Star Parks, Arts & Beautification Committee Meeting

City of Star Parks, Art & Beautification Committee (PAB) Monday, July 17, 2023, 6:36 PM 10769 W State St, Star, ID 83669 @ Star City Hall 1. Roll Call PRESENT: Chair Gerri McCorkle, Vice Chair Chris Cox, Staff Liaison Ryan Field, Rod McClure, Arlene Nelson, Vicki O’Keefe, Claudia Sanders, Sue Speer ABSENT: Council Member Jennifer Salmonsen, Stacey Camara 2. Approval of June 12, 2023 Meeting Minutes. Rod made a motion to approve the minutes, Arlene seconded, vote was unanimous. 3. Committee Member Discussion/Reports/Updates 3A. Council Member Liaison Report Discussion was deferred until a future meeting. 3B. Committee Treasurer Report / Budget – Arlene Nelson Arlene presented an updated treasurer report dated 7/16/23 that reflects information she received from the City Clerk/Treasurer’s office through last week. She said City Clerk/Treasurer Jacob Qualls noted that additional payments have occurred from PAB funds that are not included in the report yet. Ryan and Jacob met on Friday and will be meeting more frequently going forward. Since the previous report, $210.00 was recorded for Art by the River expenses, $943.75 for the city hall art display, and $288.00 for the Make Star Shine Spring Senior Center flowers. (Arlene subsequently noted that the original quote was for $288.00, but the purchase was for $252.00). $80.00 was recorded as a donation from Steve Green for the Make Star Shine Spring Senior Center flowers. $175.00 was reported for revenue from the pet fair to date. Gerri anticipated that the pet fair event came close to breaking even. $25.00 was recorded as revenues for Art by the River and Opera by the River (each) and Vicki asked what these amounts represented as she did not believe any funds had been received yet. Ryan will follow up with the City Clerk/Treasurer’s office. Arlene said she believes the $6,500.00 reported as dog brick revenues represents the program from inception to date, not necessarily in this fiscal year. $1,661.67 was previously donated to Hand & Paw, another $1,661.67 was allocated to Green Heart Rescue, and the $1,761.66 remainder was designated for dog park improvements by PAB. Gerri said that she has requested documentation (Form W-9, etc.) from Green Heart Rescue multiple times over several months and has not received it. The committee discussed whether it should consider SS Page 1  City of Star Parks, Art & Beautification Committee (PAB) Monday, July 17, 2023, 6:36 PM 10769 W State St, Star, ID 83669 @ Star City Hall donating this amount to Hand & Paw instead. An action item may be included on a future agenda. A question was raised about which dog park improvements PAB should invest in, and Sue said that the request she has heard the most often is for a shade structure. Ryan will ask the mayor about the status of the shade project. Additional suggestions were for a kiosk, benches, and trash cans. 3C. Building Trash Receptacles Ryan mentioned that the city would like to build wooden boxes to hold park trashcans so they would not blow over in the wind. Sue provided a picture of a wooden trashcan box in Blake Haven Park and asked if that would be a relevant example. Ryan said yes. The box is weathered, and Gerri asked if PAB could paint them or introduce artwork on the boxes. Ryan said the committee could pursue those ideas if they wished. Ryan said the city has some available wood for the project but would like more. Gerri suggested building the trashcan boxes might be a good Eagle Scout project. 3D. Holiday Lights Program Discussion was deferred until a future meeting. 3E. Yard Work for Seniors Ryan mentioned in the last PAB meeting that he occasionally encountered seniors who were unable to care for their yards and he requested possible PAB volunteer assistance. Gerri asked if there were any current needs. Ryan said no and he would raise the issue with PAB if that changed. 3F. (Blake Haven) Park Bathroom (and Fence) Painting Jennifer reported last month that the mayor requested PAB volunteer assistance to paint the bathroom and fence at Blake Haven Park. Sue visited the park yesterday, took pictures, and shared them with PAB. She noted that the bathroom paint might benefit from some freshening up, but that painting or staining the gazebo seemed to be a greater need. She noted that there was graffiti including profanity written on the gazebo. She was uncertain which fence the mayor requested to be painted, the split rail fence along the north side or the small amount of privacy fence that the park shares with a homeowner on the northwest side. The fence on the other sides is vinyl. 