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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - Minutes - Parks & Recreation Advisory Commission - Meeting Date: 2/13/2023Glendale MINUTESA PARKS AND RECREATION ADVISORY COMMISSION GLENDALE ADULT CENTER 5970 W. BROWN ST. GLENDALE, ARIZONA 85302 FEBRUARY 13, 2023 6:00 P.M. Parks and Recreation Mission Statement A partnership of employees and community working together to create a better quality of life for Glendale through the provision of excellent parks, recreational programming, special events, tourism, and neighborhood and community facilities. 1. CALL TO ORDER 2. ROLL CALL Chair Martinez conducted roll call. He introduced new Commissioner Nesfield, who gave a brief background of herself. Present: Reginald Martinez, Chair Helena Johnson Bodine, Vice Chair Kathryn Mawby, Commissioner Kathleen Roe, Commissioner Marie Nesfield, Commissioner Absent: Bud Zomok, Commissioner Joseph Jarrett Torres, Teen Commissioner Also Present: James Burke, Director Heidi Barriga, Interim Deputy Director Paul King, Recreation Administrator Dawn Marquez, Interim Special Events Administrator Diane Williams, Program Manager Jeneea Jervay-Bush, Recreation Coordinator 3. CITIZEN COMMENTS None. 4. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES a. Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission Minutes of January 9, 2023. Motioned by Vice Chair Helena Johnson Bodine, seconded by Commissioner Kathleen Roe, to approve the January 9, 2023 Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission Meeting minutes as written. Motion carried 5 — 0. AYE: Chair Reginald Martinez Vice Chair Helena Johnson Bodine Commissioner Kathryn Mawby Commissioner Kathleen Roe Commissioner Marie Nesfield Passed 5. NEW BUSINESS a. ACTION: COMMISSION GOALS FOR 2023 Chair Martinez announced the Commissioners had the list of goals from February 2022 through January 2023. He said they were the Commission goals for last year and asked if the Commissioners had any changes for the new year. No changes were proposed. Motioned by Vice Chair Helena Johnson Bodine, seconded by Commissioner Kathleen Roe, to recommend approval of the Commission goals for 2023 as drafted. Motion carried 5-0. AYE: Chair Reginald Martinez Vice Chair Helena Johnson Bodine Commissioner Kathryn Mawby Commissioner Kathleen Roe Commissioner Marie Nesfield Passed b. Mr. King introduced new staff member, Ms. Jeneea Jervay-Bush, who works at the Glendale Adult Center in charge of programs, events, classes, and a lot of the facility management. He shared a brief background of Ms. Jervay-Bush. INFORMATION: UPDATE ON THUNDERBIRD CONSERVATION PARK MASTER PLAN SURVEY Ms. Barriga gave an update on the Thunderbird Conservation Park Master Plan Survey, which included the following information: . Public Survey o The survey was open from November 10 through 27, 2022. 0196 responses were received. o Outreach was done via email blast to CivicRec guests, Constant Contact email blast which went to over 17,000 people, social media posts, posts on the City's website, and QR codes at the trailhead. o A public open house was held at the Foothills Recreation and Aquatics Center (FRAC) on November 16, 2022. o Survey responses were presented. . Next Steps o Present survey results to Mayor and Council: Completed o Meet with J2, the engineering vendor, to review the survey responses. The agenda item was concluded. C. INFORMATION: UPDATE ON LIFEGUARD RECRUITMENT Mr. King gave an update on Lifeguard Recruitment, which included the following information: . The marketing and recruitment plan for the Glendale summer lifeguard program has been launched. . Two complexes need to be staffed through June and July. . There will be an increase in pay for the lifeguards this year. Lifeguards will be paid $25.00 per hour this season, which matches the rate paid by the City of Phoenix. Last year's rate was $15.50 an hour. . The rate for a swim instructor will be $26.00 per hour and the rate for a head lifeguard will be $27.00 per hour. . The increase in hourly rate has been a huge success in attracting candidates. . Various methods of outreach were detailed. . A promotional video was shown. Commissioner Nesfield inquired as to the ages for the lifeguards. Mr. King replied the priority was age 16 and older for lifeguards. He said 15-year-olds would be hired and explained, however, there were different laws for 15-year-olds that were challenging for operations. Commissioner Nesfield asked if staff considered outreach at local colleges. Mr. King said staff has gone to Glendale Community College twice for recruitment. He said staff has reached out to ASU staff as well. Commissioner Nesfield asked if there were specific requirements to apply or if there was a training program. Mr. King said the applicants needed to be certified to apply. He said there are classes for those who are not certified. They have to be certified to be a lifeguard or swim instructor. He explained that anyone who takes the classes and is hired and works the entire summer program would be reimbursed for the cost of the classes. He noted there was also a three to four day training program for new hires. Chair Martinez said it was great to see that Glendale was catching up with Phoenix in regard to the lifeguard pay rate. Mr. King said the aggressive wage