Parks, Recreation & Cultural Services Advisory Board Meetings

PARKS, RECREATION & CULTURAL SERVICES August 9, 2023 ADVISORY BOARD MEETING MINUTES Members Present Charlene Rios, Jamie Umana, Chuck Perry, Troy White, Isaac Valdez, Rebecca Johnson, and Brad Harshman Members Absent Staff Present Doug Coutts, Dollie Boyd, Bill Aukett, Carrie Hoiness, and Stefanie Dunn 2023 MEETING ATTENDANCE RECORD Name Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Charlene Rios C X X A X X X X Chuck Perry C X X X X X X X Isaac Valdez X X X X X Rebecca Johnson X X X E X Troy White C X X X X X X X Jamie Umana C X X X X X X X Brad Harshman X X C = Meeting Cancelled X = Present A = Absent E = Excused R = Resigned Call to Order The regular meeting was called to order by Ms. Rios at 6 p.m. Approval of Minutes Mr. Perry moved to approve the minutes dated July 12, 2023. Motion seconded by Ms. Umana. Motion unanimously approved and passed. Correspondence/Communication/Committee Reports 1. Creative District – Ms. Boyd shared the district advertising continues to be a focus to get the word out to the community and those visiting Moses Lake that we are a Creative District. 2. Arts Committee – Ms. Boyd shared about the priorities of the Arts Committee as they continue to review the art sculptures around the city. 3. Code Development & Design Standards Committee – Mr. Coutts shared that the committee continues to meet and review code/design standards. He mentioned that they have met with City engineers to work thru some questions, as well. Museum Update Ms. Boyd shared that visitation remains high for the museum and museum memberships have rebounded since last year, which is largely due to the $1 membership option. Ms. Boyd shared that there are grants for the museum, including $900 mini-grant from Association of Children’s Museums and Nickelodeon meant to promote art in play, and an NEA Grant which would pay for design fees for art area at Civic Center Park. She advised this venture to update Civic Center with art space is a partnership with the library. Mr. Perry asked about speaker attendance low numbers, to which Ms. Boyd shared that a contributing factor is whether the topic is of interest to the public. She went on to share that the speaker series is worthwhile to participate in as it does not cost much for museum to host them, and the series is meant to 1 PARKS, RECREATION & CULTURAL SERVICES August 9, 2023 ADVISORY BOARD MEETING MINUTES bring diversity. Mr. Valdez asked whether live streaming is possible, to which Ms. Boyd shared that the auditorium does not have the functionality. Recreation Update Ms. Hoiness shared Explorer Day Camp and Mobile Rec Program have been well-attended and will both be winding down end of this month. She shared that the Surf ‘n Slide Water Park season is winding down, also, and the attendance this summer has been great. Ms. Hoiness shared that the water park has seen about 50,000 attendees this summer, 20 rentals, and 1,400 kids for swim lessons. Ms. Hoiness shared that baseball and softball programs have a few weeks left of the season. Ms. Hoiness shared that the Larson Recreation Center (LRC) hosted a pickleball tournament, which was well-attended, and staff have decided to try a fall pickleball league. She went onto say that rentals have been slow at the LRC, but staff are hoping to see an increase in use of the facility as we move into the fall season. Ms. Hoiness shared that open gym basketball continues to be popular. She also shared a few new programs that may be coming to the LRC, including a before-school program for Peninsula Elementary students and preschool. Ms. Hoiness shared a few special events are coming up in August, as well. Ms. Hoiness provided kudos to Surf ‘n Slide staff for rescuing an infant blocked airway at the water park. She shared the 4 staff members performed CPR on the infant and were able to remove the blockage in the airway before EMS arrived on scene. Ms. Hoiness shared that the staff at the pool are all teens/young adults, so it was great to see them perform the training so excellently. Ms. Umana asked about status of SilverFit/ActiveFit. Ms. Hoiness shared the process is moving forward, and we hope to implement the program in the near future. She shared it has taken longer than expected, but it is close. Maintenance Report Mr. Aukett shared that Maintenance continues to have a full crew, which is allowing for basic maintenance of landscaping, weed control, etc. He shared a few of the seasonal staff will be leaving soon as harvest season looms and college-aged staff head back to school. Mr. Aukett shared that Japanese Garden has been weeded and cleaned up recently, and recently installed a donated tea lamp in the Japanese Garden. Mr. Aukett shared that Carl T. Ahlers Park has some new permanent activities, all of which were donated by the Moses Lake Rotary Club who will also be reimbursing for Parks Maintenance staff time. New games donated are cornhole boards, chess table/bench, and ping-pong table. Mr. Aukett shared that lights were replaced on Field Y at Larson Ballfield Complex. He also shared that there was some flooding at Cascade Park, which they had to pump out. Mr. Aukett shared that staff continue to assess the maintenance end of season needs for water park and ballfields. Mr. White shared that there is a broken window at Blue Heron Park in the restroom closest to the swimming area at the park. Mr. Aukett will look into getting that repaired. 