3G. Art by the River (ABTR) – Vicki O’Keefe Vicki anticipates 54-55 artists will use 56 booth spaces and 33 crafters will use 39 booth spaces. She estimates the booths will generate approximately $12,000 in application fees, in addition to SS Page 2  City of Star Parks, Art & Beautification Committee (PAB) Monday, July 17, 2023, 6:36 PM 10769 W State St, Star, ID 83669 @ Star City Hall whatever amount food trucks will pay. The application fees are due by 7/31 with a refund available for any cancellations before 8/15. Vicki and her ABTR project group identified tasks that they would like volunteer assistance with for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday of the show. Vicki created sign-up lists for these tasks and distributed them to PAB. Vicki will be meeting with her ABTR project group soon and will provide the lists to Sue afterwards for input into the Sign-Up Genius page. Vicki provided an updated list of ABTR budgeted expenses, which totaled $6,139.81. Vicki anticipates selling 63 wine glasses at $10 each. Ryan submitted a request for multiple Square credit card devices to process these credit card sales. The other wine glasses will be gifts for the artists. Vicki presented the net ABTR expense amount as $5,509.81. $342 for PAB logo yellow vests will be re-classified to another PAB budget line item as the vests will be used at a variety of events. $400 was budgeted for ABTR security, but Chris said he might be able to recruit volunteers to staff 2 person shifts from Fri 10 PM – Sat 6 AM and Sat 10 PM – Sun 6 AM. He requested to park an RV at the Riverhouse overnight, and Ryan said yes if it is moved by the next morning. Vicki budgeted $1,000 for food for dinner on Friday, breakfasts on Saturday and Sunday, and an awards reception on Saturday night. She said that the ABTR project group initially planned to feed 50 people, but the count might be closer to 100. Ryan asked if any of the food would be cooked at the Riverhouse and said that he would need to research what food safety protocols should be met. Claudia mentioned there are Central District Health certification requirements. If the protocols for serving a hot menu would be too cumbersome, it could be possible to revise the menu. Another possible solution would be to request Star Senior Center staff prepare the cooked items and transport them to the Riverhouse. Vicki said she spoke to the mayor about presenting awards at the reception on Saturday night and Ryan added this event to the mayor’s calendar. Vicki said one of the art show judges is married to a gentleman that works at Townsquare Media. He offered a discount media package to promote radio spots and broadcast live throughout the show. Vicki would like to raise $1,500 by Friday and has raised $785 to date. If the amount cannot be raised in time, contributions will be returned. One out-of-town artist previously requested permission to park an RV near the Riverhouse during the show. Another out-of-town artist recently requested permission to park a truck and camper. Ryan felt these requests could be accommodated, but expressed concern that the City might have too many similar requests in the future. He suggested limiting requests to SS Page 3  City of Star Parks, Art & Beautification Committee (PAB) Monday, July 17, 2023, 6:36 PM 10769 W State St, Star, ID 83669 @ Star City Hall approximately 5 spaces and allowing for reservations on a first come/first serve basis going forward. 3H. Opera by the River (OBTR) – Vicki O’Keefe Vicki estimated that PAB may spend approximately $50 for snacks for the performers’ “green room”. No other OBTR expenses were anticipated. Ryan said that City Public Information Officer Dana Partridge received a bill for a paid ad in the Star Spirit Magazine. Vicki said that she did not request a paid ad in the magazine and said that she did not believe the City should pay the bill. Ryan said that he was not proposing any changes to the OBTR event this year but would like to see the City disassociate itself from the OBTR event going forward. He said the City’s Riverhouse policy is to allow only 501(c)(3) charities to use the property at no cost. The performers, Gemma Arts, are a for-profit organization but were offered free rent. Vicki said that she would like to see OBTR re-occur because it was a benefit to the community. Ryan suggested possible solutions include charging rent for OBTR or forming a charity to support the event. 3I. Exercise Equipment Westpointe Park Installation – Claudia Sanders Ryan talked to Mayor Chadwick about the equipment installation today. He will talk to Building and Grounds Superintendent Bob Little about his team installing the equipment, but the time schedule is uncertain. 