Parks and Recreation Commission

Parks & Recreation Commission Thursday, June 6, 2024 Cornelius Town Hall 5:30 – 7 p.m. www.cornelius.org/pr MINUTES 1) Call to Order Chair Kolkhorst called the meeting to order at 5:32 p.m. 2) Determination of Quorum A quorum was reached with eight commissioners in attendance. Commissioners present: Carla Eustache, Trey Fouche, Jill Rotunda, Jon Show, Chair Chris Kolkhorst, Andrew Heywood (via phone), Jana Ritter, Travis Dancy, and Town Commissioners Todd Sansbury and Michael Osborne Commissioner absent: Robert Reed Staff present: Director Troy Fitzsimmons, Assistant Director Adam Abernathy, Recreation Superintendent Joshua Handelsman, Athletics Program Manager Shelby Cruse, Recreation Programs Assistant Rashad Hart, Town Manager Andrew Grant, and Administrative Assistant Karen Ulmer 3) Public Appearances – Citizen Concerns/Comments None 4) Approval of Minutes (May) Commissioner Dancy made a motion to approve the minutes from the May 2, 2024, meeting as written. Commissioner Ritter seconded, and the motion passed unanimously. 5) Presentations a) Athletic Programs Review – Shelby Cruse & Rashad Hart Ms. Cruse and Mr. Hart shared a report reviewing athletic programming and participation in 2023 and so far in 2024, as well as facility usage over the past three years. 6) Director’s Report Director Fitzimmons shared a presentation highlighting items from his May 2024 report. 7) Parks & Recreation Commissioner Recommendations & Reports a) Items to be placed on record b) Commissioner Reports 1) Commissioner Carla Eustache – She has attended numerous committee meetings this month. 2) Vice-Chair Trey Fouche – He has also attended numerous committee meetings this month. 3) Commissioner Jill Rotunda – No report 4) Commissioner Jon Show – No report 5) Chair Chris Kolkhorst – He has also attended numerous committee meetings this month. 6) Commissioner Robert Reed – Absent 7) Commissioner Andrew Heywood – No report 8) Commissioner Jana Ritter – She has starting to teach the Lake Norman Tennis Association’s (LNTA) TryTennis lessons at Bailey Road Park and will teach the next step, TryPlay, in July; she is excited to continue working with the LNTA group. She will be volunteering at the USTA 18+ state tournament next weekend. They are still looking for volunteers. 9) Commissioner Travis Dancy – No report c) Town Commissioner Report  1) Commissioner Todd Sansbury • He congratulated the Town and CPRD on winning this year’s Mayors’ Fitness Challenge. • There is a new crosswalk on West Catawba at Robbins Park in addition to the one at Harborside, with more coming. • This Saturday, there will be a community cleanup in the Smithville community. Volunteers will meet at Smithville Park at 7 a.m. and cleanup starts at 8 a.m. 2) Commissioner Michael Osborne • The Memorial Day Program was a great experience. • He serves as liaison to the Transportation Advisory Board (TAB). They are putting in new processes to make sure that citizen concerns receive the right advocacy. If any Parks and Recreation Commissioners receive feedback that could be addressed by the TAB, please forward it to him or to the TAB. • He also welcomed the Commissioners to participate in the new bike/bed plan that the Town is working on now. 8) Old Business a) Parks & Recreation Commission Goals & Committees Public Awareness: Commissioner Eustache said they have been tasked with developing ways to educate Cornelius voters on the new Comprehensive Parks and Greenways Master Plan and the upcoming parks bond. So far, they have come up with the tagline, Connecting Cornelius: People, Places and Preservation. She read an excerpt from her next Lakeside Living article that discusses the master plan and what comes next, setting the stage to begin educating the public on the parks bond. They have started working on some other pieces. Chair Kolkhorst said the PRC has started some subcommittees to begin tackling what they can do now regarding the bond, such as education, fundraising, and marketing. Director Fitzsimmons said staff have been working on a deck with educational materials. Also, he has met with Town Manager Grant to get some funding for educational brochures, signs, etc. 9) New Business a) Proposed FY25 Facility Fees Director Fitzsimmons shared a presentation outlining the proposed facility fees for FY25, resulting from research into what staff found through a comparative analysis. These fees were reviewed and recommended by the Programs, Fees, and Facilities Committee. Chair Kolkhorst made a motion to recommend the proposed FY25 Facility Use Fees to the Town Board for approval. Commissioner Show seconded, and the motion passed unanimously. b) Northern Towns & Mecklenburg County Joint Meeting Commissioner Fouche reminded the group that the joint meeting is coming up on June 12, when the northern town commissioners and staff will get together to share information and have good conversations to see what is next. The proposed topics to discuss are regional partnerships, greenway connectivity, and bringing a Mecklenburg County-run, Matthews Sportsplex-type facility to the north. Commissioner Show would like to find out what projects each town has now that the others do not. He also suggested a central database where people could look to see what facilities in each town might be available for reservations. Director Fitzsimmons said the three directors have discussed looking at each other’s master plans to see what each town has planned. He also suggested the group discuss how often they would like to meet moving forward. c) 2024 Parks Bond Referendum Director Fitzsimmons shared a presentation regarding $20 million in potential projects for a 2024 Parks Bonds referendum. These projects were reviewed and recommended by the Strategic Planning and Long-Range Finance Committee. Commissioner Fouche made a motion to recommend the potential $20M park bond projects as presented be submitted to the Town Board for approval. Commissioner Show seconded, and the motion passed unanimously. 10) Adjournment Chair Kolkhorst adjourned the meeting at 7:34 p.m. Next PRC Meeting – PRC Meeting on Tuesday, July 9 Future PRC Meetings – Thursdays: August 4, September 5, and October 4, 2024 Next Town Board Meetings – Mondays, June 17, and July 1 and 15, 2024