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Minutes 05-23-05 r-- ~ I .í , r-- ~'\ I .í , r ~'\ I .í , MINUTES OF THE RECREATION AND PARKS BOARD REGULAR MEETING HELD AT THE SENIOR CENTER, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA, ON MONDAY, MAY 23,2005 AT 6:30 P.M. Present: Betty Pierce-Roe, Chairperson William Grlove, Vice Chair Ralph Diaz Betty Thomas Janelle Sloan Pam Winters Tom Williams Patti Hammer, Alternate John McVey, Alternate Wally Majors, Recreation & Parks Director Jody Rivers, Parks Superintendent I. Call to Order Chairperson Pierce-Roe called the meeting to order at 6:35 p.m. II. Attendance Chairperson Pierce-Roe called the roll and declared all members present. Vice Chair Grlove requested that a new list of Board members be provided to everyone. The Recording Secretary will include the list when the minutes are sent out. Ms. Hammer, the new Board Alternate, gave a brief background about herself and noted she has served on several City Boards for many years. She commended the Recreation and Parks Board for the fine work it is doing and she is looking forward to serving on the Board. Ms. Sloan, the new Regular Member, stated she is very interested in the Boundless Playground that prompted her to become a member of the Board. She has served for 11 years as a member of the Florence Fuller Child Development Center Board, which is a school for underprivileged children. Chairperson Pierce-Roe welcomed the new members. III. Approval of Minutes - March 28,2005 (no meeting in April 2005) Motion Vice Chair Grlove moved to approve the minutes. Motion seconded by Ms. Winters and unanimously carried. Meeting Minutes Recreation and Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida May 23, 2005 IV. Unfinished Business A. Arts Commission ).- How do you see Public Art fitting into your program? ).- Where do you see Public Art in the City of Boynton Beach? ).- How can Public Art solve a problem in your program? ).- How can Public Art benefit Boynton Beach? Mr. Majors noted the Arts Commission previously addressed this Board about their efforts to bring art into the City. They would like this Board to review some of the issues they brought up at the last meeting and Mr. Majors E-mailed the questions to some Board members. Vice Chair Orlove acknowledged that he received the E-mail and forwarded his response to the Chair and Ms. Dennison. If any other Board members would like to respond to their questions, Mr. Majors recommended that they do so. Members could provide their comments in writing to Mr. Majors or E-mail them to him. He will make sure that the Arts Commission is provided this Board's comments. Mr. Majors announced that the Arts Commission will be holding a workshop on Tuesday, May 24th at 6:30 in the Library Program Room and everyone is welcomed to attend. A flyer announcing the workshop was distributed. B. Senior Center Mr. Majors reported staff has continued to report on the Senior Center as a result of a relationship which has developed with the Senior Advisory Board. The Chairperson of that Board requested that the Senior Center remain on this Board's agenda to keep the Senior Center visible. The refurbishing of the Senior Center is in its final phase. Since the Senior Center came to fruition six years ago, the City has continued to make improvements to it. Mr. Major anticipates a ribbon cutting ceremony would take place in six to eight weeks. With regard to registering seniors that use the facility, as of the first of this month, 893 seniors have registered to use the Senior Center. Of the 893 residents, 148 are non- residents that have paid a $40 fee to be a member of the Senior Center. Staff is working on an agreement with Adelphia that would allow the Senior Center to use their lines in order to be connected to the City's network. With this in place, staff would be able to use the computer identification card system at the Senior Center. Currently the identification card system is done manually. The new computer cards would contain a bar code that would identify the seniors and how often they use the facility. This is a better process to register people. Chairperson Pierce-Roe inquired if there was a generator at the Senior Center that could be used in the event of a hurricane so the building would be available to assist seniors if a hurricane struck the City again. Mr. Majors reported that the Senior Advisory 2 Meeting Minutes Recreation and Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida May 23, 2005 Board is looking into hurricane issues and is doing an audit to determine how many seniors in the area need assistance, especially shut-ins. They held a workshop that was attended by the