Parks and Recreation Commission

City of Sunnyvale Meeting Minutes - Final Parks and Recreation Commission Wednesday, September 13, 2023 7:00 PM Online and Bay Conference Room (Room 145), City Hall, 456 W. Olive Ave., Sunnyvale, CA 94086 CALL TO ORDER Chair Kesting called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. SALUTE TO THE FLAG Chair Kesting led the salute to the United States flag. ROLL CALL Present: 4 - Chair David Kesting Commissioner Daniel Bremond Commissioner Prashant Gattani Commissioner Prakash Giri Absent: 1 - Vice Chair Dona Mason Council Liaison Klein (present) PRESENTATION A 23-0709 Youth and Teen Overview Recreation Service Manager, Jesus Raygoza, provided an overview on the Youth and Teens programs. Highlights included: summer camp report, total participants, locations, Columbia Neighborhood Center programming, teen programming, recruitment and training, benchmarking, surveys, and recreation scholarship program. Commissioners inquired and staff responded: How many people participate in the free drop-in gym? Staff will follow up. ORAL COMMUNICATIONS Dan R., Gary T., Elise L., Carole S., Chris D., Clark H., and Gina R. are proponents City of Sunnyvale Page 1 Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes - Final September 13, 2023 of the City exploring a dog off-leash area (DOLA) trial. The Cities of Mountain View, Los Altos and Cupertino have launched DOLA trials. Residents notated that a trial period would allow Sunnyvale staff to gather feedback. Previously a study issue was proposed. CONSENT CALENDAR Commissioner Bremond moved and Commissioner Giri seconded the motion to Approve the Parks and Recreation Commission Minutes of August 9, 2023 as submitted. The motion carries by the following vote: Yes: 4 - Chair Kesting Commissioner Bremond Commissioner Gattani Commissioner Giri No: 0 Absent: 1 - Vice Chair Mason 1 23-0859 Approve the Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes of August 9, 2023 PUBLIC HEARINGS/GENERAL BUSINESS 2 23-0060 Recommend to City Council Approval of the Preferred Concept Plan for the Lakewood Park Renovation Project Senior Engineer, Bennett Chun, provided a presentation on the Preferred Concept Plan for the Lakewood Park Project. Highlights included: park background, park boundaries, project budget, project scope and goals, community input process, timeline, preferred site plan, multi-use synthetic turf field, natural grass field, all-inclusive playground, dog park, splash pad, picnic area, skate park, court light improvements, restroom/concession building, walking paths/circulation, sustainability goals, pro and cons of synthetic turf and natural grass, next steps, and staff recommendation. Commissioners inquired and staff responded: Outside of the synthetic field, will LED lights be installed on the remaining school grounds? No, the joint use agreement allows for the City to maintain the field, but not the school grounds. Will the fencing be 100% around the field? No, during community outreach City of Sunnyvale Page 2 Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes - Final September 13, 2023 residents asked for an open concept. The field will be 50% enclosed. Can staff clarify why the presentation says "potential" hitting cage in the concept plan? The city has identified locations for multi-use batting cages, but will need to find a partner to finance a portion of the project. The estimated price for a hitting cage is approximately $250K. Has staff considered installing a net in the unfenced portion of the field to catch fly balls? Staff have not considered that, but can explore if budget permits. Commissioner Kesting opened for public comment. Gail G., Brad M., Jason D., Damon J., Mike L., Steve G., Biju N., Greggory D., Ben D., Albert T., and Anush M. support the use of turf. Highlights included: the City cannot professionally maintain grass fields, turf allows for year-round use, can be used shortly after inclement weather, and allows for a higher density of use. Susan H., John K., Andrea W., Carrie L., Courtney J., Mary B., and Daniel H., opposed the use of turf. Highlights included: creates a heat island affect, use of toxic materials, no feasible recycling process, potential for injury lawsuits, and recommends the City explore the use of Bramuda grass which uses 50% less water. Commissioner Kesting closed public comment. Commissioners inquired and staff responded: How much of Lakewood Park will be converted to synthetic turf? 20%. Will turf debris drain into the storm drains? The turf field will have a drainage system directly below the field, so debris shouldn't flow into the storm drains. During the planning phase, did staff conduct a cost/risk analysis on the use of grass vs. turf? No, staff does not have that data. During the planning phase, staff was instructed to increase usability. How much water does the City save when converting grass to turf fields? Substantial. Up to 90%. Does the City have injury data on turf fields? No. City of Sunnyvale Page 3 Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes - Final September 13, 2023 Can the City specify that poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) not be used as turf materials? The City will follow state guidelines on turf materials. Can the City specify terms on the lifecycle process of the turf? Yes, it is possible. We have been working with other communities on their language for chain of custody, and finding environmentally sensitive ways to dispose of turf materials. How can the City mitigate turf run-off into the storm drains? Turf field will be designed to drain vertically. Additionally, the City can install walk-off mats for patrons to stomp particles off their shoes. Chair Kesting proposed to add the following friendly amendments to the recommendation: 1. To mitigate PFA use in artificial turf (declined) 2. To add end-of-life cycle information (declined) 3. Design park to limit runoff of PFA onto the surrounding field (declined) 4. Remove "potential" for batting cage and include into preferred concept plan (approved) Commissioner Bremond moved and Commissioner Giri seconded the motion to Approve Alternative 1: Recommend that City Council Approve the Preferred Concept Plan as shown on Attachment 6 of the report with the friendly amendment to remove "potential" for batting cage and include into preferred concept plan. The motion carries by the following vote: Yes: 4 - Chair Kesting Commissioner Bremond Commissioner Gattani Commissioner Giri No: 0 Absent: 1 - Vice Chair Mason STANDING ITEM: CONSIDERATION OF POTENTIAL STUDY ISSUES 3 23-0806 Online Database of All City Owned Property Commissioners discussed the potential study issue for online database for all city owned property. They voiced concerns and notated that members of the public can submit a public records request. Chair Kesting withdrew the study issue proposal. City of Sunnyvale Page 4 Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes - Final September 13, 2023 4 23-0807 2025 New Trees in Sunnyvale in 2025 Commissioners discussed the potential study issue for 2025 New Trees in Sunnyvale in 2025. They discussed adding an incentive that would promote residents to plant more trees. Commissioners voted and sponsored the study issue. 5 23-0856 Late Night Lights at Public Parks Commission moved to postpone discussion for Late Night Lights at Public Parks study issue to next meeting. 6 23-0857 Making the city owned property at West Evelyn & Matilda Place open and accessible to the public with a retrofit of the existing bus terminal sign abandoned at that location. Commission moved to postpone discussion for making the city owned property at West Evelyn & Matilda Place open and accessible to the public study issue to next meeting. NON-AGENDA ITEMS & COMMENTS -Commissioner Comments Commissioner Giri recommends staff look into alternatives for synthetic turf. -Staff Comments None. INFORMATION ONLY REPORTS/ITEMS 8 23-0860 Parks and Recreation Commission Proposed Study Issues, Calendar Year: 2024 Commission approved to add study issue regarding increasing planting trees to the 2024 study issue list. ADJOURNMENT Chair Kesting adjourned the meeting at 10:08 p.m. City of Sunnyvale Page 5