Parks & Recreation Commission

LACONIA PARKS AND RECREATION COMMISSION MEETING February 16, 2016 Laconia Community Center- Parks & Recreation Office 7:00 P.M. CALL TO ORDER: Commissioner Chair Mitch Hamel called the meeting to order at the above date and time. RECORDING SECRETARY: Secretary Liza Kelleher will be recording this meeting. ROLL CALL: Commission Chair Mitch Hamel called the roll with the following Commissioners in attendance: Rodney Roy, Deanna Guyer, Tony Pederzani and Arthur Kirk. Parks & Recreation staff in attendance: Recreation and Facilities Director Kevin Dunleavy, Parks & Recreation Secretary Liza Kelleher. ADOPTION OF MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETINGS: 1. Regular meeting minutes of January 19, 2016 Commissioner Rodney Roy moved to adopt the minutes from the January 19, 2016. Seconded by Commissioner Deanna Guyer. The motion passed unanimously. I. OLD BUSINESS: A. Parks & Recreation Rules and Regulations- Proposed rule changes regarding use of hammocks, tents and drones. Mitch Hamel suggested that the language about tree damage from hammocks be removed because someone could bring in a hammock frame. Kevin said that he recommends no rule be implemented on drones and UAVs until federal or state park rules are implemented. Rodney Roy motioned to accept the proposed rules and regulations as follows: 28) Enclosed tents are prohibited in any City recreation area and facility. Shade canopies with open sides are allowed if properly secured. 29) Hammocks are prohibited in any City recreation area and facility. Seconded by Tony Pederzani. All were in favor. Kevin said that the City Council will need to act on this change in the rules as well before it becomes part of the City Ordinance. B. Facility use requests for Weirs Community Park Pavilion – no update C. Winnipesaukee Muskrats- request to have an event tent area with beer and wine sales. Mr. Kris Svinland, General Manager of the Winnipesaukee Muskrats presented the layout for the proposed beer and wine area which is approximately 20’ by 80’ in size with a tent. The area is proposed to be located along the third base line behind the visitors stand in a paved area of the parking lot. Mr. Svinland further stated that the area will be partitioned off by removable fencing and no one under the age of 21 will be allowed in the partitioned off area. Mr.  Svinland said that the Muskrats are working with the 405 Restaurant who will manage the area and liquor sales. Mr. Svinland further stated that a 4 beverages limit over the course of the event is their plan. Security personal will be present at the entrance area of the tent. The Commissioners tabled the item for further discussion at the next meeting. D. User Fee Revolving Fund – Preliminary project list. Kevin Dunleavy presented to the Commissioners the list of proposed projects to be funded by users’ fee revenue. Those projects include Memorial Park baseball field improvements, Colby field improvements, sod cutter, athletic field amendments and Rotary Park plantings. Kevin said he would get more detailed cost estimates for the next meeting. E. Making Strides against Breast Cancer- Opechee Park Bathhouse and Field- Wednesday, Thursday and Friday from 5:00pm-8:00pm and Sunday from 6:00am to 2:00pm, October 12, 13, 14 and 16, 2016 for American Cancer Society Fundraising event. Rodney Roy motioned to accept the request conditioned upon the submission of a certificate of insurance and subject to final approval from the City Council for a fundraising event. Seconded by Arthur Kirk. All were in favor. II. FACILITY USE REQUESTS: A. Evangelical Baptist Church-Leavitt Park Field - Monday through Saturday, June 20 through 25, 2016 for their annual On Goal Soccer Camp. Tony Pederzani motioned to accept the request conditioned upon submission for the certificate of insurance, key deposit of $25.00 per key if needed and non-resident users’ fee and approval from the City Council for fundraising on City property. Seconded by Deanna Guyer. All were in favor. B. Laconia Youth Football and Cheer Assoc. - Memorial Park Field –Monday through Friday from 5pm-8pm, July 25th through October 31, 2016 for LYFCA