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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1999-11-01 - Minutes• • • MONDAY, NOVEMBER 1, 1999 REGULAR PRAB MEETING NAME (Please Print) GROUP REPRESENTING CAm'4'4„ o j'ind •LA7,/7Q Y7g /t4 i✓nn f/o„ei ��i// C.Of'gt& So,O`Q vAzieit Z/4:✓O/i//J14J J _44 Vietd,ezdel eeigh 3.44„2"2. • TO: Parks and Recreation Advisory Board 6 FROM: Connie Edmonston, Parks & Recreation Superintendent DATE: October 25, 1999 RE: PRAB Meeting Monday, November 1, 1999 5:30 p.m. meet at City Hall Room 326 AGENDA FAYE 11'EVILI.E PARKS & RECREATION 1. Approval of PRAB October 4, 1999 monthly meeting minutes. 2. Fayetteville City-wide Trails: Chuck Rutherford, Sidewalk & Trails Administrator Chuck Rutherford will present the proposed City-wide Trails Plan. 3. Botanical Garden of the Ozarks Annual Report: Donna Porter, Director The Botanical Garden of the Ozarks is required by their lease agreement with the City to give an annual report to PRAB and City Council. 4. Eagle Scout Project Proposals: Evan House and Cliff Colwell Evan House is requesting to build a bridge over Clear Creek on Lake Fayetteville's Two Turtles Trail. Cliff Colwell is requesting to build a trail on the southwest area of Veterans Memorial Park for a more accessible trail that skirts around steep ravines in the existing trail. 5. Park Land Dedication Fund Request: • Park staff requests $2,800 for improvements to Sweetbriar Park including items such as picnic tables/concrete slabs, park benches, and trash barrel containers. This fund balance must be expended before the end of the year Please refer to the Green Space Monthly Report. The Lake Fayetteville Softball Complex netting and Veterans Memorial volleyball lighting projects needed more planning time than scheduled. 6. Wilson Park Swimming Pool Maintenance Report: 7. Other Business: 8. Adjournment: **Informational - City Council Agenda Items November 2, 1999 at 6:30 p.m.: Approval of Park Land Dedication Fee Increase Attachments: PRAB Meeting Minutes -October 4, 1999 CIP Update Green Space Monthly Report HMR Monthly Report Botanical Garden of the Ozark Annual Report • • • PRAB REGULAR MEETING NOVEMBER 1,1999 The meeting was called to order by Chairperson Thiel at 5:35 p.m. in Room 326 of the City Administration Building. Members Present: Members Absent: Staff Present: Guests Present: Media Present: Alexander, Colwell, Luttrell, Stockland, Thiel Ackerman, Eads, Shoulders Edmonston, Nelson, Schuldt Chuck Rutherford, City of Fayetteville Sidewalks & Trails; Donna Porter, Botanical Garden Society of the Ozarks Director; Evan House, Cliff Colwell, Eric Wright Ethan Nobles, Morning News Matt Wagner, Northwest Arkansas Times Angela Presley, KIX 104 1. Approval of PRAB October 4, 1999 meeting minutes MOTION: Mr. Stockland moved to approve the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board October 4, 1999 meeting minutes. Mr. Colwell seconded the motion. The motion was approved 5-0-0. 2. Park Land Dedication Fund Request: Park staffrequests $2,800 for improvements to Sweetbriar Park including items such as picnic tables/concrete slabs, park benches, and trash barrel containers. This fund balance must be expended before the end of the year. Ms. Edmonston reported the netting project for the Lake Fayetteville softball fields involves extensive research for vandalism and risk management purposes and required additional time to complete. In addition, the Veterans Memorial Park volleyball lighting project electrical work may not be completed prior to December 31, 1999. Sweetbriar Park is in need of replacing park benches and picnic tables. It has been many years since any improvements have been made at the park. These amenities would be constructed in-house. MOTION: Mr. Colwell moved to appropriate Two Thousand Eight Hundred Dollars ($2,800.00) from the November I, 1999 / Page 1 PRAB Regular Meeting Northeast Park District Green Space Fund for improvements to Sweetbriar Park. Mr. Stockland seconded the motion. Upon roll call, the motion was approved unanimously, 5-0-0. 3. Fayetteville City-wide Trails: Chuck Rutherford, Sidewalk & Trails Administrator: Mr. Rutherford distributed a Fayetteville Multi Use Trails map which had recently been submitted to the Arkansas Highway Department requesting reimbursement for the 1993-1994 enhancement grant of approximately $613,000. The original projects included the St. Paul and the Raven trails. The St. Paul Trail has since been abandoned, and the Raven Trail has moved slightly south from its original location. The city had to reimburse the Arkansas Highway Department $87,000. A letter was submitted to the Arkansas Highway Department requesting reimbursement for the new plan, and they have agreed to pay the city $600,000. Mr. Rutherford said a plan for each trail must be submitted to the Arkansas Highway Department within one year. The plans will be prepared in-house. Once the plans are complete, they must be approved by the Arkansas Highway Department. The city will have six months upon obtaining approval to have the job under contract. "As of right now," Mr. Rutherford said. "I can't see any reason why this can't happen because we have the right-of-way for every bit of this except for Phase 2 of Trail 5." A similar problem occurred with the other two projects [although