Parks and Recreation - Advisory Board

ADVISORY BOARD MEETING AGENDA Tuesday, August 24, 2021 6:00 PM Merriam Community Center 1. Roll Call/Attendance Staci Chivetta 2. Public Comments Staci Chivetta 3. Approval of July 27, 2021 Minutes Staci Chivetta 4. Staff Reports a. Director’s Report Anna Slocum i. Community Center Update ii. Monthly Community Center Membership Report b. Assistant Director’s Report Dave Smothers i. Farmers’ Market Update ii. Merriam Drive Live Volunteer Request iii. Program Evaluations 1. Family Fun Friday – Brown Park & Birthday Party 2. National Night Out 3. Cruise Night iv. Upcoming Events 1. TMAG Opening Reception “Abstract Diversity” 2. Turkey Creek Car & Motorcycle Show 3. Merriam Drive Live 5. New Business Anna Slocum a. Program Instruction Policy 6. Other Business a. Downtown Corridor Update Chivetta / Leitch b. Johnson County Public Art Library Committee Update Stull 7. Adjournment Distribution: Board Members: Chivetta, Croan, Howard, Leary, Leitch, Quinley, Scott, Stull Mayor Sissom City Council Members City Staff: Chris Engel, Jennifer Jones-Lacy, City Clerk, Anna Slocum, Dave Smothers, Renee Nagle, Cole Surber, Abby Hall  CITY OF MERRIAM PARK AND RECREATION ADVISORY BOARD MEETING MINUTES Tuesday, July 27, 2021 6:00PM Roll Call The July meeting of the Merriam Parks & Recreation Advisory Board was called to order at 6:00 p.m. by Chairperson Staci Chivetta. Board members in attendance included: Billy Croan, Kathy Stull, LaVera Howard, Christopher Leitch, Katie Leary and Tony Scott. Staff members in attendance were Anna Slocum, Director and Dave Smothers, Assistant Director. Public in attendance included: Nancy Hupp. Public Comments There were no public comments. Approval of Meeting Minutes Christopher Leitch made a motion to approve the June minutes. Katie Leary seconded the motion. Motion passed unanimously. Staff Reports Director’s Report Community Center Update A detailed memo was included in the packet. Updates to information shared in the memo included: • The lone emergency light that was still on during the day has been repaired. • The Desert Aire Unit damper repair is scheduled to occur on Thursday morning. The repair should take 4 hours and will require a brief shut down of the unit but this should not impact operation. Test and balance of the system is scheduled on Monday. The unit is now communicating with the BMS system and should alert staff if there is a problem in the future. • Due to the unit not operating properly there has been significant damage to equipment in the natatorium. Staff is working with McCarthy to create a comprehensive list of items with photo documentation. There is a meeting scheduled for August 2 with TempCon’s insurance adjuster to discuss replacement / cleaning of items impacted by the system not operating properly. • Child Watch opened on July 6 and as of Tuesday, July 27 there have been 16 children utilize the service. Discussion after the update included: • Corrosion of stainless is not rust. The correct gauge of stainless was used but with the unit not working properly, it presents as rust. Once the unit works properly, regular cleaning will be required to keep it shiny but it should not present as corrosion.  • The recycle / trash emblems on the outdoor trash receptacles are coming off. These were purchased separately from the furniture contract. Staff has been working with the vendor to correct the problem and has additional transfers to apply. • The chain around the convenience gate was needed briefly due to a liability issue that was identified. The safety guard broke which prevented someone from accessing the strike of the gate and gaining entry. While correcting that issue, another access issue was identified. Both of those liability concerns have been corrected and the chain will be removed. Staff is adding signage to the outside of the gate that will read “EXIT ONLY” as there has been some confusion from patrons. • Outdoor pool speakers have been heard very early in the morning throughout the neighborhood. • There have been a few times when there are no loungers available. Is there the opportunity to add more? Staff will continue to evaluate deck furniture. The walking paths need to be maintained so chairs are limited to the north and south end of the deck. There are a few chairs in storage, but finding space would require the chairs to be closer together which staff felt the current spacing was appropriate. • A future