3J. Pet Fair 2023 Recap – Gerri McCorkle Gerri said the Waggin’ Tails pet fair was a success and approximately 20 vendors participated. One suggestion was to move the pet fair to the lawn next year, which would free up the parking lot and be less hot on the dogs’ paws. A pet parade or dog costume contest was also proposed. 3K1. Safety Rings – Chris Cox and Rod McClure Rod contacted HOAs to confirm their contact information and his spreadsheet of 63 subdivisions is saved in the PAB Google Drive. Chris identified Star subdivisions with ponds from Google Earth and roughly half have ponds. Chris and Rod met with a board member from Rockbridge, and they were interested in approximately 5 safety rings. Chris and Rod will be meeting with board members from Celestial Springs tomorrow. A young child drowned in a pond at Celestial Springs several years ago. Chris said that purchasing treated wood posts and setting them in concrete seemed too expensive. He suggested T posts. Chris’s son-in-law works at Home Depot and Ryan said that Mayor Chadwick has a contact at Lowe’s if discounts or donations could be available. Ryan said if any of the subdivisions are ready for installation, he will arrange for the purchase of parts. SS Page 4  City of Star Parks, Art & Beautification Committee (PAB) Monday, July 17, 2023, 6:36 PM 10769 W State St, Star, ID 83669 @ Star City Hall 3K2. Sea Tow Grant Safety Life Vests – Claudia Sanders Grant terms require that the safety vest stand be installed. Claudia informed the grantor organization that construction was taking longer than expected. She will need to provide an update by July 31st. Ryan said that Mayor Chadwick requested that the safety vest stand not be installed by the Riverhouse ponds soon due to concerns it would be in the way of ongoing construction. Gerri suggested a temporary installation by the art barn to allow residents to borrow one as they walk from the parking lot to the ponds. This solution could allow for the report to be completed before July 31st and the stand could be moved closer to the ponds later if desired. Ryan will follow up regarding installation. 3L. Traffic Box Art Update – Sue Speer Since the last meeting, Sue launched the second phase of the traffic box art program. She said that the artists’ application period is approximately 50% over, with the application deadline set for August 7th. She has already received a few submissions. All but one artist who applied last year contacted her to say that they would be submitting artwork again, and approximately a dozen other artists have expressed interest either through email or Facebook. The traffic box call to artists post has received 4,000 page views on Facebook to date. Arlene asked if there was a limit on the number of designs each artist could submit. Sue said that she was previously concerned about too few applications rather than too many, but that it could be prudent to set a limit for a future project cycle if the number of entries per artist becomes an issue. Sue noted that the City of Meridian limits its artists to three designs each per cycle. Sue received a few questions about a limit from artists and each artist said that they planned to submit less than three entries. 3M. City Hall Art Wall Update – Gerri McCorkle Linda Aman’s art was recently displayed at city hall and will remain for approximately three months. It is anticipated that new artwork will be displayed quarterly. PAB will need to determine eligibility rules and create an application form at a future meeting. Vicki said the Ada County art guide will include a mention of the city hall art display. 3N. Planning – 2024 PAB Workshop Discussion was deferred until a future meeting. 3O. Planning – Make Star Shine Discussion was deferred until a future meeting. SS Page 5  City of Star Parks, Art & Beautification Committee (PAB) Monday, July 17, 2023, 6:36 PM 10769 W State St, Star, ID 83669 @ Star City Hall 3P. Planning – Veterans Banner Program – Chris Cox and Rod McClure Chris and Rod recently met with City Public Information Officer Dana Partridge. Dana will be organizing the Veterans banner project and she and banner vendor Julee Elliott will be working on the designs. The banner will feature a two-sided design and sponsorship will be offered at $100 each. The materials cost will be $50-$60 each. Julee requested that she receive applications as sponsors submit them, rather than all at once. Arlene asked about a renewal option, and Chris made a motion, Sue seconded, and it was approved unanimously to allow sponsors who choose to pay a $25 renewal fee to display their banner for a second