Park & Recreation Commission

CITY OF SALEM, MASSACHUSETTS JEAN A. LEVESQUE COMMUNITY LIFE CENTER 401 Bridge Street, Salem MA 01970 Tel. (978) 744-0180/(978) 744-0924 Robert McCarthy Fax (978) 219-1665 ACTING MAYOR Trish O’Brien Superintendent MINUTES OF THE SALEM PARK AND RECREATION COMMISSION March 21, 2023 A meeting of the Salem Parks and Recreation Commission was held on March 21, 2023, at 6:45 p.m., in person at 401 Bridge Street and via remote participation in accordance with Chapter 107 of the Act of 2022. Present were: Chair, Amy Everitt; Members: Bob Callahan, Johnel Roberts and James Shea; Tiffany Gaddis from Park and Recreation and Commission Clerk Joanne Roomey. Absent was Deborah Amaral. Ms. Everitt called the meeting to order at 6:45 p.m. 1. Approval of Park and Recreation Commission Minutes February 21, 2023 Mr. Callahan made a motion to approve the Park and Recreation Commission Minutes meeting of February 21, 2023. Mr. Roberts seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously. 2. Visitors and Requests: a. Golf Course Rates – Paul Lever, Superintendent of Olde Salem Greens Paul Lever did a comparison on the golf course rates at Olde Salem Greens, since they have not raised the rates for over three years. He suggested a rate increase of $1.00 across the board. When the cart paths are finished, he wants to increase the rates again. The cart rates are in line for now and he does not think it should be increased. They may be opening at the end of the month, weather permitting. The commission suggested a $1.00 increase for residents and a $2.00 increase for non- residents across the board and a $50 increase on everything for all residents and non-resident memberships across the board. There being no further questions or comments regarding this matter, Mr. Callahan moved to approve the $1.00 increase for residents, $2.00 increase for non-residents and $50 increase for seniors, residents and non-resident memberships at Olde Salem Greens. Mr. Roberts seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously. b. Luisa Boverini from Spur - Mural and Beehive at Palmer Cove Gardens N/A c. Sail Salem – Patty McLoud, Winter Island Sail Salem Program 1 Patty McLoud, Vice President of Sail Salem Community Boating appeared together with Paul McLaughlin, the President, and asked for permission to operate their camp program at Winter Island for the summer season of 2023. The program will begin June 26th and proceed to August 18th. They give out approximately 36 scholarships, 31 full and 9 partials. Also, they want to, once again, conduct their sunset Adult Sail program which will run Tuesdays and Thursdays, 5:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. from June 19th to August 25th. The Seafarers Program, which began in 2021, will have its third season and will give full scholarships, transportation and two meals per day to underprivileged Salem youths. They have never turned anyone down because of money. There are no restrictions on scholarships. They will be working together with Dave Gilbert and Bill McHugh. There being no further questions or comments regarding this matter, Mr. Callahan moved to approve the use of Winter Island for the Sail Salem Program. Mr. Roberts seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously. d. Justine Bodek, Salem Jazz and Soul Festival, Willows Shell, August 19, 2023 Mr. Bodek of 25 Large Road, Lynn appeared and wants to have a free music festival with approximately 35 to 40 vendors and workshop at the Salem Willows Shell. Salem High School Band with open for them. They will set up at 9:00 a.m. and end at 8:00 p.m. They have been a non-profit organization for 20 years. It is smaller than last years and it is only one day. There being no further questions or comments regarding this matter, Mr. Callahan moved to approve using the Willows Shell for the Salem Jazz and Soul Festival. Mr. Roberts seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously. e. John Maihos, Greek Picnic – Winter Island - Sunday June 25, 2023 (9 am - 9 pm) Dave Gilbert from Winter Island appeared together with Tina Manilakas from 1 Winter Island Road. Ms. Manilakas has been with Saint Vasilios Greek Orthodox Church for the past 12 years and they will be hosting the picnic. Mr. Callahan said for the past two years there have been issues of people taking over the island with no regard for protocols and rules. The biggest concern the commission and Mr. Gilbert have are the parking issues. If people come to Winter Island, not for the picnic, they have to pay $15 per car to park. If people are coming in for the picnic, they have to pay $5 per person in the car. Winter Island will get $7 per car, it does not matter how many people are in the car. Ms. Manilakas said they start serving food at 11:00 a.m. She comes in every year for a permit and wants to make sure there are no issues and the rules are followed. Some suggestions were to have someone at the gate earlier than 11:00 a.m. to charge accordingly. Also, the volunteers from the church should bring their cars around the function hall to park. Mr. Gilbert suggested getting plaques for the volunteers’ cars. There being no further questions or comments regarding this matter, Mr. Callahan moved to approve using Winter Island for the Greek Picnic. Mr. Roberts seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously. f. Doug Bollen, Boys and Girls Club, Wild Turkey 5 Mile Run – November 23, 2023 (8 am -10 am) 2  Socrates Trinidad appeared from the Boys and Girls Club to have the Wild Turkey 5 Mile Run. It is the same route as in the past. It will start at Washington Street West and finish at Essex Street, near the Visitors Center. There being no further questions or comments regarding this matter, Mr. Callahan moved to approve the Wild Turkey 5 Mile Run. Mr. Shea seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously. g. Brandi Dion – B + S Fitness: • Wild Fish Swim at Collins Cove on August 13, 2023, from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Mr. Dion appeared and said the Wild Fish Swim at Collins Cove is the same as last year’s, no