HomeMy WebLinkAbout1993-09-28 - MinutesLAKE FAYETTEVILLE SOUTH PARK BOTANICAL GARDEN PUBLIC MEETING SEPTEMBER 28, 1993 The meeting was called to order by Bill Waite in City Administration Building. PRAB Present: Parks Staff: Guests: room 326 of the Anderson, Driver, Kimbrough, Palmer, Savage, Waite, Wright Clark, Edmonston See attached list Donna Porter gave a presentation to the public on the proposed botanical garden. PRAB member Dee Wright gave survey results on the budgets for other non-profit gardens. (See survey) DISCUSSION: William Gisee: Kit Williams: Palmer: Porter: Clem Johnson: Porter: Stephen Wright: I have lived on Zion Road for 20 years. Leave beautiful Lake Fayetteville Park alone. Go to Zero Mountain. It would be beneficial for tourists and the City of Fayetteville. Would ask if volleyball could exist there with the garden? If not, volleyball facilities could be in other parks. Botanical garden is not exclusive of the volleyball courts. This would be a selective process, after site analysis. We have put a lot of money into volleyball. We would like to be there with the botanical garden. We would like to compromise. We have ten years work at this park. There are other parks available. The botanical garden would need to be secured. Zisner:If Donna cannot co -exist with us, she should move to another location on the 570 acres. There would be over 100,000 people attending the garden. How would volleyball enter? They could bring a volleyball ID. I am very much in support of the botanical garden. It would be bizarre to build the botanical garden around the volleyball court. They cannot co -exist together. Jay Springboard:The City does have a tree ordinance. Any construction or tree removal must be approved by the City. The water lilies at Lake Fayetteville have died. Start the gardens by adopting the lily pads. Zisner: Leo Ward: Page 2 Kirby Estes: I highly favor the botanical garden proposal. Master Gardeners would supply the maintenance. There is no publicly funded botanical garden in Arkansas, only a commercial garden in Eureka Springs. Austin: Maintenance and growth of a Botanical Garden would come from a botanical garden board. The proposal is not about the City doing this project, but the City giving the land. City must commit inkind to volleyball players for an additional area, plus add facilities. Look at a good location for volleyball facilities now. Waite: The LWCF grant proposal includes expansion of the volleyball facilities at Lake Fayetteville South. Porter: Lake Fayetteville South is the ultimate prime site. Accessibility will make or break it. Nick Faddoul: The park is safe. Running trails are needed. We must co -exist with these trails. I am 100 percent in support of the botanical garden. It would help reserve the family atmosphere. Stirewalt:I am chairman of the Chamber of Commerce Events & Visitor's Committee, and our committee support the botanical garden. Tourism supports our economy. People come here for our natural area, and the botanical garden would be an attraction. Bus tours would help people to stay longer and spend more. I could care less about tourists in our City. The roads cannot handle it. How can one special interest group say to another special interest group, I want your spot. Karen Allred: I left a job in a botanical garden in Los Angeles, California to move to Fayetteville. Are you proposing that the City give the land, and if so to whom? Waite: The City would need to have a strong voice or participant. Karen Allred: A botanical garden could be used for filming. It is usually run by the county. At this point, it is not neccessary to know who will run it. Guest: How many are here to support this garden? Guest: Is it so red -necked to say they could co -exist? Kimbrough: We need to see what level of interest there is to establish a botanical garden. So far this has been very preliminary. We need to see financial estimates and support from the community to pursue more information. Guy Ames: I am a horticulturist and ex -volleyball player. We have an opportunity here. Change has come, and I don't like it. We have an opportunity to beautify this area. We can take four courts elsewhere for the two existing. We need to do special things Guest: Susan Jim Glenn: Waite: Wright: Lisa Paschal: Roy Peterson: Teresa Morrow: Guest: U of A Student: Curtis Neely: Waite: Guest: Kimbrough: Waite: Wright: • Guest: Waite: Porter: Page 3 that reflect the beauty of our region. A botanical garden must have a secured perimeter and a water supply. We are developing parks for citizens, not tourists. We could have the "Friends of the Botanical Garden" raise a percentage that the City will match. We could have volunteers to plant the beds. I support a botanical garden. This area is growing so fast, we will need more parks. We need to plan so we will have our parks. I came to the area because of the beauty. How