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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01-28-2019 PR MinutesCITY OF SEBASTIAN PARKS AND RECREATION ADVISORY COMMITTEE MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING JANUARY 28, 2019 Call to Order — Acting Chairperson White called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. 2. Pledae of Alleaiance was recited by all. 3. Roll Call Present: Ms. Webster Ms. White Mr. Renzi (a) Mr. Sunnycalb (a) Not Present: Mr. Paschall -- Excused Mr. Sims -- Excused Mr. McKinnis -- Absent Also Present: Ms. Lisa Frazier, Community Development Director Brian Benton, Leisure Services Director Janet Graham, Technical Writer Ms. White welcomed Mr. Renzi as a new member of the Committee. He will serve as an alternate. Ms. Frazier formally introduced Brian Benton as the new Leisure Services Director and clarified that Mr. Benton's position will include the parks' management as well as the parks' administration. Mr. Benton gave a brief summary of his ideas for the Parks and Recreation Department and its Committee, and he looks forward to working with the Committee. 4. Committee Members Present Select an Actino Chair for Meetina Motion to have Ms. White serve as Acting Chairperson forthis meeting was made by Ms. Webster, seconded by Mr. Sunnycalb, and passed unanimously by voice vote. 5. Agenda Modifications — None PARKS AND RECREATION ADVISORY COMMITTEE PAGE 2 MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING OF JANUARY 28, 2019 6. Aooroval of Minutes A motion to approve the July 23, 2018 Minutes as presented was made by Ms. Webster, seconded by Ms. White, and passed unanimously by voice vote. Unfinished Business A. Pickle Ball Complex Update Mr. Benton reported that the restroom facilities have been approved by City Council. Staff is currently waiting on the final proposal of the cost from the contractor. Administrative review of the design plans is currently being done by the City and are being reviewed this week and next week. Once that is finalized, the final plan, including costs, will be presented to City Council to move forward. He stated the pickle ball complex will be situated at the Airport property. The complex will consist of eight courts. There will be a new parking lot installed, and that parking lot will be built to standards to accommodate eight courts. Ms. White inquired regarding a timeline. Mr. Benton stated that currently the timeline is sometime this summer, and this will depend on the contractor's schedule. Ms. White inquired regarding lighting for the complex. Mr. Benton stated staff has looked into pricing for lights, and once they receive those figures, they will determine whether the lighting goes in as part of Phase 1 or Phase 2 of the project. Scoreboards for Barber Street Sports Complex Baseball Fields Update Mr. Benton reviewed that currently the scoreboard on Field 1 is working and functions perfectly. Field 2 contains the scoreboard that was purchased by the Little League. Regarding Field 3 scoreboard, there are some transmission issues from the press box to the scoreboard. Field 4 scoreboard is not operational. He spoke with the Little League Board, and it was decided to do a 50/50 cost split between the City and the Little League. The total cost was approximately $2,800.00. Staff has received a check from the Little League to cover their portion of the cost. That scoreboard should be delivered in the next week or so, and it will be installed on Field 1. Both little league baseball fields will have new scoreboards going into the season. Since the scoreboard at Field 3 does not work, the current plan is to take the present scoreboard from Field 1 and install it on Field 3. When that is accomplished, the scoreboards on Fields 1, 2, and 3 will all be functioning. Staff will then investigate getting the scoreboard on Field 4 up and operational. Field 4 is the least -used field out of the four fields. Discussion was then held among the Committee members. PARKS AND RECREATION ADVISORY COMMITTEE PAGE 3 MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING OF JANUARY 28, 2019 Ms. Webster: • Raised some questions regarding the lease between the City and the Little League. She stated she was an officer of the Little League when the lease was signed, and she signed it. She stated that it was not worded in the lease that the Little League would pay for scoreboards, and the City has maintained those scoreboards over time. She questions whether the Little League should be responsible for maintaining and purchasing scoreboards. She stated that the Little League built the building behind the concession stand, and that building was turned over to the City. She described that enrollment in the program is down at present. The concession stand is not making the money that it had made in the past, so it is difficult to raise enough money to provide the supplies and equipment that is needed for the teams to play. It is burdensome for the