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Home My WebLink AboutCOUNCIL - AGENDA ITEM - 01/19/2016 - FIRST READING OF ORDINANCE NO. 012, 2016, APPROPRAgenda Item 8 Item # 8 Page 1 AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY January 19, 2016 City Council STAFF Renee Lee, Therapeutic Recreation Specialist SUBJECT First Reading of Ordinance No. 012, 2016, Appropriating Unanticipated Grant Revenue in the Recreation Fund for the Adaptive Recreation Opportunities Program Paralympic Sport Club. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The purpose of this item is to appropriate $15,000 of unanticipated grant revenue in the Recreation Fund to be used for general operating support for the Adaptive Recreation Opportunities (ARO) program Paralympic Sport Club. ARO has been selected to receive a renewal grant of $15,000 from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for Veterans Adaptive Sports Programs serving disabled Veterans and disabled members of the Armed Forces for the funding cycle of October 2015- September 2016. STAFF RECOMMENDATION Staff recommends adoption of the Ordinance on First Reading. BACKGROUND / DISCUSSION The ARO program serves community members with disabilities to support their participation in recreation programs and activities of their choice and has been a U.S. Paralympic sanctioned Paralympic Sport Club since 2009. The VA Adaptive Sports grant will allow ARO to provide local veterans the opportunity to learn adaptive techniques and receive training in the Paralympic sports of swimming and cycling, focusing on skill development, fitness and community reintegration. Integrative Restorative (iRest) Yoga Nidra will also be offered. The guided relaxation practice of Yoga Nidra is used at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and other VA facilities and has been proven to diminish symptoms of PTSD, anxiety and depression. This grant project will also help strengthen the City’s partnership with the Cheyenne VA Outpatient clinic, the CSU Veteran "New Start" program and other recognized veteran agencies who serve veterans with physical and visual disabilities. The City Manager previously executed the VA Grant Agreement in October 2015 at the time the VA provided notice of the grant award. (Attachment 1) CITY FINANCIAL IMPACTS The VA Veterans Adaptive Sports Program grant will contribute to existing ARO programs and services and will not require any additional City financial resources. PUBLIC OUTREACH The grant funded programs will be advertised through the ARO newsletter/ brochures and on the ARO website and Recreation Department's Facebook page. The grant director, Renee Lee, will attend the Larimer Co. Veteran Advisory Group monthly meetings and present opportunities to veteran groups when the program information is available. Outreach events will take place throughout the year to connect with new veterans. Agenda Item 8 Item # 8 Page 2 ATTACHMENTS 1. Agreement with VA (PDF) 2. Paraplymics Sports Program Abstract (PDF) ATTACHMENT 1 Adaptive Sports Programs for Disabled Veterans and Disabled Members of the Armed Forces- # VA-ASG-2016-01 Paralympic Aquatics, Cycling and Wellness Programs Abstract The Paralympic aquatics, cycling and wellness programs will be administered through the City of Fort Collins Paralympic Sport Club (PSC), an Adaptive Recreation Opportunities (ARO) program. ARO staff include three Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialists and an Occupational Therapist (OT), who provide quality adaptive recreation programs and services for people with disabilities, so they may participate in leisure activities of their choice in a community setting. ARO is an established USOC Paralympic Sport Club- Bronze Level of Excellence and has a strong partnership with the Cheyenne VAMC, who provided direct Veteran referrals, transition support for disabled Veterans and recreation staff training. The Cheyenne VAMC has successfully referred 55 Veterans with polytrauma, traumatic brain injury, physical disability, PTS and/or pain management needs to ARO’s Veteran sport programs in 2014. More Veterans are coming to Fort Collins to attend Colorado State University (CSU) and are involved with the New Start program for Veterans, where they receive support through the CSU Center for Community Partnership program in the OT Department. Through increased referrals from the Cheyenne VAMC and now, the CSU New Start program, we can expand our services to a greater number of Veterans and provide comprehensive support through the use of adaptive sports, recreation and wellness engagement as a therapeutic treatment modality to help promote recovery, support academic success and increase life satisfaction. Disabled Veterans and injured members of the Armed Forces will have the opportunity to learn adaptive techniques and receive training in the Paralympic sports of swimming and cycling, focusing on skill development, fitness and community reintegration. Veterans requested cycling due to the fitness benefits, comfort of adaptive bikes and the ability to participate independently. Coaches training and certification of ARO staff will increase the competency and sustainability of these sports. Integrative Restorative (iRest) Yoga is proven to help Veterans that are more severely impacted by PTS, anxieties and sleep problems, and provides a place to continue to heal within their community towards eventual recreation participation. The participants will also be included in other ARO PSC programs like archery, wheelchair rugby, skiing, kayaking, and goalball. Veterans will be integrated into community programs as a means to facilitate their increased awareness of community resources and allow for sustainable leisure and recreational opportunities and to promote healthy, active lifestyles. ORDINANCE NO. 012, 2016 OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS APPROPRIATING UNANTICIPATED GRANT REVENUE IN THE RECREATION FUND FOR THE ADAPTIVE RECREATION OPPORTUNITIES PROGRAM PARALYMPIC SPORT CLUB WHEREAS, the City of Fort Collins Recreation Department’s Adaptive Recreation Opportunities program (the “ARO”) has been selected by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (the “VA”) to receive a grant for Veterans Adaptive Sports Programs serving disabled Veterans and disabled members of the Armed Forces for the funding cycle of October 2015- September 2016; and WHEREAS, the VA grant is in the amount of $15,000, which will be used for general operating support for programming provided by the ARO U.S Paralympic-sanctioned Paralympic Sport Club; and WHEREAS, Article V, Section 9, of the City Charter permits the City Council to make supplemental appropriations by ordinance at any time during the fiscal year, provided that the total amount of such supplemental appropriations, in combination with all previous appropriations for that fiscal year, does not exceed the current estimate of actual and anticipated revenues to be received during the fiscal year; and WHEREAS, City staff has determined that the appropriation of the revenue as described herein will not cause the total amount appropriated in the Recreation Fund to exceed the current estimate of actual and anticipated revenues to be received in that fund during any fiscal year. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS as follows: Section 1. That the City Council hereby makes and adopts the determinations and findings contained in the recitals set forth above. Section 2. That there is hereby appropriated for expenditure from unanticipated grant revenue in the Recreation Fund the sum of FIFTEEN THOUSAND DOLLARS ($15,000) for the ARO program collaboration with the VA to serve veterans with physical and visual disabilities. Introduced, considered favorably on first reading, and ordered published this 19th day of January, A.D. 2016, and to be presented for final passage on the 2nd day of February, A.D. 2016. __________________________________ Mayor ATTEST: _______________________________ City Clerk Passed and adopted on final reading on the 2nd day of February, A.D. 2016. __________________________________ Mayor ATTEST: _______________________________ City Clerk