Parks, Recreation & Forestry Advisory Board

CITY OF SPEARFISH 625 Fifth Street, Spearfish S.D. 57783 Telephone: (605) 642-1333 Parks, Recreation, & Forestry Advisory Board – MINUTES Thursday, Oct. 4, 2018 I City Hall – Council Chambers I 7:30 am Attendance: Mader, Rauterkus, Gefvert, Hanson, Coburn, Kelly, Hall, Lee, Clark, Donat, Peters, Neilson Meeting called to order: 7:32am APPROVAL OF AGENDA – Motion by Gefvert, Second by Coburn; Motion Carries APPROVAL OF MINUTES – Motion by Hall, Second by Lee; Motion Carries ITEMS FROM VISITORS (Policy Note: Visitors are limited to 5 minutes of presentation followed by questions) Director Updates  Pickleball o Reason for meeting date change, under strict deadline to apply for Land and Water Conservation Grant; grant is due at the end of the month. Parks and Rec Staff need a recommendation for the location of outdoor pickleball courts also looking for support in applying for grant. Mader proposes the location be in the City Park where the old Tennis/Basketball Court currently sits. This location would require the least amount of sod being torn up, it is the most cost effective, and overall the most beneficial place. Current issues at hand, the surface would have to be increased by 30 feet in length, there is also a flood plain issue; which could be resolved. o A letter written by Cheryl Johnson was read. She had expressed her concerns about City Park not being the best place for the outdoor pickleball courts. The main points in her letter were the noise level pickleball would cause, how frequently the basketball court was being used, the high use of City Park in general (weddings, festival, concerts, special events, etc.). o Mader had stated that the plan would be a max of 6 pickleball courts installed down there for recreational use only. Justin Griffith, pickleball group president, stated that after seeing the popularity of their last tournament these courts would not hold any tournaments and that they have an ongoing agreement with the Tennis Association to use the tennis courts at the High School. o Rauterkus had talked to the Tennis Association and confirmed that they no longer use the tennis courts in the City Park for play. o Public comments were made; one lady had agreed with the letter from Cheryl Johnson and expressed concerns about noise level and worried we are going to “love” the park Next Meeting – Nov 15, 2018 7:30 am Council Chambers  CITY OF SPEARFISH 625 Fifth Street, Spearfish S.D. 57783 Telephone: (605) 642-1333 too much. Another lady had mentioned that she talked to the closest house to the proposed location and stated they were very excited for the pickleball courts to be installed and were not concerned about the noise. o Mader, Coburn and Hall have been leads on the Land and Water Conservation Grant, they would be asking for a $75,000 grant. Hall mentioned that the location and repurposing of the tennis courts would hit major points the grant looks for. o Coburn moved to approved the site location in the City Park at the Tennis Courts and designate it for pickleball. Second by Hall; Motion Carries o Peters moved to keep space multi use, by keeping basketball hoops in place to allow for more than just pickleball to be played on the surface. Second by Gefvert; Motion Carries o Hansen moved to support applying the Land and Water Conservation Grant, to support the building the pickleball courts in the proposed location. Second by Kelly, Motion Carries  Splash Pad o Needs to start moving forward – Meeting this afternoon between Lions Club and Mader, will inform board via email on progress. Board Items Park & Forestry Rec & Aquatic Center Any Further Public Comments: - No further public comment Meeting Adjourned: Motion by Gefvert, Second by Coburn; Motion Carries Next Meeting – Nov 15, 2018 7:30 am Council Chambers