Board of Park Commissioners

BOARD OF PARK COMMISSIONERS REGULAR MEETING MINUTES City Hall, 11th Floor Park Conference Room 455 N. Main November 19, 2012 3:00 p.m. Present: Tom Roth, Ron Allen, Bryan Frye, Andy Solter, Cindy Claycomb, Jerry Warren Absent: Randy Brown Also Present: Doug Kupper, Director of Park and Recreation, Christina Butler, Clerk, Scott Wadle, Mickey Lara, Hoyt Hillman, Phil Meyer, Barry Carroll The meeting was called to order at approximately 3:06pm. PUBLIC AGENDA None. REGULAR AGENDA Item 1: Approval of Minutes Motion by Warren, second by Claycomb, IT WAS UNANIMOUSLY VOTED to approve the minutes of the October 27, 2012, Board of Park Commissioners Regular Meeting (6-0). Motion by Claycomb , second by Solter, IT WAS UNANIMOUSLY VOTED to approve the minutes of the October 27, 2012, Board of Park Commissioners Retreat with changes as submitted (6-0). Item 2A: Southlakes Complex (Mike Brand) Kupper described location of the Southlakes complex and stated that a developer who would like to purchase a portion of the southeast corner of the complex. He introduced Mike Brand, the developer, and Phil Meyer of Baughman Company. Phil Meyer (315 Ellis, 67211) stated he would like to discuss the City’s ownership of the Southlakes complex and asked for the Board to consider allowing them to develop a portion of the land. He stated they were also talking to the landowner to the south of Southlakes. He stated if they could work this out, they know they can do the development which would be a residential duplex development. He stated they had applied for the zone change and it had been approved by City Council. He also noted that if they were successful in purchasing the additional two (2) pieces of land, they would expand the development. Mike Brand (2709 N. Wildrose) stated he had developed the property at 47th Street South and Meridian and would build similar to those homes, but they would be full faced brick duplexes. Frye referred to the map and asked what reserve E was in upper northwest corner of the property. Meyer stated it was where drainage would be located. Frye asked how much square footage was in question. Brand responded approximately 4-4.5 acres. Warren asked about the berm and the fence on the property. Frey asked if it was on park property. Kupper stated that it was, but the fence had been taken down and the landowner uses it to drive to his property. It is designated as Wichita Wild property. Brand stated there was a lot of brush. Warren asked if they would be opposed to switching the cul de sacs to face the other direction. Meyer stated if they did that, they would have two (2) less lots in the development. And he mentioned that the City’s preference was to have the road further away from the main arterial road which could be an issue with the City traffic department. Meyer then noted that Reserve 3 on the map was slated for retention for water and it would drain into the lake. He stated they would need an agreement to drain into the lake and they would clean the water prior to going into the lake which would not be a problem. He stated the lake would hold water after a storm and it is big enough to allow for the detention after a storm. Kupper asked if the fall of the land was directed to the lake. Brand responded it falls northwest into the lake. Meyer stated all of Seneca and 55th Street south ends up in the lake. Frye asked if there was public comment and there was none. Frye asked how the parcel was acquired. Kupper responded it was purchased in the 70’s or 80’s and is owned by the Board of Park Commissioners. Solter asked if there was any other intent for use of the land. Kupper responded there was not, and that it was just park property specifically for a buffer to the lake if there was future development to the east. He stated there is nothing on the east side of the lake because there are no residences on that side. He noted that there is no buffer on the west side so people are trespassing on the west side to get to the park. Frye asked if there was a parking lot on the south side. Kupper responded that yes there was a paved parking lot. Warren stated he had tried to come up with a win- win solution with another access point to the lake. He stated there are people who park in the lot and they would like another access point so they would not have to walk all the way around. He also noted there were a lot of “No Camping” signs, but that many like to stay past midnight to fish. He stated the berm is approximately 600 feet from lot 10 on the developers plan. He also noted there were some people who have encroached upon park property who have lake side property. Frye stated he would need to know the value of the land and wanted to get advice from Scott Lindeback on the water quality issue. Kupper stated if the Board chose to sell the land, they would need to ensure that there is pre-treatment system of the water as a stipulation of the sale. Frye stated there was nothing planned for it right now, but it is 4.5 acres that the Board owns. Warren suggested they could trade land