Parks & Recreation Advisory Board

Burlington Parks & Recreation Advisory Board TUESDAY, November 5, 2019 at 5:30PM @ Parks & Rec Center 900 E. Fairhaven Avenue Agenda: CALL TO ORDER Keith Chaplin APPROVAL OF MINUTES (10/01/19 Meeting) Keith Chaplin OPEN COMMENT Keith Chaplin OLD BUSINESS Keith Chaplin  Review of PROS Plan Draft Jennifer Berner NEW BUSINESS Keith Chaplin  Capital Improvement Plan Review Jennifer Berner ADJOURN Keith Chaplin Next Scheduled Meeting: Tuesday, December 3, 2019 at 5:30PM Enclosures: : Tuesday 10/01/2019 Meeting Minutes 11/05//2019 Parks and Recreation Advisory Board Agenda Packet - Page 1 of 4  CITY OF BURLINGTON PARKS & RECREATION ADVISORY BOARD Tuesday, October 1, 2019 Meeting Minutes Board Representatives in Attendance Board Members: Bill Black, Keith Chaplin, Ronda DeGloria, Bridgid Roney and Adrian Santangelo City Council Members: Joe DeGloria City Staff: Jennifer Berner, Shelley Johnstone, Christi Kinney and Jim Rabenstein Guests: MEETING CALLED TO ORDER by Chairperson Keith Chaplin at 5:35PM. MINUTES: Bill Black/Joe DeGloria motion to accept the minutes of the 08/06/2019 board meeting as written. All in favor; motion carried. OPEN COMMENT PUMPKIN PITCH. Keith Chaplin comments that he & his family enjoyed the Harvest Festival last weekend. He said it looked like there was a good turnout. They had a bit of a wait for one of the shuttles so decided to walk from the north parking lot. Jim Rabenstein says the shuttle wagons were busy all day. The shuttles’ route was moved onto the gravel road instead of the grassy shoulder which turned out to be a great idea that they will likely do again next year. Bill Black read an article that said the Pumpkin Pitch teams’ distance is capped at 1400’. Christi Kinney responds they had to modify the rules a few years ago as the teams were quickly outgrowing the range that Skagit River Park offers. She’ll focus on finding more teams for next year as there were only 4 that competed this year. Jennifer Berner adds that it was a successful festival; all aspects went very smoothly and seemed to coalesce perfectly. Kids Zone vendors were happy, food vendors were happy, the estimated 9,000+ guests seemed very happy. Staff will hold a post event wrap up meeting soon to talk through how the event can be improved upon still. SENSORY LANDSCAPING. Bridgid Roney asks if there are rules that govern what types of vegetation can be in the city’s parks. Jennifer Berner answers that there is not necessarily a rule, but a few things that are contemplated before adding plants or landscaping to parks is (1) how they might hinder or improve site visibility, (2) what level of care & maintenance would be needed for them, and (3) also being mindful of reinforcing the area’s indigenous vegetation is a factor. Bridgid suggests that the addition of plants to landscaping that would offer a sensory experience would be enriching, such fragrant rosemary or sage herbs. Jennifer Berner says that through the PROS Plan project, Alpha Park was identified as a great location for just this type of experience --- landscaping that invited touch, smell, and even taste with edible gardens. Jennifer will bring copies of the PROS Plan’s concept drawings for the parks to the November meeting. OLD BUSINESS PROS PLAN. Jennifer Berner says the PROS Plan is at a very exciting stage. Although the board has not heard much about the project in recent months, there has been a lot going on behind the scenes with the actual writing of the Plan. A draft from BERK Consultants of the nearly completed Plan is expected to arrive this week. Jennifer Berner shares a handout with the board offering a timeline of important dates for moving the Plan forward. October 23 and November 20 are two dates she urges board members to mark on their calendars. BERK will present the PROS Plan draft at a joint meeting with the Planning Commission on the 23 rd. 11/05//2019 Parks and Recreation Advisory Board Agenda Packet - Page 2 of 4 BERK will incorporate feedback offered during that meeting, if needed, and present a revised draft at second joint meeting with the Planning Commission on November 20. The Plan will be part of the Parks & Recreation Advisory Board’s November 5 and December 3 agenda for discussion and recommendation. Two dates are currently scheduled for public meetings: December 12 and again on January 9. Jennifer anticipates that council will vote on the Plan’s adoption at the meeting on the 9 th. NEW BUSINESS LODGING TAX SUPPORT. Jennifer Berner shares a handout with board members that offers a little history on Lodging Tax Grant awards to Parks and Recreation. In 2018 and 2019, a little under $190,000 was awarded in support of the Summer Nights and Pumpkin Pitch & Harvest Festival events and also of Skagit River Park tournaments. For the 2020 grant cycle, a total of $171,250 has been requested to expand support for those events and also the Berry Dairy Days Friday Night Fireworks Show and the Veterans Day Parade. If awarded, this will help to relieve some of the pressure on the General Fund. GRAFTON PARK. Jennifer Berner briefed city council last Thursday on an unexpected opportunity to move up the timing of a project at Grafton Park. She along with Brad Johnson of the City’s Planning Department have been in conversation with the developer of a new multi-unit housing complex, “Grafton Park Apartments” being built next door to the park. With the impact