Parks & Recreation Commission

PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION MEETING MAY 3, 2021 WEBEX MEETING 12:00 Noon Members in Attendance: B. Combo, B. Lee, R. Nitschke, T. Hersh, M. Hill, R. Foote, W. Johnson, P. Lloyd, C. White, J. Francis, J. Freeman, L. Burtenshaw, J. Walker, P. Holm, R. Campbell, D. Pennock, C. Horsley Members Not in Attendance: None CALL TO ORDER – B. COMBO B. Combo called the meeting to order at 12:02 pm. APPROVAL OF MINUTES R. Nitschke motioned to approve the April 5th minutes, R. Foote seconded. All in favor. DIRECTOR’S REPORT – P. Holm  P. Holm introduced and welcomed new City Council member Lisa Burtenshaw.  He advised that he plans to return to regular in person meetings starting in June. Water-Wise Program  P. Holm reported that the Parks Department is working on the “water wise” program which is a lower maintenance and lower water usage technique for growing and maintaining flower beds and other areas around the community. Many of the beds will use bark landscaping which cools the ground and helps retain water in the soil. We will start revitalizing these coverings this season. We are also planning to plant native “water wise” species and grasses. These techniques will be important when our department begins being metered for water usage. Trails  The Department is in talks with some bike and running advocates regarding some land south of the Gem lake Marina. This user group wants to volunteer to start cleaning up the area and building out some mountain biking trails and other amenities.   The Canal Trail Project work will begin in mid-May. Construction will begin on Garfield Street and move south. Noise Park Update  The Noise Park motorcross track was closed since the beginning of the Covid pandemic. Our Department has been talking with Idaho Parks & Recreation about them utilizing the track and property as a state training facility to instruct people on bike riding. He states that Noise Park is a tough park to maintain due to its location, seven miles out of town. We also have trouble getting police to patrol or handle potential problems there because of its out-of-town location. Snake River Ferry  Snake River Ferry will be doing tours on the main section of the river above the falls, as well as the section south of South Tourist Park. They will also be renting out canoes and paddle boats this summer. The Parks and Recreation Department receives a small portion of the proceeds as part of their vendor fee. Mel Erickson Bench  He reminded the commissioners of the memorial for Mel Erickson and his wife. J. Freeman advised that the family was thinking of a gazebo or something like that. There is an account that’s been set up to accept donations. The family has put up some money, but we will have a better report of the amount in the account by June. There was some clarification as well, that any Parks and Recreation Department donations will be in-kind, not monetary e.g., landscaping. Pinecrest Update:  The bid got approved for Heritage Links to do the irrigation project. The diversion project is done and we are installing the water lines. We were hoping not to start the project until August, but the contractor might be ready to start the as early as June 1st. This work is expected to take approximately three months. Nine golf holes will be closed daily during the project. Splash Pad Update:  We broke ground on the Splash Pad last week. We are a bit behind schedule as we had some delays getting the project through all the approval processes. The tanks are in the ground, along with some water lines. We are starting work on the restroom and pump room. Some of the work will be done in house. We are looking at an early to mid-June date when the pad should be completed. We will put in some temporary restrooms this  year, and then work on a permanent restroom next year. The parking lot will have around fourteen spots initially but there will be room left to expand. We have an agreement with the church next to the park for additional parking as needed.  We are planning a ribbon cutting with media coverage around the first part of June. Heritage Park Update:  Asphalt has been laid on the southern end of the parking lot. We are working with Snake River Landing on a maintenance agreement. There might be a restriction to large equipment moving back and forth on the new asphalt.  The power lines around the outskirts of the park have been installed. Idaho Falls Power will remove the old polls and the property will be transferred to Idaho Falls Power.  