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Minutes 06-27-02 MINUTES OF THE ADVISORY BOARD ON CHILDREN AND YOUTH MEETING HELD IN COMMISSION CHAMBERS, CITY HALL, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA, ON THURSDAY, JUNE 27, 2002 AT 7:00 P.M. Present Shanna St. John, Chairperson Steve Waldman, Vice Chair Mary Morera Hattie Miller (arrived at 7:15 p.m.) Joyce O'Hara Welton Sanders (arrived at 7:15 p.m.) Phyllis Stern, Alternate Willie :Pearl Wilson, Alternate Sherri Claude, Board Liaison Absent Lori Wilkinson Luis Dones, Student Carlos Luis Masso, Student I. Call to Order Vice Chair Waldman called the meeting to order at 7:05 p.m. II. Moment of Silent Prayer/Pledge of Allegiance Ms. Stern led the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag, followed by a moment of silent prayer. Chairperson St. John arrived and assumed the chair. II1. Approval of Minutes of May 23, 2002 MotiOn Ms. O'Hara moved to approve the minutes. Motion seconded by Ms. Stern and unanimously carried. IV. Approval of Agenda Motion Vice Chair Waldman moved to approve the agenda. Motion seconded by Ms. Morera and unanimously carried. Meeting Minutes Advisory Board on Children & Youth Boynton Beach, Florida June 27,2002 V. Announcements/Presentations/Correspondence A. Needs Assessment Report -Wally Majors Mr. Majors was invited to present an update on the Needs Assessment that was recently conducted by the Parks and Recreation Department. Management Learning Laboratories located in North Carolina performed the assessment. The purpose of the assessment was to survey the community to determine what the citizens would like with regard to parks and recreation. Six thousand questionnaires were sent out: 4,000 to City residents and 2,000 to persons residing outside City limits that use City facilities. The questionnaire contained 200 questions. The response rate was approximately 12%, which is a fairly good response. With regard to youth-related activities, it was determined that there was a need for a teen center. Mr. Majors pointed out that more families are moving into the City and will need additional programs and activities. The questionnaire was based on input gathered at focus meetings scheduled throughout the four quadrants of the community and one public meeting. Input was also accumulated from staff and the Commissioners. The main issues were special events; performing arts; computer classes; outdoor activities, such as nature hiking and walking; self-improvement; arts and crafts; and indoor fitness. The survey indicated that the most popular facilities were Oceanfront Park, Meadows Park, Sara Sims Park, Pence Park and Galaxy Park. District Parks such as Hester Park and Little League Park were also very popular, as well as the Civic Center, the Senior Center and Kids' Kingdom. The reason that people did not use City facilities was due to lack of information. As a result, staff would like to increase marketing of the City facilities. Other deterrents were inconvenience of the facilities and lack of parking. Events and facilities are adVertised three times a year through the City's Funfare Magazine. Currently 8,000 to 9,000 copies are mailed and are available to anyone who requests a copy. Other effective ways of advertising are newspapers, homeowner association newsletters, television ads, cable, brochures, and flyers. It was also discovered that most people prefer neighborhood parks. Eighty-one percent of the response indicated that they would be willing to pay user fees for new recreatiOn opportunities. Also, people were not opposed to paying a slightly higher fee to use City facilities if they were not a resident, The information garnered from the survey will be used primarily to update the Recreation and Open Space Element of the City's Comprehensive Plan and to determine how to make the activities and programs better and more attractive. 2 Meeting Minutes Advisory Board on Children & Youth Boynton Beach, Florida June 27,2002 A brief question and answer period followed. Vice Chair Waldman asked about the response to a teen center. Mr. Majors stated that there was a good response that a teen center is needed, but they did not indicate that it would have to be a stand-alone building. Also Mr. Majors noted that some of the anticipated programs may be delayed due to budget restraints. Ms. Stern inquired about the property that is adjacent to the Tennis Center and whether there were any plans to convert this area into a playground. She noted that there were not many facilities for youth in this section of the City. Mr. Majors