Recreation Commission

FREDERICKSBURG RECREATION COMMISSION Minutes of January 21, 2016 The January meeting of the Fredericksburg Recreation Commission was held on Thursday, January 21, 2016 at Maury Commons. The meeting was called to order at approximately 7:00 p.m. Present: Commissioners Susan Tyler, Dr. Timothy Duffy, Dr. George Foster, Dr. John Gordon III, Ken Kroko, Brandon McVade, Sharon Null and Dr. Marcus Tepaske. Absent: James Bailey, Also in attendance: Jane Shelhorse and Patricia Sparks. Introduction of new Director, Jane C. Shelhorse Commission Chairwoman, Susan Tyler, introduced the new Director of Parks, Recreation and Public Facilities, Jane Shelhorse, to the Recreation Commission. Director Shelhorse gave a brief statement on her background of 8 ½ years as Director of the Louisa County Parks and Tourism Department, and 21 ½ years as Assistant Director with the City of Fredericksburg Parks, Recreation and Public Facilities Department. Director Shelhorse is excited to be back with the City and stated that she is an “old school” parks and recreation person. Director Shelhorse stated that the Dorothy Hart Community Center should create an environment for the community where residents are comfortable coming to spend time, whether people are there because of their children registering for a class or they would like to register for a class themselves. She said that some of the current staff had explained to her that they see Parks and Recreation functioning as a resource center. Director Shelhorse does not have the same vision for the future of Parks, Recreation and Public Facilities. Director Shelhorse would like to have the Commissioners involved with events and classes. I. Approval of Minutes: The minutes of December 10, 2015 were unanimously approved. II. Public Comment: Mr. Steven Gaske, a resident on Washington Avenue, spoke to the Commission regarding the planting of trees on the Washington Avenue Mall. Mr. Gaske feels the trees obstruct the view of the monuments. Mr. Gaske stated the residents on Washington Avenue were not consulted prior to Tree Fredericksburg planting the trees. Mr. Gaske feels the trees are small now, but they will be a problem once the trees grow. Mr. Gaske stated that the planting of trees in a historical area should be approved by the Historical Society, and the planting of trees in a park should be approved by the Recreation Commission. Mr. Gaske distributed a signed petition in opposition of the trees that were planted at the Washington Avenue Mall area. The petition was submitted to City Council on January 12, 2016. Mr. Gaske also referenced trees planted in the middle of a field near Memorial Park. The Commissioners determined that this is not a designated athletic field. Commissioner 1  Tyler thanked Mr. Gaske for coming to the meeting and speaking to the Commissioners about his concerns on the trees planted within the Washington Avenue Mall. III. Communications from Staff: The Commissioners reviewed the following reports: Financial Report- December 2015 Sports/Parks Report – January 2016 – The Commissioners discussed a concern of paying the school custodians for opening and closing Walker Grant Middle School on Saturdays during the basketball season. Commissioner Gordon, and other school officials, will be discussing the issue later. Commissioner Gordon stated that he would notify Parks and Recreation staff on the proper procedure for paying the custodians. Commissioner Gordon stated that their concern is the overtime pay for full-time school employees that work on Saturdays. Leisure/Special Events Report – January/February 2016 IV. Noteworthy Dates: The Commissioners reviewed upcoming programs and trips. V. Old Business: A . Pathways – The Commissioners agreed to take pathways off the agenda. B. Riverfront Park – Commissioner Duffy stated the Riverfront Task Force gave a presentation at the last City Council work session. All options are being discussed. The Riverfront Task Force presented Council with a very general park plan. City Council has approved a $5 million budget for Riverfront Park. There will be more details discussed at the City Council work session next week. The Riverfront Task Force was tasked with coming up with a design for a park, and the City would look at a plan for parking. Commissioner Duffy stated that most of the discussion was about parking, and we need to coordinate both the park and the parking issue together. Commissioner Kroko stated that the Riverfront Task Force feels strongly about developing the area into a park and it was not their intent to use part of the park for parking, as there is a parking garage right across the street from the park. Commissioner Kroko also stated the Task Force feels that phasing in projects does not work. Commissioner Duffy stated that George Solley also expressed the same concerns with Council on parking and phasing in projects. C. Park Signs and Logo - As requested by the Commissioners last fall, they agreed that once a new Parks, Recreation and Public Facilities Director was hired, discussion would continue on developing a logo and park signs. Director Shelhorse stated she is definitely on board and understands what the Commissioners were trying to accomplish in 2  regards to developing a uniform park logo and signs. Commissioner Null asked about public input. Director Shelhorse discussed hiring an online graphic designer. Commissioner Kroko stated that input from the community is great, but we must be very careful in asking for what we want. At this time, we are not sure what we want. We need to keep this on a professional level. Commissioner Tyler stated that we should start in-house with Supervisor of Marketing, Tiffany Capehart, and that she should be very involved. Commissioner Tepaske informed Director Shelhorse that a sub-committee met several times last year and that the sub-committee should meet again and include Tiffany Capehart. Director Shelhorse discussed this topic with Tiffany Capehart, and both agreed to keep the graphics simple. Commissioner Gordon would like to have the sub-committee present a timeline in developing the logo and park signs. D. Memorial Day Parade – Commissioner Kroko asked if there was a list of things needed. Finance & Leisure Services Division Manager, Wendy Stone, who was at the meeting as a resident, and not in an official capacity, stated that once the list is finalized she would email it to the Commissioners. Wendy Stone stated that at this time we are having a problem in scheduling the parade date. Director Shelhorse stated that the parade is a great