Parks, Recreation & Forestry Advisory Board

Parks, Recreation, & Forestry Advisory Board – AGENDA Thursday, October 26th, 2023, City Council Chambers 7:30 A.M. City Spearfish is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting. Topic: Parks, Recreation, & Forestry Advisory Board Time: Oct 26, 2023 07:30 AM Mountain Time (US and Canada) Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84738986322 Meeting ID: 847 3898 6322 --- One tap mobile +12532050468,,84738986322# US +12532158782,,84738986322# US (Tacoma) --- Dial by your location • +1 253 205 0468 US • +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma) • +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston) • +1 669 444 9171 US • +1 669 900 9128 US (San Jose) • +1 719 359 4580 US • +1 689 278 1000 US • +1 301 715 8592 US (Washington DC) • +1 305 224 1968 US • +1 309 205 3325 US • +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago) • +1 360 209 5623 US • +1 386 347 5053 US • +1 507 473 4847 US • +1 564 217 2000 US • +1 646 558 8656 US (New York) • +1 646 931 3860 US Meeting ID: 847 3898 6322 Find your local number: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kdcV9dxBP Next Meeting – November 16th, 2023, 7:30 A.M. Council Chambers  Parks, Recreation, & Forestry Advisory Board – AGENDA Thursday, October 26th, 2023, City Council Chambers 7:30 A.M. CALL TO ORDER ROLL CALL DECLARATION OF ANY POTENTIAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST APPROVAL OF AGENDA APPROVAL OF MINUTES • Approve minutes from the August Advisory Board meeting. • Approve minutes from the September Advisory Board meeting. PUBLIC COMMENT ITEMS FROM VISITORS (Policy Note: Visitors are limited to 5 minutes of presentation followed by questions) • Approve the request from the Spearfish Youth Baseball Association to convert open green space to T-Ball infields. OLD BUSINESS Board Items • Question and answer session on the October staff update. NEW BUSINESS Parks, Rec, and Forestry • Discuss the Lookout Mountain grazing lease. UPCOMING DISCUSSIONS • November-Lookout Mountain grazing. • January-PRFAB appointments and election of officers. FYI ITEMS • Sktate Night-November 3rd • Thanksgiving Closures • Holiday Market-December 9th Next Meeting – November 16th, 2023, 7:30 A.M. Council Chambers  Parks, Recreation, & Forestry Advisory Board – AGENDA Thursday, October 26th, 2023, City Council Chambers 7:30 A.M. • Fee Resolution ADJOURNMENT Next Meeting – November 16th, 2023, 7:30 A.M. Council Chambers  Parks, Recreation, & Forestry Advisory Board – MINUTES Thursday, August 17th, 2023, City Council Chambers 7:30 A.M. The meeting was held in the Council Chamber and is available at: https://vimeo.com/858018575?share=copy CALL TO ORDER 7:31 A.M. ROLL CALL In attendance were Caldwell, Coburn, Dardis, Griffith, Neilson, Reth, Running, Weigel, Winterstein, and Clark. Also in attendance were P & R Director Ehnes, SRAC Facility Superintendent Rauterkus, Parks Maintenance Superintendent McDonald, and Front Desk and Concession Coordinator Heiting. DECLARATION OF ANY POTENTIAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST No conflicts of interest were declared. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Coburn moved, Caldwell, seconded, and all voted to approve the agenda. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Director Ehnes made a comment that the July 20th, 2023, minutes were amended to include comments made by Running. Coburn moved, Dardis, seconded, and all voted to approve the minutes of the July 20, 2023, meeting as amended. All voted to amend the July minutes as stated. PUBLIC COMMENT Public comment was opened at 7:36 A.M., with no public comments received. OLD BUSINESS Board Items • Question and answer session on the August staff update. o Ehnes informed the advisory board that the city has been awarded the grant that will provide solar lighting for the recreational path. o Reth questioned when the decision will be made regarding the skatepark grant. Ehnes stated that the grant request has been submitted and we are currently waiting for their response. o Neilson questioned if trees will be affected by adding a practice pickleball pad at the City Park. McDonald stated that they have met with the pickleball association president on location. Due to the location of the practice pad, the trees will not be affected. Next Meeting – September 21st, 2023, 7:30 A.M. Council Chambers  Parks, Recreation, & Forestry Advisory Board – MINUTES Thursday, August 17th, 2023, City Council Chambers 7:30 A.M. o Weigel questioned the donations that are being requested for the Rocketship renovation. Ehnes stated that the city is not involved in the Rocketship renovation process, however, the city-funded playground is progressing well. o Clark requested more information be provided to the Advisory Board regarding a change in employee benefits. If approved a free family membership will be provided to all city employees. The current membership policy provides a free membership to the city employee only. Ehnes stated that the city is encouraging wellness within the city and believes the new proposed policy