changes. There being no further questions or comments regarding this matter, Mr. Shea moved to approve. Mr. Callahan seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously. • Devil’s Chase/Creepy Clown at the Willows Soccer Field on October 21, 2023 from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Mr. Dion said the Devil’s Chase/Creepy Clown at the Willows Soccer Field is going to be the same as last year’s. They are going to have a beer tent and they are aware that they have to go through the city’s Licensing Board for approval. Members of the public voiced their concerns about no policing of cars, the setup time of 5:30 a.m. being too early and moving the finish line so it is not so close to the abutters. Mr. Callahan said there will be more parking enforcement going forward and suggested hiring more police patrols. Ms. Everitt said they have never gotten any comments and if there are any concerns in the future, they should notify the Park and Recreation Department. There being no further questions or comments regarding this matter, Mr. Shea moved to approve. Mr. Callahan seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously. • Wicked ½ Marathon at the Willows on September 24, 2023, from 7:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Mr. Dion said the Wicked ½ Marathon is going to be the same as last year’s. He will also be getting a beer permit through the Licensing Board. There being no further questions or comments regarding this matter, Mr. Shea moved to approve. Mr. Roberts seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously. h. Tom Mistretta – Wicked Running Club – Miles Over the Moon at the Common on July 21, 2023 from 8:00 p.m. to 9:15 p.m. Mr. Mistretta appeared and said the Wicked Running Club supports College scholarships and High School Athletics. It is the same as the past several years with no changes. There being no further questions or comments regarding this matter, Mr. Shea moved to approve the Wicked Running Club to use the Common on July 21, 2023. Mr. Callahan seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously. i. Socrates Trinidad from Boys and Girls Club of Greater Salem – Family Fun Game and Dance on July 29, 2023, from 8:00 a.m. to 8:30p.m. 3  Socrates Trinidad and Juan Espinal appeared from the Boys and Girls Club and want to get approval for a fundraising event at the Salem Willows Shell. The main goal is to help children stay out of trouble and to keep them busy. They hosted a similar event in 2018 and 2019 called Summer Jam. It will include family fun activities, dance battle competitions, bouncy houses, a dunk tank, and competition games. Their big grand finale is partnering with Fly Kids for a dance group performance. The performance requires darkness because they use glow sticks and UV black lights, which are designed to make white- and neon-colored objects glow. Some of the neighbors were concerned about the noise and amplification level based on previous experience from events hosted in the past. Mr. Trinidad said he would ensure the speakers are raised and directed downward to greatly reduce the noise level. This method was implemented at the Boys and Girls Club event in 2019 after receiving feedback that the noise level was too high at the 2018 event. The Boys and Girls Club did not host an event 2020 – 2022. Neighbors were concerned about the set-up time starting before an approved 8:00 a.m. and ending after 8:00 p.m., the designated end time. Mr. Trinidad said he would make sure volunteers did not start setting up before 8:00 a.m. and request they be quiet in the morning. The commission acknowledged the concerns of the neighbors but said that it is a park and was built to be used. Mr. Trinidad said that he filled in the wrong end time for the event on the application and requested that the end time be changed to 9:00 p.m. so the kids can perform in darkness since the sun will not set until 8:07 p.m. There was a discussion about having the event at 9 p.m. The Commission decided that it should end at 8:30 p.m. Mr. Shea moved to approve the use of the Willows Shell for the Family Fun Games. Mr. Callahan seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously. j. Hope Watt-Bucci, North Shore Pride – North Shore Pride Parade at Shetland Park to Salem Common on June 24, 2023 at 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. Hope Watt-Bucci, president of North Shore Pride appeared and said this is their 10th Anniversary for the North Shore Pride Annual Festival. It is the same parade route as last year. They want to set up at 7:00 a.m. and breakdown at 6:00 p.m. They are going to increase police patrols, have undercover police and have bomb sniffing dogs there. The theme is Proud to Be Me. There will be approximately 90 vendors and an estimated 20,000 attendees. Mr. Shea said someone complained last year about bringing vehicles on the common because there was a camper parked there all night. The Commission wants to know how the vendors drop off their stuff and reiterated that NO vehicles are allowed to stay on the Common. Hope will coordinate with DPW on how to get vehicles on and off of the Common. There being no further questions or comments regarding this matter, Mr. Callahan moved to approve the use of the Common for the North Shore Pride Annual Festival. Mr. Shea seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously. 4 3. Vote for CPA Representative from Commission Mr. Shea made a motion for Robert Callahan to continue to be the CPA Representative from the Commission, as he did a fine job last year. Mr. Roberts seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously. 4. Old Business: None 5. New Business: None 6. Adjournment: There being no further business to come before the Salem Park and Recreation Commission this evening, Mr. Shea moved to adjourn the meeting. Seconded by Mr. Callahan. The meeting was adjourned at 8:30 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Joanne M. Roomey Commission Clerk Know your rights under the Open Meeting Law M.G.L. c. 30A §18-25 and City Ordinance Sections 2-2028 through 2-2033 5