practices. Deanna Guyer motioned to accept the request conditioned upon submission of a certificate of insurance, payment for non- resident users’ fee and storage fee of $240.00. Seconded by Arthur Kirk. Rodney Roy abstained. All were in favor. C. Laconia Lacrosse Club- Bobotas Field- May 28 & 29, 2016, Saturday & Sunday from 8am to 6pm for North/South all-star games. Deanna Guyer motioned to accept the request pending upon submission of the certificate of insurance and special event fee of $240.00. Seconded by Arthur Kirk. Rodney Roy abstained. All were in favor. D. Lakes Region Community Services- WOW Trail – Sunday, September 18, 2016 from 10am to 1pm for an Autism Walkathon. Rodney Roy motioned to accept the request conditioned upon submission of a certificate of insurance and approval from the City Council for fundraising on City property. Seconded by Tony Pederzani. All were in favor. E. Weirs Action Committee- Endicott Park Beach- Sunday, July 3rd at 12am and September 4th at 10pm, Fridays, July 8th through August 26, 2016 from 10pm (Saturday rain date) for 2016 summer fireworks. Rodney Roy tabled the request due to no representation. Seconded by Deanna Guyer. All were in favor. F. Grace Capital Church- Wyatt Park- August 1st through 4, 2016 from 9am to 1pm for a Missional Vacation Bible School. Rodney Roy tabled the request due to no representation. Seconded by Tony Pederzani. All were in favor. G. Lakes Region Girls Softball- Opechee Field A,B,C,D, including concessions on July 8 through 10th from 7am to 8pm for the Babe Ruth Softball Northern NH State Tournament. Tony Pederzani motioned to accept the request conditioned upon submission of a certificate of  insurance, 2 propane tank waiver and payment of $100 tournament fee, subject to final approval from the City Council for fundraising on City property. Seconded by Rodney Roy. All were in favor. H. Lakes Region Girls Softball- Woodland Heights Softball Field & Dugouts- Saturday, March 12 from 7am to 7pm for a snowball softball/wooden bat tournament. Rodney Roy motioned to accept the request conditioned upon submission of certificate of insurance, $100 tournament fee and suitable field conditions. Seconded by Tony Pederzani. All were in favor. I. Lakes Region Girls Softball- Opechee Field A,B,C,D, Bathhouse bathrooms & storage, port-a- potties- June 24 through 26, 2016 from 7am to 8pm, concession for Babe Ruth Softball Northern NH District Tournament. Deanna Guyer motioned to accept the request conditioned upon payment of a $100 tournament fee and a loudspeaker permit if needed. Seconded by Tony Pederzani. All were in favor. J. WOW Trail Organization – WOW Trail from Lakeport to Messer Street, Saturday, May 7 from 8am to noon for the annual Bow Wow Fest. Rodney Roy motioned to accept the request conditioned upon submission of the certificate of insurance. Seconded by Arthur Kirk. All were in favor. III. ADMINISTRATIVE APPROVALS-ROTARY PARK The following wedding requests for Rotary Park have been approved administratively: a) Bjelf/Clark Wedding- Saturday, September 24, 2016 from 1:00pm-3:00pm for a wedding ceremony. b) Elizabeth Allard- Sunday, September 18, 2016 from 2:00pm-10:00pm for a wedding ceremony. c) Duval/Jackson-Rhine Wedding- Monday, October 10th from 1:00pm to 4:00pm for a wedding ceremony. IV. NEW BUSINESS: a) Tardiff Park House-Preliminary discussion on replacement of the floor. Tabled due to no representation. V. ANNOUNCEMENTS: VI. PUBLIC COMMENT: VII. COMMUNICATIONS: VIII. OTHER REQUESTS REQUIRING COMMISSION ACTION: a) Mark Dadian- Hillside Cemetery- Request to tap maple trees at Hillside Cemetery. Rodney Roy motioned to accept the request to tap maple trees. Seconded by Deanna Guyer. All were in favor. IX. PARK ASSOCIATION REPORTS:  A. Leavitt Park Association –Income & Expense report B. Weirs Community Park Association- No report C. Tardif Park Association- Income and Expense Report X. DEPARTMENT REPORTS: A. Asst. Directors Report submitted by Amy Lovisek All indoor programs have been running well. The outdoor recreation programs are not doing well. We have not been able to even turn on the lights to the sledding hill as we haven’t officially