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Minutes 10-28-02141'NUTES OF THE RECREATI~ON AND PARKS BOARD t4EETING HELD AT THE EZELL HESTER CENTER BOYNTON BEACH~ FLORIDA~ ON HONDAY, OCTOBER 28~ 2002 AT 6:00 P.I4. Present Elizabeth Pierce, Chairperson ~lim IVlclVlahon, Vice Chair Margaret IVlurphy Bali Ramnarace Tom Williams William Orlove, Alternate Betty Thomas, Alternate Absent Wally IVlajors, Recreation Director .lohn Wildner, Parks Director Ed Harris Betty Thomas Dan Winters Tour of Various Park Sites Chair Pierce introduced the CRA Director, Douglas Hutchinson, and former Commissioner Bruce Black, who accompanied the Board members on the tour and spoke later in the meeting. The Board met at the Ezell Hester Center at 6:00 p.m. and continued the tour of various park sites that began at their September meeting. At the conclusion of the tour, a regular meeting was convened at the Ezell Hester Center. A. Rolling Green, Cricket Pitch Although it was dark, some members walked around the site with Bali Ramnarace. lVlr. Wildner provided a running commentary on this and all the other sites, giving the background and history of each one. Mr. Ramnarace expressed concern over the condition of the grass on the cricket pitch. Ivlr. Wildner commented that the City has a joint-use agreement with Rolling Green School for the field to the rear of the school. The condition of the grass reflects two problems: 1) the City does not have control over the irrigation, and 2) communication between the City and Rolling Green School on the issue has been less than optimal. IVlr. Wildner explained that a cricket pitch requires more land than a baseball field or a football field and that this was why they Meeting Minutes Recreation & Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida October 28, 2002 traditionally put it on school properties, which tend to have more land. However, when the schools expand, the cricket pitches are lost and must be relocated. Mr. Wildner indicated that if sod could be placed on the area and a proper irrigation system installed, the problem would be resolved. However, it would be prohibitively expensive to sod such a large area and so the City seeded it instead. Seeded grass takes a long time to grow and weeds are a problem. The irrigation is inadequate and there has been very little rain. He believed that the grass was finally becoming established. B. Hibiscus Park The group then toured Hibiscus Park, a small triangular-shaped park in the middle of a neighborhood to the south of the Seven-Eleven at the corner of Old Boynton Road and Boynton Beach Boulevard. Mr. Wildner related an ongoing controversy over this much-used park. The sign states that the park closes at dusk and there are no lights for the park; however, there are streetlights nearby and the youth play basketball by the light from the streetlights. The neighbors are concerned about the youth playing basketball in the evening but do not want to call the Police for fear of retaliation. The neighbors want the City to remove the basketball rims. They complain that drugs are being exchanged in the park and that the people who use it are not from their neighborhood. Adding lights to the park and extending the hours to 9:00 or 10:00 p.m. would give the youth a place to do something constructive after dinner, but this would require further study and input from local residents. Former Boynton Beach City Commissioner Bruce Black felt that the situation demonstrated the need for recreation in the City. This tour took place at 6:00 p.m. on a day just after the advent of Daylight Savings Time, so the parks were dark at 6:30 p.m. Mr. Black felt that this was sending the youth a message that there was no place for them to play after dark. The Board discussed the idea of engaging the services of a Park Ranger to handle the problem of people staying beyond the stated closing times in the parks. Chair Pierce mentioned that she had given information on the parks to the Citizens on Patrol officers who were going to start patrolling the parks. Mr. Wildner commented that their availability was rather seasonal. Chair Pierce stated that the Board would soon have a visitor from the County, and that this would be a good time to discuss the County's Park Ranger program. C. Galaxy Park 2 Meeting Minutes Recreation & Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida October 28, 2002 The Board did not tour this site but in passing, Mr. Wildner noted that Galaxy Elementary School was only part of this site and that the rest was a City-owned park. The City owned all of the land that Galaxy sits on at one time but donated it in a land swap many years ago. [t was the original site of the Little League Park. D. Laurel Hills Park This Park is behind Wendy's on Boynton Beach Boulevard and has a basketball court. Mr. Wildner stated that no one