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HomeMy WebLinkAboutParks Commission minutes - 10-11-17.docx Yakima Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes for October 11, 2017 Commissioners Present: Chairman Rod Bryant, Vice Chairman Paul Williams, Roger Lewis, Josette Gonzales, Stacy Hackenmueller, and Dulce Gutiérrez, Yakima City Council Liaison Absent and Excused: Jo Miles, Matt Tweedy, Rosana Bravo and Brynn Kloster Staff present: Ken Wilkinson, Parks & Recreation Manager and Jenise Sanders, Administrative Secretary for Parks & Recreation Call to Order Welcoming everyone in the audience and viewers watching on YPAC, Chairman Rod Bryant called the nd meeting to order at 5:34 p.m. at City Hall in the Council Chambers, 129 North 2 Street, Yakima, Washington. Approval of the Meeting Minutes from September 13, 2017. It was Moved by Roger Lewis, Seconded by Josette Gonzales, to approve the Minutes as written from the September 13, 2017 Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting. The motion carried unanimously. Harman Center Programs Update – Leslie Richards, Recreation Program Supervisor Ken introduced Leslie Richards, Recreation Program Supervisor at the Harman Center to speak about the programs and events happening. He stated she joined the City in July and has been working on bringing new ideas to the Center as well as continuing and refining many of the great programs we already have. Ken advised that she moved here from Tennessee and is originally from Alabama. He added that we are very pleased to have her, her husband and their two children in the Pacific Northwest. Leslie began by talking about some the new programs that started this season; creative coloring group that meets every Tuesday at 2:00, yoga meets on Tuesdays at 5:30 with the same instructor that teaches the Tai Chi class, th Michael Moritz. She advised they started the Classic Movie Nights, with the first one on October 5, th Singing in the Rain. The next movie will be on October 19, Frankenstein, starring Boris Karloff. My Fair ththth Lady will be on November 16, White Christmas on November 30 and December 14 Holiday Inn. Leslie advised that at each of the movie nights there are refreshments served and a raffle. She stated it is a free th event and everyone is invited. The Halloween Dance and Costume Contest is coming up on October 27. There will be a DJ, raffles and costume contest. The event is open to everyone and cost only $3.00 per th person or $4.00 per couple. Leslie continued that the Holiday Bazaar is planned for November 4 from 8:00 to 3:00. She advised it is almost full already and may have only 8 out of 60 tables left. She stated rd they had their first arts and crafts class on October 3; they made a sock scarecrow and had a fantastic thth turnout. The next class will be November 7 and they will be doing rock painting and on December 5 they will be making a wreath frame. She advised is it $5.00 for the class and all supplies are included. The th Veterans Day Social is coming up on November 9 to honor all of those who have served. There will be nd cake and punch served. The Santa Breakfast is on December 2 from 8:30 to 11:30 and this year they are incorporating activity tables for the children; decorating sugar cookies, 2 kids’ crafts and a hot cocoa bar. Leslie reported they are also starting education programs each month. She advised in October the Alzheimer’s Association will be teaching about knowing the 10 signs of Alzheimer’s, in November the Red Cross is coming in to teach emergency preparedness and in December Connect Hearing will be in to teach about hearing loss. These classes are free to the public. Josette Gonzales commented that these all sound like great activities going on at the Harman Center. Ken stated they are also working on putting to together the trips and tours for 2018, but they are not ready to disclose those just yet. Leslie explained a little about the quarter newsletter. She stated they just had the Potato Feed the night before and 170 people were in attendance. Roger Lewis stated he would like for the Park Commission to wish Leslie a long and successful career. Leslie thanked them. She stated the turnouts for the events and programs have been great. They just started a program called Reliving Rock n Roll, where they come to listen to music from the 50’s and 60’s and learn a little bit of history about the songs. Leslie spoke about the Lunch & Learns that will begin in December. There will be a light lunch provided and there will be a learning session presentation. Those will be done every third Thursday of the month. She stated is already lining them up for 2018 and is almost all booked already and each month will have a different theme. Discussion followed. Ken thanked all the volunteers from Senior Inc. for the work they did for the Potato Feed last night. Discussion followed. Rod requested that the Park Commissioners receive the newsletters. Discussion followed. Leslie passed out some flyers for upcoming events. Ken stated that Leslie has done a great job of keeping Facebook and the website updated. 