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Home My WebLink About1997-02-03 - MinutesFAYETTEVI LLE THE CITY OF FAYETTEVILLE, ARKANSAS DEPARTMENTAL CORRESPONDENCE TO: PARKS AND RECREATION ADVISORY BOARD FROM: DALE D. CLARK, PARKS & RECREATION DIRECTOR DATE: JANUARY 24, 1997 SUBJECT: PRAB MEETING ON MONDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 1997 AT 5:30 PM IN ROOM 219 OF THE CITY ADMINISTRATION BUILDING I. Approval of PRAB Minutes - January 6, 1997 - Regular Meeting II. Introduction of the new Parks Board Member - Clark *Rodney Staggs III. Nomination and selection of Committee Members, Chairman and Vice -Chairman of the Board - Clark IV. Annual Report - Clark V. Gulley Park purchase progress report - Clark VI. OTHER BUSINESS Attachments: Green Space Report Information to be handed out at 2/3/97 P.R.A.B. meeting: HMR Report Annual Report for 1996 PRAB REGULAR MEETING FEBRUARY 3, 1997 The meeting was called to order by Ackerman at 5:30 p.m. in Room 219 of the City Administration Building. Members Present: Staff Present: Guests Present: Media Present: BUSINESS: Ackerman, Waite, James, McCutcheon, Bleidt, Thiel, Staggs, King Clark, Dugwyler, Orzek, Nelson Jennifer Kilpatrick, Kim Bodey - University of Arkansas students Rusty Garrett, Northwest Arkansas Times Jennifer Pinkerton, Morning News I. MOTION; JAMES, McCUTCHEON The Minutes from the January 6, 1997 PRAB regular meeting were approved unanimously 8-0. II. Introduction of the new Parks Board Member - Clark *Rodney Staggs Ackerman introduced Rodney Staggs and welcomed him to the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board. III. Nomination and selection of Committee Members, Chairman and Vice -Chairman of the Board - Clark Clark: There are no bylaws particularly in the way we select new board members, but I think last year the Chairman, Mr. Waite, had asked a committee Chaired by Johnny James to select and nominate new officers for the year. James: After the last board meeting we got our committee together and nominated Ackerman for Chairman of the Board and nominated McCutcheon for Vice Chairman of the Board. Clark: The subcommittees are the Facilities Committee, the 1 / February 3, 1997 REGULAR MEETING FEBRUARY 3, 1997 Budget Committee, and the Program/PR Committee. The Chairman of the Board usually appoints the Chairperson for these subcommittees. The Facilities Committee is by far the most active. Ackerman. We might open up the floor for any other nominations for the Chairman and Vice Chairman positions. Are there any other Board members who would like to make recommendations other than the two brought forth by the subcommittee? MOTION: BLEIDT/THIEL The nominations for Chairman and Vice Chairman as presented were closed. Motion approved unanimously 8-0. Ackerman. McCutcheon has agreed to serve as Chairman for the Program/PR Committee. Please get with him if you are interested in serving on this committee. You may serve on all committees if you wish. Pick your priority if you will. If you have a particular committee on which you think you may enjoy more than another, certainly let that be your top priority pick. But you are also encouraged to attend and be involved in any committee meetings at any time. There is a lot work which goes on within the committee structure which is important to all of us. Waite has agreed to serve as Chairman for the Budget Committee, and James has agreed to serve as Chairman for the Facilities Committee. We will pass a sign up list around during this meeting. Thiel: Could you explain a little about the Facilities Committee? Ackerman. Traditionally the Facilities Committee is concerned with the activities within our parks systems and ballfields. Basically, anything which deals with our facilities or complexes throughout the city. Playgrounds, new construction of a pavilion, the swimming pool, any maintenance on existing or new structures throughout the city are examples. These are major decisions which take a lot of time and effort. The girls' softball complex which is currently under construction is another example. The Facilities Committee meets to determine many of the issues regarding the construction of that facilities. James: We will also be notified by a developer if he is coming 2 / February 3, 1997 • REGULAR MEETING FEBRUARY 3, 1997 before us on the green space recommendations. That committee would go examine the proposal. Then we would bring our input back to the Board during our regular meetings. Ackerman: The Budget Committee will begin its process in the not -too -distance future. We will be working with the staff to put that information together for July. It's a very important process we have to go through. McCutcheon is going to be working with the staff in our public relations area. He will be developing some PR materials which I think will be very beneficial for the community and our Parks Board. IV. Annual Report - Clark Clark: Usually around this time of year, we set a date to visit with City Council, and the PRAB makes a presentation to them in regards to our annual report. We need to work on preparing a presentation for them and for getting on their agenda. We would like the Board to present this to City Council under the ordinance which establishes the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board. The staff has prepared an Annual Report. I would like to highlight some of the projects which took place in 1996. We have just completed the first phase of the girls' softball complex. We acquired the land through the green space ordinance, we developed a lease agreement with Holcomb Elementary School, we built a parking lot, and we have prepared the ground for