would increase wellness among the city employees and their families. o Caldwell questioned if the art walk grant funding is still available and if the city is planning on completing this project. Ehnes stated that the individual who was taking the lead on the project has not had any recent communication regarding the project. Caldwell questioned if the funding could be released for the use of other projects. Ehnes stated that due to the project being funded through a grant, the money must be used for the specific project. o Motion to change location to Sky Ridge. Reth moved, Dardis, seconded, and all voted to change location to Sky Ridge. NEW BUSINESS Board Items • Adjourn to Sky Ridge for Sportsplex Tour. UPCOMING DISCUSSIONS • Pay-to-Play System o Ehnes discussed that a pay-to-play discussion will be discussed in future advisory board meetings. • Lookout Mountain Grazing o A 5-year grazing lease will end this year, and a discussion will be held regarding a future grazing lease. • 2024 Fee Changes (picnic shelters, water park fees) FYI ITEMS • Dog Days scheduled for September 5th. • Pickleball tournament at City Park on September 23rd and 24th. • Disc Golf tournament at City’s disc golf course on September 10th. • Skate Nights return on October 6th. Next Meeting – September 21st, 2023, 7:30 A.M. Council Chambers  Parks, Recreation, & Forestry Advisory Board – MINUTES Thursday, August 17th, 2023, City Council Chambers 7:30 A.M. ADJOURNMENT Dardis moved, Caldwell, seconded, and all voted to adjourn at 9:01 A.M. Next Meeting – September 21st, 2023, 7:30 A.M. Council Chambers  Parks, Recreation, & Forestry Advisory Board – MINUTES Thursday, September 21st, 2023, City Council Chambers 7:30 A.M. The meeting was held in the Council Chambers and is available at: https://vimeo.com/868487261?share=copy CALL TO ORDER 7:31 AM ROLL CALL In attendance were Caldwell, Dardis, Griffith, Neilson, Reth, Running, Weigel, and Clark. Also in attendance were P & R Director Ehnes, SRAC Facility Superintendent Rauterkus, Parks Maintenance Superintendent McDonald, City Attorney McDonald, City Administrator McFarland, Mayor Senden, and Front Desk and Concession Coordinator Heiting. Absent: Coburn, Winterstein. DECLARATION OF ANY POTENTIAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST No conflicts of interest were declared. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Caldwell moved, Dardis seconded and all voted to approve the agenda. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Weigel motioned to table the approval of the August 17th minutes due to not being included in the packet. Reth seconded, and all voted to approve the motion to table the approval of the minutes. PUBLIC COMMENT Public comment was opened at 7:32 AM with no comments received. OLD BUSINESS Board Items • Question and answer session on the September staff update. o Ehnes provided an update on the Rocketship renovation at Evans Park. Ehnes met with the team that is renovating the Rocketship to discuss surfacing for the project. The fundraising committee for this project has brought in roughly $15,000.00. Due to the continued cost of supplies, the Rocketship renovation team is discussing returning to the city to ask for more funding to finish the project. o Clark questioned if the city was planning on having a grand opening for the playground that was installed by the city. Ehnes stated that the construction of the playground is completed with the surfacing scheduled to be completed by the end of September. Ehnes agreed that when the project is completed, a ribbon cutting/grand opening would be possible. Next Meeting – October 26th , 2023, 7:30 A.M. Council Chambers  Parks, Recreation, & Forestry Advisory Board – MINUTES Thursday, September 21st, 2023, City Council Chambers 7:30 A.M. o Clark suggested that a grand opening event would be a great opportunity to draw the community to the park to see the progress and encourage the community to donate to the Rocketship renovation. o Weigel questioned if the height of the slides was compliant with current safety standards. Ehnes stated that the slides are manufactured to the appropriate height and meet all safety standards, but do seem abnormally close to the ground. o Caldwell questioned when the skatepark structure was scheduled to be removed. Ehnes stated that the school has not been in contact since receiving the letter from Superintendent Easton informing the city of the need for removal. The timeline given to the City was fall of 2024, the city will schedule removal prior to September 2024. o Neilson questioned if there are any activities planned for this fall at the Sportsplex. Ehnes stated that due to the buildings being under construction, appropriate amenities are not available. Depending on the construction status, and if alternative amenities are available, the fields may be available for play in the spring of 2024. o Neilson questioned the status of the naming rights for the Sportsplex. Ehnes stated that due to the large task of raising two million dollars, a firm has been hired to assist in the fundraising efforts. NEW BUSINESS Director Items • Discuss