Parks & Recreation Commission

LACONIA PARKS AND RECREATION COMMISSION MEETING Monday, July 15, 2024 Laconia Community Center 6:00 P.M. CALL TO ORDER: Commissioner Mitch Hamel called the meeting to order at the above date and time. RECORDING SECRETARY: Administrative Secretary, Liza Kelleher recorded this meeting. ROLL CALL: Commissioner Hamel called the roll with the following Commissioners in attendance: Deanna Guyer, Laura Ringer, Arthur Kirk and Rodney Roy. PARKS AND RECREATION STAFF PRESENT: Director of Recreation and Facilities Amy Lovisek, Asst. Director of Recreation and Facilities Matt Mansur and Administrative Secretary Liza Kelleher. ADOPTION OF MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETINGS: 1. Regular meeting minutes of June 17, 2024 Commissioner Rodney Roy moved to adopt the minutes from the June 17, 2024, meeting. Seconded by Commissioner Deanna Guyer. All were in favor. I. FACILITY USE REQUEST FORM: A. Water Lantern Festival- Endicott Rock Park (Weirs Beach)- Saturday, September 7, 2024, from 7:00am to 10:00pm for Community Festival/Fair. Commissioner Roy motioned to remove the request from the agenda as the requestor has cancelled the event. Commissioner Kirk seconded the motion. All were in favor. B. Rebecca Quimpo- Leavitt Park picnic area, athletic field and parking lot- Saturday, August 3, 2024, from 7:00am to 10:00pm for a wedding with lawn games, crafts and pig roast. Commissioner Ringer motioned to accept the request with all the requirements and changes listed in the application to include not using the field until soccer is completed for the day, roaster is in the parking lot at a safe distance from the building and a deposit of $150 security deposit. Commissioner Kirk seconded the motion. All were in favor except Commissioner Roy who opposed. C. Laconia High School - Babotas Field- Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 2:30 to 8:00pm for Football practice. Commissioner Roy motioned to accept the request with all the requirements and changes listed in the application. Commissioner Kirk seconded the motion. All were in favor. D. Laconia High School – Opechee Park -Smith field- Monday to Friday from 2:30pm to 5:30pm for Soccer practices. Commissioner Roy motioned to accept the request with all the requirements and changes listed in the application. Commissioner Kirk seconded the motion. All were in favor. E. Laconia High School- Leavitt Park Field- Monday to Friday from 2:30pm to 5:30pm for Soccer practice. Commissioner Roy motioned to accept the request with all the  requirements and changes listed in the application. Commissioner Kirk seconded the motion. All were in favor. F. Laconia High School- Robbie Mills Sports Complex Parking Lot- Saturday, September 28, 2024, from 9:00am to 2:00pm for Cross Country Track Race Commissioner Roy motioned to accept the request with all the requirements and changes listed in the application. Commissioner Kirk seconded the motion. All were in favor. G. Granite State Baseball League- Robbie Mills Sports Complex-Baseball Field- Wednesday, July 17, 2024, from 6:30pm to 9:30pm for a sporting event. Commissioner Roy motioned to accept the request with all the requirements and changes listed in the application. Commissioner Kirk seconded the motion. All were in favor. H. Partnership for Public Health- Leavitt Park Athletic Field- Sunday, August 25, 2024, from 10:00am to 4:00pm for Community Festival/Fair. Commissioner Ringer motioned to accept the request with all the requirements and changes listed in the application. Commissioner Kirk seconded the motion. All were in favor. I. Laconia Middle School- Opechee Smith Field- Tuesdays and Thursdays, July 16 to August 8, 2024, from 2:30pm to 3:30pm for sporting event. Commissioner Guyer motioned to accept the request with a change in location to soccer field AB due to the smith track renovation. Commissioner Roy seconded the motion. All were in favor. J. Laconia Police Department- Opechee Smith Field- Tuesday, August 6, 2024, from 4:00pm to 8:00pm for National Night out. Commissioner Roy motioned to accept the request with all the requirements and changes listed in the application. Smith Track may be used only if the renovations are complete. Commissioner Kirk seconded the motion. All were in favor. II. OLD BUSINESS: III. ADMINISTRATIVE APPROVALS-ROTARY PARK, BEACHES, WEIRS AMPHITHEATER & PAVILION A. Naomi Mills- Tardif Park – Sunday, July 28, 2024, from 11:00am to 4:00pm, family reunion barbeque (Parkhouse is rented also). B. Laconia Chiefs-Laconia Community Center- Wednesday, July 