2018 Parks and Recreation Proposed Fee Increase Ken advised that their packets include some information regarding the proposed 2018 fees for Parks and Recreation. He stated that increasing fees is not something they take lightly. The objective is to plan as many activities, events and programs as possible at the lowest cost possible. They want as many people as possible to be able to afford to participate in the programs and activities that they choose to. Sadly, the costs for providing those activities and programs are increasing. He stated that one of the biggest driving forces for the proposed fee increase is the increase in minimum wage. He continued that it went from $9.47 in 2016 to $11.00 per hour in 2017 and will increase to $11.50 in 2018. This is a significant cost for Parks and Recreation due to the fact that we rely heavily on temporary employees. Ken advised that with the budget process going on right now, the staff felt that to be fiscally responsible, this proposed fee increase is necessary at this time. Ken stated that the staff aimed for about a 7-8% increase, which is not a lot, and fees have not been increased since 2013. Ken explained the program fee formula that is used to develop the fee amount and that it is pretty standard. He advised there has been an increase in administration costs and that is reflected in the formula. Ken advised that staff has done some research on the fees for picnic shelter reservations around the state and ours are lower than the average. The increase in the cost for staff to clean and maintain the shelters also impacted the decision to increase the fee. Ken stated the larger groups that rent the parks and shelters do increase the amount of cleanup and maintenance needed after an event. He also stated that they have found that having an onsite park staff member for the event is beneficial. One thing that is new is the rental of picnic tables and benches. He said there have been a few requests for the last year so they decided to add it to the fees. The biggest challenge is for staff to deliver and pick-up quickly and safely. Rod asked about the charge for the inflatable in the Park Reservation section. Ken stated there is a charge for a jumper, as they are sometimes called, because of the possible damage to the grass. They are also required to provide the certificate of insurance with the use of those. Ken stated that the inflatable waterslides are no longer allowed due to the amount of damage those can cause. Ken reported that we have some new fees since the last increase. He also went over Tournament Field Reservation Fees which apply to those utilizing the fields for tournaments, both local teams and out of town teams. Ken resumed going over the overall fee increases for golf, swimming, and afterschool and summer programs. Ken stated that the City and Parks and Recreation staff like to partner with groups on certain special events. Rod asked where the afterschool program is held. Ken advised that we have one site at Roosevelt School. Ken stated that he anticipated the question of what these proposed fee increases will bring in as far as revenue and he advised them that it may be minimal. Rod asked if the $5.00 fee for Beyond the Bell is per day. Ken confirmed that is correct and that is 3 hours of programming per day and even longer on the days of early release. Stacy Hackenmueller stated she is surprised to see that the fees for golf were not increase more. She asked about the cost being comparable to private courses. Ken stated that the prices are comparable and that the last time fees were increases the attendance decreased. Discussion followed. Stacy stated that she feels like we should increase golf fees more to keep from having to increase the afterschool program. Ken reiterated that the golf fees are very comparable to the other courses. Ken advised that this will be th discussed with City Council at the October 19 Study Session on as a policy issue. Dulce requested to know the Commissioner opinions on this proposed fee increase. Rod stated that they had discussed it a couple of meetings ago and they all felt it was time; the fees have not been increase since 2013. He continued that the cost of maintenance and staff wages continue to increase and the fact that the proposed increases are pretty modest, for the most part the commission is in favor of it. Stacy stated that she is in favor of the increase but would like to see more applied to the tournaments and out of town visitors renting the facilities and less being charged to the City residents, taxpayers. She continued by stating that she would like to see golf fees