Parks, Property & Streets Committee Meeting

1 PARKS, PROPERTY & STREETS COMMITTEE MINUTES 2 MONDAY, APRIL 6, 2026 3 (Approved) 4 5 1. Call to Order & Roll Call 6 April 6, 2026, meeting of the Parks, Property & Streets Committee was called to order by Committee 7 Chair Howson at 1:00 P.M. 8 9 Committee Members Present: Committee Chair Louise Howson and members Jerry Ahrens, Denise 10 Bhirdo, Nate Bell, and Mike Laszkiewicz 11 12 Staff Members Present: Village Administrator Benjamin Andrews, Parks & Streets Director Erik 13 Linczmaier, and Administrative Assistant Sarah Bertges 14 15 Public Present: Kathy Wagner, Steven Jarzombek, Abby Doobie, Erin Peddle, Via Zoom: Robert 16 Geitner, Laurel Harff, ph# xxx-xx-0915 17 18 2. Approve Agenda 19 Motion by Bhirdo, second by Bell, to approve the agenda. Motion carried – all ayes. 20 21 3. Approve Minutes: March 2, 2026, Regular Meeting 22 Bhirdo raised concerns about the ongoing list of future agenda items, noting that some items have 23 remained on the list for many months without resolution. She specifically mentioned waiting for a 24 bus grant update for nearly a year and expressed frustration about the lack of progress on various 25 items. Howson acknowledged the concern and indicated they would work through the prioritized 26 list. 27 Motion to approve the March 2, 2026 minutes as presented by Bell, Second by Ahrens. Motion 28 carried – all ayes. 29 30 4. Comments, Correspondence, and Concerns from the Public 31 No comments from the public. 32 33 5. Discussion/Action Items 34 35 a. Northern Door Sports and Recreation; Proposal; Facility Reservations Management 36 Andrews introduced Rachel Stollenwerk from Northern Door Sports and Recreation, who presented 37 a proposal for facility reservation management services. The proposal included options for either an 38 annual contract fee or revenue sharing arrangement to manage online reservations for various 39 village facilities including tennis courts, pickleball courts, and potentially other recreational facilities. 40 Stollenwerk explained that their service would provide an online reservation system allowing 41 residents and visitors to see availability and book facilities in real-time. She emphasized this would 42 improve customer experience by eliminating lengthy phone calls to staff and providing 24/7 booking 43 capability. The system would include features like reservation approval processes, scheduling 44 parameters, and customer service support. 45 Committee members discussed the scope of services extensively. Laszkiewicz inquired about the 46 business model and whether other municipalities used similar services. Bell and Bhirdo expressed 47 preference for starting with sports-related facilities (tennis courts, pickleball courts, sports complex) 48 rather than including all village facilities initially. There was consensus that facilities like Village Hall 49 and larger event spaces should remain under direct village control. 1  Minutes of the April 6, 2026, meeting of the Parks, Property & Streets Committee – Approved 1 Significant discussion occurred regarding credit card processing fees, with Bell and Bhirdo noting 2 that many businesses pass these costs to customers. Stollenwerk explained current limitations in 3 their payment processing system that prevent adding fees directly to transactions. 4 Bell advocated for a flat fee structure rather than percentage-based pricing for the initial year. The 5 committee reached consensus to proceed with a limited scope including tennis courts, gazebo, and 6 sports complex facilities, requesting a detailed proposal with pricing for the May meeting. 7 Motion by Ahrens, second by Bell to approve the concept as discussed for tennis courts, gazebo, and 8 sports complex, with detailed proposal to return to committee in May. Motion carried – all ayes. 9 10 b. Peninsula Kayak Company; E-Bike Storage Shed and Beach Bike Rental Proposal 11 Discussion regarding an updated proposal for an e-bike storage shed, addressing previous concerns 12 about materials and location. The revised proposal specified treated pine construction with painted 13 finish to match surroundings, and relocation further east from the water to comply with setback 14 requirements. 15 Committee members discussed the approval process and zoning compliance requirements. Bhirdo 16 emphasized the need to follow proper procedures and ensure plan commission review for zoning 17 compliance. 18 Motion by Ahrens to approve the proposal content and refer to plan commission for zoning review, 19 second by Howson. Motion carried 4-1 with Bell opposed. 20 21 c. Memorial Bench Policy Review 22 Andrews presented updated cost analysis showing actual costs of $4,781 per memorial bench 23 compared to current $1,000 fee. This includes full charge-out rates for staff time, materials, and 24 installation including concrete pads where needed. 25 Extensive discussion occurred regarding cost recovery and pricing structure. Bell emphasized using 26 charge-out rates to determine true costs to the village. Committee members debated whether to 27 recover full costs or subsidize memorial benches as a community service. Bhirdo suggested exploring 28 outsourcing the routing work to reduce labor costs and suggested contacting local woodworker Bob 29 Jischke for alternatives. 30 Linczmaier explained the time-intensive nature of the custom routing process and noted that 31 replacement benches on existing pads would cost less than new installations. He also raised a 32 specific issue with the Dick Burress bench damaged by village snow removal operations, where the 33 10-year agreement had expired. 34 The committee requested detailed cost breakdowns for both new installations and replacements, 35 exploration of alternative suppliers or methods, and clarification of warranty provisions with existing 36 vendors. 