10,2024 from 6:00pm to 8:00pm for teams meeting for the seasons coach. C. Kimberly Ross-Weirs Community Park Pavilion- Sunday, August 4,2024 from 2:00pm to 6:00pm for a 2nd birthday party. D. Cassandra Winter- Weirs Community Pavilion- Sunday, August 11, 2024, from 1:00pm to 5:00pm for kids’ birthday party. E. Senior Muskrats- Robbie Mills Sports Complex (Baseball Field)- Friday, July 12, 2024, from 7:00pm to 10:00pm for a sporting event. F. Mary DeVincent- Weirs Community Park Pavilion- Saturday, July 27, 2024, from 3:00pm to 8:00pm for a picnic. G. City of Laconia- Opechee Park-Smith Track- July 7 to August 11, 2024, for field renovation. IV. NEW BUSINESS:  V. ANNOUNCEMENTS: VI. NOMINATIONS, APPOINTMENTS & ELECTIONS: VII. PUBLIC COMMENT: VIII. COMMUNICATIONS: IX. OTHER REQUESTS REQUIRING COMMISSION ACTION: A. Leavitt Park Community Assoc.- requested that no dogs be allowed in the mulch area of the playground at all parks. Commissioner Ringer motioned to accept the additional change in the Parks rules and regulations. Seconded by Commissioner Roy. All were in favor. X. PARK ASSOCIATION REPORTS: A. Leavitt Park Association- No report B. Weirs Community Park Association- No report C. Tardif Park Association- No report XI. DEPARTMENT REPORTS: A. Director’s Report submitted by Amy Lovisek This 4-week span is always our busiest of the year. With the July 4th holiday there, we seem to run ourselves ragged. We have recorded phone calls to the office as well as the maintenance staff having extra work with the celebration at Opechee Park and clean up at Weirs Beach. Now that the holiday is over, we can usually regroup and breathe. We are hopeful that will happen this week! The 4th of July Celebration at Opechee was difficult this year due to the weather forecasts. I needed to make a decision about whether or not to have the event by 8:00am Saturday morning. After looking at all the forecasts and hearing our own WMUR state that there may be heavy rains with localized flooding, thunderstorms and possible tornados I had no choice but to postpone the event to Sunday. It turned out to be a beautiful day, of course. Normally, we only have fireworks on the rain date, but this year I was able to get most of my vendors as well as the band to come and work the event on Sunday with the fireworks happening at 10pm. This was our department going above and beyond for the city to have a nice event. What we could not do was postpone the parade and the citizens were very angry on Facebook about this. Sunday’s celebration was great. We had about 1200 people there and they all seemed to have fun. The band was great, and the fireworks were amazing. Weirs Beach was extremely busy on the holiday. We had a huge number of tourists enjoying our little slice of heaven. The Smith Track has begun its renovation. Within the week it has had its rubberized coating removed and replaced and is already painted red! We are moving along nicely. The Province Street apartment complex has received the green light from the state to do their water line through the Spruce Street property. This was land purchased with LWCF Grant money and required us to go through some steps for this to happen. We have done what was asked and now the project can proceed. Good news. The Gale Beach project is on hold until spring of 2025 due to our department and DPW unable to get this extra work completed this year. We will keep you informed as to the progress. We have a large homeless encampment at the South Street property where the sledding hill is located. The city departments as well as CAP are working, as humanely as possible, to have them removed. They have so much stuff it will take some time to get them out of that area. We will have anything left there removed when we can. I was on vacation in Maine last week. I am now getting back into the swing of things and hearing all that has happened. B. Assistant Director’s Report submitted by Matt Mansur Greetings! Beaches It has been an aggressive start to the season. With so many 80+ degree days the beaches have seen their use. Weirs The week after Bike Week and before Beach Season officially beginning made for an really difficult transition into the start of the season. Temps were over 90 degrees for three straight days and our porta- potties were overflowing from Bike Week. Given the large amounts of people at Weirs Beach with no where to go to the bathroom, we decided to open up the bath house even though we did not have cleaners ready to begin. The use of the bath house was overwhelming and the aftermath was