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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - Minutes - Parks & Recreation Advisory Commission - Meeting Date: 4/13/2009CITY OF GLENDALE, ARIZONA PARKS AND RECREATION ADVISORY COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES 7 P.M., MONDAY, APRIL 13, 2009 CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS ROOM B-3 5850 W GLENDALE AVE, GLENDALE, ARIZONA MEMBERS PRESENT: John "Chief" Fries Margaret George Raymond Kultala Jonathan Liebman Pascal Tjahjo MEMBERS ABSENT: Marissa Capleton Liz Farley Gary Parr Rod Passmore, Chair STAFF:Clyde Brown, Sr. Management Assistant Chris Gallagher, Recreation Manager Molly Garrett, Park Manager Eugene Kraus, Park Manager Bill Schwind, CIP Deputy Director CALL MEETING TO ORDER Commissioner Liebman called the meeting to order at 7:05 P.M. I.APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF THE MARCH 9, 2009, MEETING. Commissioner Liebman motioned to accept the minutes with no changes noted. Commissioner George made the second. The motion passed 5—0. It was noted that Commissioner Capleton was absent for the sixth consecutive absence. Commissioner Fries motioned to move agenda item II to the end of the meeting. Commissioner Liebman made the second. The motion passed 5-0. II. COMMISSIONER PARK INSPECTIONS Mr. Kraus distributed the park inspection forms by District. Commissioner Liebman inquired about the blank spaces under comments and completion date, which Mr. Kraus explained that in those cases there was no update. Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission Meeting April 13, 2009 Page 2 Commissioner Fries inquired if more fertilizer would be added to the parks in the Yucca District. Ms Garrett explained that from November through May, the grass is dormant. Watering begins in April and is assessed at the end of the month to determine if anything else needs to be done to the grass. Commissioner Fries stated that the Grand Canal needs signage regarding projects under construction. Commissioner Fries also suggested proactive maintenance on parks. Commissioner Fries noted that three parks were added to his district including Orangewood Park, Sunset Ridge, and 79th Ave and Orangewood and they needed to be added to the list of Commissioner Park Inspection Reports. Commissioner Fries also suggested passing the reports from retiring Commissioners to new Commissioners. Commissioner George asked if vendors were allowed at parks such as Loma Vista. She stated that although posted signs specify no vending is allowed, there are still vendors present. Ms. Garrett explained that vendors must be approved on a case by case situation by the Parks and Recreation Department and would also have to possess a vendor's license. Commissioner Liebman noted that the parks are in much better shape than a year ago. Also noted was that Thunderbird has increased traffic but the park upkeep is noticeable. It was suggested that temporary signage be replaced with permanent signage regarding no parking along roads bordering Thunderbird Paseo Park. III. SKUNK CREEK BRIDGE UPDATE Mr. Schwind stated that the Skunk Creek Bridge is 10% complete. The engineering is being funded by Go Transportation at a cost of $3.4 million. The project began December 29, 2008, with an estimated completion date of September 27, 2009. The bridge will be three lanes, one in each direction and a center lane. The 330-foot bridge will have a 4-foot paved bike lane and a 5-foot sidewalk and curb. The bridge will be lit above and below so that pedestrians have a choice of taking the Skunk Creek Trail going over or under the bridge. There will be a fork in both directions to allow street side or below bridge access to avoid traffic. IV COMMISSION GOALS GOAL#1: Completed in January 2009 with the meeting at the Rio Vista Recreation Center in Peoria. GOAL#2: Addressed in#8. To be completed by the end of March. GOAL#3: Completed. GOAL#4: The Spring recruitment event is still a possibility. However, Ms. Benna is out of town so Mr. Schwind will follow up with her regarding this event. This goal must be discussed in the May meeting to be completed by June. GOAL#5: Completed on August 27, 2008. Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission Meeting April 13, 2009 Page 3 GOAL#6: Completed in December 2008 with a meeting at the Sahuaro Ranch Packing Shed. GOAL#7: To be completed with input on the Master Plan Update. GOAL#8: Commissioners have been scheduling and completing ride-alongs with park rangers and maintenance staff. Commissioner Leibman described his ride-along with a Park Ranger and Commissioner Fries described his ride- along with one of the maintenance staff. V. CITIZENS COMMENTS None VI. STAFF REPORTS Mr. Schwind provided the following updates: Staff has been working with the Planning Department to identify some of the scope of work elements that can be completed in-house. The Western Area Regional Park has a June completion date which includes the large ramada, volleyball courts, playground and turf area. Sahuaro Ranch Park pavilion and BBQ renovations are nearly complete. In the next few months, the orange paint will be stripped from the picnic tables and the redwood refinished. In the next year, the active side of Sahuaro Ranch Park is scheduled to be renovated. The Thunderbird Conservation Park gravel parking lots will be stabilized with granite and striped. This item will appear before City Council in August 2009. Mr. Gallagher gave the following updates: The aquatic facilities associated with Apollo High School, Cardinal High School, and Glendale Community College pools will not be open during the summer of 2009. They were available two months out of the year. There are other open public pools within two miles of each closing pool. This will save approximately $190,000 annually. Swim fees will be increased at Rose Lane Aquatic Center. The new fees will be changed for children from .50 cents to $1 dollar,for resident adults, from $1.50 to $3 dollars, and for non-resident adults from $3 dollars to $6 dollars. The fees are comparable to other pools with similar amenities. Summer drop-in and after-school programs will now have a fee. Glendale was the only city in the valley not charging for this service. This fee will help fund program supplies and temporary staff. Financial assistance and youth scholarships are available to residents through the existing scholarship program. Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission Meeting April 13, 2009 Page 4 Summer open gym and weight room programs will be run by the schools without support of the city. This will save approximately $10,000 to $15,000 annually. Summer Youth Sports Clinics will be held at Glendale High School and will include volleyball and basketball programs. Commissioner Liebman inquired about closing the pools. Mr. Gallagher explained that the facilities in question are 35 to 45 years old and are very costly to maintain. The IGA payments are not covering the costs involved. Furthermore, there is still a cost to maintain the water and chemicals in the pool even without having recreation swim and swim lessons. Also the traditional box style pools are not as desirable since the completion of Rose Lane Pool and Foothills Recreation and Aquatics Center, as these aquatic parks have amenities that are more appealing to users. Mr. Gallagher provided a calendar of activities from April through July: The Adult Center Flag Dedication is Thursday, April 15, at 8:30am. The Family Skate Night is at Great Skate on Thursday, April 15, from 6-8pm benefiting the youth and teen division. The local Hershey Track and Field Event, in collaboration with Peoria, is upcoming with 500 participating students. It starts Friday, April 17, and check in is at 5am. The Hook a Kid on Golf Tournament is Saturday, April 18, at Coyote Lakes Golf Course at 7:30am. The Foothills Recreation and Aquatic Center has a Family Building Block Challenge Saturday, April 18, from l0am-12:30pm. The Hip Hop Adaptive Dance is Thursday, April 23, at 5:30pm at the Adult Center. The 3rd Annual Youth Football Festival is Thursday, April 30, from 6-9pm at the Glendale Youth Sports Complex. Mr. Schwind reminded everyone that there is a ping pong tournament Friday at the Adult Center. Mr. Kraus and Ms. Garrett commented on the following: The new kiosk at Thunderbird Conservation Park new trailhead will be completed by the end of April. The project was initiated by Mr. Roger Boyer and Mr. Brian Collins (former park manager.) The Parks Division staff assisted with Arbor Day celebration at O'Neil Park on April 2, 2009. Community Service workers provided 60 hours of work at Sahuaro Ranch Park. This included cleaning ramadas, picking up trash and gleaning citrus from the groves. VII. COMMISSION COMMENTS Commissioner Fries suggested that in addition to a Park Ranger ride-along, each Commissioner should also ride along with a maintenance worker. Commissioner Fries also suggested that there should be signs installed with the names of the parks near the main roads. Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission Meeting April 13, 2009 Page 5 Commissioner Fries stated that the early morning maintenance crews have a radio but no one to talk to in case of an emergency. Commissioner Fries felt the crews should have a tie in to the police department. Mr. Kraus stated they need special training to have the police radios which is not available to maintenance staff. However, they do have cellular phones. Commissioner Fries commented that the parks in general are better in appearance over the last two years. There is less graffiti and wear. Commissioner Fries suggested as preventative maintenance things be replaced or fixed up every few months. He also suggested combining the two parks at 59th Avenue south of Glendale (one by the railroad tracks and one on the other side.) Commissioner Fries felt that there are two very small parks that are not even noticeable which should instead be one large park. Commissioner Kultala attended Heritage Festival at Sahuaro Ranch Park both Saturday and Sunday and also attended the Glendale Community College International Festival and felt it was a good affair as he enjoyed Chinese food and listened to Mariachi music. Commissioner George attended the Legislative Review at the Adult Center, attended a fundraiser for the Valley Child Crisis Center, was a greeter at the Jazz and Blues Festival in Murphy Park, and went to the Arbor Day event at O'Neil Park. Commissioner Liebman noted that on his ride along with the Park Ranger there were two parks ( 79th Ave and Orangewood and 71St Ave and Orangewood) that did not have names. Mr. Schwind interjected that the Western Area Regional Park is also unnamed. Mr. Brown stated that there is a process in order to name a park. In order for the naming procedure to be uniform, staff has worked on the procedures to address naming parks. Commissioner Liebman stated that at Sahuaro Ranch Park, the ramadas needed the flues cleaned out, and wondered if there was a maintenance contract. Staff is in the process of a complete overhaul of the ramadas and after that, staff will strive to keep the chimneys clean. Commissioner Liebman spent two hours during his ride along walking Thunderbird Conservation Park at 9:30am and the parking lot was packed. Commissioner Liebman noted that there was not enough parking on the Patrick side and that people were parking illegally. He feels that the city or staff needs to have a presence in this area. He also noted that at Sahuaro Ranch Park, there is a park ranger on staff and there should be a ranger on staff at Thunderbird as well. Commissioner Liebman stated the 67th and Patrick Avenue side of Thunderbird Conservation Park has horse trailer parking which is taken up by other users arriving early and then not leaving room for horse trailers. Commissioner Liebman felt that better signage was needed for this purpose. Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission Meeting April 13, 2009 Page 6 Mr. Schwind stated that the parking lot is being striped and designated signage will be put up, hopefully allowing for better parking. Commissioner Liebman is volunteering at the Hershey Track and Field Event with Mr. Mike Davis. Recognition of Commissioner Fries was revisited. Commissioner Fries was recognized for 2 years of service from 2007—2009. VIII. NEXT MEETING SUGGESTED AGENDA ITEMS Master Plan Update Commission Goals Federal grant money and/or stimulus money IX. ADJOURNMENT Commissioner Kultala's term ends in June. The meeting was adjourned at 8:30 p.m. by consensus. The next regular meeting will be held on Monday, May 11, 2009, at 7:00 p.m. in room B- 3 of the Municipal Office Complex. Respectfully submitted, Jayme Gillen