City's Public Works Director and the Fire Department to address their concerns. Mr. Majors was not certain if it would be feasible to invest in purchasing a generator for the Senior Center because the building may not be available during or after a hurricane. Chairperson Pierce-Roe thought it would be beneficial if seniors could be able to at least telephone the Senior Center and be provided with a number to call in the event of an emergency. Ms. Rivers noted that two presenters at the hurricane workshop were from various agencies that could answer questions that come up during a hurricane. If the telephone system at the Center is working, seniors could be referred to those agencies for assistance. Chairperson Pierce-Roe noted during the last hurricanes, people were afraid to go out and purchase ice because there were no streetlights. She thought the Senior Center would be a good location to hand out ice in the event of a hurricane, even if the building was not open. Mr. Majors reported he and Ms. Rivers would be attending a meeting at United Way regarding coordination of volunteers. Mr. Majors will bring up some of these issues at the meeting. Chairperson Pierce-Roe asked about the Hester Center. Mr. Majors responded the Hester Center has a generator that could power most of the building, except the air conditioning. The same scenario exists with the Civic Center. He noted, however, these buildings are located in flood zones and may not be available during a hurricane. The Senior Center is also located in a flood zone. Chairperson Pierce-Roe commended the City for doing a wonderful job in cleaning up the parks and beaches compared to other municipalities after the last hurricanes. Ms. Thomas inquired about the line of decision making during a hurricane. Mr. Majors thought an Ordinance was being prepared that would allow the City Manager to declare a state of emergency for the City. C. Update Recreation & Open Space Element of the Comprehensive Master Plan Ms. Rivers reported that the re-write of the Comp Plan is almost complete. She anticipates inviting the consultant to a Board meeting where a draft of the re-write would be presented. Ms. Rivers distributed to members a conceptual parks and recreation system map. Mr. Majors noted the City is within the 2.5 acres per 1,000 residents. Ms. Rivers pointed out that undeveloped sites are included on the map as well. 3 Meeting Minutes Recreation and Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida May 23, 2005 Those sites are - 1) The FP&L site, which is a little under eight acres; 2) Girl Scout Park, which is a little less than ten acres and has a good potential to be developed next. 3) Meadows/ Nautica II, which is approximately nine acres. Ms. Rivers reported because the County needed to provide drainage for Lawrence Road, they asked the City if they could build a drainage pond for this purpose and the City gave them permission to do so. In giving the County permission, the City requested they build a park at their expense. This is still being negotiated and Commissioner Newell has become interested in the project. Ms. Rivers also pointed out there is a new development going up called Knollwood and they will be providing some funds as well. The park would be a passive park that would provide some areas for habitat. 4) The Quantum site. This originally was intended for a ball field. However, there are some environmental issues and it will probably become a passive park. Mr. McVey noted the park was not configured for a ball field. 5) The Nichols property that is west of the Mall and currently not within City limits. This is a large piece of property. Mr. Majors noted there is a site off Woolbright in Leisureville that has recently been cleared of exotics. There is consideration to developing this into a passive park. Chairperson Pierce-Roe inquired if the Board would be able to take a tour of the parks for its next meeting. Mr. Majors noted this was an agenda item and it would have to be decided what parks the Board would like to tour. Chairperson Pierce-Roe recommended doing the tour two or three times in order to view all the parks. She recommended starting with Jaycee Park, Southeast Neighborhood Park and Congress Park. Mr. Majors also recommended visiting Intracoastal Park to gain a feel of where the new clubhouse would be placed. Mr. Majors informed the new members that they have an open invitation to tour the parks if they so wished. Mr. Majors will invite John Wildner to take the tour. Vice Chair Orlove commended staff for the wonderful publicity that the Boundless Park project has received. Vice Chair Orlove inquired if Governor Bush has approved the project and Ms. Rivers