Parks & Recreation Advisory Board

MINUTES OF THE PARKS AND RECREATION REGULAR ADVISORY BOARD MEETING January 14, 2019 (Monday) at 12:00 PM McGuire Dent Recreation Center 2222 28th Street (409) 797-3700 MEETING CALLED TO ORDER AT 12:05 PM BY CHARLYN VAIANI. PRESENT: Rose Tijerina (Mayoral), Charlyn Vaiani (District 1), Jami Durham (District 3) Shane McDermott (District 4), Marlee Williams (District 5), Dyann Polzin (District 6) VACANCY: District 2 Position STAFF: Barbara Sanderson, Executive Director of Parks and Community Outreach Mario Rabago, Director of Parks & Recreation Chris Saddler, Assistant Director of Parks & Recreation Daniel Thomas, Assistant Director of Parks & Recreation Megan Pierce, Administrative Manager & Special Events Coordinator Review and Approval of Board Minutes: Motion made by Jami Durham to approve the October 2018 meeting minutes. Seconded by Rose Tijerina. Unanimous Approval by Board Members. Motion Passes. Discussion / Action Items: Youth Standards of Care Ordinance Motion made to make no changes to the current Youth Standards of Care Ordinance, and recommend for Council Approval by Jami Durham, seconded by Dyann Polzin. Unanimous Approval by Board Members. Motion Passes. Arrangement of a Park Tour Charlyn Vaiani discusses the desire to arrange a Park Tour with Better Parks for Galveston in March, and explains, along with Rose Tijerina and Barbara Sanderson, what Better Parks for Galveston does, such as City Staff Support and outside fundraising to help Park projects. It is determined that a Park Tour should be planned for the 3 rd Monday in March (March 18, 2019), in place of the regular March meeting (from approximately 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM). Board members will meet at McGuire-Dent and be shuttled to the parks for an overview. Update on Parks Maintenance & Mowing Daniel Thomas began update by stating that the early half of January was spent taking down Christmas lights and Christmas trees. With grass growing slower, his crews have been trimming tree limbs and palm fronds around Kempner Park, Shields Park, and along Broadway medians. On 53rd Street, the baseball complex construction is moving along more quickly now with the new contractor. It will be ready for league tryouts on February 9 th. The planned shade structure at Lindale Park will be scheduled for installation soon. Additional lighting at Broadway Cemetery will also be installed by CenterPoint Energy around the first half of May in the front and along the side streets. Once the lighting is installed, the historic brick wall surrounding the cemetery will be repaired (hopefully through funding from a potential grant). At Wright Cuney, additional LED outdoor lighting has been added. Picnic tables that are there have had recent repairs and may need to be replaced in the not-so-distant future but they are repairing what they can. His crews are still doing their routine grass mowing, and are also painting the soccer field lines for the Spring season, as well as making minor park repairs frequently. Additionally his crews are working with an Eagle Scout on the installation of a dog agility course at Lindale Park, with fencing to be installed by the City once completed. This is expected to occur towards the end of January and would likely be completed in time before the Park Tour proposed in March. The painting of McGuire-Dent Recreation Center is almost 100% completed. Water fountains for both adults and animals, donated by Better Parks for Galveston, have been ordered and there may be enough remaining funds to replace swings (2 regular, 1 ADA, and 1 Child swing) at Adoue Park. His crews are also working on additional repairs to the Water fountain at Kempner Park and he mentioned that Kempner Park would be receiving one of the Sea Turtle painted sculptures soon. Update on Recreation Programs – McGuire-Dent & Wright Cuney Recreation Centers, and Lasker Park Pool Chris Saddler began his update by talking about new programs being looked at for Wright Cuney such as a night-time Senior (60+) Ball, a mother/daughter tea time, 7-on-7 flag football, water colors for seniors, and chair yoga. At McGuire-Dent, they are looking at adding a dance class for adults, developing a walking club, color books for seniors, and a new arts and craft class that involves creating art with crumbled paper. Staff has been challenged to bring at least 3 new additional recreation program  ideas up for consideration. The new recreation software is expected to launch at the recreation centers and pool on March 2 nd. The Pool is looking to add additional