was playing at this park at night since there were no lights. E. Pioneer Canal Park The Board drove through this three-acre park site and Mr. Wildner noted that the park's most-used feature was the boat ramp. The boat ramp leads to the best bass fishing in Palm Beach County, according to Mr. Wildner. People come here from all over southern Palm Beach County to launch their boats and go bass fishing. They go to the E-4 canal and from there, can go to Lake Ida in the south or Lake Osborne in the north, with bass fishing holes all along the way. The only negative is that there was very little space for parking. F. Sara Simms Park On the way to the Wilson Center, the Board drove by this park, which has lighted basketball, racquetball, and tennis courts, along with a children's playground. G. Wilson Park & Center The Board toured the main building at the Wilson Center. Mr. Wildner brought up the Palm Beach County Arts & Parks Bond issue, from which the Wilson Center is hoping to receive funding for refurbishment and expansion. The Park has a ball field, a small recreation center, and a swimming pool. Mr. Majors stated that 25 to 30 children participate in the after-school program at the Center. There are also a lot of community-based programs that use it including the PATCH (Planned Approach to Community Health) program. The Wilson Center is also used for a variety of community activities including repasts (post-funeral gatherings in honor of deceased loved ones.) In the summer it also hosts the summer camp program for about 75 children. Mr. Wildner noted that a semi-pro baseball team called the Boynton Redsocks used to play at this field, winning against many other teams in the County and making this area famous. Mr. Williams stated that this used to be a really good outing for families on Saturdays and Sundays. Mr. Majors remarked that the City had engaged a consultant to Meeting Minutes Recreation & Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida October 28, 2002 create a master plan for the park and related amenities and an aquatic consultant to come up with some ideas for this facility. The aquatic consultant is charged with developing some options for the pool. Chair Pierce asked Douglas Hutchinson, CRA Director, if his group had any visions for this area. Mr. Hutchinson stated that their concentration was not in parks but in key anchor facilities, which will be national in focus and on the Intracoastal Waterway. Mr. Majors stated that this facility was in the Heart of Boynton area and that the City was actively participating in helping the residents come to a plan with a shared focus for the area. Mr. Hutchinson said that there were at least two developers right now that wanted to put $30M into the MLK Corridor but were waiting for the residents to agree to what they wanted to do with their residential and commercial areas. The CRA has money to spend in the area also but is waiting for the same thing. Dan DeCarlo's Neighborhood organizational meetings have made a lot of progress in this area and on November 12, all the various neighborhood associations, organizations, and churches are being called together to address the plan and come to a consensus on the implementation of it. Mr. Hutchinson thought there was a real need for more public/private partnerships in the development of the City and that the developers could and should invest in the City's Park system, including improvements, common areas, and public access. Chair Pierce asked about the status of the community center at ]:ntracoastal Park. Mr. Wildner stated that the City had asked for funding for this but the County had decided to fund the Wilson Center improvements instead. Chair Pierce shared a picture of a water theme park with the other Board members. Mr. Wildner stated that this was exactly what they had in mind for Intracoastal Park and the Wilson Center. The Board enjoyed the tour and agreed that it would be a good idea to have another tour during the daylight hours on a Saturday. THE REGULAR MEETING CONVENED AT THE EZELL HESTER CENTER GAMEROOM AT 7:20 P.M. Mr. Wildner stated that the Ezell Hester Park had been built through the use of a Revenue Bond. The City Commission voted to build Ezell Hester Park, pledging the income from cable television franchise fees, Florida Power & Light, and other utilities. 