disgusting. This was the worst I have ever seen this bathroom; I have photos for anyone interested. We had one staff member vomit and quit shortly after seeing the bathrooms, although he says the two were not related. We have since begun staffing and our cleaning services and operations have been running smoother but we are still limited compared to the volume of patrons we are seeing at Weirs Beach. July 4th I believe this was the busiest July 4th I have seen at the Weirs. It ran smoothly in the morning and myself, our team, and the two police officers on bikes who were patrolling were all in good spirits. The biggest issue was the amount of garbage. We filled up the roll away dumpster by the end of the day (that has never happened before as that dumpster can usually last a few weeks). Furthermore, the dumpster caught fire on the evening of July 4th. On Saturday the 6th the dumpster was taken away to be serviced by Casella and a large open top dumpster was put in its place. By Monday the open top dumpster was three-quarters full. The volume of garbage this July 4th weekend dwarfed any other weekend I have seen in the last 5 years. Bond Bond has had a very rough start. One of our three lifeguards did not pass his Lifeguard Certification. We were unable to find a replacement as it was so late in the game. This changed our operations quite a bit. We lost another Lifeguard recently which put us to “No Lifeguard On Duty” at Bond Beach for, most likely, the remainder of the season. Additionally, as of yesterday July 11th, the Bond Beach Bathhouse is not finished. This has also obviously changed our operations down there. It has been a very tough season for Bond Beach. Opechee Opechee has run relatively smoothly except for one mishap in the Cove Bathhouse. Water Quality The water quality at the beaches have been ok so far. We have seen no signs of Cyanobacteria, where other places around the lakes have. We have been monitoring. Opechee Day Camp I am really fortunate that Kegan and company have been doing so well at the Day Camp. The beaches have been demanding much and more of my attention. Community Center Programs Basketball is back and pickleball is sporadic. Although outdoor pickleball has increased aggressively again. I am curious what this will mean for the indoor season. Additional Information A homeless encampment has recently been discovered at the sledding hill. There is more information to come. C. Foreman’s Report submitted by Dane Anderson COMPLETED Column2 Project Additional Notes Bartlett Plumbing- Replaced backflow. Bartlett Vandalism- Graffiti removal Bond Forestry- Large downed section of tree trunk and leader removed. City Hall Grounds- Removed and replaced trash can at building entry. City Hall Electrical- Lighting- light replacements. City Hall Carpentry- Door repair/ adjustment City Hall Carpentry- Rear entry door closer replacement City Hall Electrical- Lighting- Installed light above rear entry door. City Hall Furniture- Relocation and assembly of file storage shelving. City Hall Vandalism- Replaced welfare application drop box Endicott Rock Park Vandalism- Graffiti removal. Gale Library Carpentry- Table repair. Gale Library Flag Pole- Cabling repair. Gale Library Plumbing- Clogged kitchen sink repaired Gale Library Plumbing- Irrigation- Backflow rebuilt Gale Library Furniture- book case and desk chair assembly. Gateway Plumbing- Irrigation- Removed above ground backflow and meter lock box and replace with inground style containment box. Grounds Horticulture- Annual beds and pots prepped and planted. Laconia Middle Events- Voting booth set up and take down for student council voting. School LCC HVAC- Installed AC units Leavitt Forestry- Tree removal. Leavitt Events- Youth soccer camp event and field prep Leavitt Plumbing- Restored water supply to exterior spigots and installed new tamper resistant spigots at concession building. Leavitt Vandalism- Graffiti removal from new playground equipment. Leavitt Concession building- final flood damage repairs. Drywall, Trim, plumbing fixtures, painting. Leavitt Roofing- Tree removed growing out of chimney. Memorial Plumbing- Rebuilt backflow in Hardball restroom Memorial Plumbing- Rebuilt backflow for irrigation system. Memorial Carpentry- Replaced vandalized door to storage garage that was kicked in. Replaced door handle and added deadbolt. Opechee Plumbing- Replaced spigot with new tamper resistant style at Day camp Opechee Hardscape- Vandalism- Reinstalled step by Day camp that had been torn out. Opechee Events- 4th of July- Firework show prep