sports field pay-to-play structure and establish a sports field task force. o Ehnes presented a presentation regarding a pay-to-play structure for all organizations utilizing field space. o Weigel discussed her concern about the financial stability of different organizations and allowing all organizations the opportunity to utilize adequate field space, regardless of being able to obtain the funds required. o Dardis questioned what happens with the assets purchased by the organization that will be used at the Sportsplex. Ehnes stated due to different organizations using the field space, all assets purchased by organizations will need to be dedicated to the city due to the complexity of use. o Caldwell commented that due to the complexity of different organizations using the equipment, a dedication of equipment would eliminate any conflict if the equipment is deemed unplayable as well as continue to be aware of field space regardless of equipment contribution. Next Meeting – October 26th , 2023, 7:30 A.M. Council Chambers  Parks, Recreation, & Forestry Advisory Board – MINUTES Thursday, September 21st, 2023, City Council Chambers 7:30 A.M. o City Administrator McFarland commented on his past experience with different municipalities and expressed the need for a collaborative view from the board, as well as the need for continued discussion on community needs as well as cost recovery. o Griffith commented that a pay-to-play structure provides a more precise rental. Organizations that reserve the field space are more aware of utilizing the space for the reserved time. Griffith stated that there is a difference in field availability and field reservations. Implementation of a new structure would eliminate monopolizing field space. o Clark discussed the organization's responsibilities and required maintenance that would be eliminated if the city were to implement a pay-to-play structure. The city would be responsible for all maintenance and continued upkeep throughout the seasons, therefore eliminating tasks required from the organization. o Griffith discussed creating a task force to help create discussions with different organizations to develop a plan to navigate any potential restructuring. o Caldwell moved, Weigel seconded and all voted to assemble as a task force to study the MOU pay-to-play process. o Ehnes requested that nominations for task force members be submitted via email. Rec & Aquatic Center Items • Adjust the 2024 fees at the Spearfish Rec and Aquatics Center. o Rauterkus discussed a fee increase for the waterpark fees and summer programs. As well as a new fee structure to remove the non-resident rate for various government buildings and all shelter reservation fees. o Weigel expressed concern over the increasing cost of admission, Rauterkus explained the obstacles the facility experiences with hiring and the increase in the cost of operation. o Weigel questioned if the Rec Center offers a scholarship to help families in need of assistance with the purchase of services offered by the Spearfish Rec Center. Ratuerkus discussed the scholarship opportunities and advised anyone who is in need of assistance is welcome to fill out and submit a scholarship application. o Ehnes discussed the different services that are provided and how scholarship fees are allocated. o Reth questioned if it would be an option for staff to ask for donations that would assist with the scholarship fund when completing a transaction. Rauterkus agreed that Next Meeting – October 26th , 2023, 7:30 A.M. Council Chambers  Parks, Recreation, & Forestry Advisory Board – MINUTES Thursday, September 21st, 2023, City Council Chambers 7:30 A.M. asking for a small donation fee is a great idea to help build the scholarship fund to help assist those in need. o Caldwell moved, Dardis seconded and all voted to approve the fees as presented. FYI ITEMS • October meeting date o The October Advisory Board meeting has been rescheduled to October 26, 2023, due to a scheduling conflict. • PRF Advisory Board Compensation o Starting January 2024, Advisory Board members will be compensated $60.00 per meeting. ADJOURNMENT o Griffith moved, Reth, seconded and all voted to adjourn at 8:50 A.M. Next Meeting – October 26th , 2023, 7:30 A.M. Council Chambers The plan is to remove the grass and install infield material in areas highlighted in yellow. Create infields for two T-Ball Fields.  AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY Board Items-Old Business DEPARTMENT: ___________________________________________________________ REQUEST: Question and answer session on the October staff update. JUSTIFICATION: (attach any additional justification and/or documentation) This is our standing Q & A session for board members to have their questions answered regarding the monthly staff update and any other questions they may have for the staff. N/A FUNDING:___________________________________________________________ RECOMMENDATION: N/A ________________________________________________________ MEETING DATE PRFAB:_________________________ 10/26/23 Deadline: Friday 12:00 PM prior to board meeting, send electronically to the SRAC Admin Assistant.  