project should consider extending the terrace on the south end with concrete eliminating the “slide” and adding more space for deck chairs. • Consider a solution for the lower level parking structure conflict with pediatrician traffic. There is concern that that neither the pedestrian or the motor vehicle see each other. Staff is aware of this concern and have had several conversations about possible solutions. Membership / Visit Reports Included in the packet were the monthly reports. Due to the limited number of summer memberships sold, staff believes that many patrons purchased annual / monthly options. There could be a significant number of cancellations after Labor Day. Visitation in the month of June skyrocketed more than doubling previous months’ visits. There were a total of 12,779 visits averaging 426 visits / day. This number does not take into consideration the number of people that participated in programs or classes. July visits are on pace to surpass June, as of Monday, July 26 visitation was already at 11,000. Insurance visits continue to hold steady. Through the first half of the year, visits in most categories have doubled over the last half of 2020. Discussion involved the types of visits occurring with the thought they were mainly for the pool. While individual visits are not traced, there has been significant activity with the pool and the gymnasium. Assistant Director Report Farmers’ Market Update The July 2021 update was provided in the packet. With the lifted restrictions related to social distancing outdoors, vendors are purchasing additional spaces. Attendance continues to follow past year trends. Program Evaluation Included in the packet were program evaluations for Family Fun Friday at Quail Creek and Dive in Movie events. Staff would like to be able to serve food again in 2022 at these events. For the Dive-in Movie, direct patrons through the gender specific locker rooms to access the outdoor pool versus sending them through the family locker room as the indoor pool is closed. Improve communication with Facility Attendants regarding event details to ensure proper details are shared when people call with questions. Upcoming Events National Night Out Flyer included in packet. Annual event for the Police Department will occur at Waterfall Park on August 3. Tim Murphy Art Gallery Invitation for the August 5 reception was included in the packet. Beverages will once again be served. Turkey Creek Cruise Night Flyer for event included in packet. A warm-up for Car Show will be August 14, featuring music by Ronnie Ward Band and Eat Schmidt food truck. Concert in the Courtyard Flyer for event included in packet. The event is free and this will also be a free day for Merriam residents to utilize the community center. New Business Geocache and Metal Detecting Department Policies Draft policies related to these subjects were included in the packet. Staff researched how other departments handled these requests for suggestions and input into drafting these policies. While it is not staff’s intent to write a policy for every situation, staff deemed the request from the public for these two specific activities rose to the level to require policies to ensure consistency when answering questions. Staff is seeking Board review and input prior to implementing. Staff is still researching how other departments handle non-compete and public use for private gain issues. Discussion of the policies included:  • Staff provided a better understanding of what geocaching is and clarified that the policy is more for the person placing the cache than for the seeker. While there are rules about not digging this is to ensure that the cache is easy to find. • Due to how bullet point #3 read in the Geocache Policy, there was a suggestion to add a comma in the sentence. • There was a question regarding allowing digging for metal detecting. The concern was that plants and trees are not allowed to be dislodged, is grass not a plant? While technically it is a plant, staff sees it as ground cover. Bullet #1 addresses preserving the “plug” similar to a divot on a golf course, this plug, when replaced can regenerate and survive unlike a landscape plant or tree. • Recommendation on bullet #2 for Metal Detecting Policy is to add punctuation to better explain the point being made. In addition, adding verbiage to better describe “litter” so the person participating in this activity would understand their responsibility for