Board of Park Commissioners

James McGrath (Chairman) CITY OF FITCHBURG Mary Whitney (Vice-Chair) Dave Brooks Board of Mary Giannetti Park Commissioners James Bunnell Recreation Director 718 Main Street FITCHBURG CITY CLERK P: (978) 829 1815 Fitchburg, Massachusetts 01420 F: (978) 345 9687 Oct 14 2022 9:00 am Board of Park Commissioners Meeting Date: Tuesday, October 4th, 2022 Location: West Conference Room, Fitchburg City Hall, 718 Main Street Call to Order: The October 4th, 2022 meeting was called to order by Commissioner McGrath at 5:40 pm. Commissioner Members Present: Jim McGrath, Dave Brooks, Mary Whitney. Mary Giannetti Also Present: Nick Erickson, James Bunnell, Tara Barrett Public Comment: No Public Comment Prior Meeting Minutes: A motion was made by Mary Whitney and seconded by Mary Giannetti to table the approval of the minutes from the September 6th, 2022 meeting. Approved 4-0 Department Reports: Friends of Coggshall Report: James McGrath Reported:  The friends receive a couple of complaints regarding some of the handicapped spots in the parking lot that were not painted and did not have handicap parking signs. Nick Erikson (DPW Commissioner) responded that the fire department may take down the signs if the spot is non- ADA compliant, but told commission commissioners that he will look into it.  3 posts are still down near the flagpole, they are on the ground with the chain, and it was asked if they could be reinstalled or removed. A motion was made by Mary Whitney and seconded by Mary Giannetti to accept the report. Approved 4- 0 Community Development Report: A motion was made by Mary Whitney and seconded by Mary Giannetti to table the report. Approved 4-0 Parks Maintenance Report: Nick Erickson reported  Crew is shifting into fall maintenance, trying to get ahead of spring tasks i.e. adding chips to the playgrounds that need to be refilled.  Goodrich playground’s new equipment has arrived and will be getting installed soon  The Commissioner asked if the pool has been winterized and closed and if the splash parks and sprinklers have also been winterized. Nick said he was going to confirm but believed this has been completed and the remaining sprinklers are in the process of being completed. A motion was made by Mary Whitney and seconded by Mary Giannetti to accept the report. Approved 4- 0 Riverfront Parks and Trails Fund Report: Mary Whitney reported  The Community Development Department requested the transfers of funds from the Friends of Riverfront account to the Pavilion Stage project account. These funds were raised and earmarked for the project.  Discussion regarding the impact of the Pavilion Stage project on the US Army Corps of Engineers flood wall and adjacent flood plain was held A motion was made by Mary Giannetti and seconded by Dave Brooks to approve the report. Approved 4- 0 Recreation Director’s Report James Bunnell reported  Summary of the 1st two work days tour of the city parks, city hall, meeting city employees  James McGrath discussed the need for the new Recreation Director to meet with the representatives from the youth leagues in the community. Additionally, for the new director to review the recreation department revolving account and transactions from the summer programs and facility rentals.  Discussion was held regarding adding staff members to the department to help ensure the department has support and operates effectively to serve the community. A motion was made by Mary Whitney and seconded by Dave Brooks to accept the report. Approved 4-0 New Business: Ms. Tara Barrett requested to plant a tree at Coggshall Park  Ms. Barrett requested permission to plant a tree in memory of her late father Nelson Robideau (a former resident and frequent visitor to the park).  Ms. Barrett has been in contact with the Friends of Coggshall regarding the location of the planting.  Discussed the type of tree that would be appropriate i.e. a dwarf dogwood, cherry, etc. Additionally, the Commission informed Ms. Barrett that it would be her responsibility to ensure that the tree is kept up and watered. Lastly, the Commission talked about a plaque that would be placed at the base of the tree similar to the other two memorial trees at near the Stone House. A motion was made by Mary Whitney and seconded by Mary Giannetti to accept the report. Approved 4-0 Matching Funds for Coggshall Lake walkway design  Originally Commission meeting a couple of years back the Commission approved that a donation in the amount of $12,500.00 would be split equally by the Friends of Coggshall ($6,250.00) and The Coggshall Trust ($6,250.00) to supplement City funds for hiring the design firm. Amid the former Recreation Director leaving, there was a miscommunication between him and the Friends of Coggshall resulting in the Friends of Coggshall issuing a check in the full amount instead of the ½ that they are responsible for.  Commission told Nick Erickson to have his business manager deposit the check and issue payment to the design firm, and that the Recreation Director and Commission will work on correcting the overpayment issue by having The Coggshall Trust issue a check directly to the Friends of Coggshall for the ½ they were responsible for to balance everything out. A motion was made by Mary Whitney and seconded by Mary Giannetti to accept the report. Approved 3-0 (James McGrath stepped out of the meeting for this portion due to his position on the Friends of Coggshall board) Twin City Rail Trail Phase II Design Update   Nick Erickson provided an update regarding Phase 2 of the Twin City Rail trail project  MASS DOT is soliciting feedback and comments regarding this phase. Nick is going to email the committee members the information to review and share any feedback they may have so he can send it over by the 10/10/22 deadline. Old Business: Petition 201-22: Residents of Bella Vista I Condominiums located at 875 John Fitch Highway Fitchburg, MA respectfully request support with our neighborhood improvement petition. We intend to proactively implement these improvements and allow us to live in the comfort, health, peace, and safety of our own homes. This goal can be achieved by addressing public safety issues on John Fitch Highway and ensuring the safe and enjoyable use of Coolidge Park by all citizens. Our proposals include, but are not limited to, the following; please see attached documents for all requests. (REFERRED from City Council on June 21, 2022.) Petition 203-22: Residents of Bella Vista II Condominiums located at 855 John Fitch Highway Fitchburg, MA respectfully request support with our neighborhood improvement petition. We intend to proactively implement these improvements and allow us to live in the comfort, health, peace, and safety of our own homes. This goal can be achieved by addressing public safety issues on John Fitch Highway and ensuring the safe and enjoyable use of Coolidge Park by all citizens. Our proposals include, but are not limited to, the following; please see attached documents for all requests. (REFERRED from City Council on June 21, 2022.) A motion was made by Mary Whitney and seconded by Dave Brooks to table acting on the petitions. Approved 4- 0 (The Safety Committee was conducting a meeting at the same time as the Parks and Recreation Committee meeting. The committee would like to see what the Safety Committee decided first before taking any action) Adjournment: A motion was made by Mary Giannetti to adjourn the meeting and seconded by Dave Brooks. Approved 4-0 The meeting was adjourned at 6:43 pm