PARC (Parks, Arts, Recreation, Culture) Committee

PARC Tax Advisory Board April 3, 2019 City Office Conference Room Attendees Brian Thompson Laurel Shelley Karen Schaack Dale Gunter Nan Kuhn Camden Bird Nate Mecham Scott Okelberry excused. The meeting started at 5:30 pm. Board Member Responsibilities The Board will make recommendations to the City Council as it relates to the distribution of the PARC tax funds. The Board will meet as determined by the board chair, at least quarterly. The Board will consist of seven members of the community appointed by the Mayor. At the inception of PARC five years ago, four Board members were selected and considered “at large” representatives , while the remaining three members were considered advocates for parks, arts and recreation, respectively. Today, there may no longer be a need for special advocacy for these areas as all Board members are responsible to make a fair and objective appraisal of each applicant’s PARC funding request. The Board will review all Grant Applications submitted and will evaluate and determine the value each application adds to the American Fork community. Grant Applications Recommendations The following recommendations support projects that will enhance the American Fork community in multiple ways and appeal to a broad spectrum of people and interests associated with parks, arts, recreation, and culture in the American Fork Community. The Board has discussed each application thoroughly, and are in agreement with the final recommendations. The Board recommendations are based on the estimate of tax revenue for the current fiscal year. If the final revenue is less than the estimation, the Board recommends each award drop according to the percentage of the short fall. The Board will offer a separate recommendation for excess revenue received. American Fork City Library Recommendation Request  Children’s Room Expansion 68,791 211,580 American Fork Park & Recreation  Art Dye Park 350,000 350,000  Outdoor Fitness Equipment 91,000  Pave Hundley Park Lot 105,750 110,750  Picnic Tables, Trash Cans, Trees 20,000 20,000   Playground Equip Rotary, Robinson 86,208 172,416  Pool Shade Structures 24,806 24,806  Quail Cove Entrance 18,869 18,869  Rotary Park Small Pavilion 66,500 66,500 Alpine Community Theater  Digital Soundboard 3,500 3,500  Summer Program 17,500 30,000  Winter Program 17,500 30,000 Fox Hollow  Pavilion/Concert Stage 30,000 30,000 Friends of Library  Early Educational Kits 8,400 4,200  1st Grade Fairy Project 7,204 7,204  3rd Grade Dictionary 2,992 2,992 Friends Quilt Circle  Quilting Projects 6,355 6,355  Quilt/Sewing Equipment 7,485 7,485 Harrington Art Center  Chalk Fest 4,070 4,070.25  Ice Fest 6,695.87  Music Festival 15,020 15,020  Summer Concert Series 7,332 7,332  Walls 17,151 Timpanogos Arts Foundation  Programming Needs 335,000 471,505 Timpanogos Symphony  Educational Concert at AFJH 6,400 6,400 Utah Met Ballet  Special Needs Ballet 15,000 Wasatch Disc Golf  Update Course Design 3,964  Disc Golf Signage 2,100 $1,205,477 $1,740,595 Other Business a. City Council Work Session, April 16, 2019, 4:00 pm b. Next meeting TBD Brian moved to adjourn the meeting at 6:40 pm, Karen seconded. The following statements explain the reasoning for the recommendation: ACT: Digital Sound Board / $3,500 This soundboard will enhance the sound quality for theatrical productions in our community. The current analog soundboard has poor sound quality, broken buttons and channels, and only allows for 20 wireless microphones. This digital soundboard will provide better sound quality, allow for more microphones, and offer many additional possibilities for sound enhancements within the show. Because this soundboard is portable, it will not become a permanent fixture in the theater. ACT: Summer Program / $17,500 Based in American Fork, ACT is a well-organized company, provides excellent productions for our community, and has been a good steward of PARC money in the past. They plan to present a production of Newsies. This production will be great presentation for our community. ACT: Winter Program / $17,500 ACT also plans to produce Charles Dicken’s A Christmas Carol. This production will be a great addition to Christmas-time celebration in our community. Friends of American Fork Library: Early Education Kits / $4,200 These kits will promote the five key areas of early literacy: reading, singing, talking, writing, and playing. Children should have at least 1,000 hours of lap time in reading in this way before they reach kindergarten. These kits will provide families the resources needed to prepare children and increase literacy in our community. Friends of American Fork Library: Book Fairy Project / $7,204 Literacy enhances arts, culture, and community. The Book Fairy Project has proven to encourage students to enjoy reading and learning and to pursue an understanding of literary arts. This project provides a book each month of the school year for every first grade student. Friends of American Fork Library: Dictionaries for 3rd Grades / $2.992 Once again, literacy enhances arts, culture, and community. The Dictionary Project encourages students to enjoy reading and learning and to gain an excitement for learning. This project provides a dictionary for every third grade student. New Friends Quilt Circle: Quilting Projects / $6,355 This request will provide materials for the Quilts of Valor project to honor veterans, service in conjunction with National Quilt Day, and a celebration of the 30th Anniversary of this group. Through honoring these veterans for their service with quilts, the group who makes them will learn new skills and preserve the skill, culture, and art of this pioneer art. The service this group provides is extensive and worth, and recognizing the 30th Anniversary of this group will provide them the opportunity to encourage more people to join, learn, and grow through quilting. New Friends Quilt Circle: Sewing Equipment / $7,485 The equipment currently used is worn out and unsafe for the number of people participating in this group. This grant will provide quilting tables, a white board, a multi-use table, cutting tools, batting, and miscellaneous supplies (threads, rulers, needles, etc.) needed to comfortably and safely involve all who wish to participate. Harrington Center for the Arts: Chalk Fest / $4,070 This week-long festival will bring an exciting art experience to our city in a new way through professional chalk artists, chalk art competition, and live voting by the