removal. • There was a recommendation when drafting the non-compete policy, to consider that if someone is using the facility for personal gain and not interfering with users, the activity be ignored. As a steward of city resources, this will likely will not be the approach that staff takes in drafting the policy. There was significant discussion with several board members providing opinions supporting staff’s approach to the policy. Currently, there is already precedent in charging for-profit entities for using public space. Rentals are asked if they are charging a fee as there is a commercial rate. Food trucks that participate at special events have to pay an entry fee as do vendors that participate in the Farmers’ Market. Instructors, not employed by the City of Merriam, sign an instructor agreement outlining percentages of revenue sharing from registrations. Other Business Municipal Parking Lot Ordinance Update Based on the input shared at the June meeting and input from various departments, staff drafted a change to the current ordinance for the attorney to review. Staff is proposing two defined terms related to parking, Municipal Parks and Municipal Campus. Parks will not allow parking from dusk to dawn mirroring the hours of operation of those amenities. Municipal Campus will be no parking after dark with three exceptions: city vehicles, city employee vehicles and approval of City Administrator or designee if on sight for an approved activity which covers the operation of the community center. The timeline for when this item goes before City Council has yet to be determined. Downtown Corridor Updates Christopher Leitch and Staci Chivetta serve on the committee. They had their first meeting in July. Committee members will provide updates as information is available. Johnson County Public Art Library Committee Kathy Stull is serving as the board representative for the committee. Currently, the library has completed a call for artists. There were no other updates at this time. Adjournment Billy Croan called for a motion to adjourn. Kathy Stull seconded. The meeting adjourned at 7:15 p.m. To: Merriam Parks and Recreation Advisory Board From: Anna Slocum, Director of Parks and Recreation Subject: Director’s Report Date: August 24, 2021 Community Center Update The indoor pool was closed the week on August 19 to repair tile / gutter issues occurring throughout the sections of the activity pool. In an effort to keep water available to patrons, the indoor schedule was shifted to the outdoor pool with the exception of early morning and late evening due to lighting concerns. While staff tried to create a clear message, there was significant confusion among members. The confusing part was open swim. The indoor pool was scheduled for open swim at noon but the outdoor pool original schedule was 4 p.m. as that was determined a time that school age staff would be available to cover both bodies of water. In addition, during the week of the closure there were also weather incidents requiring the outdoor pool to close. Thunder and lightning close the pool for 30 minutes with the clock restarting after each rumble or strike. Members also voiced concern that the outdoor pool has to close at all, not realizing that the majority of staff is in school. This will be an educational opportunity every season. Staff continues to work with McCarthy to address the HVAC issue occurring in the natatorium. The damper was repaired but the issue continued. The technician believes it is an actuator. On Friday, August 20 staff will again meet with the insurance adjuster, the vendor responsible for balancing the unit and TempCon technician for additional information. McCarthy is working to collect repair / replacement costs with their trade partners for the insurance claim to repair. Hermes is slated to replace dead plants in September. Staff have also been documenting their lack of weed control on site as well. Child watch started full operation the week of August 16. Use of the space continues to be sporadic. In July 19 children utilized the service and through Thursday, August 19 there have been 10 children. With the uptick in COVID cases, school just starting and no classes or programs underway, staff was prepared for a slow start. Currently, full-time staff is helping to cover morning hours if the service is requested and one staff member is scheduled in the evening with facility and fitness attendants available to help if