Little League to provide some of the funds necessary to purchase a new scoreboard. She is of the opinion that the City should pay for the scoreboards. Ms. White: • Suggested that the lease be looked at and some of the language might need t0 be clarified. Mr. Benton stated he will look at the contracts that the City has with the Little League and Sharks programs in order to clarify what the requirements are from both sides. He attended the Little League board meeting this month, and they are aware of what he is looking into. His plan is to work with both the City and the groups using the complex to come up with a plan that is beneficial to all parties. • Queried whether, when the lighting was installed at the complex, that money came out of the Parks and Recreation budget or the City budget. Mr. Benton stated that, since this Agenda item is regarding scoreboards, later in this meeting he will review the plans for lighting and other improvementstmaintenance issues regarding the complex. • Reviewed that the Parks and Recreation budget is divided into four zones in the City for a total of $20,000.00, and that money may be transferred from one zone to another if there is a need. Ms. Frazier agreed that those funds may be combined to be used at a "community park," of which the Barber Street complex is one. She further clarified that the $20,000.00 that Is set aside is for improvements and not maintenance, so that if a large -money item is needed the Committee may have to go back to City Council for that. Ms. White requested that the Committee be provided information on what is still in the budget for this fiscal year, and Mr. Benton stated he would see that that is done. Mr. Sunnycalb: • Is of the opinion that the money allocated for shade shelters at the dog park should go to the Barber Street complex instead of the dog park. PARKS AND RECREATION ADVISORY COMMITTEE PAGE 4 MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING OF JANUARY 28, 2019 8. Public Input Joe Scanlon, Sebastian, FL. stated that the pickle ball players are very excited about getting the new courts. He stated the courts will bring a lot to the City, and he thanked the City and Committee for their help in this endeavor. 9. New Business A. Committee Member Discussion about Adopt -A -Park Mr. Benton reviewed that this program used to include the Committee members in the past, and he would like to see this program brought back to the Committee. This will include each Committee member having the responsibility of going to their dedicated park—and/or any other parks in the City—and provide feedback at the monthly Committee meetings—positive feedback and/or negative feedback—regarding what that member found upon visiting the parks, including feedback from the public. Hewill compile a list of all the parks in the City and get that to the Committee members so they can study it. The subject will then be brought up at the next meeting, and the members can choose which parks they would like to "adopt." Ms. White: • Requested a list of the parks in the City before next month's meeting so that they can study that list and be prepared to choose which parks each member is interested in covering. • Suggested to Mr. Renzi, since he is a new member on the Committee, that he attempt to visit some of the parks to familiarize himself with them. He stated he would do that. • Suggested that when Committee members visit the parks, they inform the public of the meetings and invite them to attend with their ideas. Mr. Sunnycalb: • Suggested encouraging members of the public to come to these meetings with suggestions regarding the parks. Getting the public involved as far as ideas would be a big plus. B. Review and Consider 2019 Committee Meeting Calendar Mr. Benton described that he has attached a proposed calendar for the entire year of 2019. He noted that he has changed the proposed meeting dates for the months when PARKS AND RECREATION ADVISORY COMMITTEE PAGE 5 MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING OF JANUARY 28, 2019 there are holidays from the fourth Monday to an alternate date that wouldn't interfere with the holidays. He asked for a vote to accept the proposed calendar as it is presented. Mr. Sunnyralb questioned the need for a meeting every month. Mr. Benton stated his plan is to have a meeting every month as long as there is business to discuss. If there is no business to discuss or items to put on the Agenda, then those meetings can be cancelled. A motion to accept the proposed meeting calendar was made by Ms. Webster, seconded by Mr. Sunnycalb, and passed unanimously by voice vote. 10. Staff Matters A. Current Project(s) Update Mr. Benton presented updates that are taking place on some of the parks: • Barber Street -- The restrooms should be completed in the next few weeks. The entire exterior of the building has been painted except for some murals on the front of the building which they preserved. The stairs were removed, as they were in poor