City Council

The City of Columbia City In Columbia County on the Columbia River PARKS COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES NOVEMBER 19, 2013 - 6:00 P.M. CITY HALL, 1840 SECOND STREET, COLUMBIA CITY, OR 97018 Present: Shannon Fitzgibbons, Chair Nell Harrison, Committee Member Larry Preston, Committee Member Kathleen Devlin, Committee Member Leahnette Rivers, City Administrator/Recorder Sally Ann Marson, City Council Member Jayson Hester, Commander, VFW Post #1440 Dave Nelson, Quartermaster VFW Post #1440 Wayne Mayo, Wayne Mayo Construction Adrian Hester, Citizen Veterans Memorial Park: Committee Members discussed the following:  Monument status: Nell and Sally Ann visited the studio last week. They reported that one side of the monument is very close to being completed and looks very good, but there’s still quite a bit of work left to do on the opposite side. The foundation work is moving forward and looks very durable. A new date will be set for one last visit to the studio.  National Guard: Jayson reported that the National Guard will construct site improvements if the City provides the materials and the plans and specifications. He said they will pick up the materials, perform the construction work in Salem, and deliver the finished products to the site. Members discussed whether or not we should ask the National Guard to construct the benches and picnic tables or purchase them outright. This item will be discussed again after the Phase II Grant Application results are back.  Wall design and construction: Wayne Mayo of Wayne Mayo Construction has volunteered to design and construct the veterans memorial wall. Wayne discussed the following specifications with Members: Construct 4 concrete wall panels, 4’ tall, 8’ long, spaced 2’ apart, placed upon a concrete slab that is 4’ wide, 12” thick. The wall width will be 8” at the base, 6” at the top, providing a 2” slope on the front for better viewing of the engraved bricks. The wall will be reinforced with L-shaped rebar. The concrete for the PO Box 189  1840 Second Street  Columbia City, Oregon 97018 Phone 503-397-4010  Fax 503-366-2870 E-mail colcity@columbia-city.org  Web site www.columbia-city.org  wall could be injected with black dye or finished with a black layer, which would result in a mottled, dark gray appearance. Members discussed placing a seal coating on the sides and backs of the wall panels and upon the concrete base work. Leahnette discussed the brick placement and design with Members. Members preferred the idea of using 2” x 4” black tile spacers between each brick, using black grout, and placing a 1’ tall decorative tile row along the base of each wall consisting of large square tiles set on point and engraved with the mottos for each branch of the service as well as other mottos and phrases commonly used by the various branches. MOVED (SALLY ANN), SECONDED (SHANNON) AND CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY TO APPROVE THE PROPOSED DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS FOR THE WALL PANELS, THE TILE PLACEMENT AND THE ENGRAVING. Leahnette said she will attempt to locate a contractor that will donate their skills by installing the tile, but if she can’t find one, she will donate her time to complete the work. She will place the order for the tile now that she knows the design and wall size. Leahnette asked Jayson and Dave to review the mottos and phrases she’s selected for use on the memorial walls and let her know if they recommend any changes.  Brick sales/donation solicitations: Leahnette said brick order forms and donation requests have been mailed individually to City vendors and included with the mailing for the business license renewal forms. She said 27 engraved bricks have been sold to date.  Blue Star Byway Marker: Members discussed the wording to be placed on the Blue Star Byway Marker. MOVED (NELL), SECONDED (LARRY) AND CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY TO REQUEST THE FOLLOWING WORDING ON THE BLUE STAR BYWAY MARKER: “A TRIBUTE TO THE ARMED FORCES OF AMERICA.” Members agreed that the marker should be placed upon a large rock and located below the group of small trees to the southeast of the picnic area.  Phase II Veteran and War Memorial Grant: Leahnette said she recently submitted an application for $28,680 in grant funds for Phase II, which will consist of six monuments and flag poles (one representing each branch of the service), associated electrical work and light fixtures, and benches and picnic tables. She said the total project budget is $41,730, and includes a cash match of $5,650, $5,000 in donated labor or materials, volunteer labor valued at $600, and in-kind contributions valued at $1,800, for a total match of $13,050. Dog Park: Leahnette said the Columbia County Community Corrections Crew has fallen short of community service workers during the past few weeks, so the project has come to a temporary standstill. She suggested the date for the Grand Opening be pushed out to January, 2014. Harvard Park: Kathleen noted that the blue and purple equipment still needs to be repainted, and the nuts and bolts are rusting and should be sealed or treated to prevent further damage. Members discussed the row of arborvitae located to the west of the playground equipment. Members agreed that in addition to trimming up the bottom 3’ of branches, the overall height should be maintained at 8’ or less. Kathleen has 3 trees to donate to the playground area that will provide shade once they’ve matured. Larry will plant them this Thursday. Kathleen has received a supply of industrial strength weed killer from the Public Works crew - she’ll share some of it with Larry for his use in Ruth Rose Richardson Park. Kathleen noted that it’s too late to treat the lawn with weed killer - we’ll need to wait until next spring. Ruth Rose Richardson (RRR)/Pixie Parks: Leahnette said the Multnomah Chapter of the PO Box 189  1840 Second Street  Columbia City, Oregon 97018 Phone 503-397-4010  Fax 503-366-2870 E-mail colcity@columbia-city.org  Web site www.columbia-city.org Daughters of the American Revolution are committed to providing the City with some financial support for the maintenance of RRR and Pixie Parks this year, but they have not decided upon the amount. She said they are also committed to making a donation to Phase II of the Veterans Memorial Park. She said she expects to hear back from them again in January 2014. Larry said he would like some guidance about how to properly care for and trim the shrubs and bushes in RRR Park. Sally Ann suggested he invite Chip Buble to take a look at the park. Larry said he’d like to develop a maintenance plan that volunteers could use. Kathleen suggested he take a look at the one she developed for Harvard Park. Leahnette said a maintenance plan would be helpful to have for each of the park sites. Bike Path: Kathleen suggested we consider installing a sandy path adjacent to the bike path for joggers to use. Nell said sometimes they use wood chips for the jogging paths. Members will revisit this idea during the next update of the Five-Year Capital Improvement Plan. Other Business: Leahnette noted that trees were donated by Nell and Kathleen planted by Sally Ann at the entrance sign site and in Jim Bundy Memorial Park. She mentioned that the ivy needs to be removed from the row of trees along the south edge of Datis Park. Leahnette will either schedule the next Parks Committee Meeting on December 17th at 5:00 p.m., or cancel the meeting, depending upon the number of items that need the Committee’s attention. Meeting adjourned 7:19 p.m. PO Box 189  1840 Second Street  Columbia City, Oregon 97018 Phone 503-397-4010  Fax 503-366-2870 E-mail colcity@columbia-city.org  Web site www.columbia-city.org