4 Meeting Minutes Recreation & Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida October 28, 2002 The County's "Parks & Arts Bond" on the November 5 ballot was discussed and Mr. Wildner noted that there might be money for other projects as well. One of those projects would be the possible purchase of Jaycee Park. The reason the County is interested in Jaycee Park is because it is on the i~ntracoastal Waterway and they want to see boating uses, not necessarily ramps. They were discussing making this a destination facility for boaters, which would include the installation of a dock at this Park. Chair Pierce stated that they would have a floating dock like at Boat Club Park, where a person would pull up to the floating dock, walk from his or her boat, sit down at a table, and have a picnic. With the loss of Beer Can ]:sland, it is now necessary to go all the way down to Boca Raton's Spanish River Park or up to Peanut island. She thought that this would be a good joint venture between the City and the County and that it could be discussed during Mr. Wilsher's upcoming visit to the Board. Mr. Wildner noted that Bill Wilsher is the Superintendent of Plans and Designs for Palm Beach County. !tems! - !V from the published agenda were omitted. V. Unfinished Business A. Continuation of Tour (see minutes) Rolling Green Cricket Pitch Wilson Park & Center B. Discussion Park Rangers This issue was discussed during the tour. Mr. Wildner noted that this would be a paid position and would cost the City money. The Board would have to think of a way to afford this or make a case that it was worth doing and would improve the quality of life enough for the City that the citizens would not mind paying for it. Mr. Ramnarace indicated that the Board had sent recommendations to the City Commission before and had never heard any feedback from them. Several comments were made that it was necessary to speak to the City Commission in person in order to be seen and heard. Meeting Minutes Recreation & Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida October 28, 2002 Southeast Neighborhood Park Addition - Land and Water Conservation Fund Application Mr. Wildner remarked that the Board had visited the Zill property on their first tour. :It is along the railroad tracks southeast of the City, close to Bethesda Hospital. The reason this area is under consideration is that there are no parks in the southeast area of the City. The City has a grant application in to the Florida Recreation Development Assistance Program (FRDAP) for 50% of the price of the land. Mr. Wildner was optimistic about getting this grant. Mr. Wildner shared plans, which represented the complete build-out of the 2.3-acre section including two basketball courts, a playground, and a picnic shelter. The first phase will have one basketball court, a children's playground, two picnic areas, and a parking lot. This will cost about $300K, of which $150K would be paid for by the FRDAP grant. Mr. Williams thought that Phase 2 should be done as soon as possible since the area had been deprived of park space for such a long time. To the north of this 2.3-acre site, there are 2.7 acres of Zill property remaining that Mr. Zill has now decided to sell. ]:f acquired, this land would bring the site up to a 5-acre park, a fitting size for an area Park. The Park would also serve as an anchor for a Greenways project going along the railroad tracks, which would link up park-to-park. The City has made application to the Land & Water Conservation Fund, which handles Federal money that is administered by the State. The Land & Water Conservation Fund administrators have given preliminary approval to the City for 50% of the purchase price of this land. The application processing will not take place until February but the Fund administrators suggested that the City buy the land and obtain reimbursement from the Fund after the fact. Motion Mr. Orlove moved that the Board enthusiastically support the City's application to the Land & Water Conservation Fund for a grant to assist in the purchase of 2.7- acres of the Zill property for the Southeast Neighborhood Park. Ms. Murphy seconded the motion that carried unanimously. C. Formal Orientation Manual Mr. Majors stated that at an educational session that he attended with some of the board members at the Florida Recreation and Park Association (FRPA) State Conference in August, formal orientation manuals for new Board members were discussed. His hope was that a manual could be developed for this purpose. This would be in addition to a Saturday guided tour of the City's Park sites, and 6 Meeting Minutes Recreation & Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida October 28, 2002 information about the City's programs. This would help new members and allow older members to "catch up." Mr. Majors asked the Board members to bring their ideas and suggestions to the November meeting relative to what they wanted to see in the manual. The manual would include at least the following: Description of the Parks Department Function Description of the Recreation Department Function List of Facilities Annual Calendar of Events Roster of Various Staff and Board Members Mr. Majors reported on recent City activities: the Great Pumpkin Event, Youth Expo, Gymnastics program, Soccer program, and the Halloween Spooktacular. Mr. Wildner stated that he