Parks and Recreation Commission

City of Sunnyvale Meeting Minutes - Final Parks and Recreation Commission Wednesday, September 12, 2018 7:00 PM Council Chambers, City Hall, 456 W. Olive Ave., Sunnyvale, CA 94086 CALL TO ORDER Chair Kenton called the meeting to order at 7 p.m. in the Council Chambers. SALUTE TO THE FLAG Chair Kenton led the salute to the flag. ROLL CALL Present: 3 - Chair Ralph Kenton Vice Chair Daniel McCune Commissioner Henry Alexander III Absent: 1 - Commissioner Craig Pasqua Commissioner Craig Pasqua (excused) Council Liaison Michael Goldman (present) ORAL COMMUNICATIONS Alice Mansell, member of the public, shared a white paper report on ice sports on behalf of the Silicon Valley Ice Skating Association. Ms. Mansell expressed the growing demand for ice sports in the Bay Area and provided the Commissions with additional details for an ice rink in Sunnyvale. Chair Kenton thanked the speaker for the information and encouraged Ms. Mansell to include additional statistics. Superintendent of Parks and Golf, Jim Stark, advised Ms. Mansell that she may contact the recording secretary and request to be included as an agenda item to the Parks and Recreation Commission agenda. This would provide the Commissions an opportunity to review the white paper report in detail and ask questions of Ms. Mansell. CONSENT CALENDAR City of Sunnyvale Page 1 Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes - Final September 12, 2018 1 18-0695 Approve the Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes of July 11, 2018 Vice Chair McCune moved and Chair Kenton seconded the motion to approve the Parks and Recreation Commission meeting minutes of July 11, 2018 as submitted. The motion carried by the following vote: Yes: 3 - Chair Kenton Vice Chair McCune Commissioner Alexander III No: 0 Absent: 1 - Commissioner Pasqua PUBLIC HEARINGS/GENERAL BUSINESS 2 18-0422 Recommendation to City Council to Approve a Special Agreement between the City of Sunnyvale and Unique Boutique for the Operation of a Gift Shop at the Sunnyvale Senior Center. Director of Library and Community Services, Cynthia Bojorquez, provided the staff report. Ms. Bojorquez stated that the Special Agreement with Unique Boutique had expired in 2009 and while the Unique Boutique continued to operate in accordance with the expired agreement, a new agreement is required to bring them to compliance with the City's current standards. Tonight's recommendation from the Parks and Recreation Commission will be reviewed by City Council on September 25, 2018. Chair Kenton open the item for public comment and there being no public comments, closed the public hearing. Commissioner Alexander III asked if other vendors were considered for the Senior Center. Ms. Bojorquez replied that the Unique Boutique was the only vendor considered at this time. Commissioner Alexander III inquired if staff requested input from seniors. Ms. Bojorquez replied that the City's priority was to bring the Unique Boutique into full compliance with a new agreement and input was not requested. Ms. Bojorquez stated that she will take into consideration Commissioner Alexander's inquiry on community input moving forward and will reevaluate the agreement once the agreement term is up. City of Sunnyvale Page 2 Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes - Final September 12, 2018 Vice Chair McCune moved and Chair Kenton seconded the motion to recommend to Council Alternative 1: Recommend that the City Council approve and authorize the City Manager to execute the Special Agreement with Unique Boutique. The motion carried by the following vote: Yes: 3 - Chair Kenton Vice Chair McCune Commissioner Alexander III No: 0 Absent: 1 - Commissioner Pasqua 3 18-0418 Recommend to City Council Approval of the Conceptual Design for the Fair Oaks Park Renovation Project Assistant City Engineer, Nathan Scribner provided the Parks and Recreation Commission with a brief overview of the Conceptual Design for the Fair Oaks Park Renovation Project report. Fair Oaks Park is an “Old English” themed 15-acre park centrally located within the City. The proposed project is to provide major renovations to the park and ensure its sustainability for the future, increase attractiveness and optimize recreational use. The project will incorporate an all-inclusive playground designed by Magical Bridge Foundation which was approved by Council in 2017. This playground is a separate Capital Project. Staff are working with a target construction cost of $11.7 million (exclusive of the playground) and staying within the existing footprint of the park. Mr. Scribner provided the Commission with an overview of the conceptual design which includes: all-inclusive playground; multi-use sports field with artificial turf and lighting; two picnic areas; new restroom facility; a new parking lot and replacement of basketball courts. The conceptual design is based on a combination of feedback from the community, City staff and the goals of the City Council approved Capital Project. Mr. Scribner provided an overview of the project outline and next steps. Council will consider this item at their October 16, 2018 meeting. Commissioners asked: 1) What features were removed due to the City’s construction budget? 