October Park, Rec, and Forestry Advisory Board Update Director Update: Exit 8 Rec Path Expansion: The City’s consultant has addressed the concerns of the SDDOT regarding the Exit 8 underpass. The changes were made and plans were sent back to the DOT. The DOT has accepted the plans and has sent the project to the bid letting department. The project should be bid this fall/winter with the project set to begin in the spring of 2024. Sports Complex Both phases of the sports complex are nearing completion. Phase one is expected to be substantially complete by the end of the month with only some punch list items to complete over the winter and into next spring. Ainsworth-Benning is finishing up Phase two and the only major lift yet on that phase is the signage and wayfinding which is scheduled to be started this week. Staff are working with Blue Peak and Northern Hills Technology to install fiber optic and have internet installed over the winter. Aside from any major setbacks, the complex should be open for play next spring. The City Council gave initial approval to hire the Instigo Agency as the City’s fundraising partner. Staff are reviewing the contract and will begin working with Instigo staff to begin a campaign to raise $2 Million. Skate Park The funds requested for 2024 to design the skate park were approved in the 2024 budget. As the year gets closer, staff will sign the agreement and let the American Ramp Company start on the construction design of the skate park. PRF Board members have started compiling some ideas on fundraising events for this next year. Evans Park The contractors started the renovation in August. So far, they have leveled the structure and poured a new base. The slides have been renovated and wet set to make sure they fit. Sandblasting and painting were completed last weekend. As of the last report on the Facebook page, they still need to raise approximately $25,000. The City’s portion of the project is complete and there has been no shortage of kids playing on the new equipment. The City hosted a small ribbon cutting on Tuesday, October 10th with members of the PRF Board, City Staff, City Administration, Chamber of Commerce members, and community members present.  October Park, Rec, and Forestry Advisory Board Update Spearfish Community Foundation Project Phase one of this project is complete with all but one AED installed and operating. The rec center tower still needs to be installed. After the first of the year, staff will work with the SCF to begin phase two of the project, which includes several more parks along with other important landmarks within the City of Spearfish. Bandshell Staff are working with Williams and Associates to finalize the construction plans for the bandshell. Staff will put out an RFP for a Construction Manager at Risk in the coming weeks. The timeline is to have a contract in place by early January so Park Staff can remove the existing bandshell and make way for the new construction. Staff hope to have the new bandshell completed in time for the annual Festival in the Park event in July. Staff will also be applying for a T-Mobile grant for $50,000 to try and help fund the project. Pay-to-Play I have reached out to many communities around the state to gather information on how they interact with their school districts and Universities. I also requested information on how much they charge associations along with how they manage the scheduling of their facilities. To date, I have only received three replies out of ten requests. I will continue to work on setting up a task force and work to get meetings scheduled for this winter. Grants To date, staff have applied for four grants (Wellmark Foundation for the Bandshell, RTP grant for solar lighting along the rec path, the LWCF grant for the skate park, and the Spearfish Community Foundation for the AEDs.) We recently received a letter stating that we received $158,757 towards installing more solar lights on the rec path. This phase will include City Park, Rotary Park, Log Cabin area, and Salem Park. Parks Maintenance Superintendent Update 1. Evans Park playground a. The new playground and standalone features have been installed and are open 2. Sky Ridge playground a. The new playground was installed at Sky Ridge and will open once significant construction has been completed at the complex 3. Spartan Park bleachers – 2023 CIP project  October Park, Rec, and Forestry Advisory Board Update a. 4 new bleachers and concrete pads were assembled and installed at Spartan Park upper field 4. Memorial Tree program a. 3 Memorial Trees were planted this fall at Brady Park, City Park, and Rotary Park 5. Bee City USA a. The Resolution was signed by Mayor Senden and the application submitted to become an affiliated member of Bee City USA b. The Bee City Committee meets every third Thursday of the month at 10:00 AM at City Hall 6. Jorgensen bridge repairs a. Engineering specs and materials have been delivered to fix the Jorgensen pedestrian bridge that sustained damage during the June flash flood event b. Repairs were completed last week by the park staff. 