community. Having it happen in conjunction with Steel Days will enhance our celebration and encourage arts in the community. Harrington Center for the Arts: Musical Festival / $15,020 An annual music festival in town will provide an opportunity for our community to kick off summer by experiencing local talent as well as talent from outside of our community. The whole concept of the musical festival encourages participation and enjoyment in art, culture, and music. Harrington Center for the Arts: Summer Concert Series / $7,332 Although the Harrington group has assumed responsibility for this event from the Chamber of Commerce, the Board felt that as a recurring weekly activity, held in our community amphitheater, this represents a reasonable funding request. Timpanogos Arts Foundation: Programming / $335,000 The Timpanogos Arts Foundation has many worthwhile and educational programs currently in place, and they have a vision of growth and improvement. To achieve this, they need funding. American Fork is known for many of its arts programs, and community members want to see these programs continue to grow. The increase to the amount given for funding this year will make it possible for TAF to fund a full- time director. In the future, the Board would like to see a greater degree of financial independence demonstrated through grants, fundraising, etc. Timpanogos Symphony: Educational Concert at AF Jr. High / $6,400 This concert will feature selections from Gustav Holst’s The Planets performed live with NASA solar system images and animations as a backdrop. With coordinating curriculum materials provided for use in the science and music classrooms, this will be a great opportunity for students to find synthesis in the sciences and the arts—a great educational opportunity. AF Library Children’s Room / $68,791 The money allocated here should be enough to pay for architecture, and engineering plans. This children’s room will be a great benefit to our library and our community. The Board is very supportive of this project and believes this should be a city priority. The Board suggests that AF City pay for the remainder of this project from capital budget funds, in the immediate future. If not, we recommend that PARC funds remaining after completion of the architectural and engineering services be returned to the PARC fund and be reallocated during the next fiscal year and applied to this specific project. AF Parks and Recreation: Art Dye Park / $350,000 American Fork has been working to complete Art Dye Park for many years, and the vision for the park is excellent. The current plan, when completed, will make this an acclaimed gathering place for athletics, entertainment, and recreation. Ongoing funding for this multi-use park is a worthy use of PARC tax funds. AF Parks and Recreation: Pave Parking Lot at Hindley Park / $105,750 Paving this parking lot will make the park better, safer, and more accessible to many people. Finishing this park will improve the service and utilization of Hindley Park as well as improve the experience of park users. Parks and Recreation: Park Benches, Trash Cans, and Trees / $20,000 Park benches, trash cans, and trees will provide comfortable places for people to sit, rest, watch children play, and enjoy the beauty of nature in a variety of places throughout the community. The cost is minimal and should provide a significant community benefit. Parks and Recreation: Robinson Park Playground / $86,208 The playground equipment at Robinson Park is very much in need of replacement. With its location on Main Street next to the library, this equipment is heavily used, and a new playground will enhance the experience of park goers as well as the beauty of our city. Parks and Recreation: Pool Shade Structures / $24,800 With the heavy use of our community swimming pool and the continual health concern of skin cancer, shade structures will be a welcome addition to our recreation center. The Board highly recommends these structures be capable of withstanding strong wind storms. Parks and Recreation: Quail Cove Entrance / $18,869 This project will enhance the beauty of this park as well as create better accessibility and protect the grass. It will provide an aesthetic finish to this facility. Parks and Recreation: Rotary Park Small Pavilion Replacement / $66,500 Because of the replacement of the large pavilion last year, the current small pavilion at Rotary Park seems even more tired and worn. The replacement of this pavilion will provide a revitalized place for family and community gathering and will be a beautiful enhancement to the park. Fox Hollow: Pavilion/Concert Stage / $30,000 This project will make the community’s experience at Fox Hollow better by providing a central outdoor staging area, picnic area, and place to gather for tournaments and golf training. It can also be used for larger gatherings, concerts, etc. Requests Not Recommended for Funding This Year Harrington Center for the Arts: Ice Fest The Board sees this as an exciting idea for future winter activities in American Fork. Nonetheless, supporting the chalk fest first and watching for its success seems like a good idea before we fund this project also. Harrington Center for the Arts: Summer Concert Series The Board is very supportive of the Summer Concert series, but because American Fork Chamber of Commerce has agreed to take responsibility for this series, the Board sees it as their responsibility to fund it. Harrington Center for the Arts: Walls Although the walls are a good idea and have brought art and interest to American Fork, other requests have higher priority at this time. Utah Metropolitan Ballet--Special Needs Ballet Though this is a worthy project and will benefit some American Fork citizens, the ballet will occur outside of American Fork boundaries, and the majority who benefit from it will not likely be American Fork citizens. Parks and Recreation: Playground Replacement Rotary Park Though this is a worthy project, there is not enough funding for everything. Therefore, this can be applied for during another year if the city is unable to pay for it this year. Parks and Recreation: Outdoor Fitness Equipment Though the PARC board is very supportive of this project, the amount of PARC money already going into ART Dye is significant, and other requests must be recognized as well. Disc Golf: Course Design Because this is a request for facility improvement, it does not qualify Disc Golf: Signage Because this is a request for facility improvement, it does not qualify.