responded that at one time this property was identified as a potential site for a community center. He reported that plans are being formulated for a new playground on the Zill property that is located east of Bethesda Hospital and is hopeful that the funding for this park will remain intact. Mr. Majors noted that the cost for a modest playground could be $200,000. Vice Chair Waldman requested that when preliminary talks are scheduled to discuss a teen center, he would like members of this Board to be included in the discussions. Mr. Majors did not anticipate any action on this for at least three to five years. Chairperson St. John thanked Mr. Majors for his informative report. Mr. Majors stated that if any member did not receive a copy of the report to please contact Ms. Claude. B. Letters from Amy DeVries and Dana Greenberg Chairperson St. John read thank-you letters received from Amy DeVries and Dana Greenberg, who were recipients of the Bob Borovy Scholarships. Copies of the letters are included with the original minUtes. C. July 4th Big Blast: Boynton Beach High SChool (5 p.m.- 9 p.m.) Chairperson St. John announced that the July 4th Big Blast Celebration will be held at the Boynton Beach High School. Ms. Claude announced that there would be limited parking at the High School for a small donation. There will be a free shuttle buS from the Boynton Beach Mall to the event. D. July "19th Oceanfront COncert/Jumpstreet '88's (swing/blues) Chairperson St. John announced the July 19th Oceanfront Concert featuring the Jumpstreet '88's. VI. Public Audience - None 3 Meeting Minutes Advisory Board on Children & Youth Boynton Beach, Florida June 27,2002 VII. Old Business A. Youth Volunteer Bank - Workshop It was determined to schedule a Youth Volunteer Bank Workshop on Saturday, July 27th, at the Library beginning at 9:00 a.m. Vice Chair Waldman will request the Library for that date. Ms. Claude indicated that she would attend and take the minutes. B. Bob Borovy Award Chairperson St. John noted that there was a nice article in the Boynton Neighborhood Post regarding the Bob Borovy Award. She requested that a copy of the article be included when the minutes are sent out. Chairperson St. John inquired if a press release was issued for the Youth Volunteer Bank. Ms. Claude reported that there would be a press release in the Palm Beach Post. Chairperson St. John requested that the next time a press release is sent out that photos be included. Vice Chair Waldman inquired if information on their E~oard was on the City's website and Ms. Claude stated that the City's website was being redone. Ms. Ginny Shea of the Recreation Department will be in charge of their Department's website. She will discuss with Ms. Shea adding a page for the Advisory Board on Children and Youth. C. Youth Expo - October 26 & 27, 2002 - Theme Chairperson St. John reported that she met with Janice Philips and Joe Evans at the Mall. Ms. Claude will be meeting with staff next week to begin formulating plans for the Expo. After that meeting, Ms. Claude will be meeting with Chairperson St. John on July 10th at 9:00 a.m. She noted that staff will be taking more responsibility for this event and staff members have already been assigned to work on the Expo. The Board will now be playing more of an advisory role, but would still be responsible for fundraising for the event. Members decided that the theme this year would be patriotism. They were asked to bring their suggestions for a title for the Expo to the next meeting. With regard to the contests, Chairperson St. John noted that during previous years the contests included, art, drama, photography, writing and science. Drama and science were not very successful. After discussion, members decided to keep art, creative writing and photography. 4 Meeting Minutes ~- Advisory Board on Children & Youth Boynton Beach, Florida June 27, 2002 Ms. Stern suggested contacting Dreher Park that has a traveling zoo to determine if they could set up an exhibition of small animals. Chairperson St. John pointed out that the Youth Expo draws thousands of people and did not think a zoo would fit in under these circumstances. This is something that could be offered at another event. Ms. Morera explained that the purpose of the Youth Expo is to show off the children and their talents. Also, the tables are free informational tables and are not used for selling. The entertainment offered is youth oriented and all the contests involve local schools. Vice Chair Waldman inquired if members would be amenable to having the writing contest consist