showed the importance placed by the City on opening the pools, teaching kids how to swim, and preventing drowning. d. INFORMATION: SAHUARO RANCH PARK ROSE GARDEN Mr. King gave a presentation on the Sahuaro Ranch Park Rose Garden, which included the following information: . Every January, an aggressive rose pruning event is held in partnership with the Rose Society of Glendale and members of the community. . There were 28 volunteers from the Community Services Department program who helped with pruning roses. . It was a labor-intensive and successful event. . Tyler Roses donated 281 rose bushes, which were planted by staff. The agenda item was concluded. e. INFORMATION: UPDATE ON RECREATION PROGRAMMING Mr. King gave a presentation on Recreation Programming, which included the following information: *Valentine's Day Craft Program: The event was held on Thursday, February 9th. There were 33 kids that registered. . Spring Break Camp: This is a new program at Glendale Community Center. There are 35 kids registered currently, with a capacity of 60. It is a free program. . Youth Baseball Program: The program has started, and practices began a week ago. Games begin next week. There are 270 participants, which is approximately the same as last year. . Valentine's Day Luncheon: The event will be held on February 14th at the Glendale Adult Center. This is traditionally a well -attended and successful event. . Casino Trips: A vendor is again running the casino trips with bus transportation to and from the Glendale Adult Center. . The Health and Wellness Division of Glendale's Human Resource Department is hosting a public and employee 5K walk which will be held on February 25, 2023. The walk will begin and end at the FRAC. The agenda item was concluded. f. INFORMATION: UPDATE ON SPECIAL EVENTS PROGRAMMING Ms. Marquez gave a presentation on Special Events Programming, which included information on the following events: . LiVE! @ Murphy Park series in March . Movies by Moonlight . Annual Folk and Heritage Festival on March 4th and 5th at Sahuaro Ranch Park Chair Martinez asked if the Folk and Heritage Festival was free to attend and free parking. Ms. Marquez replied in the positive. Commissioner Nesfield asked if all of the events were listed on the City's website. Ms. Marquez replied in the positive. 6. STAFF UPDATES Mr. Burke shared information on the following: . Downtown Campus Renovation Plan: The project includes Murphy Park, City Hall, and the Amphitheater. He said the City Manager gave a workshop presentation to City Council on January 24 and encouraged the Commissioners to watch the presentation on the City's website. He provided an overview of the staff office moves during the construction. He said the project was in the design phase with construction to begin this summer. . Homeless Response: There is a Task Force for this initiative, in which Mr. Burke participates. The Task Force presented its recommendations to Council, which included a new Solicitation Ordinance, a Misdemeanor Repeat Offender Program, a shopping cart contract, modified ramada hours and use policy at Sahuaro Ranch Park, change in bus stop hours, and a shopping cart ordinance. He commented on the goal to have more park programming. Council approved a budget for seven new FTEs in the Police Department for the Misdemeanor Repeat Offender Program. Council also approved three new full-time Parks Rangers. Chair Martinez asked if the new ramada hours of 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. were just for using the ramada or use of the grills too. Mr. Burke said it was for use of the grills and sinks. Commissioner Mawby asked about available resources for the newly homeless who do not want to be homeless. Mr. Burke announced there was a Homeless tab on the City's webpage with contact information on resources. Commissioner Mawby inquired about CAP services for the Homeless. Mr. Burke did not have information on CAP at hand but would follow up with a main contact number for homeless resources. 7. COMMISSION COMMENTS AND SUGGESTIONS Commissioner Roe complimented the City of Glendale on the Super Bowl and said it was a great game. She was very proud of the City. Vice Chair Johnson Bodine reported that temporary lighting was installed last Friday at Oasis Park. She noted the original lights were damaged during a storm. Chair Martinez said he visited Sahuaro Ranch Park this week and there were a lot of visitors, which he surmised was due to the Super Bowl. He expressed pride in the City's parks and complimented the Parks and Recreation Department. 8. NEXT MEETING The next regular meeting of the Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission will be held on March 13, 2023, at 6:00 p.m., at the Glendale Civic Center, located at 5750 W. Glenn Dr., Glendale, Arizona, 85301. 9. ADJOURNMENT Motioned by Commissioner Kathleen Roe, seconded by Vice Chair Helena Johnson Bodine, to adjourn the meeting at 6:49 p.m. Motion carried 5 — 0. AYE: Chair Reginald Martinez Vice Chair Helena Johnson Bodine Commissioner Kathryn Mawby Commissioner Kathleen Roe Commissioner Marie Nesfield Passed The Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission meeting minutes of February 13, 2023, were submitted and approved on the 13th day of March 2023. Gwen Benoit Management Assistant Denise Kazmierczak Recording Secretary