condition. New stairs will be installed in the next couple of weeks. He expects this construction project to be completed mid to late February. • Schumann Drive tennis courts -- This is a budgeted item for the City this year. Those courts are to be resurfaced. The same contractor who is doing the surfacing for the pickle ball courts will also do the resurfacing for the tennis courts. This contractor will do both projects one right after the other. The cost proposal for these courts is within the budget. • Barber Street baseball fields — This is one of the first maintenance projects Mr. Benton has taken on since beginning his position with the City. He has two staff members who are working on this project, edging the fields, etc. The turf will also be improved, He has maintained open communication with the Little League. His plan is to continue to improve the condition of those fields as time goes on. • Riverview Park — Ms. Frazier and Mr. Benton have met with the consultants regarding instituting a tree -maintenance plan as well as a preservation plan for the trees. The plan is to preserve those trees as long as possible and to have a succession plan for when those trees are no longer viable. • Park Signage -- This is also a budgeted item for this year. Staff is working with the consultant to begin a sign study and sign design for park entrance signs. The goal is to have a common theme of park -identifying signs for all the parks within the City. Last year, the Treasure Coast Planning Council did an interactive map PARKS AND RECREATION ADVISORY COMMITTEE PAGE 6 MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING OF JANUARY 26, 2019 for all our parks. That map can be accessed by clicking on the link on the City's website. Mr. Benton reviewed the fact that there is $20,000.00 in the budget for projects for the parks that need to be addressed. Ms. Webster asked if that $20,000.00 rolls over if it is not used. Ms. Frazier stated it does not, but the Department will look into seeing if that can be done. B. Upcoming Special Events and Committee Involvement Mr. Benton announced that the Annual Easter Egg Hunt will be held on April 20'x. An internal committee will be created to oversee each of the City events that are under the purview of Leisure Services. He encouraged Committee members to volunteer to participate in this event. Ms. White and Ms. Webster volunteered to help. 11. Board or Committee Member Matters Ms. Webster: • Thanked Mr. Benton for his initiative in meeting with the Little League regarding the condition of the baseball fields. She would also like to see something done regarding the scoreboards. Mr. Sunnycalb: • Regarding Riverview Park, he noted that there are some lights out at the volleyball court. Regarding the playgrounds at the Park, he feels there should be more lights at the playground that is not currently lit. Mr. Benton stated that the City parks close at dusk, and if we install lighting, we are encouraging people to come to the parks when they are closed, but he will look into that. • There is a Pete Hams plaque that needs to be repaired. • The pelican atop the fountain has been stolen. He suggested, if it is replaced, maybe expoxying it would deter it from being stolen. • The lighting at the Easy Street Park that is now solar does not provide sufficient lighting after dark. • Regarding the pickle ball courts, he suggested there be meetings at the Yacht Club of representatives of the groups who use the courts to encourage suggestions as to how to make the pickle ball courts a success. • Regarding the Yacht Club, there are no signs at the entrance to the Yacht Club to let users of the sidewalk know there is traffic coming in and out of the Yacht Club. There are shrubs in that location that block the view from both the sidewalk and the driveway in and out of the Yacht Club. He proposed erecting signs in that PARKS AND RECREATION ADVISORY COMMITTEE PAGE 7 MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING OF JANUARY 28, 2019 location to warn the sidewalk traffic of the vehicular traffic to and from the Yacht Club and to warn the Yacht Club traffic of the sidewalk traffic. Mr. Benton stated he would have staff look into this matter. Ms. White: • Regarding the lighting at the Easy Street Park, she reminded the Committee that the parks are not open after dusk. She will be visiting the Park and will ask people she encounters there what they think about the lighting. 12. Items for the Next Aaenda and Date: February 25. 2019 Mr. Benton stated that the items from tonight updating the park improvements, discussion of the $20,000.00 improvement budget, and the Adopt -A -Park program will be included. 13. Adioum Acting Chairp son W ite called for any further business. Hearing none, she called for a motion. A otion to djoum the meeting was made by Ms. Webster, seconded by Mr. Sunnycal and pas unanilrn�i by voice vote. Meeting adjourned at 6:52 p.m. By: Matthew Sims, ChJ P1rks and Recreation Committee 19