and Mr. Majors wanted to find a way to bring the Board members "on-board" as quickly as possible. One of the reasons for this is that well-informed Board members can become advocates for Recreation and Park goals in the community at large. Chair Pierce felt that each Board member had a great potential to give back to the City and that they should all strive to give 110%. She thought that the manual would really help the Board members towards that end. She spoke of a survey she had gotten at the conference that asked each member to rate his or her effectiveness as a Board member. She thought that the Board members should go to City Commission meetings, be heard, and make a difference for recreation and parks in the City. She also favored self-assessment by the Board members on at least an annual basis. Mr. Majors seconded the idea of Board participation at the City Commission meetings, saying that the City Manager relies on the Board for feedback about recreation and parks. He noted that he and Mr. Wildner always attend the City Commission meetings and that it was common for the other Boards to have members speaking on behalf of their interest areas. He asked the Board to look for opportunities to become advocates for recreation and parks. Mr. Majors and Mr. Wildner both stated that the most effective means of accomplishing this would be for the Board to select a topic of interest in the parks and recreation area, do their homework to become as informed as possible, discuss the topic with each other and with Mr. Wildner and/or Mr. Majors, come to a consensus on the topic, select a spokesperson, and attend a City Commission meeting to express the Board's point of view. With this preparation and concerted effort, the 7 Meeting IVlinutes Recreation & Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida October 28, 2002 Board could help to bring about meaningful change in the area of parks and recreation for the City of Boynton Beach. D. Cricket Pitch IVlr. Ramnarace reiterated his concern about the condition of the cricket pitch at Rolling Green Elementary School. The pitch was seeded and there was a period when it could not be watered and it died. He stated that they had been trying to kill the weeds in the grass for two years. Eventually, he tried pulling the weeds out himself. Mr. Ramnarace had heard that he was the only Board member that was interested in the cricket pitch and that people did not want him to bring this up any more. Mr. Wildner stated that Mr. Ramnarace was interested in cricket and that cricket was only one of the issues with which the Board must concern itself. Comments by Bruce Black, former Boynton Beach Commissioner and Douglas Hutchinson, CRA Director Mr. Black was very much in favor of the Board becoming more active as advocates for parks and recreation issues. As a former Commissioner, Mr. Black stated that the City Commission members read the minutes of every Board meeting, but if someone really wanted something to be done, they would get up and speak in front of the City Commission. Mr. Black felt that the City should give the City's youth a place to recreate and that if the Board agreed, it was up to the Board to get that message across to the Mayor, the Commissioners, and the City Manager. Mr. Black also pointed out that the Board could support the CRA in its plans to increase building heights because if development occurred horizontally, no green space would be left. Mr. Hutchinson stated that the very reason they want to build upwards is to save land for public spaces. Hr. Hutchinson stated that the Board should also look at opportunities within proposed developments to demand public areas such as parks, pedestrian walkways, and so forth. He encouraged the Board to expand their vision of parks to include more than soccer fields and basketball courts. Mr. Black felt that the two most important priorities were the Senior Center and the Art Center. The Art Center was built with a plan for a second story and it is in the Capital Improvement Projects Plan for $340K. The Senior Citizens Center 8 Meeting Minutes Recreation & Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida October 28, 2002 has an expansion plan also for $660K. Mr. Black expounded on sources of potential dollars such as: 1) tearing down the old high school for $250K, 2) buying the Woman's Club for $250K, 3) sale of liquor license from Morey's Lounge for $50K, 4) money set aside for possible exploration of bottling Boynton Beach water. Mr. Black was not in favor of parking garages in the neighborhood of the Madsen Center, the Library, and the Civic Center, but wanted more room for recreation instead. He thought that if the old high school were to be preserved, that it could be the children's wing of the library. Mr. Black firmly believes that the expansion of the Senior Center and the Art Center