needed. Rentals and Birthday Party requests are starting to gain more traction. There have been 17 room rentals that have celebrated birthdays, graduations, baby and bridal showers, family reunions and memorial celebrations. There have been a total of nine pool birthday parties. Monthly Community Center Membership Report Included in the packet are the comparison reports for annual membership and daily visits. In July there were a total of 157 annual memberships purchased taking the total number of membership sales to 1,060. There were no summer memberships sold in July. Based upon the cancellation requests occurring in August, staff’s suspicion of patrons purchasing an annual membership / monthly option instead of a summer membership is proving to be the case. It is something that will be monitored over the next several seasons to determine if there needs to be a change to this approach. Due to an issue discovered in RecTrac in reporting cancellations, the number of cancellations has been adjusted since March. The number, while higher than 2020 still is below industry standards. Visitation in the month of July surpassed June as staff anticipated with a total of 13,357 visits. There were 11,284 membership visits, 2,055 pass visits, 93 lower than June, and 18 guest passes. Attendance averaged 431 visits / day. This number does not take into account the number of people that participated in programs or classes. August visits have dipped as expected with last minute vacations and the start of school. Weekends continue to provide strong visitation. With the up-tick of COVID cases and the return to school, it is difficult to predict how attendance will be impacted. Through August 18, visits are still better than the best months from earlier this spring. Insurance visits increased in four of the six categories. Due to closures and changes that have occurred at neighboring facilities, there have been more people inquiring about benefits at MCC in August. Recommendation: This memo was provided for your information. No action required. Membership Category 2020* 2021 TWO PERSON CHARTER 44 0 TWO PERSON HOUSEHOLD 26 91 ACTIVE & FIT 1 15 ADULT CHARTER 41 0 ADULT MEMBERSHIP 56 137 COUNCIL - BOARD MEMBERSHIP 8 7 EMPLOYEE MEMBERSHIP 61 59 HOUSEHOLD CHARTER 81 0 HOUSEHOLD MEMBERSHIP 41 279 TIVITY PRIME MEMBERSHIP 30 19 PEERFIT 0 6 RENEW ACTIVE 44 76 RETIRED SENIOR HOUSEHOLD 5 5 RETIRED SENIOR 1 1 SCHOLARSHIP MEMBERSHIP 2 2 SENIOR CHARTER 54 0 SENIOR CHARTER HOUSEHOLD 44 0 SENIOR HOUSEHOLD 6 27 SENIOR MEMBERSHIP 19 51 SILVER & FIT 2 14 SILVER SNEAKERS 105 260 YOUTH MEMBERSHIP 2 11 TOTAL MEMBERSHIP SALES 671 1,060 CANCELLATIONS 66 72 SUSPENDED 30 0 EXPIRED** ***292 4 *Charter Sales for Grand Opening began in March **All Council and Employee related passes expire annually in December ***Includes 80 IBFCC memberships carried over due to COVID-19 closures Annual Membership Sales Comparison Jan - July 2021 Membership Category 2020 2021 TWO PERSON CHARTER 11 TWO PERSON HOUSEHOLD 15 ACTIVE & FIT 1 ADULT CHARTER 4 ADULT MEMBERSHIP 21 COUNCIL - BOARD MEMBERSHIP 1 EMPLOYEE MEMBERSHIP 19 10 HOUSEHOLD CHARTER 17 HOUSEHOLD MEMBERSHIP 4 45 PRIME MEMBERSHIP 8 PEERFIT 2 RENEW ACTIVE 13 RETIRED SENIOR HOUSEHOLD 2 1 RETIRED SENIOR 1 SCHOLARSHIP MEMBERSHIP SENIOR CHARTER 8 SENIOR CHARTER HOUSEHOLD 7 SENIOR HOUSEHOLD 5 SENIOR MEMBERSHIP 1 7 SILVER & FIT 3 SILVER SNEAKERS 16 24 YOUTH MEMBERSHIPS 2 TOTAL MEMBERSHIPS SOLD 91 157 CANCELLATIONS SUSPENDED EXPIRED 3 Annual Membership Sales July 2021 2021 TOTAL VISITS JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUNE JULY AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC TOTAL VISITS MEMBERSHIP VISITS 3,318 3,169 4,924 4,769 4,775 10,607 11,284 42,846 DAILY VISITS 185 211 482 386 576 2,148 2,055 6,043 GUEST PASSES 3 2 24 20 7 24 18 98 TOURS 77 38 93 85 102 90 107 592 2020 TOTAL VISITS JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUNE JULY AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC TOTAL VISITS MEMBERSHIP VISITS 388 1,765 1,862 3,159 2,833 2,490 12,497 DAILY VISITS 3 53 59 197 104 144 560 TOURS 366 378 149 133 56 31 1,113 2021 Highest Attended Day JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUNE JULY AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC 149 159 213 228 (Thurs 247 496 478 MEMBERSHIP VISITS ( Mon 5th) (Tues 2nd) (Mon 15th) 8th) (Wed 19th) (Wed 16th) (Tues 13th) 22 66 45 52 69 136 126 DAILY VISITS (Sat 16th) (Thurs 25th) (Fri 19th) (Sat 