Park Commission

Minutes of a Regular Parks & Recreation Commission Meeting July 12, 2022 A regular meeting of the Blue Springs Parks Commission was held on Tuesday, July 12, 2022, at the Fieldhouse. The Chairman called the meeting to order. Jon Burke -- Present Parks Dept. Staff: Dennis Dovel Keith Hannaman -- Present Parks Dept. Staff: Justin Stuart Gabriel Mejia – Absent Parks Dept. Staff: Derek Mayden Ken Horrell – Present Parks Dept. Staff: Mary Herrington Nick Brummel – Present Parks Dept. Staff: Jayla Coleman Tony Lopez – Present City Council Liaison: Susan Culpepper –Present Almitra Buzan - Present A motion was made by Ken Horrell and seconded by Nick Brummel to accept the Consent Agenda. It passed unanimously. Visitors/Correspondence: None Program/Activity Spotlight: Mary presented on the Mid-America Regional Council (MARC) for our Community Services Grant, the grant or reimbursement that we receive every year. We are very happy to be receiving this funding yet again this year. The usual services we offer (transportation, congregate meals and home-delivered meals), with the help of this grant we will also be offering frozen meal delivery again. MARC grant also helps with allowing us to have volunteers run programs. Finances: None. Staff Reports: Staff reviewed their reports. Parks and Recreation Commission Chairman’s Report: None City Council Liaison Report: None Old Business: Justin presented an update on Youth Sports Association Facility Use Agreements. Currently, the Blue Springs Parks and Recreation Department provides facilities to several youth sports associations within Blue Springs. The Associations currently collects all fees and pays nothing to the Parks and Recreation Department other than a portion of the water and electric fees used by each group. This arrangement has made it very difficult for the City to make necessary repairs and improvements at these facilities. The commission agreed back in February that this was not a feasible model to continue and asked staff to review each individual youth sports association agreement and come back with alternative options. Each Association operates a little different, so the recommended changes to the agreements are not the same for association. These suggested changes are to be considered a starting point for discussions. It is staff desire to implement these changes for the 2023 seasons, so to give each association plenty of notice so they can make appropriate arrangements to mee the new operating parameters. These are big changes to the current arrangements, but ones that are necessary. A motion was made to proceed with these changes. The commissioners agreed unanimously. Dennis then presented an update on Park Sales Tax. The Aquatic Center continues to move in a positive direction. The design team is at 90% Construction Documents with a target date of July 22 for 95% and bidding taking place beginning July 22nd. The current schedule is to receive bids in mid-August and then going before City Council on October 3, will the request to release bonds for the project. A groundbreaking ceremony will be scheduled for late October to early November. Construction is still on schedule to begin in December 2022 and on target to be opened Memorial Day weekend 2024. Staff has been meeting with McCown and SFS Architecture to determine how the facility will maintain operation during the construction. The entrance will be moved to the east side of the building during construction. A new vestibule and a temporary check-in counter will be constructed. 1 Dennis then discussed the naming of the Aquatic Center. The Aquatic Center needs to have a unique name to use to promote and describe what the facility has to offer. To provide context to why some of these names were chosen or developed, it is important to understand the design/theming of the facility. To develop a unique name that can be used as a promotional tool, staff began developing names around this Beach/Caribbean/Ocean vibe. Staff also tried to be aware of other facility names in the area so as not to confuse the public on which facility was being promoted. Staff recognizes that it is important to have an identifier that this is Blue Springs but feels that an be accomplished through other means within the building through signage and promotions by using the Department Logo, City Logo and wording. New Business: None Miscellaneous: None As there was no further business, a motion for adjournment was made by Jon Burke and seconded by Tony Lopez. 2