did not think the Governor would approve the project until sometime in June. 4 Meeting Minutes Recreation and Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida May 23, 2005 v. New Business A. CIP Update Vice Chair Orlove inquired if the City ever considered doing a bond issue only for parks that was recently done in Delray Beach. If they did a bond issue to improve and upgrade parks, it might not be necessary to go through the CIP process for funding. Mr. Majors responded that many parks have been identified in the CIP budget, but there are a great many other issues that need to be addressed using CIP funds. When the Board tours the parks, Vice Chair Orlove would like to visit some of the older parks. He inquired if there could be a CIP line for parks that have been identified by this Board as needing to be updated. Ms. Rivers stated staff has created a new CIP and there is a line for capital improvements listing the improvements for individual parks. Vice Chair Orlove inquired when the CIP workshop would be held. Mr. Majors thought they were held sometime in July, but are not held every year. The last CIP workshop was held in 2003. Vice Chair Orlove inquired if the budget was set on an annual basis and Mr. Majors said staff is currently revising the CIP to be presented to the Commission in July. Mr. Majors felt if there was something the Board would like to add to the CIP budget, it could still be addressed. Ms. Rivers noted almost every park in the City is included in the CIP budget. Mr. Majors offered to send out a copy of the draft CIP budget to the members to be discussed at the June meeting. Vice Chair Orlove felt the improvements for Little League Park should be a priority. Ms. Rivers noted that there are requests in the CIP budget to replace the dugouts and roof, redesign the bathrooms, enlarge the maintenance shed, resod, etc. for Little League Park. Vice Chair Orlove recalled the last time the CIP budget was workshopped, the Board prepared a list of priorities they would like to see addressed and presented it to the Commission. Mr. Majors noted many neighborhood parks need help. Chairperson Pierce-Roe inquired why the income from the radio tower located at Little League Park does not go to support the Park instead of the General Fund. She noted that when they put in a new radio tower at the Hester Center, the monies received went to that park that paid for major improvements. Mr. McVey commended the Park's staff for doing a wonderful job maintaining Little League Park. He acknowledged there are needs for the park, but they are listed in the CIP budget. He pointed out there are at least three cell towers at the park that generate income. Mr. Majors will look at those agreements. Vice Chair Orlove recommended that this be discussed at the next meeting. Ms. Rivers noted the CI P list has not been prioritized and this is something the Board could do if it so wished. 5 Meeting Minutes Recreation and Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida May 23, 2005 Chairperson Pierce-Roe asked how the City determined what funds go into the General Fund. She also noted that the fees generated by Boat Club Park are going to the General Fund as well and not the park itself. Mr. Majors explained that the General Funds offsets the costs for almost all City facilities and subsidizes Little League Park with $85,000 a year. Mr. Majors felt it was unrealistic to think that user fees could cover all the expenses of any of the City programs. He also pointed out the City has 168 acres of parks to maintain in addition to all the other sites in the City that is close to 300 acres. Ms. Thomas inquired if staff was aware of the total number of acres and/or dollars that have been allocated to the City through the recreation and parks' impact fee. Ms. Rivers stated there has only been one occasion recently when land was dedicated, but she would let the Board know how much the City has collected in recreation and park impact fees. Mr. Majors explained that when a project goes to permit, the impact fee applies if three or more units are involved. Chairperson Pierce-Roe recommended putting up a plaque that would indicate the developer donated the park so people would know the park was the result of monies collected by the City. Ms. Rivers explained that the money is not "donated," but is a fee a developer must pay and she did not think developers should be honored for complying with the Code. Ms. Rivers felt if a developer made a donation above the required fee, it might be a good idea to recognize them. Mr. Majors explained the impact fees collected maintain the parks. Vice Chair Orlove requested that the CIP list be forwarded to the