10th) (Mon 31st) (Sun 13th) (Mon 5th) 2020 Highest Attended Day JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUNE JULY AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC 72 85 92 148 159 117 MEMBERSHIP VISITS (Thur 30th) (Mon 24th) (Thur 10th) (Tues 27th) (Wed 11th) (Wed 30th) 19 2 6 11 (Sat 10th/ 16 (Sat 16 (Mon DAILY VISITS (Tues 28th) (Mon 31st) (Sat 5th) Tues 27th) 14th) 28th) 2021 INSURANCE VISITS JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUNE JULY AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC TOTAL VISITS Silver Sneakers 328 347 443 437 410 475 595 3,035 Prime Fitness 24 17 35 56 53 52 118 355 Renew & Active 136 138 254 286 291 299 330 1,734 Silver & Fit 8 8 13 12 18 22 24 105 Active & Fit 3 2 0 3 24 51 42 125 PeerFit 3 46 39 27 53 43 211 2020 INSURANCE VISITS JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUNE JULY AUG SEPT OCT NOV DEC TOTAL VISITS Silver Sneakers 32 156 187 264 308 287 1,234 Prime Fitness 0 26 37 33 29 32 157 Renew & Active 1 19 98 118 121 357 Silver & Fit 6 6 Active & Fit 0 0 PeerFit 0 Visit Comparison Report June 2021  August 2021 Update August 1 – 8 was National Farmers’ Market Week. Market staff solicited vendors for donations for three baskets of market goods to raffle off to lucky shoppers on the 7th. There were also Merriam Farmers’ Market t-shirt and tote bag giveaways. The August 14th Take & Make giveaway was a watermelon pinwheel craft and all 25 were given away to kids to do at home. Week 2019 Vendors 2019 Attend 2020 Vendors 2020 Attend 2021 Vendors 2021 Attend 1 17 275 N/A N/A 20 442 2 20 160 N/A N/A 20 445 3 20 314 N/A N/A 18 297 4 17 275 16 555 18 29 5 20 262 20 393 19 360 6 24 463 18 555 23 500 7 21 337 17 608 19 516 8 23 361 19 456 24 520 9 24 571 21 506 24 532 10 27 680 20 423 23 688 11 27 723 21 718 20 542 12 26 714 20 612 22 690 13 27 758 21 734 19 574 14 25 639 20 582 24 633 15 29 570 18 617 26 611 16 25 486 20 703 25 625 Special Event Evaluation Form Event Name: Family Fun Friday Date: Friday, July 23, 2021 Location: Brown Park Number of Registrants: N/A Number of participants: 54 Ages: ALL Cost of Event: FREE Expenses Entertainment – Nick & Anna $500 Stage $518.62 Sister Act Face painting $172.50 $1,191.12 Special Items Needed: Two 10 x 10 MPRD tents, tables for drinks and face painter, drink coolers with water and lemonade, cups, hand sanitizer, bug spray, yard games (corn hole, Jenga, hula hoops). Modes of Publicity: Summer Highlights, fliers at parks, City Hall and Antioch Library, Community Center Brightsign, Facebook®, KC Parent online calendar, MPRD website. Staff: Ingrid, Rachel, Renee Strengths: It was a hot & humid night, but there was a breeze and some nice shade by the start of the event. Face painting and lemonade are always a big hit. Weaknesses: A miscommunication with the stage guys resulted in it being set up in the wrong configuration. This posed a problem because the tent wouldn’t fit. It ended up not being an issue as the tent didn’t provide any shade due to the angle of the setting sun. Luckily the stage was fully shaded by about 7 pm. Very low attendance – possibly due to the hot temperatures forecasted for the evening. Also possibly due to the rebranding – changed from Party in YOUR Park to Family Fun Friday. Opportunities: It would be great to have sponsors for the event so that we could possibly off set cost of entertainment. Thoughts: Maybe have some universal yard signs made that just say “Event tonight” or “Event + times” that we can use for multiple events. Special Event Evaluation Form Event Name: Family Fun Friday – Birthday Pool Party Date: Friday, July 30, 2021 Location: MCC Outdoor Pool Number of Registrants: N/A Number of participants: 103 (90 members and 13 paid at the door) Ages: ALL Cost of Event: FREE for MCC members / $9 for non-members Expenses Mermaid & pirates $700 Happy Face Entertainment (DJ, prizing) $525 Beach Ball (giveaways) $403 -$1,628 Revenue 13 X $9 $117 ? Concessions ? $19.75 +$136.75 Net -$1,491.25 Special Items Needed: Beach balls & Merriam t-shirts for giveaways, sound system (provided by Happy Faces Entertainment). Modes of Publicity: Summer Highlights, fliers at parks, City Hall and Antioch Library, Community Center Brightsign, Facebook®, MPRD website Staff: Renee, Ingrid, Cole, Rachel, lifeguards. Strengths: People really enjoyed being able to use the pool after hours. The DJ, mermaid and pirates were a huge hit! Opened concessions. Weaknesses: Scheduling