year. Donors who choose not to renew could keep their banner. The expected useful life of a banner is a few years. Dana drafted an application form which the committee reviewed. PAB added an application deadline of August 18th and clarified that a portion of the profits rather than 100% of the proceeds will be donated to Operation Grateful Hearts (a veterans’ charity). This timeline should allow 2 weeks for printing and 2 weeks for the City’s building and grounds department to hang the banners before the target date of Sep. 11th. Most poles already have brackets, but some do not. Ryan said that Building and Grounds Superintendent Bob Little will be providing the City with a cost estimate for the brackets needed for the other poles and estimated that it might cost $1,000. Dana submitted an article about the program to the Courier. Dana will be providing Sue with Facebook post artwork and text for a Facebook post soon. Dana requested that Sue post it on the PAB Facebook page, and Dana will then share that post on the City of Star’s Facebook page. Miscellaneous Discussion Ryan said that construction of the Riverhouse entry garden will likely not happen until after the fiscal year-end on 9/30/23, but he would insure the budgeted $9,100 for this project is spent before year-end. Ryan said the City continues to collect park impact fees, but the funds are being spent (primarily for Freedom Park) faster than they are collected. He believed that the city is meeting its percentage of park space per city resident recommended in the City’s comprehensive plan. Chris discussed a variety of options for the kiosk message board design. Waggin’ Tails Park was considered a top priority for locations. Suggested information included a park map, rules, and QR codes to allow purchases of dog bricks and dog licenses. Gerri said that she envisioned a stand-up bulletin board type design that included a cover that could be opened to update information. She suggested the frame and posts should be a Trex-like material, rather than wood to better withstand the elements. Chris said that the city he previously worked with SS Page 6  City of Star Parks, Art & Beautification Committee (PAB) Monday, July 17, 2023, 6:36 PM 10769 W State St, Star, ID 83669 @ Star City Hall employed prison labor for light construction projects, and this could be a cost-effective option to build the frames. Arlene suggested a future action item to move funds from the G/L code #8000 volunteer expenses budget line item to #6000 kiosk message boards. Ryan said that any unused funds in the PAB budget as of 9/30/23 would be transferred to the general fund but could be re-transferred to the PAB budget in the next fiscal year. Arlene and Sue requested confirmation of this policy as it was different than what the committee was previously told. Sue asked Ryan if there had been any follow-up since the City’s 8/1 budget meeting about interest income in FYE 9/30/24. She noted that the mayor said the City had approximately $12 million in cash and FYE 9/30/24 interest income was set at $20,000, for an effective interest rate of .17%. She and Rod said that money market funds are currently available at 5% rates. Ryan said that the City’s IT employee transferred PAB’s email to new starpab.org email addresses today. Log-in information should be the same. As of today, it appeared that email from the old staridaho.org email addresses is automatically forwarded to the new email addresses. Ryan recommended that the PAB committee fundraise for its projects. Rod mentioned a concern that nothing indicates that PAB committee members represent the City, such as business cards. He raised the possibility that non-committee members could represent that they were fundraising on behalf of the City when they in fact were not, and embezzle the money. Gerri asked what authority PAB had to fundraise on behalf of the City. Ryan said that PAB did not need authority to fundraise, and that the committee should be self-supporting. Discussion was held about the appropriate role of City committees. 4. Committee Recommendations to City Council 4A. Make Star Shine Item Purchases Discussion was deferred until a future meeting. 4B. Veterans Day Banner Program Item Purchase See Item 3P. 4C. Discussion and Potential Purchase of Committee Event Banner Discussion was deferred until a future meeting. 5. Adjournment at 9:50 PM. The next meeting will be 8/14/23 at 6:30 PM at Star City Hall. SS Page 7  City of Star Parks, Art & Beautification Committee (PAB) Monday, July 17, 2023, 6:36 PM 10769 W State St, Star, ID 83669 @ Star City Hall _/s/____________________________ Sue Speer, Secretary SS Page 8