Parks, Recreation & Tourism Advisory Board

CHESAPEAKE PARKS, RECREATION AND TOURISM ADVISORY BOARD Meeting Minutes September 7, 2023 This meeting of the Parks, Recreation and Tourism Advisory Board was held on September 7, 2023, at the South Norfolk Community Center. Chair Leedom called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. ANNOUNCEMENTS Mr. Barber announced that Ms. Christiansen is leaving Chesapeake and moving south to Florida in early November. She will be greatly missed by all in the department and others who knew and worked with her! ROLL CALL Ms. Fuqua called the roll. Attendance reflected a quorum with 13 voting members present, 4 absent. Members Present: Christine Arrasate, James Brown, Donna Cannatella (non-voting ex- officio/CCC, Susan Dixon, Paula Faivre, Deloras Freeman, Phil Johnson, Annette Kelley (Vice Chair), Bob Leedom (Chair), Richard Pippin, Casey Shackleford, Susan Starkey, and Jessica Woodyard Members Absent: Catina Bondhill, Bryan Carey, Jean Carideo (non-voting ex- officio/GBBWHF), Kevin Cole (non-voting ex-officio/CPS), Monte Jenkins (non-voting Youth Liaison), Chris Lowie (non-voting ex-officio/GDSNWR), Patti McCambridge, Neta Stephens, and Michael Williams City Staff Present: Mike Barber, Monica Christiansen, Thurman Diamond, Kim Murden and Cori Fuqua MINUTES: A motion was made by Mr. Johnson and seconded by Ms. Kelley to approve the August 3, 2023, minutes as presented. The minutes were unanimously approved by the board. HEARING OF CITIZENS: Jean McLellan-Holt was present but did not address the board. SPECIAL PRESENTATION: Jessica Cosmas, Historical Services Manager, gave an overview presentation with updates on the Historical Village and Superintendent’s house. REPORTS: a. Ex-Officio Reports: • Chesapeake Conference Center – Ms. Cannatella said that the HVAC work is almost complete. The exterior of the building is now being pressure washed and it will then get a new coat of paint! The front flower bed will be getting a facelift and the front  concrete pavers will be fixed. The parking lot asphalt will be repaved, sealed, and restriped. Carpets will be professionally cleaned. The scheduled re-opening is November 2nd, and bookings are already pretty solid. Two new expos have been booked for January: a home expo and a Lego expo. We are hiring for a number of positions including two director-level positions – Director of Food and Beverage, and Director of Sales and Marketing. If you know anyone, send them our way. The Princess Ball is happening again on February 4th and tickets go on sale on Halloween. On June 1st, we are having Chesapeake’s first Bourbon, Bacon & Chocolate Festival. Stay tuned! • Great Bridge Battlefield & Waterways History Museum – Ms. Carideo’s email and updates were read to the board as follows: o “We’ve been busy and productive. Of special note is our two latest interns, who've contributed terrific and much needed support. One is working on marketing strategies and the other has just designed a QR coded public survey - fantastic work, fantastic interns. o We want to see you and your guest at our first ever Three Tun Tavern night, because 1) it will be the most fun you’ve ever had in Chesapeake and 2) your support is valued and much needed…it will be because of you and others that we will continue to “keep our doors open.” b. Tourism Report • Ms. Murden reported that from a hotel perspective, Chesapeake fared well over the summer but things seem to be leveling out. Average Daily Rates increased so that was a nice balance. She passed out the newest Visitor Guide but if anyone needs more, please let her know. She also handed out the Travel and Event calendar for this year which is an overview of the whole year and shows where Tourism staff is headed for the last quarter of 2023. The team is hitting the road with lots of activities coming up for them. We’re really excited for the Holiday season this year and are re-energizing the Peake Holidays section on the website. It showcases Holiday Events, Gift Guide, Where to Stay, Fun Facts & Crafts, Holiday Light Displays, and other seasonal activities and information of interest. In that light, we are contributing bags for the Holiday Craft Show at the Conference Center (November 18-19) to promote the website and Peake Holidays in Chesapeake. We will begin promoting Fall activities in the next week or so, and we’re about a month away from Chesapeake Restaurant Week (November 18-23). We currently have 17 restaurants participating and expect more to come. c. Parks and Recreation Reports • Recreation – Mr. Diamond said that after school programs are starting up and this year, we have seven centers participating which is the most we’ve had since Covid, so we’re very excited about that. Instructional programs offered two beginner pickleball clinics at River Crest and Great Bridge, as well as a free basketball clinic (with a center membership) at the Cuffee Center. The Glow in the Park at the splash park had around 73 attendees and was a huge success considering temperature was 2  unseasonably in the 60s! We participated in a back to school book bag giveaway at the Holly Cove storefront location on Airline Boulevard. There were lots of other giveaways as well and over 500 people came to the event. We are partnering with Healthy Chesapeake and the Holly Cove Civic League for a Safe School Safe Passage program where they teach the neighborhood how to keep kids safe at bus stops. Also, we’re partnering with all of the local Hampton Roads cities to promote Violence Interruptors – a community-based intervention strategy program that can reduce gun violence and improve public safety in neighborhoods around the country. This program has been used successfully in many areas of the country such as Chicago (where it was originally conceived), Indianapolis, Savannah, and Knoxville among others. • Events – Ms. Christiansen relayed the following event updates: o This Saturday will be the last Paddle Your Way event for the season at Oak Grove Lake Park. o The 9/11 Ceremony of Remembrance is on Monday at 8:30 a.m. at the Chesapeake 9/11 Memorial. o Please check out our Outdoor Programs calendar. We’re adding a lot of outdoor activities, including more paddling activities, and