right-of-way for the Raven Trail has now been obtained]; it took almost four years to obtain the right-of-way [for the Raven Trail]. A citizen in the audience questioned the final goal of the trails project connecting them around the city. Concern was expressed that the trails were isolated. Mr. Rutherford said a trail route was designated along Gregg Street but right-of-way issues had to be resolved. Right-of-ways must also be obtained to continue the Mud Creek Trail from Azalea to Routh Park. Mr. Rutherford said if trails could be constructed and used with few negative results, it could influence property owners to give right-of-way to continue their extension. Mr. Colwell inquired whether Sidewalks & Trails could influence the Highway Department to make the sidewalks along Highway 265 more comfortable for pedestrians. Mr. Rutherford said the city was making progress with the Highway Department and cited the Wedington Drive expansion project as an example. Mr. Colwell also suggested utilizing the north and south corridor of the railroad bed along Gregg Street. Mr. Rutherford said a barrier would be required and urged Mr. Colwell to attend trail meetings to discuss possible trail locations for future projects. Surfacing for the trails would most likely be asphalt and ideally twelve feet wide. Mr. Rutherford also presented a trail plan along an abandoned railroad downtown. CratIon Tu11 & Associates have been hired to work on this project. Mr. Schuldt said it was not uncommon for even small trails to take years to come to fruition because of tedious surveying and obtaining right-of-ways. Botanical Garden of the Ozarks Annual Report: Donna Porter, Director November 1, 1999 / Page 2 • • • PRAB Regular Meeting The Botanical Garden Society of the Ozarks is required by their lease agreement with the City of Fayetteville to give an annual report to PRAB and City Council. Society Director, Donna Porter, reported the Portico Group of Seattle had been selected to develop the master plan for the gardens. Work on the master planning began in June. New concepts proposed for the site include alternative parking and entry, an arboretum serving as a buffer, a separate trail for mountain bike use, an alternative location for the visitor center, and collaborative efforts with the Environmental Study Center. Final estimations for these services are around $140,000. Contingent on funding, the master planning should be completed by the end of 2000. Phase One development projects included the planting and establishment of a 12,000 square foot wildflower meadow, continued work on the trail, commemorative tree planting, construction of a 12' x 16' timber -frame maintenance shed, and general site clean-up. Ms. Porter said efforts to fund a site manager position for the year 2000 were being made. This individual would be responsible for keeping the site well maintained. Liability insurance has been renewed, and the first outside financial audit will occur in January of 2000. Ms. Porter said there was a lot of activity taking place with membership drives, volunteer activities. and plans for additional staff members. 5. Eagle Scout Project Proposals: Evan House and Cliff Colwell Evan House requested building a bridge over Clear Creek on Lake Fayetteville's Two Turtles Trail approximately one hundred feet west of the Highway 265 bridge. Mr. House said he was working with Mark McCarty to obtain a permit from the Corps of Engineers, obtain a minor analysis from an engineer, and meet flood guidelines. The low-water bridge would be constructed of concrete, four feet wide and approximately thirty feet long. He said he would like to complete the project by January 17, his fourteenth birthday, to obtain his badge. The project would be funded by sponsor donations. Cliff Colwell proposed installing flexible water bars made from old conveyor belts on the trail east of Veterans Memorial Park to divert water off the trail. Bicycles can roll over them without causing damage to the water bar or the bicycle. He also would like to repair existing stair steps and improve spur trails by clearing some dense undergrowth. Mr. Colwell said he would also like to build small boxes to hold maps of the trail. Efforts would be made to complete some work before the Third Annual Turtle Run scheduled for Saturday, November 20, 1999. 6. Wilson Park Swimming Pool Maintenance Report: Ms. Edmonston reported that a settlement offer from Wilks Construction would be presented to City Council at the November 16, 1999 meeting. Last summer an agreement with Wilks Construction was reached for Parks to sandblast off the paint and Wilks Construction would repaint the pool. However, problems were discovered with the plaster work. After consulting various sources, it was determined to not paint the pool. Efforts to research solutions to the ongoing problem with the pool plaster are continuing. The $5,000 settlement is for Wilks Construction labor. November 1, 1999 / Page 3 • • PRAB Regular Meeting 7. Other Business: Mr. Luttrell announced that the Chamber of Commerce Contractor's Committee has agreed to build a 12' x 24' pavilion at Walker Park North. Final plans will be completed. 8. Adjournment: The meeting adjourned at 6:35 p.m. MINUTES APPROVED: MINUTES TAKEN BY: DEC 6 1999 crign� `17./J42,71 hn Nelson November 1, 1999 / Page 4