are what the residents want. He did not understand why they could not be done. He also believed that Palm Beach County was not doing anything with special needs children in aftercare programs and thought that this could be done at the Madsen Center. He wanted to see the City buy the vacant lot across from the Senior Center for additional parking. He spoke of the desire of many City workers to have a City daycare center. With the $4K plus Mr. Black had received while he was a Commissioner from the discretionary community funds, he will be planting 1,000 plants this weekend to create a children's labyrinth or maze in the land between the Art Center and the east side of the Civic Center. Douglas Hutchinson, CRA Director, spoke of his Board's new charge of dealing with the issue of what to do about the old high school. He stated that this building could generate substantial underwriting and space for the arts for several groups. For example, the Children's Museum must have expansion room for their offices, exhibit storage and prep areas. Code Compliance could use 2,000 square feet for their offices. A Starbucks tearoom/cafeteria could be put in the downstairs of the old high school and the employees and tourists would love it. He recommended a parking garage at the back of the high school with the offices facing City Hall. The old high school would become a plaza with offices and a parking garage. The gymnasium could be blocked in and by reorienting the direction of the stage, could accommodate a puppet theater, with a little underwriting. A mezzanine would be put around the rest of the gym with an art gallery at the bottom of it and teaching in the classrooms above. When entering the building, there would be a two-story look with wood floors and a gallery with glass walls on which to display items. About 15,000 square feet could be turned over to the arts with a children's program and an historic building could be saved. Because it would be a cultural center, it would not be difficult to get a challenge grant from a developer. Mr. Hutchinson envisions the Ocean District as part of a "barbell" that would go from the waterfront to a cultural arts center. This investment in cultural anchors was for the purpose of giving Boynton Beach an identity. This would start with a national museum 9 Meeting Minutes Recreation & Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida October 28, 2002 anchor in the water on the ]:ntracoastal. There is no other major museum on the waterfront on the l:ntracoastal. The funding would come from the tax increments associated with the big developers, grants, and matching funds. Because the project would be national in focus, they had a wider source for funding. Mr. Hutchinson envisioned a three to five year phase-in period with the high school completion for mixed use as the first project. ]:f the Board agreed with what he saw as a common-sense solution to the destiny of the old school, he solicited their assistance. When he speaks about it, he needed people to speak up and say, "]:f the CRA takes this on, our Board will help in any way we can." Mr. Hutchinson reiterated that the impetus for action would have to come from the public and Board members as opposed to staff. Board Comments Mr. Orlove was happy to assist, but required information. For example, now that he knew that there was a meeting on November 12 and what the issues were, he would try to attend. Mr. Hutchinson stated that either he or his staff would be at the Board's meetings from now on to give the Board information. Prior to this, the CRA was not fully staffed. They are now going to 35 meetings a month such as the Lions Club, the .]aycees, Kiwanis, and neighborhood groups. Through listening to what people want at these meetings, they formulate their plans. Ms. Murphy asked if there were any long-range plans for Quantum Park. Mr. Wildner stated that there was a fifteen-acre City-owned site there that had been earmarked for a park. The price tag is about $3M and there has not been a source of funding to build it. Mr. Black stated that Quantum was up before the City Commission and the Planning & Development Board frequently and that the Recreation & Parks Board could go to those meetings and say that they should give the City more money towards that park or ask them to build a ball field at the park. Mr. Hutchinson stated that some funds could be raised from fees. Chair Pierce stated that through a recent recreation and parks needs assessment, they had discovered that people were willing to pay for some things. VI. Adjournment Since there was no further business before the Board, the meeting was duly adjourned at 8:45 p.m. 10 Meeting Minutes Recreation & Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida October 28, 2002 Respectfully submitted, Susan Collins Recording Secretary (two tapes) (102902) 11