idea and asked if the parade could coincide with other Memorial Day events scheduled in the community. VI. New Business: A. Radio controlled planes, drones and rockets in parks - The Commissioners received a handout in reference to the use of radio controlled planes, drones and rockets in our city parks. Commissioner Tyler thanked the Parks and Athletics Division Manager, Mike Ward, who was also at the meeting as an area resident, and not in an official capacity, for bringing this to the Commission’s attention. Commissioner Tepaske stated there is a growing concern with drones, and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is currently setting policies due to be released this summer. Currently, the Department is telling people that they cannot fly drones in the parks. The Commissioners agreed that staff would need to do more research on how other cities and parks are handling this situation. Developing and enforcing a policy is a completely new issue for park staff. B. Fredericksburg Football Club - Director Shelhorse reported that the Fredericksburg Football Club (soccer club) had approached Mike Ward with a written proposal to “upgrade” our Parks and Recreation soccer program. The proposed changes would make it more expensive to play with them. The Fredericksburg Football Club would allow our kids to register through them for $25.00 (our current fee), but would also charge players $30.00 for uniforms. The Fredericksburg Football Club would supply coaches using the parents from the kids that are registered (which is what we currently do), and they would place the kids on teams. Parks and Recreation would be responsible for maintaining the fields at Dixon 3  Park, providing soccer goals and equipment, and paying for all the referees and officials. Mike Ward did not accept the proposal and he feels this would not be the best situation for Parks, Recreation and Public Facilities. The Fredericksburg Soccer Club sent a different proposal to City Council also wanting to upgrade/enhance our soccer program. Both proposals received would not be beneficial to the City. Our soccer program is great and we are looking into adding coaching clinics and camps. VII. Commission Concerns and Topics: Commissioner Tepaske asked about discussing the Washington Avenue Mall tree planting concerns. The Commissioners agreed to continue the discussion. Mike Ward stated that the City will hold a public forum in reference to Washington Avenue Mall’s landscaping on January 25, 2016, 7:00 p.m. at the Dorothy Hart Community Center. Commissioner Kroko stated the City, and Parks and Recreation needs to be on top of this situation as there are many organizations involved in the planning. Director Shelhorse stated that after the public hearing recommendations will be given to the Clean and Green Committee who will then appoint a design team to review and make recommendations for future tree planting along Washington Avenue. Mike Ward will represent Parks, Recreation and Public Facilities on the Design Team. Director Shelhorse said she had also asked Mike Ward to review the plan for planting trees at Veteran’s Memorial Park and to ensure that all trees had been approved. Commissioner McVade stated that last night he attended a Village of Idlewild Association meeting. There is an area along Gateway Boulevard that is City property. The Village of Idlewild leaders were quoting from the City’s Future Parks Plan of 2011, which states that a large portion of this property will be donated (approximately 10 acres) by the City for a future park. The residents of Idlewild are setting up committees to plan this park. The residents would like to know if the City is moving forward with the development of this park as they have also heard rumors of an elementary school being built on this property in 2022. The leaders for the Village of Idlewild will be doing a walk-through on the proposed property on February 2 with a City Official. Commissioner McVade was asked to get the officials name. Director Shelhorse was not aware of this park development and referred it to Mike Ward. Mike Ward stated that there had been several lengthy discussions about developing this property into a park. Ryland Homes stated that they have completed the environmental issue concerns. The property continues to be on the Future Park Plans. Commissioner Kroko stated the Commission needs to stay ahead of the tree planting issue and more importantly, we need to have accurate information. Mike Ward stated that Washington Avenue Mall is not a designated park, but is maintained by Park Maintenance. The property 4 was requested to be designated park property in the Future Parks Plan. Commissioner Foster agrees with Commissioner Kroko on his concerns with tree planting. Commissioner Duffy stated that he spoke to one of the representatives that addressed the Commissioners several months ago in reference to having indoor courts for winter pickleball. She asked if anything had come up about using a facility at the University of Mary Washington. Commissioner Duffy spoke to Ken Tyler from the University of Mary Washington, and he is anxious to talk to Director Shelhorse in reference to assisting with winter pickleball. Director Shelhorse asked the Commissioners if they would like to change the monthly meeting time. After a discussion with the Commissioners it was agreed to move the Commission Meeting time to 6:30 p.m. A motion was made by Commissioner Gordon, seconded by Commissioner Duffy, approved by Commissioners Tyler, Null, Kroko, Foster and McVade to move the Recreation Commission monthly meeting time to 6:30 p.m. Commissioner Tepaske abstained. Director Shelhorse stated that staff has asked her about scheduling a retreat with staff and the Commissioners to discuss our vision and goals for the Parks and Recreation Department. The Commissioners agreed that they would like to meet with staff to discuss the future of Parks, Recreation and Public Facilities. Director Shelhorse asked for the Commissioners guidance in scheduling a day, an evening or a Saturday. The Commissioners agreed to have a three to four hour time limit ending with having lunch on a Saturday. The Commissioners asked Director Shelhorse to talk to staff to see what would be good with them. Commissioner Duffy asked if a “meet and greet” has been scheduled for the new Director. Director Shelhorse stated she would look at scheduling a “meet and greet” for herself. ______________________________________ Jane C. Shelhorse Date Director Next Regular Meeting February 18, 2016 6:30 p.m. at Maury Commons, Suite 111. 5