the next phase. The next phase will be to add dugouts, fencing, concessions, scoreboard, and the turf on four 300 foot fields. We have selected engineers, but we need to finalize a contract with them. The final phase is designed for 1998 and will be lighting the fields. Our plan is to get the fields playable by August, so they can be utilized. This is a large project, and we have spent over $200,000 getting to the point where we are presently. We have some improvements to the street which will also be completed during the next phase. We have also planted trees there. We have also completed the pavilion and volleyball court at Veterans Memorial Park. We received a $50,000 grant for matching funds for this project, and we have applied for 3 / February 3, 1997 • • • REGULAR MEETING FEBRUARY 3, 1997 reimbursement. In addition, we are trying to improve the roadway and provide sewer or a septic system to Veterans Memorial Park in 1997. We have selected engineers for this project. We are excited about working on Bryce Davis Park. This land was acquired through the green space ordinance. We received a grant from the state, and we have begun to make some progress. We have planted trees, and we have picnic tables there. We will be adding a playground, signage, fencing, a basketball court and other amenities. This could be a very popular park. It is located in a new neighborhood of young families. We completed Field #8 (baseball) at Walker Park. We are still facing a parking problem during baseball season at Walker Park. We are struggling with this; we will add additional parking at the northeast corner of Block St. and 13th St. We need to address this problem with a viable solution as rapidly as possible. We completed two soccer fields and restrooms at the Lewis St. Soccer Complex. It would be nice to have an opening or dedication ceremony for those facilities. In addition, we have budgeted for two more fields at Lewis St. This will bring our total to five soccer fields. This is a soccer complex in which we all can be proud. We have been working for several years on a joint project with the Fayetteville school system. The community gymnasiums at Holcomb and Vandergriff are now up and running. We have expanded the operating hours of these facilities, and they are running well. These are some highlights of some of the things we tried to accomplish in 1996. There are a lot of things we want to do for 1997. This year we want to work on signage and the Community Adult Center at Walker Park. We have added a number of personnel to help aid in the maintenance of our parks. We have additional personnel and additional equipment budgeted. 4 / February 3, 1997 • • • REGULAR MEETING FEBRUARY 3, 1997 Ackerman. In addressing the parking problem at Walker Park, did we look at the availability of anything adjacent to Walker Park ballfield complexes? Clark. Yes. In our initial plan we had addressed the northeast corner there as a solution to our problem. It does not interfere with the Adult Community Center. James: In regards to the extended hours at the community gymnasiums, has there been any conflicts with the Women's Basketball League playing games on Sundays at Holcomb with the public not getting open gym time? Clark: There is always someone wanting to use the gym. We have scheduled half of the gym and kept the other half open. People walking in have a pretty good chance of getting some time. At Holcomb we have women playing league games on Sundays. It's worked out very well. It hasn't solved all of the problems, but it is a lot better than it was before. Ackerman. 1996 was a very good year. It was our first year of having the HMR tax, and we were able to budget for many items which we could not in the past. Clark has indicated that at our next meeting we will be presented with a list of on-going projects and a timeline of their fruition. The Lake Fayetteville trail is a priority for us this year. V. Gulley Park purchase progress report - Clark Clark updated the PRAB on the Gulley Park land purchase. The PRAB had previously recommended that the remaining 2.5 acres of Mrs. Gulley's property be acquired. The land adjoins the existing park land and fronts Old Wire Road. There are basically six lots and a house. The land has been appraised, and Mrs. Gulley would retain life right usuage to the house and the land. This item is on the agenda for the February 4, 1997 City Council agenda session. Clark urged PRAB members to attend and be available for any questions. The acquisition would also provide parking on the north side as well as other facilities if deemed necessary. Parking is a problem at Gulley Park, and 32 additional spaces are planned to add some relief. Parking on the service drive is also a problem which needs to be addressed. An active pursual of the purchase of a 20-25 acre tract in the 5 / February 3, 1997 • • • REGULAR MEETING FEBRUARY 3, 1997 northwest quadrant for a large park is currently underway. VI. OTHER BUSINESS All of the subcommittees should meet before the next regular meeting to familiarize themselves with the prioritizing of projects. An orientation session was scheduled for February 21, 1997 at 9:00 a.m. at the Parks office for Board Members who wish to attend. A quick tour of facilities may also be undertaken. Dugwyler will prepare a memo for disbursement. Park tours for Saturdays may also be arranged. Meeting adjourned at 6:05 p.m. MINUTES APPROVED: MINUTES TAKEN BY: _3-3-9,7 6 / February 3, 1997 • • • /111414- 77I(T MONDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 1997 REGULAR PRAB MEETING NAME (Please Print) GROUP REPRESENTING 4-144 Gnuzet:cA-112. wtA, sLop aditAd --r-t}fr tin/ gui0 AAJAA3 _3