swim lesson times, and programs. They are also looking at expanding birthday party options, and are considering pricing structures. The Pool should open March 2nd and season passes are already on sale. For the gym flooring project at McGuire-Dent, it should go before Council in February with the replacement likely to begin in late March. Staff is still evaluating the bids at this time. Beach Pocket Parks 1 and 2 will open March 9th. The new software used at the recreation centers and pool will also be used at Beach Pocket Park 1. At Fort Crockett, staff is replacing educational signs in the flower beds and looking for additional vendors for the area. Barbara mentions that the City may do a new “Parks and Rec” video for the public to replace an older one that will introduce new faces in the department and outline recreation programs which would then be available online and on Channel 16. Update on Special Events Megan Pierce provided those in attendance with an updated list of upcoming City-involved Special Events from January through February. The list also includes completed events from Fall and Winter seasons (October – December) since the board did not meet in November or December. She mentioned that the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Parade is that weekend and begins at 1pm on Saturday. Additionally the Chili Quest and Beer Fest is also that weekend. After that, focus will be spent on preparing for Mardi Gras, and one marathon scheduled towards the beginning of February on the East End of the Island. Public Comment: N/A Council Report: Amy Bly stated she does not have anything to report to the board at this time. She did ask if staff could check into Lindale Park Baseball Field being designated a Landmark. Director’s Report: Mario Rabago mentions that the Crockett Park complex is moving along, and that he and Daniel both attend progress meetings with the contractors. They are happy with the current progress being made. Staff is receiving compliments on the painting and color choice of McGuire-Dent. The flagpole at McGuire-Dent has also been repaired. Mario and Barbara met with the City Manager to discuss future plans for Jones Park and may bring options on that park forward to the board in the future. Daniel mentions that his crews will remove the fencing from there soon. Mario also met with IDC as they begin to determine their 5- year capital replacement plans for playground equipment and facilities. He and Chris met with the vendor at Beach Pocket Park 2 and things are going well there. He mentioned that the County has some FEMA related projects to complete there, and that parking may be doubled at that location. Mario says Staff is gearing up for the summer everywhere, and Daniel is working on converting the splash pads to “pump and dump” systems that would improve service and repair times. The splash pads are difficult to maintain as they are currently, and parts are hard to come by so this switch to a new system should bring additional benefits. Additionally, there are some maintenance issues and improvements they would like to address at the skate park in the near future. Barbara Sanderson announced that the 45th Street Project will have a stakeholders meeting on January 29 th at 5:30 PM at City Hall, and that door hangers will be distributed to those in the area. Board Member’s Reports / Comments Charlyn Vaiani asked about concessions vendors at the ball fields, and Barbara mentioned that those are actually out for bid now and that someone could bid on one location, or on all of them if they chose to. Mario states that the bids are due on January 23rd and will be reviewed after that. Dyann Polzin asked about whether a Grand Opening will occur at Crockett Park, and Barbara said that it will but that it likely will not happen before league play starts. Charlyn Vaiani asks if Lindale Park will be utilized for baseball play this season, and Daniel says it will be used for overflow games and tournaments mostly, but also occasionally pick-up games for birthday parties, etc. Shane McDermott asks about creation of a swim team at the Pool, and Staff mentions that it something they are currently working on and will bring to the board in the future. Discussion Items for Inclusion on Next Agenda: N/A Next meeting: 12:00 noon on Monday, November 19, 2018 at McGuire Dent Recreation Center, 2222 28th Street There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 12:57 PM (Motion made by Charlyn Vaiani; Seconded by Dyann Polzin) Minutes prepared by: Megan Pierce Administrative Manager & Special Events Coordinator