2 PARKS, RECREATION & CULTURAL SERVICES August 9, 2023 ADVISORY BOARD MEETING MINUTES Mr. Perry asked about whether the water park is “paying its own way”. Mr. Coutts shared that budget historically has been determined by the department Director, which is changing this year to include the Superintendents for each division. He went on to advise that a true overall picture is going to be difficult for a couple years for any facility as we look to clean-up the budget to ensure that all revenues and expenses are included for all facilities and programs. Ms. Umana asked about the signs placed at McCosh Park for weed chemical application and whether the grass is safe for humans to be on. Mr. Aukett advised that the chemical is sprayed for the turf grass to absorb; not necessarily unsafe for humans to be walking on. Mr. Aukett did say that the hope is that public does not follow right behind the sprayers onto the grass, but if chemical has been there for a couple hours, likely most of the absorption by the turf grass has happened. Director’s Report 1. Zero-scaping Civic Center – Mr. Coutts advised City Council has tabled the project due to the high cost of completion, coming in at around $600K to install. He advised that the City is looking at different options. Mr. Coutts advised perhaps the plans from the company can be purchased and use Parks Maintenance staff to do the work. 2. Museum Lighting Replacement – Mr. Coutts shared this was also tabled at City Council. He advised the lights do need to be replaced, so they will continue to look at options. 3. Food Truck Court Update – Mr. Coutts shared briefly about redesign and relocation of the food truck court at Civic Center Park, which would alleviate the need to install a restroom. 4. Budget – Mr. Coutts shared again that department leaders are working thru the budget and clean up. 5. Irrigation – Mr. Coutts met with school district to work on getting them (and Parks Dept.) off if potable water as soon as possible. He advised they are working with the school district to identify ways this can be accomplished in the future at all possible school sites. 6. Maple Grove Park Update – Mr. Coutts shared that the park’s swing set was recently inspected, after acquisition of the park, and it was found to be unstable. He advised the swings were taken off the structure, and the ground footings need to be secured before swings can go back on. 7. $100k Maintenance Grant – Mr. Coutts shared that WA Recreation Conservation Office has established a local parks maintenance grant. He advised it must be a deferred maintenance activity and that there is a checklist that has assisted in identifying top options to qualify for this grant. Mr. Coutts provided the list of the top 7 projects for Board to review. Mr. Coutts asked for suggestions for projects to add to list and/or should we prioritize the list. Mr. White offered the parking lot of Blue Heron Park, which Mr. Coutts may be ground disturbing and could disqualify for the grant. He did reiterate the importance of tackling the parking lot at that park, though. Mr. Coutts shared that the closer the project is to being tackled immediately “shovel in the ground”, the better chance we have to getting the grant. Mr. Coutts shared he is registered for the webinar for this grant, and he encouraged anyone from this Board sitting on the grant board to assist with scoring applications, with the exception of scoring our own project. Mr. Coutts advised the more experience we have in our organization/board to understand grants work, the better. Mr. Coutts advised the priority for Parks Maintenance perspective would be the pond replacement at Japanese Garden. Mr. Coutts advised he will determine which is the best fit for the grant and let the board know. 3 PARKS, RECREATION & CULTURAL SERVICES August 9, 2023 ADVISORY BOARD MEETING MINUTES Adjournment Ms. Umana motioned to adjourn the meeting. Motion seconded by Mr. Perry. Motion unanimously approved. The meeting adjourned at 7 p.m. Minutes approved by Parks, Recreation & Cultural Services Advisory Board on 13th of September 2023. By: Stefanie Dunn, Business Manager Moses Lake Parks, Recreation & Cultural Services 4