposed action on fishing through town. Additional analysis is needed to determine the magnitude of the impact on fishing on the river and adjacent ponds. Reduced flow in the river during dry conditions in particular may result in reduced fish and thus reduced recreational enjoyment and economic benefit. Reduced flow moves the fishing resource away from a desired condition of a healthy fishery in Fort Collins. 6. Potential impact by the proposed action on the economic value of the river. This conclusion is not well supported in the report and runs contrary to the City’s findings. The river currently provides Fort Collins citizens with a variety of recreational opportunities that have an economic value. The Loomis Report indicates the community has a high value for maintaining current river flows. Reduced flow from the proposed action moves the river resource away from a desired condition of an economically important river that is vital to Fort Collins. (Board mitigation thoughts?) November 17, 2009 Minutes P&R 2010 Work Plan & Schedule March 24, 2010 Minutes Board Work Plan Updates: Parks & Recreation Board Meeting –July 27, 2011 Page 18 of 19 April 28, 2010 Minutes Citizen Participation: May 26, 2010 Minutes Approval of April Minutes: Parks & Recreation Board Meeting –July 27, 2011 Page 19 of 19 May 25, 2011 Minutes Other Board Work Plan Items: July 27, 2011 Minutes Other Board Work Plan Items:  NISP – Council thought we had only heard one point of view from >>> with the Glade Project. So, perhaps; since it’s been a few years, we should invite folks from organizations such as Save the Poudre to hear their point of view of NISP. It’s good to have a point of view from all outside sources. Attached is information on NISP compiled from previous minutes Discussion Board – Can Council really stop this project from happening? Staff – The Army Corp of engineers controls the project and they want input. Board - Does it make sense to see information before the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS)? Staff – With new Board members coming in January, a meeting about this in January might be more appropriate. Board – Maybe we could have meetings in January/February to hear all the sides, so when we get the EIS in March the Board will be up to speed. Board – There are other Board with an interest in NISP, perhaps we can have some joint meeting. Staff – John Stokes and his team would have information about the other Boards and other organizations involved in NISP, so perhaps he could help coordinate those people to come to a joint meeting of the Boards. He would also be able to give us an overview of the project from the City’s perspective. Board – Perhaps John could come in January and then other groups in February/March. The key will be review time.