fees the project would generate, improvements will begin sooner rather than later. Parks crew will post notices announcing the start of the project later this week. They will begin the project the following week by demolishing the park’s storage structure. Jennifer anticipates project completion in April of 2020. She says taking care of the teardown during the slower months will help ease the load during the busier spring months. Those members present receive copy of the project description and diagram. Jennifer adds she has applied for a grant that may help to purchase low-impact fitness equipment for Grafton that would complement requests received during the PROS Plan surveys. The remaining $29,000 in the park endowment fund will also help to finance the project. She says it will be important to pull the history of the site into the renovations. An interpretive board depicting the Grafton family’s story, a plaque from the present-day water feature, and a brick inscribed with 1934 from the family’s house that once stood on the property will be incorporated into the renovations. Joe DeGloria asks whether the project would still go through if collaboration with the developer does not produce immediate funding results. Jennifer answers that yes, the project would still move forward but she is hoping that collaboration will help to mitigate some of the project expenses. Joe would like the board to look at various park projects to form a ranking system, a priority list with flexibility. Keith Chaplin concurs. Jennifer cautions against a separate priority list since the Comprehensive Improvement Plan (CIP) is already in place. The board previously reviewed the CIP before its approval by council. She feels it is easy to get hung up on a set priority list and miss opportunities to capitalize on funding opportunities when they arise. She explains there are a lot of moving pieces with park projects. The CIP is an instrument designed to shift as opportunities or needs present themselves. She likens it to a juggling act. Bridgid Roney comments that geographically speaking, a renovated Grafton Park may benefit an otherwise underserved lower income population with the park’s central location on the boulevard. Jennifer suggests revisiting the CIP at the board’s November meeting. She mentions that she is currently pursuing a grant that could potentially help with obtaining a new playground for Rotary Park in 2020 or perhaps 2021 depending on the grant cycle. More info to come on that topic. 11/05//2019 Parks and Recreation Advisory Board Agenda Packet - Page 3 of 4 SKAGIT VALLEY VETERANS DAY PARADE. Jennifer Berner shares copy of the event flyer with board members. She says the City’s Parks & Recreation Department is now at the helm of coordinating the event and works closely with the committee that has managed it for many years. The parade committee is looking for nominees for Grand Marshal from the Persian Gulf, Afghanistan and Iraq wars. She asks board members to send her the names of veterans they would like to nominate. This year’s parade will take place on Saturday, November 9 beginning at 11:00AM. It will follow its traditional route on E. Fairhaven Avenue. Flyovers from the Heritage Flight Museum’s vintage warbirds are scheduled, weather permitting. Jennifer says it is a very moving event and encourages board members to attend and to enjoy the displays and activities scheduled for the morning. Christi Kinney adds that they are looking for leads on pipe & drum bands as they are having a difficult time finding one for the event. 2020 BUDGET. Jennifer Berner recaps a few pieces of information presented at a recent city council meeting. A handout is shared with board members which gives insight on how the Park Endowment, Cemetery, and Cemetery Endowment Funds are used and the work that each supports. Jennifer also shares copy of the budget presentation made to council for the Parks & Recreation Department. She reads through the information which detailed for council the multilayered tasks the department is responsible for managing and how staff actually go about performing them. She describes the lengthy steps necessary to accurately & tactfully perform a burial, considerations in balancing the variety of field users that share playfield complex, the conversations that take place during a facility rental or with special event organizers, and the perpetual planning needed to assess and coordinate recreation programs intended to support the community. Jennifer says her hope tonight was to illuminate for listeners how seemingly simple tasks can prompt rather extensive procedures and to give insight as to why those procedures are necessary. Keith Chaplin asks whether Jennifer has stats on how many Burlington residents participate in the recreation programs versus residents from other areas. She answers specific stats are not available presently as the Geographic Information System (GIS) software that would allow those analytics is not available to the City at the present time. ADJOURN: Ronda DeGloria/Adrian Santangelo motion to adjourn the meeting; all are in favor. Meeting is adjourned at 7:41PM. NEXT MEETING: Tuesday, November 5, 2019 at 5:30PM Meeting location is at the Parks & Recreation Center, 900 E. Fairhaven Avenue. Minutes transcribed by Shelley Johnstone, Parks & Recreation Secretary. 11/05//2019 Parks and Recreation Advisory Board Agenda Packet - Page 4 of 4