the event after hours may have kept our numbers down as it was past most small children’s bedtime. Concessions did not do much business possibly due to the late hour. Opportunities: Plan on having each year. Maybe change it up a bit with contests (cannonball, best trick off zipline/diving boards, pool noodle and/or watermelon, races, etc.) and more giveaways. Thoughts: Possibly run event from 6 – 8 pm? Try concessions again? Maybe promote it more than just a week ahead of time (on social media) if there’s not back to back events scheduled before it? To help with flow of check in (if it’s an after hours event) – put up signs on doors saying what time doors will open for event and have stanchions to make member checkin/pay for day pass lines visible. Special Event Evaluation Form Event Name: National Night Out Date: Tuesday, August 3, 2021 Location: Waterfall Park Number of Registrants: N/A Number of participants: 140 Ages: ALL Cost of Event: FREE Expenses Entertainment – Dudes Band $150 Stage $518.62 Sister Act Face painting $230 $898.62 Special Items Needed: generator, tent, chairs for staff, Corn Hole X 2, Jenga, hula hoops, grill, tongs/utensils, hand sanitizer, bug spray, first aid kit, Clorox wipes, three 8’ tables for food, one 5’ table for face painter, cooler with ice & freeze pops Modes of Publicity: Summer Highlights, fliers at parks, City Hall and Antioch Library, Community Center Brightsign, Facebook®, KC Parent online calendar, MPRD website. Staff: Renee, Ingrid, Rachel, Police officers Volunteer: Al Frisby representing Grandparents Against Gun Violence passed out free gun locks provided by MPD. Strengths: The weather was amazingly cool for August so it was a very pleasant night. It was great to be able to serve food again. Stoney Bogan with DMP loaned their large grill. The officers grilled hot dogs as well as provided chips and freeze pops (which the kids loved). AT&T donated bottled water. Officers also helped pack up at the end of the event (especially appreciated the help loading & unloading the generator). Weaknesses: The band started out playing very mellow, original, ballad type songs. To the point where after 30 min staff talked to them about doing more upbeat classic rock covers that people could dance or sing along to. They reconvened and played a better selection for the crowd/event. Only about a third of the freeze pops were frozen enough to use. Opportunities: The stage guys continue to show up early (7:30am). Go back to putting cones out to mark placement of stage? Be sure to establish type of music to be played before booking band. If have freeze pops again purchase the week before so they are fully frozen before the event. Thoughts: In planning, Todd Allen suggested maybe having this event at the Marketplace since it is all shaded. Worried about not having the playground for kids, but will hopefully be able to have bounce houses again. Special Event Evaluation Form Event Name: Cruise Night Date: Saturday, August 14, 2021 Location: Merriam Marketplace Number of Registrants: N/A Number of participants: 200 ish Ages: ALL Cost of Event: FREE Expenses Ronni Ward Band $700 Special Items Needed: Enter to win box, raffle tickets, car show registration forms, clip boards, pens, MPRD tablecloth, table Modes of Publicity: Summer Highlights, fliers at parks, City Hall and Antioch Library, Community Center Brightsign, Facebook®, MPRD website Staff: Laura LaGarde Volunteer: John Freeman Strengths: The weather was perfect and people were excited to be able to have this event this year. Stoney Bogan (DMP) donated four $25 QT gifts cards to raffle off to participants. The Ronni Ward Band was really good and Eat Schmidt (food truck) had steady business. John Freeman did all the parking logistics while Laura worked the info table with the sign in sheets and raffle ticket entries. Weaknesses: People were asking for the food truck an hour before they arrived. Opportunities: Have the food truck arrive earlier as people tend to show up pretty early for this event. Thoughts: With the Marketplace pavilion lights off is there enough light from the parking lot for the band to break down? Or do we need to plan on staff being there after 9pm?  EICKHORST SELLEY ABSTRACT DIVERSITY SEP TEMB ER 2 – OC TOB ER 2 BILL EICKHORST + K YLE SELLEY OPENING RECEPTION Thursday, September 2 // 7–8:30 p.m. G A LLE RY H O U R S MERRIAM COMMUNITY CENTER M-TH 5 a.m.–9 p.m. 6040 Slater St.; Merriam, KS 66202 913-322-5550 // Merriam.org/artgallery F 5 a.m.