can you learn the native plants of Arkansas. I guess you could have to take a class at the University, but that would be a hard way of doing it. A botanical garden would be better. There is the idea of time and scale. There might be enough time to work out the different use of the area. Need to start small and grow slow. Start small and let this thing grow. Start small with one greenhouse and grow as the money comes in. Maybe the garden and volleyball can co -exist for the next ten years. I am in favor of the botanical garden. The students would enjoy it. It would be a great learning facility, and the Environmental Study Center could use it. I live in Prairie Grove, but I would be a supporter of a botanical garden. You could invest some revenues from the botanical garden into the volleyball courts. You could find other land and fund raise to purchase the land to build a botanical garden. The progression of the botanical garden might proceed as follows: 1. have another public meeting 2. receive proposal to operate the garden I anticipate the need of a non-profit organization to be established first. The City may be interested in operating it. I see it more to be operated by a non-profit organization rather than the City. The City will need a lot of assurances in this project. Many other cities are 50 percent City and 50 percent private, and many of the gardens have City employees. What kind of support needs to be shown to take it to the next level? It will take some time. At this point, it is only verbal assurance. The "Friends of the Botanical Garden" has been established. There are dues to join to help with mailing costs. We will establish soon as a non Waite: Kimbrough: Guest: Guest: Page 4 -profit agency. We will review this at the next PRAB meeting. Then we will request concrete proposals from Donna or any others. The PRAB only recommends to the City Council. Looks like the "Field of Dreams" that money will come in and it would grow. It needs a commitment from the City. Meeting adjourned at 9:05 p.m. 57) z Cnds-k s (s c S -u-,. -733 Ccs /z3f 3 Ati// /1-Z49-Le- Zie Mme 4 A / 45Q4At asaaage . Gki(�ry X5/4- ► 4-11e44.4 t\ouvtr--dovL_ riqLdest rebs 3 3 --- ry £Ai fa VC- 77E -di fit 7Z-70/ r/"• J'c[�focie- 'ijYo9 /X-7 -70/ t3 Co1.4 boGuni-Dp P-11‘,1 -22-703 1{)-5 c. aio5 (2O5V a9-oq- 7A43 60e 1,0069 _ C 3o9 Oo. 300cv t7`3 yob //2</p3 /r}� /z1..0 3 44 .,e Jw, N0k IAN Scun v �. ZS 73 Gva S�jUi o iv • --- �I � ru,J A4e Sgr dl�� C'_ .ate e_ _co_—�-t 076 ` Sd4 e'- ��6 Rom 1! Zant fir- . 2( 477/ ,z/oSe-ti Ne S , �� )4,,-4.-/ Ni 4/ We R44i D4 L. ,Z -22j t- r43f1 Eq) Pnwci cht so y //Col SAum,ile CCxossi, ic1nmi� cc X521 tln��t��Cral tecy 7a7o3 7oz 1/9. f42 y(IV 4< On✓ 4 cR353 0601 Wick), IP,F2rie !1�Dt`t'1-eR €0 \-tbfix_\\o4. j _NCL .. 727 �a e �r✓-r1/_//(v :Gc .727dy c e,3. 6- 0I( icy lea! 70.78./ - aG' l �yJ • • • SURVEYED GARDENS' BUDGET INFORMATION THE CROSBY ARBORETUM (MISS) - size - 64 acres - years in operation- 7 - admin. staff - 4 - maint. staff - 1 - start-up cost - 1 mil. - annual operation budget - $250,000 MYRIAD BOTANICAL GARDEN (OK) size - 17 acres years in operation -.5 annual operation budget - 1 million (city pays 1) need 5 mil. more to complete the master plan r•.4.1,•04 MEMPHIS BOTANICAL GARDENS (TENN) - size - 96 acres (donated) - annual budget - $850,000 (city pays 60%) WITCHITA BOTANICAL GARDENS (KS) - size - 91 acres (city property) - years in operation - 6 - admin. staff - 10 - maint. staff 2 full time, • 2 part-time POWELL GARDENS (MISSOURI) - size - 835 acres, but only 60 maintained - years in operation - 8 - start-up cost - 400,000 -. vis/ed center- (restored farmhouse) 3,000 sq. ft. -$100,000 - support greenhouse - 3,000 sq. ft. - $25,000 - admin. staff - 20 - maint. staff - 9 - annual operating budget - 1 mil. HUNTSVILLE BOTANICAL GARDEN (ALABAMA) - size - 112 (only 35 used)- leased city property - years in operation - 5 - start-up cost - 200,000 then matched by city - vis/ed center - 2,500 sq. ft. - $175,000 - support greenhouse - 2,900 sq ft. - $12,700 - admin. staff - 8 - maint. staff - 6 - annual operation budget - $419,500 GENERAL GARDEN BUDGET INFORMATION ACCORDING TO CURRENT AABGA (AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF BOTANICAL GARDENS AND ARBORETUMS) RECORDS, OUT OF 278 GARDENS SURVEYED: - 50% have annual budgets under $100,00 - 19% have annual budgets between $100,00 - 250,000 - 12% have annual budgets between $250,000 - 500,000 - 22% -have annual budgets over $500,000 - Gardens associated with universities have the smallest budgets, while government -affiliated and private gardens have the largest budgets - The largest portion of the operating budget is most often allo- cated to the gardens' plant collections. (Acquisition of the plant materials, their maintenance and records.) • - Less than 20% of the total budget is allocated to the research and educational aspects of a garden