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HomeMy WebLinkAboutParks Commission minutes - 10-08-14.docx Yakima Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes for October 8, 2014 Commissioners Present: Chairman Rod Bryant, Vice-Chairman Sam Karr, Paul Williams, Jo Miles, Tom Hinman and Maureen Adkinson, Yakima City Council Liaison Absent and Excused: Morgan Pualani Staff present: Ken Wilkinson, Parks & Recreation Manager, Traci Bennett, Recreation Supervisor, and Jenise Sanders, Administrative Secretary for Parks & Recreation. Call to Order. Welcoming everyone in the audience and viewers watching on YPAC, Chairman Rod nd Bryant called the 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 for September 11, 2014 It was Moved by Tom Hinman, Seconded by Sam Karr, to approve the Minutes as written from the September 11, 2014 Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting. The motion carried unanimously. Yakima National Little League 2013 Annual Report Ken Wilkinson announced that Kendall Stroud, YNLL President and Park Commissioner Paul Williams, YNLL officer, are present to give the 2013 Annual Report. Ken gave praise to the association for their partnership with the city and the amount of work that is put in by the volunteers. Kendall reported that there was an increase in the numbers from 2012 to 2013. The Spring season brought 23 teams totaling 279 players. The teams consisted of four tee-ball, six farm league, seven minor divisions, five major divisions and one Jr. team. There were also 12 Summer teams with 144 players. A highlight was the opening of the batting cage. The concession revenue was $18,900. The ability to use debit cards was added in 2013 and will hopefully increase the revenue for future years. Kendall thanked Kimmels and Big 5 for allowing registrations to take place in their stores. Paul Williams stated the delay in the report was due to the change in the board members at the beginning of the 2014 season. He stated the contributing factors for the concession revenue were expansion of products and the 3 hours a night, 4 nights a week that the stand was operating. The league hired some permanent workers for the concession stand to allow the stand to be open more. Dirt was brought in for the infield by volunteers. There was a large amount of rain in 2013 and the conditions of the fields held up well. There were some issues with vandalism and the future goal will be replacing the crow’s nest which is a supply storage area that sits above the concession stand. There are four fully operational fields with concrete dugouts. He stated they are always looking at fundraising efforts. There was a small dip in the reserves in 2013. Tom Hinman asked what the budget is. Paul stated that the budget for 2013 was $64,000 and the expenses were $66,000. One of the reasons for the overage was increased cost for additional umpires. Maureen asked if the entire board was replaced at one time. Kendall stated that about half the board was replaced. Sam asked how many board members there are. Kendall stated that there are seven active members but they are looking at increasing that to twelve. Maureen asked how much their reserves are. Kendall advised that at the end of the 2013 season it was about $12,000. Rod asked for a definition of each league. Paul stated that tee-ball is for 5-7 yr. olds and the ball is placed on the tee. Farm league is also known as machine pitch for 7-9 yr. olds, minors is 9- 10 yr. olds, majors is 11-12 yr. olds and Jr. is 13 yr. olds. Rod asked about attendance. Kendal and Paul stated the games are very well attended. Discussion followed. Sam asked for a written report. Paul stated that a document will be prepared and sent out. Randall Dog Park Project Update Ken stated that it was just about one year ago that Sonny Cooper appeared at the Park Commission meeting to ask if the Park Commission and Park Staff had any interest in pursuing the construction of a dog park. Under the direction of Traci Bennett, Recreation Supervisor, the committee was formed and along with the help of the committee members, like Tom Hinman much progress has been made. Traci Bennett she was given the task in January and the first meeting was held in February. It was quickly decided that Randall Park was the best location. The committee decided that a 1.6 acre park will maximize the space. The committee is made up of Tom Hinman, Jenise Sanders, the Humane Society, Wags to Riches and other dog lovers. The huge gravel pile that was located on the south side of Wide Hollow Creek took two weeks to move but is now done. Tom, Sonny and Jeff will now go back and re-stake the area for fencing. The Planning Department will come out to approve the location of the area and then the fencing companies will come back out to give new bids. There will be a double gate entry and the fence will be 5 ft. high. Park Maintenance and the Streets Department have worked well together to improve the area for the dog park. We are looking at a soft opening this fall and having the Grand Opening in the spring. The water needs to be installed and Park Maintenance will be working on refurbishing a picnic shelter over the winter months. Traci advised that the funds have been a combination of Parks Capital and private donations. This will be an ongoing project with donations of amenities