once the Developer acquired the land from the other property landowner. Kupper stated they could still develop the area residentially without the park property. Frye stated they needed to find out the value of the property. Kupper suggested the Board ask Brand what he was paying per acre and the City’s value would be comparable. He stated the Board could keep the land and create walking paths and a playground to serve as amenities for the development. He asked if the lake would be big enough if they had a rainy season. He also noted the Board needed to decide if the philosophy of the Board is to put up all park property up for bid. Warren stated he walked the land to see if it made sense for a playground or walking path. He noted that Campus High School uses the park to run. Solter stated in the previous eight (8) years there was a sense of needing to hold on to the land and his feeling is they need to look at each situation individually and see if it made sense to trade for it or have additional resources. He stated he thought it needed to be considered and felt the Board should find out the value of the property. Meyer added that they had received a phone call from a concerned citizen about the zoning changes and how it would affect her property value. In the end, she was not opposed to the proposal. He noted he had not talked to John Philbrick because they wanted to have Park Board’s approval first. He stated that Brand is open to trading land and that he could come up with a layout for access to the lake. He stated that they would be open to negotiating for trading the land for moving the berm or landscaping. Frye noted the Board needed to look at the ground and give staff time to research the possibilities to see if it would benefit the Board to trade for accessibility. He also noted there was a time eight (8) years ago that the Board did not sell anything. Kupper stated at that time, Districts II and IV were underserved, so the Board purchased land to increase acreage. There have not added acreage in District IV. Frye stated when you look at the Southlakes acreage, it does not look like it adds much to the area other than the buffer and that should be taken into consideration. Kupper stated each time he bought land he has had to give up CIP dollars. Motion by Warren, second by Solter, IT WAS UNANIMOUSLY VOTED to direct staff to look at options and work with the developer and City staff to see what the best scenario would be and give the Board the best option. Claycomb suggested looking at options instead of just selling the land. Kupper stated it seemed illogical to consider this if the developer does not acquire the other landowner’s land. He stated he would recommend to not sell the land as a priority because the Board would probably never see the money from the sale of land. Frye and Claycomb asked why. Kupper stated it would go to the General Fund. They suggested that it could go to the PARC fund instead. Kupper stated he could have something ready for them by January. Item 3A: Shoreline & Riverbank Maintenance Plans for 2013 (Hoyt Hillman) Hillman (3705 E. Mt. Vernon, 67218) reviewed the organizations with which he works and the various projects they have worked on. He noted that they have concerns regarding salty water, stream maintenance on golf courses, and stream maintenance along the river bank itself. He noted they have identified nine (9) different areas for future river access points. He stated they had planted around the river to reduce the geese nuisance for about one mile in Riverside. He stated that Exploration Place now had an Americans with Disabilities (ADA) compliant pathway funded by donations and Park help. He stated a $10,000 dock had been purchased for Gander Mountain and they were just waiting for rain. He noted that they had made headway in 2012 and would like to change mowing practices to reduce geese droppings on sidewalks. He stated they were working on a green area approved by BG Industries, seeking approval for a dam near Harry Street, putting in wildflowers from Harry to Pawnee and seeking support for pathways from Kellogg to Lincoln and no-mow zones. Frye asked Hoyt’s organizations wished to do the same thing they did on the Little Arkansas River. Hillman stated they want to put in a green pathway. Claycomb asked him if he was asking for a no mow zone. Hillman responded that yes he was asking for a no-mow zone in order to get the geese to leave. He stated they needed to plant items the geese do not like to eat and they need to let it grow as tall as the geese. Barry Carroll (1134 N. Coolidge) stated he lived in Riverside and would be supportive of the no-mow zones. Frye asked if there were questions or other comments from the public. Solter asked if the only thing Hillman was requesting was a no-mow zone. Hillman responded that was it for now. Solter asked about the path. Hillman stated it would be part of the bike master plan. Kupper applauded the effort and stated he would like another year or two to see how Hillman’s organizations maintained what has been planted so