The storm water part of the project was awarded to HK Contractors. They will install underground piping to connect a couple of ponds which they will also construct. The diversion and water line work will be the next phase of the project. The bid package for that part of the project is being worked on. The Rotary Club continues to fund this Heritage Park enhancement. Snake River Landing and Ball Ventures have also contributed. LWCF Update:  We have a ninety thousand dollar check from District 91 for the Dora Erickson property being readied for our department. We are currently trying to identify some property that would work for our mitigation process. We may have to purchase property that is worth around $50K and then we need to make about $70K worth of improvements to that land to get us into compliance. Commissioner Reports J. Walker – County Commissioner  The river docks are in the water.  The camp host is in place at Blacktail. Everything is opened there for the public.  The County received a grant for new showers at the Juniper campground. T. Hersh - Golf Advisory Board  The golf courses are up $400K from last year at this time in revenue. Golf rounds are also up from last year. There is some consternation amongst golfers with the partial closure of the course during the irrigation project.  The season this year is going well. School Dist. 91 – Pat Lloyd   State tournaments begin in the middle of the month of May. Everything is going well, and it is especially nice to see the kids competing again. School District 93 – W. Johnson  The spring season is rolling along with the teams. They just hosted the East Idaho Tennis Invite. Everything was good except for the wind.  They’ve experienced some conflict at Sunnyside Mel Erickson Park with parents of the tennis players and the parents of the baseball players when both sport teams showed up on the same dates. Staff and Committee reports R. Campbell – Parks Superintendent  Dandelions are a big problem right now. The wind and weather conditions have caused a delay with spraying for the weeds.  Irrigation is being turned on all over town and thus far we’ve had less waterline breaks so far this year compared to last year.  The restrooms are all open except a few that need repairs.  They are prepping all the ball fields and getting tennis court nets up. The tennis courts are in bad shape and need an overlay.  We have pushed back the Central Park Playground Project because of a delay in parts.  We are getting ready for our weekly maintenance program to start. The department is waiting for the seasonal employees to get finished with school.  The Horticulture Department is working on cuttings, transplants and topiaries.  The deck on the west bank has been rebuilt and stained.  There is an increase of burials at the cemeteries and we are out of space in the niche walls. C. Horsley – Recreation Superintendent  The Recreation Department is preparing for the spring and summer programs. On a positive note, we have seen in increase in participants this year after the loss of them due to Covid last season.  The youth baseball program continues to grow as well this season.  The dehumidifer replacement project at the Aquatic Center is moving forward. The first quote came in much lower than expected.  The Aquatic Center will close November 7th, 2021 and be closed for approximately five months while this project is completed. This will impact the Junior High Swim Teams and our in-house High School Swim League. It will also affect the water polo groups.   Idaho Falls is the host City for the Community Bike Month ride. We will have this ride in June and it will begin at Kate Curley Park. Zoo Operations – D. Pennock  Commissioner B. Lee discussed the Funland Restoration Project and their fundraising efforts. On the Funland at the Zoo website, the community is invited to donate by buying a “Legacy Brick” which will be customized with a message and be used to pave the central plaza of the Funland Park. They also have a video on the website that will be updated weekly. They will be holding a “picnic in the park” fundraising event, and will continue to encourage donations for the project. Shade Tree – M. Hill  M. Hill reported that it was announced at their most recent Shade Tree Committee meeting March 30th, that this committee has been moved from Title 8 to Title 2 of City Code, to better organize its committee and align them with other City advisory committees.  Horticulturist Lee Washburn is working on a tree safety protection plan to better deal with trees and tree rooting sections during construction projects that could adversely affect nearby trees.  Our parks lost three trees to winter this last season. They will be replaced this summer.  Arbor Day is still in the planning stages, but the Shade Tree Committee expects the celebration will be held at Reinhart Park. They might do the planting celebration in the fall to be able to get school children involved. Adjournment Motion to adjourn was made by T. Hersh and seconded by C. Horsley at 12:58. All in favor. Meeting adjourned. Next meeting will be held June 7, 2021. Recorded by: Tracy Sessions, Clerk, Parks & Recreation