2) Will there be a reduction in picnic sites? 3) What will be eliminated to allow for the increase in playground size? City of Sunnyvale Page 3 Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes - Final September 12, 2018 4) Will there be a significant impact to water usage with the installation of synthetic fields? 5) Has the City considered partnerships with outside organizations for possible funding of the park and/or park features? Mr. Scribner noted: 1) Features removed from the conceptual design include batting cages and a dog park. 2) The number of picnic sites are approximately the same; however, for operational efficiencies the sites have been consolidated. 3) Due to water use and maintenance cost, the current water feature will be replaced with water misters. 4) There will be a substantial reduction in water usage given that the park currently has approximately 10-acres of irrigated turf. 5) Olenka Villarreal, founder of the Magical Bridge Foundation, provided the Commission with an overview of the agreement between the City of Sunnyvale and Magical Bridge Foundation. Chair Kenton opened the public hearing. The following members of the public spoke in support of incorporating a cricket pitch at Fair Oaks Park with some also requesting cricket/multi-sport use batting cages: Raj Badoni Yashveer Arya Biju Nair Ganesh Prasad Prakash Giri Meera Kant Sunder Sarangan Hari Chirra Rohan Shah Biju Abhi Rabisheh G. Commissioners inquired on possible locations of a cricket pitch at Fair Oaks Park. Mr. Scribner presented possible locations and constraints including the challenge of finding a surface material for the pitch that is soft enough to safely be included in the multi-use field, but firm enough to perform well when used playing cricket. Staff is continuing to explore various materials and portable options. City of Sunnyvale Page 4 Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes - Final September 12, 2018 Commissioners inquired on anticipated usage by other sporting groups outside of cricket. Community Services Manager Nancy Grove noted that the park is used by Pop Warner as their home field; several baseball/softball youth and adult leagues and drop-in soccer programs. She also noted that staff anticipates there will be an increase of usage once the synthetic field is installed. Commissioners inquired on Sunnyvale Cricket Club’s membership size and percentage of members residing in Sunnyvale. Membership size is approximately 100 with 50% of its members residing in Sunnyvale. There being no additional public testimony, Chair Kenton closed the public hearing. Vice Chair McCune moved to recommend to Council approval of the Preferred Site Plan as shown on attachment 6 of the report. FRIENDLY AMENDMENT: Commissioner Alexander III offered a friendly amendment that there be an exploration into the cost of synthetic vs organic material and also the cost of expanding the batting cage length. Vice Chair McCune declined to accept the friendly amendment. Vice Chair McCune moved, and Commissioner Alexander III seconded, to recommend to Council approval of the Preferred Site Plan as shown on attachment 6 of the report. The motion carried by the following vote: Yes: 3 - Chair Kenton Vice Chair McCune Commissioner Alexander III No: 0 Absent: 1 - Commissioner Pasqua STANDING ITEM: CONSIDERATION OF POTENTIAL STUDY ISSUES None. NON-AGENDA ITEMS & COMMENTS -Commissioner Comments City of Sunnyvale Page 5 Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes - Final September 12, 2018 Chair Kenton inquired on the recruitment and applications received for the Parks and Recreation Commission and when the vacancy would be filled. Staff will provide the Commissions with the number of applications received and interview dates as requested. -Staff Comments Superintendent Jim Stark invited the Commissioners to attend the State of the City to be held on Saturday, September 15 from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. in Downtown Sunnyvale and Redwood Square. ADJOURNMENT Chair Kenton adjourned the meeting at 8:45 p.m. City of Sunnyvale Page 6