–8 p.m. SAT 8 a.m.–6 p.m. SUN 10 a.m.–6 p.m.  ET MOR H A 6 0 N DOOR PRIZES DJ RICK FREDERICK CONCESSIONS AWA RDS! Saturday, September 11 Merriam Marketplace Rain or shine! 10 a.m.–4:30 p.m. 5740 Merriam Drive; Merriam, KS REGISTRATION MERRIAM PARKS AND RECREATION Merriam.org/carshow 913-322-5550 MerriamParks GOLD SPONSORS  C O R N H O L E TOU R N A M E N T CASH PRIZES Saturday, October 2  1–6 p.m. Merriam Marketplace, 5740 Merriam Drive  $20 per team (2 players)  Participants must be 18 or older  Register at Merriam.org/cornhole MERRIAM COMMUNITY CENTER | 6040 SLATER ST. | 913-322-5550 | MERRIAM.ORG/PARKS To: Merriam Parks and Recreation Advisory Board From: Anna Slocum, Director of Parks and Recreation Subject: Program Instruction Policy Date: August 24, 2021 In developing this draft policy, staff reached out to area metro departments for guidance in how they approach third party instruction. Lawrence and Lee’s Summit were the only two that responded to the request. Staff also tried to contact Olathe, Lenexa and Mission as they have similar facilities to the Merriam. Due to changing in administration in those departments, there was no response. Staff also researched on a national level for guidance. All research let to the draft included in the packet. The policy focuses on why there is a need for public / private instructors and the process in which an potential instructor must follow to teach within MPRD facilities. Creation of department policies provides consistency from staff in answering questions. It also helps provide clear parameters as to what is allowed and expected by those that want to pursue program instruction for the department. Staff is seeking a review and input of these policies by Park Board prior to implementation and enforcement. Upon approval, this policy will be added to the website. Recommendation: Staff is seeking input on the policies presented.  City of Merriam Parks and Recreation Program Instruction Policy The City of Merriam Parks and Recreation Department (MPRD) prides itself in providing first class recreational opportunities to the citizens of Merriam. The Department cannot operate its programs and services on tax subsidy alone. In addition, staff does not possess the wide breadth of experience and knowledge to provide a diverse offering of classes and programs requested by patrons. Partnering with public entities or private instructors provides a wider variety of opportunities. It also provides the ability to ration limited services and allows for the ability to better manage the number of instructors and participants. PROGRAM INSTRUCTION PURPOSE  To establish guidelines and procedure to govern instruction by non-Merriam parks and recreation employees.  This policy covers all facilities and parks owned by the City of Merriam and operated by the Parks and Recreation Department. PROGRAM INSTRUCTION POLICY Merriam Parks and Recreation allows for public entities or private instructors to utilize parks and facilities owned by the City of Merriam based upon the following procedures: 1. Instructors or public entities wanting to teach classes must complete an “Instructor Profile” and provide a class proposal. Instructor Manuals are available by contacting the Recreation Supervisor. 2. After review of the submitted documents, MPRD staff will contact the applicant regarding approval or denial of the proposal. 3. Anyone observed performing behaviors that appear to be deemed training, coaching or instruction that does not have written approval from MPRD may be approached by MPRD staff and questioned regarding their activities. These actions include but are not limited to: a) Writing and/or designing a program for another person or group. b) Explaining and providing directions or instruction to a person or group about a specific routine, workout, or drills related to a specific sport or activity. c) Directing exercise and/or drill order and technique for a person or group. d) Meeting with the same person(s) on a frequent basis or multiple persons on the same day. e) Retrieving and returning equipment for a person. f) Receiving payment from another individual for training/instruction session(s). 4. If an MPRD staff member concludes that this policy has been violated, both the instructor and patron may be asked to leave the facility. Repeat violations of this policy may result in suspension or permanent loss of MPRD privileges. Draft August 2021