Parks and Recreation Advisory Board

401 West Venice Avenue City of Venice Venice, FL 34285 www.venicegov.com Meeting Minutes Parks and Recreation Advisory Board Monday, October 21, 2013 3:00 PM Council Chambers I. Call To Order A Regular Meeting of the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board was held this date in Council Chambers at City Hall. Chair Linda Kenfield called the meeting to order at 3:01 p.m. II. Roll Call Present: 6- Chair Linda Kenfield, Joan Piper, Verna Silk, Vice Chair Charles Alfano, Jim Woods and Cindy Hicks Absent: 1- Steve Byington Also Present Ex-Officio Councilmember Emilio Carlesimo, Public Works Director John Veneziano, Sarasota County Sports Director and Athletic Manager Pat Calhoon , and Recording Secretary Susan Schult. III. Approval of Minutes 13-0235 August 19, 2013 and September 16, 2013 Minutes A motion was made by Mr. Woods, seconded by Ms. Silk, that the Minutes of the August 19, 2013 Regular Meeting be approved. The motion carried by voice vote unanimously. A motion was made by Ms. HIcks, seconded by Ms. Piper, that the Minutes of the September 16, 2013 Regular Meeting be approved. The motion carried by voice vote unanimously. IV. Audience Participation Lynn Moseley, Chairman of the Venice Area Beautification, Inc. (VABI) Art Committee, distributed a packet of information regarding a project to add sculptures in the downtown area. She stated the project would be funded and installed by VABI , the project would begin after the Sea Venice sea turtles and dolphins display is completed , and the statues would consist of three graces and nine muses. Discussion followed on some of the proposed locations being owned by the county, the approximate statue cost, researching the feasibility of the project, whether Ms. Moseley should make a presentation to the Public Art Advisory Board , maintenance of the proposed statues, how the artists will be chosen, the current number of statues in Venice, perhaps using one artist to sculpt all the statues, and possible locations for the statues. Ms. Moseley stated she would make another presentation to the board after she makes City of Venice Page 1 of 3 Parks and Recreation Advisory Meeting Minutes October 21, 2013 Board a presentation to the Public Art Advisory Board. V. New Business 13-0236 Improvements on Venice Beach - Judy Keeler, Venice Area Beautification, Inc. Ms. Kenfield reported she attended the VABI meeting this morning and learned they will be submitting an application today to the Gulf Coast Community Foundation for a $2,000 matching grant. She explained the funding would be used to contract a marketing firm to conduct a survey to gather public opinion on improvements for Venice Beach from its many users. This Presentation was heard and no action was taken. VI. Unfinished Business 13-0237 Dogs in Public Places Ordinance Mr. Veneziano reported staff has been working on the ordinance pertainaing to dogs in parks and it is almost complete. He displayed and reviewed a chart of proposed ordinance changes. Discussion ensued on whether dogs should be leashed, how long the leash should be, having uniformity in park signage, listing the code number on signs, enforcement, residents wanting a place for dogs to run and play, and the process for ordinance approval. This Presentation was heard and no action was taken. VII. Updates 13-0239 City of Venice Report Mr. Veneziano reminded the board of the Park Makeover Day on October 26, stated there are approximately 280 volunteers, the county is participating in the effort, as well as city staff, reported the Centennial Park restrooms were complete in time for the Sun Fiesta, and answered questions on whether the restroom facilities were sufficient during the Sun Fiesta, the installation date of the concrete dance floor in Centennial Park, and maintenance of Michael Biehl Park. He reported the spindles will be replaced on the concession stand railing at Humphris Park, the plantings around the dolphin statue were sprayed for disease, and stated pricing for memorial benches can be found on the city website. Discussion followed on the low price of the memorial benches, available locations for memorial benches, maintenance costs on the plaques on memorial benches, increasing the bench price, directional signage for Myakka River Park, whether the arboretum will be expanded, existing trees available for adoption, the neglected appearance of Venezia Park, removal of Australian Pines in Venezia Park being included in the parks master plan, board input on the plan, timeline for completion of the plan, the new community development director starting in November, the landscaping around the walkway in Chauncy Howard Park, having park signage explaining the naming of the park, adding information on park naming to the city website, and status of restriping the parking lot at Venice Beach. This Board Member Report was presented City of Venice Page 2 of 3 Parks and Recreation Advisory Meeting Minutes October 21, 2013 Board 13-0238 Sarasota County Report Mr. Calhoon stated the county will be repainting all the dugouts and some buildings at Wellfield Park, they will be cleaning up the exercise trail, and debris off the beaches, answered questions regarding maintenance of the landscaping at the Venice Depot , commented on the Rev 3 event being held on November 10, and encouraged board members to visit Wellfield Park during the evening to see how many leagues use the park. He reported the county is working on capital improvements at Wellfield Park including new fence fabric and shielding the lift station at Letson Stadium, talked about the installation of umbrellas at Venice Beach concessaire , and answered questions on parking at Wellfield Park during peak league times, redesigning the vacant spaces for parking, and the historic marker at Humphris Park. This Board Member Report was presented 13-0240 Miscellaneous Reports Ms. Kenfield confirmed the dedication of the new name for the arboretum will be held on December 14 at the tree lighting ceremony, talked about VABI’s contribution and work to decorate trees at the arboretum for the holidays, and touched on the activities at the ceremony. This Board Member Report was presented VIII. Adjournment There being no further business to come before this Board, the meeting was adjourned at 4:20 p.m. ________________________________ Recording Secretary ________________________________ Chair ********** City of Venice Page 3 of 3