and clean up. Opechee Forestry- Downed tree limb removal at Skate Park Opechee Carpentry- Gaga ball pit door repairs. Opechee Vandalism- Graffiti removal. Parks Carpentry- Continual repair work to picnic tables and benches. Parks and Irrigation- Start ups, repairs and programing. Facilities Robbie Mills Roofing- Shingle replacements Robbie Mills Carpentry- Missing siding replacements Robbie Mills Baseball Field- Infield edging, new infield mix, 66 tons, put onto field. Dressed with conditioner Robbie Mills Hardscape- Reset and resecured loose blocks and step caps by bleachers. Rotary Vandalism- Graffiti removal Rotary Forestry- Downed tree limb removal. *Close to 10 large limbs and leaders lost within the last year, Several trees hazardous now needing removal. Likely due from lack of pruning and canopy thinning we don't have the resources for and is problematic throughout many of our Rotary Sun Dial repairs Sanborn Vandalism- Graffiti removal Seasonal Plumbing- Water Meter readings Facilities and Irrigation Seasonal Plumbing and Irrigation- Water Dept. Backflow testing. Facilities and Irrigation Sport Fields Game and Event prep for Middle School, High School, Youth and Club sporting events. Sports Fields Events- NHIAA Tournament Sports Fields Fertility Program- Second application of fertilizer and soil amendments. Spring Clean Ups Grounds- Acorn/Leaf/Pine Cone and Down Limb removal. Stewart Electrical- Park pathway light fixture repair Tardif HVAC- Installed AC units Truck 399 Vehicles/Equipment- Removed all tools and parks property from vehicle. Vets Square Event- Memorial day Prep and flag work. WCP Hardscape- Sunken pavers repair. Weirs Events- Bike Week prep Weirs Beach Beaches- Sand relocation to raise/fill area of beach in front of bathhouse. Weirs Beach Beach- ADA beach mat installed. Weirs Beach Events- 4th of July- Firework show prep and clean up. Weirs Beach Plumbing- Rebuilt 2 flushometers that failed and unclogged main drain line. Weirs Beach Beach- Large metal plate removed from beach area in front of bathhouse. Weirs Community Park Electrical- Removed paper towel dispensers Weirs Community Park Plumbing- Rebuilt backflow in season restrooms. Welcome Signs Horticulture- Beds clean up and mulching Wyatt Vandalism- Graffiti removal IN PROGRESS Location Project Additional Notes Bond Beach Construction- Monitoring and documentation of new bath house installation. Bond Beach Site prep work and tree removal for new bathhouse and septic construction. City Hall Plumbing Faucet replacements Department Wide Dog Bags- Checking and filling dog bag dispensers Facilities Plumbing, building locked and secure, as needed. Facilities Electrical- Lighting timers adjustments as needed Gale Library Carpentry- Damaged and stained ceiling tile replacements Gordon Lawerence Forestry- Down limb removal Cemetery Beaches Weekly Beach grooming and debris clean up. Grounds Janitorial- Property checks and clean up of litter and unsheltered refuse. 2-3 times per week and as needed. Grounds Routine mowing, trimming and trash clean up of parks and facilities grounds. 1 time per every 1-2 weeks depending on priority level of area. LCC Plumbing- Faucet replacements LFD Central HVAC- Repairs and reinsulate of piping from mold remediation project. Memorial Electrical- Baseball scoreboard repairs. Opechee Electrical- Smith field scoreboard troubleshooting. Paint Paint standards, colors, and procedures project. Parking Lots Parking bumper log replacements. Parks and Facilities Irrigation- Regular checks, scheduling adjustments and repairs as needed. Parks and Facilities Carpentry- Picnic table repairs and painting Parks and Facilities Fertility Program- Thatching, overseeding and fertilization. Robbie Mills Plumbing- Concessions building- Water supply trouble with minimal to no well production. Restrooms running at limited capacity in combination with portlets. Seasonal Restrooms Janitorial- Checks, cleaning and stocking. 2-3 times per week or prior to event usage. Sports Fields Routine Mowing of sports fields turf. 2 times per week. Sports Fields Game and Event prep for Middle School, High School, Youth and Club sporting events. Storm Damage Grounds- Downed and damaged tree and limb removal throughout properties. Vandalism Graffiti- continual monitoring and removal throughout parks and facilities. XII. PRESENTATIONS XIII. ADJOURNMENT: Commissioner Guyer motioned to adjourn at 6:57pm. Seconded by Commissioner Ringer. All were in favor. Respectfully submitted, Liza Kelleher Mitch Hamel Administrative Secretary Chair Commissioner