Parks and Recreation Commission

Inger Hiller, Chair Sarah Grider, Vice Chair Parks and Recreation Commission Rebecca Dunn Meeting Minutes Nathan Jones Shawn L'Esperance Madeline Self Michael Smith Wednesday, May 17, 2023 5:00 PM Central Service Center 1400 Caprice Drive Castle Rock, CO 80109 NOTE: THIS MEETING IS OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. THREE OR MORE COUNCIL MEMBERS MAY ALSO ATTEND THIS MEETING, DURING WHICH THE ITEMS LISTED HEREIN WILL BE DISCUSSED. TIMES SHOWN ARE APPROXIMATE AND MAY BE ADJUSTED DUE TO CHANGES TO THE AGENDA. CALL TO ORDER ADDITIONS/DELETIONS/MODIFICATIONS TO THE AGENDA The meeting of the Parks and Recreation Commission was held on May 17, 2023 at the Central Service Center, 1400 Caprice Drive, Castle Rock, CO 80109. Parks and Recreation Commission Vice Chair Sarah Grider called the meeting to order at 5:02 p.m. Council Liaison Tim Dietz was present, as were Town staff including Jeff Brauer, Jeff Smullen, Mike Kilman, Brian Peterson, Jennifer Martin, Jennifer Reinhardt, Matt Gasser and Maia Yates. Executive Director of the Castle Rock Parks and Trails Foundation, Marne Hansen, also attended. Present 6 - Vice Chair Sarah Grider, Commissioner Nathan Jones, Commissioner Madeline Self, Commissioner Shawn L'Esperance, Rebecca Dunn, and Michael Smith Not Present 1 - Chair Inger Hiller PUBLIC COMMENT DURING THIS TIME, MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC ARE INVITED TO ADDRESS THE COMMISSION AND STAFF ON ITEMS THAT ARE NOT ON THE AGENDA. COMMENTS SHOULD BE LIMITED TO NO MORE THAN FOUR (4) MINUTES. None. MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING PRC 2023-007 Approval of the Minutes of the March 15, 2023 and the April 19, 2023 Parks and Recreation Commission Meetings Rebecca Dunn motioned and Shawn L'Esperance seconded the approval of the minutes. Nathan Jones was not present during the approval of the minutes; the motion passed 5-0. Yes: 5 - Vice Chair Grider, Commissioner Self, Commissioner L'Esperance, Dunn, and Smith Not Present: 2 - Chair Hiller, and Commissioner Jones Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes May 17, 2023 AGENDA ITEMS PRC 2023-008 2023 Special Events Update Special Events Supervisor Jennifer Reinhardt provided Commission members and staff with an overview of upcoming special events and the Special Events Committee. Highlights included: • The Summer Concert Series (all season passes sold out within a one-week period and all box seats for all concerts are fully sold as well) • Due to fire restrictions, the Town is planning a Rockin’ the Fourth Event and will hold an entire day of family-friendly activities at Philip S. Miller Park to celebrate our country’s birthday (race and foam party, drive-in movies in the park, kid activities in the plaza, free concerts with Super Diamond closing the event, and drone shows with patriotic music) • Free concerts will continue to be offered through First Fridays at Festival Park in June, July and August, as well as on the third Thursdays of each month at the Amphitheater at Philip S. Miller Park through September • The Longhorn Steer Drive will once again launch the Douglas County Fair and Rodeo on Friday, July 28 • Races will continue with Climb4Change, Tri the Rock, the liveBIG Run and the Castle Rock Trail Festival • Seasonal events will be held throughout the fall and winter such as Spooktacular, the Pie Bake Off and Season of the Star Parks and Recreation Director Jeff Brauer asked Jennifer who the bestselling performer is to date for the Summer Concert Series. Jennifer confirmed that Rick Springfield has sold the most tickets, followed by UB40. Jeff also asked Jennifer what her biggest challenge is in running and permitting special events in Castle Rock. Jennifer explained that weather is the biggest challenge, followed by space being limited while demand for space and use remains strong. Marne Hansen of the Castle Rock Parks and Trails Foundation confirmed that their organization would continue their fundraising efforts through alcohol sales and in-kind donations at the Tunes for Trails Concerts on the third Thursdays at the Amphitheater. Madeline Self asked if the department plans to continue hosting drive-in movies at Philip S. Miller Park. Jennifer noted that while they were extremely popular during the pandemic, general interest has declined. Staff plan to offer them during special opportunities such as Rockin’ the Fourth and the Downtown Merchants Associations continues to offer free, movie-nights in the park at Festival Park throughout the summer. Shawn L’Esperance commented that the Fourth of July plan sounded great, and Michael Smith agreed that the alternative offerings sound unique and fun, especially with a full-day of activities to offset a lack of fireworks. Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes May 17, 2023 PRC 2023-009 Agents of Discovery Castle Rock Parks and Trails Foundation Executive Director Marne Hansen provided commission members and staff with an overview of the newly launched Agents of Discovery program and app in Castle Rock. Agents of Discovery is a digital education technology platform that features a web-based dashboard where educators can easily turn educational content into augmented reality games, much like Pokémon Go. Throughout the year, the Foundation will hold missions and challenges for app users at a variety of locations, including Festival Park, Metzler Family Open Space and Philip S. Miller Park. The app is free to download from the Google Play and Apple’s App Store. Rebecca Dunn asked if the game is reward-based, and Marne confirmed that the challenges and missions can be reward-driven where users can collect points for questions they answer correctly and cash their points in for prizes. The Foundation currently has a reward in place that can be picked up at Town Hall for users who complete the mission in Festival Park. Rebecca also asked what age group the app is targeting, and Marne confirmed that the program is generally for 6+ age groups, but that younger kids could play with the assistance of their parents. PRC 2023-010 Endorsing the Selection of Colorado Designscapes, Inc., for the Plum Creek North Park Construction Project The Town of Castle Rock acquired a parcel of land containing a park and pool from the Plum Creek Golf Club in 2019 for the purposes of future park development. The existing amenities were deemed to be beyond repair and demolished following the purchase. Throughout 2020-2022, Parks and Recreation Department staff worked with landscape architect DHM Design to obtain public feedback on the park’s future design and create construction documents for bidding.The neighborhood expressed desire for increased walking paths, a neighborhood-park feel, added shade and lessened parking. The new park will feature pickleball courts, two playground areas, a boulder climbing structure, improved lighting, added walkways, bocce ball courts, half-court basketball, a four-season restroom and shade areas. Staff issued a request for bids this springs and Colorado Designscapes provided the low responsive bid. The construction contact, Town-managed contingency and additional costs will result in approximately $4.6 million project budget. Since $3.5 million was originally approved for the park’s construction, a budget amendment will be required to appropriate the additional funds from the Parks and Recreation Capital Fund account, generated through impact fees. Town Council will consider the budget amendment at a future meeting. It was also noted that Colorado Designscapes is currently renovating Mitchell Gulch Park. Nathan Jones asked about the pickleball courts and if staff anticipates any need Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes May 17, 2023 to complete noise reduction efforts. Park Planning and Construction Manager Brian explained that we do add fence screening to our courts, which can slightly help to reduce noise. Brian further noted that the pickleball courts were placed on the far side from housing to hopefully ensure sufficient spacing. Rebecca Dunn asked when the project would begin. Brian commented that the project would launch this summer with an anticipated completion in summer 2024. Shawn L’Esperance asked if Coloardo Designscapes has completed any additional projects for the Town, and Jeff Smullen noted that the contractor worked on Wrangler Park and the renovation of Castle North Park. It was motioned by Shawn L’Esperance and seconded by Sarah Grider to endorse the selection of Colorado Designscapes, Inc., for the construction of Plum Creek North Park. Yes: 6 - Vice Chair Grider, Commissioner Jones, Commissioner Self, Commissioner L'Esperance, Dunn, and Smith Not Present: 1 - Chair Hiller PARKS AND RECREATION DEPARTMENT COMMENTS Parks and Recreation Department staff provided the following updates: • Metzler Family Open Space improvements are nearly complete, including the parking lot and installation of the sign package • A National Trails Day hiking event will be held at the open space on Saturday, June 3 to officially launch the opening of the parking to the public • The synthetic turf conversion project is now complete at Paintbrush Park; the upgrade will save water, as well as reduce maintenance needs on both softball fields and the soccer field • The Town has received a grant award notice from DRCOG to help fund the development of the Industrial Tributary Trail, connecting Plum Creek Parkway by the MAC to downtown Castle Rock through Miller’s Landing; the grant will offset $5.3 million in project costs and work on the trail’s design will commence this year • Staff will soon seek Town Council approval of a contract amendment with architect Barker Rinker Seacat to complete design development and construction documents for the proposed sports development center at the Brickyard • A new sculpture was installed at Metzler Ranch Community Park to replace the damaged sculptures called Tribal Jam in the skatepark area • Progress continues on the Colorado Front Range Trail project through Castle Rock; Contractor Native Sun has completed the connection from Cobblestone Ranch to the Cherry Creek Regional Trail • New board and commission appointments were made by Town Council this month; new member Scott Dowis will begin a new term in June, and Michael Smith and Rebecca Dunn were both reappointed to serve additional term; staff and members thanked Sarah Grider for her years of serving the Parks and Recreation Commission and wished her well in future endeavors COMMISSION COMMENTS Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes May 17, 2023 None. ADJOURN The meeting adjourned at roughly 6:08 p.m.