37 Policy discussion centered on implementing a tiered system with higher standards for premium 38 locations (Waterfront Park, Marina Park) and lower barriers for other locations (Sports Complex, dog 39 park, bike path). The committee agreed on updating the renewal process to place responsibility on 40 memorial sponsors to contact the village rather than village staff tracking renewals. 41 42 d. RFP for Architecture/Engineering; Future Administration Building 43 Andrews presented a draft Request for Proposals for architectural and engineering services for the 44 future administration building project. The RFP was based on the previous template with updates 45 specific to the new building site and needs assessment. 46 Bhirdo provided extensive editorial feedback on language, grammar, and content accuracy. Key 47 issues included updating references to needs assessment rather than "in house needs 48 development," correcting site description details, and clarifying the selection process. She 49 emphasized that scoring would not be the sole determinant of contract award, as the committee 50 would engage in discussion and evaluation beyond numerical rankings. 2  Minutes of the April 6, 2026, meeting of the Parks, Property & Streets Committee – Approved 1 Discussion addressed whether a property survey was prerequisite to issuing the RFP. Bell noted that 2 while a survey would be needed before design work begins, it may not be required for contractor 3 selection. Andrews agreed to research existing survey information in village files. 4 Bhirdo requested all changes be shown in track changes format for board review. Bell suggested 5 adding language clarifying that selection criteria are listed in no particular order of importance. 6 Motion by Bell to recommend the RFP to village board with amendments as discussed, second by 7 Howson. Motion carried -all ayes 8 9 e. Facility Rental Fees; Pricing for Non-Profit Organizations 10 Andrews reported that the Peninsula Symphonic Band had successfully made their reservation under 11 the existing policy. The committee reviewed the proposed nonprofit rental fee policy without 12 recommending changes from the previous version. 13 Bell raised concerns about ensuring actual nonprofit organizations use facilities rather than 14 individuals claiming to represent nonprofits. The committee agreed to add language specifying that 15 facility use must be by the nonprofit organization directly, not third parties operating on their behalf. 16 Motion by Bell to approve the nonprofit facility rental fee policy as modified, second by Laszkiewicz. 17 Motion carried – all ayes 18 19 f. Pavillion Rental; Fee Schedule 20 Andrews explained the need to establish separate pricing for pavilion stage rental at Waterfront 21 Park, as current fee schedules only addressed full park rentals. Previous charges had varied 22 inconsistently, with the symphonic band paying $75 last year. 23 Committee discussion centered on appropriate pricing levels and whether to differentiate between 24 amplified and non-amplified events. Ahrens suggested $250 initially, while the committee ultimately 25 settled on $200 for nonprofit organizations. Bell raised ongoing concerns about limiting rentals to 26 nonprofit organizations only, noting potential issues with objectionable nonprofit groups, but no 27 alternative screening method was identified. 28 Motion by Ahrens to establish pavilion stage rental fee at $200 for nonprofit organizations, second 29 by Howson. Motion carried – all ayes. 30 31 6. Staff Report, Board Update 32 Bhirdo expressed concerns about the unauthorized contract with Dan Warmbrodt for flower bed 33 management at post office, village hall, and marina locations. Linczmaier explained this was 34 budgeted landscaping support to replace volunteer Joy's services, with Warmbrodt recommended 35 by Joy and costing $6,100 annually. Howson clarified that she had been involved in the decision- 36 making process as Joy had indicated this would be her final year of volunteer service. 37 Discussion addressed providing Warmbrodt with the committee's approved plant list and potentially 38 having him attend a future meeting to discuss his vision and plans for the flower beds. 39 Regarding Mill Road landscaping issues, Ahrens expressed frustration that Door Landscape's original 40 plant recommendations were failing despite being selected specifically for the site conditions. 41 Andrews agreed to review warranty provisions and discuss replacement options with the vendor. 42 Committee discussion addressed tree planting timing and species selection. Linczmaier reported on 43 arborist Ivan's recommendations to substitute birch for oak trees and spring planting timing. Bhirdo 44 strongly objected to birch trees, citing their fragility and shorter lifespan compared to oak. The 45 committee directed staff to proceed with oak trees as originally planned rather than birch 46 substitutions, and to provide proper diagrams and documentation for the May meeting. 47 Howson raised concerns about dark sky compliance following recent articles about Newport State 48 Park's endangered dark sky designation. Bell noted that WPS streetlight conversions are ongoing and 49 emphasized the village's proximity to the park. 50 51 7. Matters to be Placed on a Future Agenda or Referred to a Committee, Official or Employee 3  Minutes of the April 6, 2026, meeting of the Parks, Property & Streets Committee – Approved 1 The committee discussed scheduling the annual walking tour for May, with specific date to be 2 determined at the next meeting. Andrews noted that the ongoing list of future items remains, with 3 several items expected to be resolved following action taken at this meeting. 4 5 8. Next Regular Meeting 6 The next regular meeting was confirmed for May 4, 2026 at 1:00 PM. 7 8 9. Adjourn 9 Howson thanked Bhirdo for her years of service on the Parks Committee and noted her professional 10 contributions to the village's parks and appearance standards. 11 Motion by Laszkiewicz, second by Ahrens to adjourn the meeting at 3:31 P.M. Motion carried - all 12 ayes. 13 14 Respectfully submitted by Sarah Bertges, Administrative Assistant. 4