opened it yet. The ice skating rinks are not in good condition either. One day they are good, the next they are bad. Very hard to keep up the ice this year. The conditions are so bad that we are unsure at this time if we can have our February vacation outdoor recreation activities. I don’t know if you read the Laconia Links, but we have started a Did You Know? section. This is to give readers a small idea of the things we do here at Laconia Parks & Recreation. Check it out if you can. We have been working on choosing a maintenance software system for the department. We have chosen Facility Dude. It is a very user friendly software. It will help our department be more efficient. It should be up and running for April we hope. We will be inputting the information which will be time consuming, but worth it in the long run. The HEALNH finished the Wyatt Park Transition video. It is on our Facebook page and was on the Laconia Links on YouTube. If you haven’t seen the video, please take a look and see the efforts that went into the facility. It is worth the 5 minutes to watch. B. Directors Report submitted by Kevin Dunleavy Department Updates: • Recent maintenance projects and activities include: Winter snow removal, sanding and salting Ice rink maintenance at Memorial and Leavitt Park Various work orders at City Hall, Library, park houses, LFD and LPD Maintenance manual formulation Painting at City Hall and Community Center Trash removal Pet waste bag restocking Oil checks at various facilities Bathroom repairs at Community Center Ceiling Tile replacement at City Hall Picnic Table repairs  Tree and shrub pruning Elections setup and breakdown •Winter maintenance activities have been lighter this year due to the weather. This has allowed our maintenance staff to address other projects and repairs. This has included painting, pruning, picnic table repairs, ceiling tile replacements and general cleanup of our facilities. •Skating Rinks – Getting the skating rinks in usable condition has been a challenge with all the warmer weather and rain we have seen this winter. The Leavitt Park rink is now open for use, with the Memorial Park rink needing a little bit more work. The frigid temperatures over the weekend have made a big difference. The sledding hill has not seen conditions that allow us to promote its use. • Weirs Beach Community Park – I have been working with the Weirs Park Association on creating a small area in the wooded section of the park for a campfire or gathering area that recognizes the Native American importance of the Weirs area. I have also been approached by an Eagle Scout candidate who is looking to build a boardwalk crossing across a section of wetland trail. • Laconia Riverwalk TAP Grant Projects – I have been working with the Planning and Public Works Departments at securing an engineer for several Riverwalk Projects in the Downtown area. These projects will be funded through a federal transportation grant and Downtown TIF District funds. Construction of the Riverwalk segments are anticipated in Fall 2016 or Spring 2017. •Elections – Our maintenance staff was busy during the past election with the setup and breakdown of the various locations. This is a task that our Department takes on and we have received some compliments from the election workers on the great job that our staff does, often under a tight schedule. •Strategic Planning – I recently attended a strategic planning session with the City Department Heads and the Laconia City Council to listen to the Council’s list of goals for the City. Some of the goals identified include economic development, socio-economic development and emphasis on being a business friendly community. Specific goals for our Department will be identified as we move through this process. • Meetings that I have attended the last month include City Staff meetings, Downtown TIF Advisory Board, Special Events Committee, Lakeside Avenue improvements, strategic planning session, TAP Grant Projects, and Safety Board. XI. PRESENTATIONS XII. ADJOURNMENT: Rodney Roy motioned to adjourn at 8:58pm. Seconded by Tony Pederzani. All were in favor. Respectfully submitted, Liza Kelleher Secretary