Recreation & Parks Advisory Board

Regular Meeting of the Advisory Board of Recreation and Parks Held at the Falls Church Community Center, Kenneth R. Burnett Building 223 Little Falls Street, Falls Church, Virginia 22046 Minutes November 2, 2016 1. Call to Order Steve Selby called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Members present were Charley O’Hara, Leslie Rye, Kathy Chandler, and Lori Lafave. Student Representative Carly Roberson and Assistant City Manager Cindy Mester were present. Staff members present were Danny Schlitt, Director of Recreation & Parks, and Keke Sidik. 2. Receipt of Public Petitions and Board Member Petitions Juanita Bowman of Gresham Place requested that a letter she wrote to Danny Schlitt about Crossman Park be sent to the rest of the Board. 3. Minutes Leslie Rye made an amendment to the July 14 Meeting Minutes. Leslie motioned to approve the amended Minutes. Lori Lafave seconded the motion. The motion was approved. 4. Recreation Director’s Report Danny Schlitt presented the Director’s Report: - Halloween Carnival was packed; a lot of new faces. - Scavenger Hunt event upcoming on November 12; about getting to know parks—“Fall in Love with Your Parks”; done marketing for it and continue to do so; have also worked with local business to donate prizes; encourage students to participate and volunteer - Danny explained the logistics of the Scavenger Hunt event and encouraged attendance - Fall classes underway 5. New Business a) City Hall Public Space and Safety Improvements (Cindy Mester) - Cindy presented on the City Hall renovation project, explained relevant plans/maps, answered questions, and invited feedback from Board - Board members asked questions about the project and expressed their feedback as follows: 1. Minimize impact on the Farmhouse (Board) 2. Consider parking needs, especially for visitors of pavilion (Charley O’Hara and Board)  3. Minimize impact on Farmer’s Market, which should be moved only once during construction to Park Ave. with intent to return to original location after (Danny Schlitt) 4. Preserve roofline in place of having a 3rd floor meeting space (Board) 5. Consider impact of construction on special events—Memorial Day, Fall Festival, etc (Danny Schlitt) 6. Maintain good aesthetic when constructing security box (Charley) 7. Have easy access to parking next to pavilion—visitors should have ease in loading/unloading materials, etc (Charley and Lori Lafave) 8. Have easy access to Community Center restrooms from park (Charley) - Danny and Cindy: discussion with Howard Herman on moving Farmer’s Market temporarily while under construction - Leslie Rye and Cindy discussed the need to move Court during construction - Board decided a list of comments/feedback should be sent to Cindy b) CIP (Farmer’s Market enhancements, Larry Graves) - Cindy discussed CIP; ability to update/change/review what’s in it; financial situation similar to last year - Danny discussed master park implementation; looking into 2022 to make sure staying in line with what we’ve been doing in the past; various items that need to be improved/replaced etc - Cindy: best method is pay-as-you-go; no cash in CIP - Charley and Danny discussed Farmer’s Market expansion on Larry Graves 6. Old Business Danny Schlitt discussed a) Big Chimneys Project - Kim Callahan has started work on Big Chimneys; she understands the scope of the project; 3rd person to come on board to work on project b) Howard E. Herman Park - Danny discussed various things that need to be worked on and improved, and the logistics involved. c) Cherry Hill Playground - A lot of work since last meeting; feedback invited and compiled from children and adults - Have heard from VPIS about some of their concerns - Concern with exposing tree roots due to project—could damage some trees - Danny and Kathy Chandler discussed the potential impact of a new footprint d) Smoking ban in parks - City Manager likes the idea of the Board leading the potential implementation - Likely start off as a social program with announcements/encouragements instead of a direct/legal ban to be enforced—then, based on results, potentially consider moving it into legislation/enforcement - Board agreed to make this a top priority to be discussed in the upcoming December meeting - Charley O’Hara and Board discussed the legislation background/history on topic  - Cindy Mester explained relevant current/previous legislation and logistics of potentially getting it into future legislation 7. Adjournment Lori Lafave motioned to adjourn the meeting and Leslie Rye seconded the motion. Under unanimous vote, meeting adjourned at 8:11PM. The City of Falls Church is committed to the letter and spirit of the Americans with Disabilities Act. This document will be made available in alternate format upon request. Call 703-248-5027 (TTY 711).