increased and does not feel comfortable raising the fees for swimming or afterschool programs. She did acknowledge that these are two of the programs and activities that employ the most minimum wage workers so the fees are probably going to have to be increased unless another way to subsidize the cost can be found. Ken stated that none of these fees cover the costs, they are already being subsidized. He also commented that we are in a competitive market with tournaments, so we do not want to price ourselves out. The tournaments are also an economic driver for the entire community. Discussion followed. Roger asked if Ken is looking for an approval from the Park Commission on this. He advised it is not necessary to have an approval but was bringing this to them more as an informational item as they are an advisory group and that City Council will decide whether to go forward or make changes. Paul asked when the last time the fees were increased before 2013. Ken stated it was before he started in 2008. Discussion followed. Roger moved to take this forward for discussion at City Council, Paul seconded, motion carried unanimously. 2017-2022 Parks and Recreation Comprehensive Plan Ken stated the Commissioners have had a month to review the Comp Plan that was presented at the last meeting. Ken asked for any comments or considerations of what we should be thinking about, looking at or doing as we go forward. He stated he would like an approval of the Comp Plan, as he will be taking it before City Council next Tuesday night. Ken thanked the staff again for all the hard work that was put into this Comp Plan. Ken advised he sent it to RCO and they told him it looked fine and only had a couple of small suggestions. Roger asked what the problem is with the Harman Center entrance. Ken advised that the doors are going to be replaced with sliding doors for safety reasons. Discussion followed. Ken advised a formal approval is needed to move forward. Ken stated Phil Hoge is present to speak about the plan. Phil stated he thought this was the Public Hearing, Ken advised that is Tuesday night at the City Council meeting. He advised he has been through a couple of these plans with being on the Park Commission in the past. He commented on the pathways and trails within this plan and supports those plans going forward. He commented that the pathways and walkways are very popular within the parks. He suggested that the trails map become a planning map that shows more of the existing and proposed trails and pathways. He suggested the extension of the Powerhouse Canal Pathway to the east to connect with the future east-west corridor. Josette Gonzales moved to approve the plan and to take it forward to City Council; Roger seconded the motion, the motion carried unanimously. Randall Park Improvement Update th Ken stated that the 48 Ave. parking lot is almost complete. He thanked the Streets Division and Jerry from the Traffic Lines and Signs Division. Jerry instructed some of the Park Maintenance staff on how to paint the parking lot. Ken also thanked Park Maintenance staff for the landscaping and irrigation work that th needed to be done for this project. Ken advised that the 44 Ave. parking lot and the walkways will be completed next year. The bridge to the nature area is also almost completed. They were putting the steel railing up last week. Rod asked if the bridge is concrete. Ken advised it is. He stated there are two light poles that need to be installed in the parking lot. Paul stated that parking lot access is wider and much better for entering and exiting. Discussion followed. Ken stated that the pond improvements are to begin next week. Roger asked what is going to be done to the pond. Ken advised that many cubic yards of sediment will be removed, so a contractor will be draining the pond and removing that, as the pond has become very shallow over the past 40 years. They will also be building a new weir at the east end of the pond. Discussion followed. Manager’s Report Ken advised there is a spreadsheet on revenue from the picnic shelter rentals. Ken reported that October th is his 9 Anniversary with the City of Yakima Parks and Recreation. He thanked staff, the Commission, City Council and all of the donors and service clubs for everything they have been able to get accomplished during the last 9 years. For the Good of the Order Stacy asked about the Naches Avenue information that was to be presented to City Council. Ken advised that he will be presenting to the NCBC a week from Thursday. Sara Watkins, City Attorney, is working on changing or updating some of the wording in the ordinance. The City Council kicked it back to the NCBC for discussion. Ken stated he will bring back an update at a future meeting. . Adjournment The next Parks and Recreation Commission meeting will be November 8, 2017. The meeting adjourned at 6:39 p.m.