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 P: (978) 829 1815 Fitchburg, Massachusetts 01420 FITCHBURG CITY CLERK F: (978) 345 9687 Jan 13 2023 11:29 am Board of Park Commissioners Meeting Date: Tuesday, November 1st, 2022 Location: West Conference Room, Fitchburg City Hall, 718 Main Street Call to Order: The November 1st, 2022 meeting was called to order by Commissioner McGrath at 5:57 pm. Commissioner Members Present: Jim McGrath, Dave Brooks, Mary Whitney Also Present: Nick Erickson, James Bunnell, City Councilor Sam Squailia Absent: Commissioner Mary Giannetti Public Comment: No Public Comment Prior Meeting Minutes: A motion was made by Mary Whitney and seconded by Dave Brooks to approve the minutes from the September 6th, 2022, and minutes from October 4th meeting. Approved 3-0 Department Reports: Friends of Coggshall Report: James McGrath Reported:  Update regarding Ms. Tara Barrett’s request to plant a tree at Coggshall Park, a tree (Dogwood) and location have been selected and will be planted in the spring by a landscaper  December 8th, 5:30 pm Friends of Coggshall Christmas Party at the Stonehouse  Update regarding the near completion of the wayfinding posts, and maps at the parks. The newspaper and project completion event will be held at Coggshall Monday, November 7th at 11 am, James Bunnell and Mary Whitney plan to attend the event.  Discussion held about the tape remnants on the walls in the Stonehouse from people renting the space, suggestions, and ideas on how to prevent it in the future. Plan to paint the walls over the winter.  Jim informed the commission about an upcoming meeting with the city auditor regarding a donation from the Friends of Coggshall that was discussed at the October 4th commission meeting A motion was made by Mary Whitney and seconded by Dave Brooks to accept the report. Approved 3-0 Community Development Report: A motion was made by Mary Whitney and seconded by Dave Brooks to accept the report. Approved 3-0 Parks Maintenance Report: Nick Erickson reported  Parks crew has completed the winterization of the parks sprinkler systems, Moran Park system was turned back for Fitchburg Youth Soccer to water the over-seeding they had done.   Pool has not been winterized due to a back payment issue from the previous recreation director, but once payment is received the scheduling of the winterization and winterization itself will take place. Hopefully within the next few weeks.  Nick will be checking in with Gary regarding the reinstallation of the posts, handicap signs, and painting of the handicap spaces at Coggshall Park.  Update on parks job postings with HR (Working foreman position).  Spreading of safety fiber at the playgrounds to get a head start on spring tasks.  Discussion regarding Parkhill Baseball/softball field work, Nick is going to look into where this project stands. A motion was made by Mary Whitney and seconded by Dave Brooks to accept the report. Approved 3-0 Riverfront Parks and Trails Fund Report: Mary Whitney reported  Mary updated the commission about the withdrawal of the funds and provided the check to the city for the design of the Riverfront stage project.  Mary and Nick(reviewed the project) had further discussions regarding the impact of the Pavilion Stage project, concerning the need to have the US Army Corps of Engineers look at the flood wall and adjacent flood plain, along with other information that will be needed to obtain the proper permitting for the project. A motion was made by Dave Brooks and seconded by Jim McGrath to approve the report. Approved 3-0 Recreation Director’s Report James Bunnell reported  He has been organizing the office files and storage area at the DPW  Met with the president of Little League baseball for an introduction and to provide support for their park cleanup at the Herman Bourque Fields scheduled for Saturday, November 5th at 1 pm. Updated the commission on an email sent to Fitchburg Youth Baseball regarding the removal and storage of any supplies/equipment located at Herman Bourque, and offering assistance and storage space if needed, before the cleanup on November 5th.  Met with a parent and president of youth soccer, fielded questions concerning the Park’s involvement and support towards the soccer program, and also provide an update and the plan surrounding the expectations and to work together moving forward.  Informed of a meeting with the Superintendent of Schools and Fitchburg Public Schools athletic Director surrounding the topic of the school department and recreation department working with and supporting one another  Updated the commission on the gate to Coggshall Park being locked and people being unable to use the park for recreational purposes and a birthday party not able to be held on 10/23. James informed the commission of how he responded and handled the complaints.  Updated the commission regarding the CivicRec Software demo and presentation that Nick and James were involved with. This software an extension of the CivicPlus software the city already uses would help with streamlining the organization, registration, billing, renting, and management of programs and leagues among a variety of other things. A motion was made by Dave Brooks and seconded by Jim McGrath to approve the report. Approved 3-0  New Business: 608189 Water Street Bridge Replacement - Heritage Park - De Minimis Form (document attached)  Nick presented the material and discussed the impact that the planned project would have on the parks.  Jim requested that Nick run the plan by the police chief A motion was made by Dave Brooks and seconded by Mary Whitney to approve the DOT impact report and to allow James to sign and return the report once Nick has reviewed it with the police chief. Approved 3-0 Gateway Park ADA Compliant ramp  Nick explained the process behind installing an ADA-compliant ramp at Gateway Park when the DPW had rented equipment available to complete the work. Seeking a vote to install the ramp after the fact due to the equipment rental time constraint to complete the work.  Nick also noted the need for more work in the future to be looked at i.e. a crosswalk and handicap accessibility around the trail loop. A motion was made by Dave Brooks and seconded by Mary Whitney to approve the ramp installation. Approved 3-0 Youth Sports League Agreement (document attached) Motion to table Dave Brooks and seconded by Mary Whitney. Approved 3-0 Bench Donation (documents Attached)  James presented the description and information regarding the donation of the bench and ideas for a future memorial bench donation program for the city. Motion to accept the donation Dave Brooks and seconded by Mary Whitney Approved 3-0 Eagle Scout project- 5 little libraries for the parks  James presented the information regarding the idea and starting point of the Eagle Scout project by a Fitchburg youth resident. James will be working with the scout regarding the project organization, design, and installation of the little libraries, Motion to approve the project Dave Brooks and seconded by Jim McGrath Approved 3-0 Plan for Positive Impact/Fitzcanna Donation/Adopt-A-Park (approval needed of her proposal) document attached  James explained the meetings he had with the business owner and discussed her proposals and plans he has developed in conjunction with the owner. James will be working with the business owner on the implementation come spring. Approval of the proposals is needed for the owner to submit her business application to the state. Motion to approve the community plan Jim McGrath and seconded by Dave Brooks Approved 3-0 Adopt-A-Park Program Resurrection Motion to table Dave Brooks and seconded by Mary Whitney. Approved 3-0 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 3- 0 Adjournment: A motion was made by Mary Giannetti to adjourn the meeting and seconded by Dave Brooks. Approved 3-0 The meeting was adjourned at 6:51 pm