to make it nice. A local home builder that is on the committee has provided all the blueprints for the park. Maureen asked about a wish list. Traci stated that once the fence is installed, people will be show interest. Tom stated that we will be looking at donors for trees and benches. Maureen asked where to direct people that want to donate. Traci advised that they can contact Parks and Recreation and can specify that they want to donate for the dog park. Information is also on the Fall Program Guide. Rod asked if there is a website. We can put a link on our website. Discussion followed. Maureen stated she would like it to be presented to City Council. Ken stated he is going to be giving a brief report at the City Council meeting following our Park Commission meeting. Randall Park Improvement Committee Update Ken Wilkinson gave an update on the Randall Park Project. Ken advised that he has been working with SW Rotary and they are looking at a project for 2014-2015. He received official word that they would like to construct the observation deck for the duck pond. Wes Morris is a member of SW Rotary and also works for Tri-Ply Construction and has provided drawings of what they would like to do with the observation deck. There are some issues that need to be addressed in order to get access to the water and possibly taking the water level down to do the work. We have been working with Department of Ecology and Department of Fish and Wildlife and we will hopefully be able to get this work going very soon. Ken gave thanks to SW Rotary for being great partners. West Valley Kiwanis donated $1000 to purchase benches. Rod thanked all the service groups for all they do. Aquatics Advisory Committee Update Ken stated that the list of individuals serving on the committee is included in their packets. Bob Romero, Jim Smith, Jake Kessler, Jo Miles, Mike Carey, Dr. Dave Polage, Bryan Braegger, Russ Myers, Raymond Navarro Jr., Dave Christensen, Jim Sund, Kathi Mercy, Darlene Lust and Enrique Jevons. This is the group that we put together to help guide us with this process. This will be a challenge trying to figure out what is best for us as a community. At some point there will be a report presented to City Council and Park Commission on what is being presented and maybe even recommended. Their packets include potential sites and the pros and cons for these sites. There is no perfect site and no perfect facility. We are just nd trying to get the best options to present to the City Council. The next meeting is October 22. We will be looking at different amenities and the definitions. Bob Romero from the YMCA will be bringing pictures of places he has visited over the last few months. Ken stated he has also visited a few different facilities like Gig Harbor and Bend, OR to continue to educate himself about what is out there. We have been tasked with bringing the report to City Council around February or March. Rod asked if we will have the location narrowed down by then. Ken stated that it does not have to be 10 acres for just a pool. Ken stated he will be attending the Build a Pool Convention in Portland along with Jason Zeller and City Councilmen Tom Dittmar and Bill Lover. Tom stated that he was present for the first Aquatic Advisory Committee meeting and it was well attended. Discussion followed. Manager’s Report Ken stated that the summer and warm fall season is coming to a close. We have one tournament left at Kiwanis and soccer programs are tapering off. Ken reminded the commission that at the last meeting there was a request to bring some information regarding concrete chess tables. He stated that ones that he is aware of are usually in high density population and possibly the new plaza may lend itself as a venue or maybe even Performance Park in the downtown area. Their packets include some examples and prices. They are $1000 for reinforced concrete table with chess board in it. They are supposed to be vandal resistant. Discussion followed. Ken stated that he would like to find out if any of these companies have a table in the area as he would like to see one in person. For the Good of the Order Maureen commented on the popularity of the disc golf at Randall Park and what a great asset it is. Discussion followed. Sam Karr stated that Parker Youth and Sports board meeting was held and they wanted to thank Ken. He requested that if they were to make the placards showing they donated toward the netting that Parks would display them. Ken advised we would. Rod suggested more advertising to let people know what is going on in the parks around the city. He stated that there is a lot happening and people may not know about it. Ken stated we are trying to keep up with our website, Program Guide, Ask Parks, insert in the Thursday newspaper. We struggle with getting the word out because it is costly. KXDD does a great job letting people know about Loyal Listener Wednesday at the golf course and the other radio stations are sponsors for our concerts in the park. KIMA is also one of our sponsors for the concerts at Franklin and Miller Parks. One goal is to mail our Program Guide to 25,000 residents but that is very costly. We are on Facebook and Twitter. Discussion followed. Adjournment The next Parks and Recreation Commission meeting will be November 12, 2014. The meeting adjourned at 6:33p.m.