members so they could discuss priorities at the next meeting. Ms. Rivers will take care of this. Ms. Sloan inquired if there were any park facilities in the CRA area. Mr. Majors responded that Jaycee Park is located in the CRA and is a major project. Ms. Hammer inquired if the CRA was funding this Park. Ms. Rivers explained what the CRA's purpose is and they do have a role in developing parks, but it is not one of their priorities. Ms. Hammer questioned why the developers doing projects in the CRA could not help pay for a park. Ms. Rivers responded that staff has discussed this with the CRA. The projects listed on the CIP that are within the CRA would be highlighted in yellow. Vice Chair Orlove inquired if consideration could be given to increase the square footage on the second floor of the clubhouse at Intracoastal Park. Mr. Majors stated this was not possible because of the parking situation. Ms. Rivers noted the design is at the 30% design stage and cannot be changed. Vice Chair Orlove felt there would not be enough room for a large party. Chairperson Pierce-Roe stated this same scenario exists at Boat Club Park. Mr. Majors noted because of the parking situation, plans for a spray park had to be scrapped at Intracoastal Park as well. 6 Meeting Minutes Recreation and Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida May 23, 2005 The plans for the Southeast Neighborhood Park are moving forward. Ms. Rivers reported the construction drawings for the Park are almost complete. After that, the engineers will develop the specs and they would like to go out to bid in late summer or fall. Ms. Thomas inquired if rest rooms would be included in the Southeast Neighborhood Park. Ms. Rivers stated they received a waiver from the Building Board of Adjustment and Appeals for two years, at which time they would have to go back to the Board to let them know how this is working out. The parking at the park was cut back to six spaces. Mr. Majors explained this is a neighborhood park and would not attract people from other areas. With regard to Wilson Park, Mr. Majors anticipates that 50% of the drawings could be submitted by July 1st and then they would meet with the Building Department. Vice Chair Orlove inquired if all the funding was in place for Wilson Park. Mr. Majors noted they have not yet received the FRDAP grant for $200,000, but he does anticipate the funds would be forthcoming. Ms. Rivers reported on Jaycee Park. The mitigation has begun and there is an engineering firm onboard to do the surveys. They are currently planning to go to bid on this the first of the year. Fishing piers are still included. With regard to usage by non- powered vessels, this will be determined after the underwater survey for seagrass is completed. Vice Chair Orlove had concerns about safety if a park was built at the FP&L site because of the high power lines. Ms. Rivers noted that staff would have to look into this. Mr. Majors pointed out that the park is over five acres deep and they do not need much acreage for a park. B. Monthly Report No discussion. C. Items for the City Manager's Attention None Vice Chair Orlove asked for an update on the accreditation of the Senior Center. Ms. Thomas responded that the final copy is being proofread. After the corrections are made, it will be submitted for approval. VI. Discussion 7 Meeting Minutes Recreation and Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida May 23, 2005 A. Facilities Tour for June meeting Discussion ensued on which facilities to tour. It was determined that the tour would be of the southeast area that would include Jaycee Park, Southeast Neighborhood Park, FP&L site and Girl Scout Park and any other areas if time permits. Mr. Majors will determine what the structure is at the FP&L site prior to the tour. Chairperson Pierce-Roe thought it would be a good idea if members could be furnished with a brief description of each park visited. Mr. Majors noted this information is included in the Board's manual. Other areas not covered on this trip will be covered on the next one. Chairperson Pierce-Roe distributed Certificates of Appreciation to the Board members that were handed out at the Board Dinner. VII. Next Meeting: June 27, 2005 at 6:00 p.m. It was agreed to meet at the Senior Center at 6:00 p.m. and the tour will go to 8:30 p.m. Mr. Williams announced that he would not be present for the June meeting because he would be having surgery, but anticipates being present at the July meeting. Members wished him well. VIII. Adjournment There being no further business, the meeting properly adjourned at 7:50 p.m. Respectfully submitted, vti~,- Iit\, Ik~ Barbara M. Madden Recording Secretary (May 25, 2005) 8