far. He stated he thought letting Hillman and his organizations do their thing from Kellogg to the John Mack Bridge would be ok and would support it on the east bank. Motion by Solter, second by Claycomb, IT WAS UNANIMOUSLY VOTED to approve the no-mow zone from Kellogg to the John Mack Bridge on the east side (6-0). Item 3B: Goals and Objectives for 2013 Motion by Frye, second by Roth, IT WAS UNANIMOUSLY VOTED to approve the 2013 goals as corrected. Item 3C: Regional Bike Master Plan (Scott Wadle) Wadle from the Planning Department introduced himself and stated he had worked with the Steering Committee and presented the Draft Master Plan. He stated a survey had been completed and the three (3) things citizens were least satisfied with were 1) ease of getting around on a bicycle, 2) economic development, and 3) transit. He stated that more than 4,000 people were involved in the planning process. He stated that Park Board Commissioner Cindy Claycomb was a member of the steering committee. The steering committee had done an online survey and received 1600+ responses, had spoken to various focus groups, and had two (2) open house events. The goals of the steering committee became to increase the level of cycling and make it safer. The committee developed a city- wide network with facilities recommended and the priority networks being 150 miles at a cost of approximately $12.1 million. The top priority would be 42 miles at $4.4 million. He stated that priority off-street and on-street facilities had been developed based on public input and talking with staff. He noted that the Master Plan also includes a policy and programs and calls for a Bicycle-Pedestrian Advisory Board. Frye asked if the District Advisory Boards (DAB) and Planning had recommended endorsement of the plan. Wadle responded yes and noted that DAB V had voted to recommend Sunset Trail from Hoover Road to Goddard. Claycomb stated that the steering committee was a really hard working group who used citizen input to put into the plan. Solter asked if they wanted endorsement of the plan. Wadle responded yes. Frye asked if there was public comment. Barry Carroll (1134 N. Coolidge) noted he had served on the Steering Committee and had lots of public input. He was hopeful for the plan and the community and hoped that having the right amenities would make it possible and safe for cyclists. Frye noted that an email sent to the Board requesting not to approve the Master Plan had been forwarded to them for review. Motion by Frye, second by Claycomb, IT WAS UNANIMOUSLY VOTED to recommend the endorsement of the Master Plan (6-0). Kupper stated that Redbud and South Central paths were in the mix for this plan. Item 4: Updates from the Director and President Frye thanked the Board for donating for the Christmas tree for “A Night with Santa”. Item 4A: Golf Update (Don Harrison) Frye noted there was another Golf Committee meeting after the Park Board meeting where they would review financial data and looking at private versus public management of the courses. He stated that both the City and the private company had made their pitch to the Golf Committee and the committee would decide who they will recommend to City Council and the Park Board at a workshop in December. Frye stated that the Golf Division was having record breaking numbers in rounds played and net profit. He stated that the golf staff was doing a fantastic job. He also noted that other courses were not going to sit back and let this continue, so they needed to make sure the recommendation was sustainable. A. Item 4B: Recreation Update (Mickey Lara) Lara stated that the Athletics department offered both youth and adult programs with the two biggest programs being softball and football. He noted that adult softball continued to grow over the previous two years. He stated that adult flag football began at Southlakes with eight teams in the fall and they added a spring season with 25 teams. He stated that youth lacrosse is growing as well. They had started with 77 participants and had 108 and he felt it would continue to get better due to the better complex at Southlakes. He stated that youth t-ball started in 2010 with only 4 participants and had grown to 93 participants in 2012. He stated that youth football had 44 teams in 2010 and had grown to 91 teams in 2012 with over 2500 athletes. He noted that his profit was up more than $120,000. He also noted that one his accomplishments for the year was to host the first girls fast-pitch softball tournament with 60 teams that brought in $30,000 in revenue. Harrison added that Lara also scheduled City golf leagues. Item 5: Issues on the Horizon Kupper noted he was hosting a pizza party on Wednesday, November 21, for his Park and Recreation staff to celebrate their accomplishments and invited the Board to attend from 11:30-1pm in City Hall. Item 6: Adjourn There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at approximately 4:40pm. ______________________________________ Bryan Frye, President _____________________________________ Christina Butler, Clerk