of an essay contest and a poetry contest. Ms. Miller pointed out that the writing contest always consisted of creative writing and the poetry and prose were not judged independently. Chairperson St. John thought that this could be addressed after all the entries were received and the judges could choose the winners from the various categories. After much discussion, it was determined to keep the category as creative writing with various options, such as essays and poetry. The contests are open to all students. Ms. Stern suggested creating a teacher recognition award for the teacher who brings in the most entrants. This would be a good way to encourage more participation. Mr. Sanders would like to see that the schools that participate also receive recognition. Chairperson St. John suggested discussing this in more detail at the workshop. The exact location of the Youth Expo in the Mall is not known at this time. Chairperson St. John requested that the backboards that were used for the HeritageFest artwork be secured for the Youth Expo artwork. Vice Chair Waldman will follow through on this. The Youth Expo hours have been shortened and will now be from 12 noon to 4:00 p.m., Saturday and Sunday. D. Guest Speakers Vice Chair Waldman had nothing to report. Ms. Stern inquired if the Board would be interested in having the attorney, that represented the Watershed Rehabilitative Clinic speak at a Board meeting. He indicated during his presentation to the City that he would be glad to speak to the various Advisory Boards. Ms. Stern will follow through with inviting him to speak at the August meeting. She was requested to furnish Ms. Claude with the full name and title of the attorney for the agenda. E. Youth Council Vice Chair Waldman suggested holding a workshop to discuss the future of the Youth Council and requested the item be tabled until the next meeting. Mr. Meeting Minutes Advisory Board on Children & Youth Boynton Beach, Florida June 27,2002 Sanders suggested tabling the Youth Council until after the Youth Expo. Ms. Miller suggested speaking with Ms. Butler from the Delray Beach Youth Council that has had good success with their Youth Council. Vice Chair Waldman spoke to Frank McKinney and he offered to help. F. Other Vice Chair Waldman asked why the student members on the Board were not present at the meetings. Chairperson St. John stated that Luis Dories informed her that he was going to tender his resignation. It was noted that Carlos Masso has moved, although he could remain as a non-voting student since he attends Atlantic High School. Vice Chair Waldman said that he has not had any success contacting Mr. Masso. Vice Chair Waldman felt it was important to have student representation on the Board. Chairperson St. John inquired about the status of the Board's Bowling Tournament. Vice Chair Waldman explained to the new members that the Board holds an annual Youth-Adult Bowling Tournament as a fundraiser. The entry fee is usually $20. After discussion, the first date selected for the Tournament was Sunday, August 25th beginning at 1:00 p.m. If this date were not available Sunday, August 18th was selected as an alternative date. Vice Chairman Waldman will check on the availability of these dates. VIII. New Business A. Elections Chairperson St. John passed the gavel. She noted that she has been Chairperson for many years and it has been one of the best jobs she has ever had. However, because of the change in her workload, she can no longer remain as chair. MOtion Chairperson St. John nominated Steve Waldman as Chairman of the Advisory Board on Children and Youth. Motion seconded by Mr. Sanders There were no other nominations. Vote The motion to elect steve Waldman as Chairman unanimously passed. Chairman-elect Waldman requested that outgoing-Chairperson St. John finish the remainder of the meeting. 6 Meeting Minutes · Advisory Board on Children & Youth Boynton Beach, Florida June 27, 2002 Motion Chairman-elect Waldman nominated Mary Morera to be Vice Chairperson of the Advisory Board on Children and Youth. Motion seconded by Ms. Stern. There were no other nominations. Vote The motion to elect Mary Morera as Vice Chairman unanimously carried. The new officers were congratulated. Out-going Chairperson St. John thanked Ms. Claude for her valuable service to the Board. IX. Future Meeting Dates: X. Adjournment July 25, 2002 August 22, 2002 There being no further business, the meeting properly adjourned at 8:35 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Barbara M. Madden Recording Secretary (Two tapes) (July 1, 2002) 7