7. Ballfield fertilizing a. Fall fertilizing of all the ballfields in town has begun 8. Community Food Forest fence a. A new fence was installed this summer around the Community Food Forest at Spartan Park b. Fencing material was covered by a grant from the State of SD DANR and the labor provided by Parks staff acted as the city’s in-kind contribution 9. Park Tech position filled a. Billy LeRoy was hired as our newest Park Technician and began his employment on 10/1/23 b. Billy worked as a seasonal employee this summer and will now be managing the Rose Hill Cemetery Rec Center Facility Superintendent Update Indoor Memberships: • Our membership on 10-13-23 was 2,324. This is a decrease of 14 members since the last report and an increase of 188 from one year ago. • We have 256 24-hour memberships. This number is not included in the above number since you must have an active regular membership to be eligible for the 24-hour membership. This is an increase from the last report. o On the same date in 2022, we had 234 24-hour memberships. • 499 members use 1 of the 5 insurance reimbursement programs we belong to. This is an increase of 17 since the last report. • We have 251 adults who have a membership that is not part of a family membership and 256 adult couple members.  October Park, Rec, and Forestry Advisory Board Update Indoor Day Passes: • Between September 13th and October 13th, we sold 286 adult day passes, 312 youth day passes, and 5 walking day passes. Averaging 19.5 per day, this is a decrease of 2.5 per day since the last report. o During the same period last year, we averaged 20 passes per day. • Year to date we have sold 3,084 adult day passes. 227 more than last year. 251 walking day passes, 151 less than last year. 4,056 youth day passes 547 less than last year. In total, we have sold 7,391 day passes which is 471 fewer day passes this year than last year. Membership Scans: • Between September 13th, and October 13thwe had 7,105 membership scans averaging 229 per day. This is 98 less per day than the last report. This number also includes waterpark memberships. o This is 1080 more scans than the same period last year. • Year to date we have had 98,415 membership scans averaging 344 scans a day. o In 2022 during the same period, we had 79,450 membership scans. Point of Sale: • January 1st through October 13th, point of sale has done $481,051.67 in sales. This is an increase of $14,820.34 compared to the same time last year. • Since the last report, we have had $12,003.51 in sales. • Our best-selling concessions item this period was Gummy Burgers with 342 sold. This is an average of 11 per day. Waterpark: • The covers are on the pools, and all the outside areas of the waterpark are ready for winter. We have a few items to finish up in the pump house. Staffing: o We have filled our positions and are currently fully staffed. Programming: • Leagues: o We are currently in the middle of the youth flag football season there are 35 1st and 2nd graders, 30 3rd and 4th graders, and 17 5th and 6th graders for a total of 82 kids  October Park, Rec, and Forestry Advisory Board Update playing this year. We changed to a 7 on 7 format instead of 11 on 11. We have 8 teams in total. o We are halfway through the 5-on-5 basketball season. There are 6 teams registered, and about 65 people participating. • Holiday Market: o The Holiday Craft Fair Market is scheduled for December 9th. We already have 89 vendors booked for the event. We limit it to 121 booths. We had so many people interested that we decided to open more vendor booths and will be using both basketball courts, and the lookout room. • Archery: o We are offering two Introduction to Archery classes in November and both of them are full with 10 participants each, and there are 6 people on a waitlist. • Skate Night: o Our first skate night of the season was October 6th. There were 118 skaters and 17 spectators for the event. o We offer Skate Night once a month through April. Fitness: • The October schedule is out and includes Silver Sneaker classes, HIIT Classes, Fusion Classes, Spin Classes, Line Dancing Classes, Karate, and Zumba. The full schedule and class descriptions are available on our website. • Pound o Our fitness instructor just got certified to teach POUND (fitness class with weighted drumsticks) we will start offering it as a class in November. • We are continuing to improve the weight room. We painted part of the new wall and have painted a few other items in the area.  AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY Parks and Rec DEPARTMENT: ------- - - - - --------- REQUEST: Discuss Lookout Mountain grazing lease JUSTIFICATION: (attach any additional justification and/or documentation) The most recent grazing lease for Lookout Mountain expired on 9/15/23. This discussion is meant to provide a historical context for cattle grazing on Lookout Mountain and explore grazing options in the future. FUNDING:_N_/_A_____________________ RECOMMENDATION: -------------------------- NIA MEETING DATE PRFAB: 10/26/23 Deadline: Friday 12:00 PM prior to board meeting, send electronically to the SRAC Admin Assistant.