educational programs/activities at different parks and locations as well. o Celebrate Trees is coming on October 7th at the Arboretum and will include all kinds of tree-related activities and educational opportunities. d. Director Updates: Mr. Barber gave the following updates: • Parks and Community Centers o NWRP Ranger Station/Camp Store – We’re in the last stage of finalizing the specs and hope that it will go out to bid by the next board meeting. o Arboretum – We made a few adjustments which will hopefully lead to better pricing and that should go out to bid within the next couple of days. o Pool at Cuffee Center – This is going along pretty well. We received some input and direction from the City Manager so we will be tweaking the numbers and going back to the architect to make a few amenity adjustments. The pool costs have escalated a little, so we have to keep that in mind to stay within budget and grant restrictions. We plan on going to a City Council work session sometime in October to discuss it before we take the plan out to the public. The design specs should be finished up in mid-2024 and then it should go out to bid in late 2024. o Culpepper Landing Park – We are finally very close to being able to accept the park property into our department from the developer and then we can begin to put in some amenities. o Squires Farm Park – Another new park coming to southern Chesapeake! It’s near Greenbrier Farms, backing up to the 168 Bypass and a new housing development, and it’s several acres with a nice stormwater water feature. The developer will be completing the connectivity to the neighborhood, as well as a parking lot for us and 3  sidewalks around the stormwater feature. They’ve already established acceptable turf, walkways and bench pads and will also be doing some required plantings. Then we can take it on and add in some amenities. o New positions – We advertised a Project Manager position to assist with our growing number of park projects and are hopeful that we will have some good candidates to choose from. • For more information, refer to the Department Report and Park Project Updates. UNFINISHED BUSINESS: • Trash Cans With Lids – Chair Leedom asked Mr. Barber if there was a response yet to the letter received from Rogard Ross regarding getting trash cans with lids. In the letter he suggested a particular trash can but it appeared to be less durable than what we normally use. Mr. Barber said they are still looking into the options as there are other considerations besides cost. • Bylaws and SOPs – Chair Leedom signed the final Bylaws and SOP’s and Ms. Fuqua will send them to the City Clerk’s office for their files. She will also send an electronic copy of both documents to the board. • Heritage Park – Ms. Shackleford asked Mr. Barber if there were any updates about Heritage Park and he said that there will be a meeting later this month with the architect to review the Master Plan and he will have more to report next month. The good news is that there is already funding in place to start on the amenities once the Master Plan is approved and we have the go ahead to move forward. NEW BUSINESS: • None. HEARING OF BOARD MEMBERS: • Mr. Johnson emailed Ms. Fuqua and Chair Leedom a few subjects for the department to consider. He brought up the first two during the board meeting. o Great Bridge Park Boat Ramp Pier - The pier deck is 3-6” under water several times a month at high tide. Lots of slippery stuff grows on the deck. Potential slip hazard. May need to consider raising the pier or installing a floating pier. o Chesapeake City Park - Gold Star Memorial - Handicap parking - The closet handicap parking to the memorial is down by the farmer’s market. There appears to be ample room to install several handicap parking spaces on both sides of the road by the memorial. o Chesapeake City Park – Gold Star and 9-11 Memorial trees presently are pruned to about 8’ above the ground. When 10 x 10 tents are used the trees hit the top of the tents. Suggest we prune to 10’ or higher. o Farmers Market at City Park - Farmers must place and retrieve a tent sign the days they are open. Suggest we install a permanent sign at an appropriate location similar to the one on Battlefield Blvd advertising the Farmers Market at the Public Health Building. 4  o Landscaping medium on Volvo Pkwy by Police precinct – Recently Public Works installed a crossover from the east bound lanes of Volvo Pkwy for Police vehicles to access the precinct without having to make a U-turn at the traffic signal by Dollar Tree. Several trees were recently installed which partially block the view of oncoming traffic heading west on Volvo causing a potential hazard to the Police Vehicles returning to the precinct. If trees were moved 5-10 feet to the west, it would make for a much safer crossover for the Police. • Chair Leedom said that the City Clerk’s office sent out 6 letters to board members whose terms will be expiring at the end of the year. If you received a letter, are an active member and plan on staying active, please consider renewing. • Ms. Freeman said there was an incident at Deep Creek Park a couple of weeks ago. Her son-in-law was sitting near the sideline of the back soccer field across from the ballfields and he was bitten repeatedly by fire ants and had to go to the hospital. Some of the other parents were very concerned as well. What is the best way to handle this if it happens again or if someone sees fire ants at a park? Mr. Barber said that we get a few calls a week about fire ants at the parks and to call us immediately. We have treatments that can be applied and can send someone out to do so. The more detailed the location information of the ants, the better so we can find them. He will make sure to send someone out to Deep Creek Park this week. • Ms. Faivre added that issues about other City services can be reported on the online City reporting site or call 757-382-CITY (757-382-2489). The City’s response is pretty prompt. ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned at 7:44 p.m. NEXT MEETING: The next meeting will be on Thursday, October 5, 2023, at River Crest Community Center, 1001 River Walk Parkway. Minutes submitted by Cori Fuqua, Secretary 5