Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee

MINUTES PARKS & TRAILS ADVISORY COMMITTEE September 15, 2022 5:00 P.M 111 Opera Street, Suite A 1) Roll Call of Committee Members Committee Members present: Julie Nix, Samantha Christian, Rick Dwyer, Bob Reddish, Dudley Webb, and Ann Kendrick. Excused: Larry Williams. P&T staff present: Anthony Whittington, Kathleen Fason 2) Approval of the Agenda Dudley made a motion to approve the September 15, 2022 agenda. Bob seconded. Motion carried unanimously. 3) Approval of the Minutes Ann made a motion to approve the August 18, 2022 minutes. Rick seconded. Motion carried unanimously. 4) Introduction of Guests 5) New Business A) 2023 Budget: Anthony went over the 2023 Capital requests and explained what is being proposed for next year’s mow contract. Discussion followed regarding loss of trees and confetti of litter in medians. MOTION: Samantha made a motion to recommend to the City Board of Directors to move the mowing in-house. Dudley seconded. Motion passed unanimously. B) Velocity Progress Report: Dedication of Phase 1 might possibly be as early as November 16th. Anthony explained some of the challenges of building within a flood zone area. A balance must be met in bringing in materials and removing the same amount but the contractor has continued to work hard to meet the requirements and finish the project on schedule. C) Jean W. Wallace Wetlands Trailhead Sculpture Project Update: Anthony went over bid process and explained that we had received only one bid for the project and it was over budget and not really focused on the wetlands theme we are looking for there. After a staff meeting and discussing it was decided that the project could be achieved in-house. Anthony went over the plans that were discussed and explained that $12,500 leftover in the Art Purchases capital funds will be rolled over to 2023 to help cover costs. D) Sister City Memorial Project for Family Park: City staff has been working with Visit Hot Springs’ Mary Zunick to install cherry trees along the walking trail at Family Park. The Sister City program will provide a plaque and the city will provide a bench to serve as a Sister City Memorial in honor of the 30th Anniversary of the program. 6) Parks & Trails Director Reports, Announcements, & Items for Discussion 7) Parks & Trails Advisory Committee Reports, Announcements, & Items for Discussion The committee discussed the recent issues along the Hot Springs Creek Greenway Trail. Samantha shared that as a single female she felt unsafe running the trail alone. Bob commented about the homeless growth  along the trail and the steady increase in trash making its way into the creek. Several members recommended that staff look into placing Call Boxes along the trail and/or 4D quality cameras to fight vandalism and safety concerns. 8) Adjournment: The Parks and Trails Advisory Committee will hold their next regular meeting on Thursday, October 20, 2022 at 5:00 p.m. ATTEST: ___________________________ APPROVAL: ____________________________ Anthony Whittington, Director Julie Nix, Chairperson Parks & Trails Department Parks & Trails Advisory Committee