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Minutes 07-24-00 MINUTES OF THE RECREATION AND PARKS BOARD MEETING HELD IN CONFERENCE ROOM C, WEST WING, CITY HALL, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA, ON MONDAY, JULY 24, 2000 AT 7:00 P.M. PRESENT Betty Thomas, Chairperson Elizabeth L. Pierce, Alternate Bali Ramnarace Tom Williams Dan Winters Wally Majors, Acting Recreation Director John Wildner, Parks Director Kurt Bressner, City Manager ABSENT Ed Harris James R. McMahon Mike Fitzpatrick Charles Jackson, Alternate CALLTO ORDER Chairperson Thomas called the meeting to order at 7:02 p.m. I1. ATTENDANCE Chairperson Thomas called the roll and a quorum was declared present. She requested that Ms. Pierce, who is the new Board member, introduce herself and give a brief description of her background. Ms. Pierce said she has been a Boynton Beach resident for 13 years and had been visiting Boynton Beach since she was a young child. She is the business manager for Palm Beach National Golf and Country Club, which is a golf course located off Lake Worth Road. Ms. Pierce said she enjoys the outdoors and has a boat and utilizes Boat Club Park a great deal. She looks forward to working with the Board. Chairperson Thomas also introduced John Wildner, Parks Director; Wally Majors, Acting Recreation Director; and Kurt Bressner, the City Manager and requested that the Board members give a brief background of themselves for the benefit of the new member. MEETING MINUTES RECREATION & PARKS BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA JulY 24, 2000 II1. APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF JUNE 26, 2000 MEETING Chairperson Thomas asked if there were any corrections or additions to the minutes of the June 26, 2000 meeting? Mr. Majors requested that on page 5 under New Business the position budgeted for is a "Recreation Specialist", not a "Park Ranger". Employing a Park Ranger in the future is something the City might consider. Mr. Wildner said that the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Department is cross training school crossing guards as park rangers. Mr. Williams inquired why the golf cart was not included in the budget? Mr. Majors said he is trying to work with Mr. Joe Sciortino to get a cart. Mr. Williams feels a golf cart is essential for the Hester Center because it is too large an area to cover on foot for inspection purposes. Mr. Majors responded that a place needs to be located to store the cart. Mr. Winters suggested acquiring a "mule" or some other type of work vehicle, which would work just as well and Mr. Wildner stated that this has been considered. The cemetery currently uses one and they are looking into acquiring others for various locations. However, a golf cart would be much more economical. Mr. Bressner said he would assist with securing a golf cart for the Hester Center. Chairperson Thomas asked if there were any other corrections to the minutes and there were none. Chairperson Thomas stated that the minutes, as amended, be approved as presented. IV. UNFINISHED BUSINESS A. Hester Center Breezeway Enclosure Mr. Majors reported that the project would not begin on the scheduled date. It now lOoks like the project will begin in September or October. Mr. Williams noted that at the Hester Center the trees are growing on top of the roof and need to be trimmed. Mr. Wildner will follow through on this. B. Senior Center Mr. Majors reported that he ordered a self-assessment guide that is available through a governmental agency. It is anticipated that a very thorough self- analysis Will be done in order to determine what areas need improvement. 2 MEETING MINUTES RECREATION & PARKS BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA July 24, ;2000 Mr. Winters asked if there were any plans to complete the Senior Center? Mr. Bressner said he was at the Senior Center a couple of weeks ago and there are still some open issues remaining. Mr. Bressner mentioned that the food service is on the west side and there is a large meeting area on the east side that could be utilized as a better set up for the tables. Mr. Bressner assumed that it is this Board's responsibility for making recommendations for the Senior Center. Mr. Winters stated that in the last meeting minutes, there were some ideas mentioned for completing the Senior Center. He suggested that the facility could be named after a sponsor who could contribute money to complete the center. Mr. Bressner pointed out that a new sign, which would conform to the City codes, needs to be put up and the current sign must be taken down, as it is in the wrong location. Mr. Bressner inquired if the Board prepares any type of memorandum with its recommendations to the Commission, other than relying on the Commission reading the minutes? Mr. Winters said that only the minutes are used to convey recommendations and ideas. Mr. Bressner suggested that the Board come up with some type of reporting format that could be presented to him and the City Commission. Mr. Bressner also requested that this Board speak with the Senior Advisory Board that has some specific ideas for the Center. He will be meeting with that Board as well. Chairperson Thomas did state that whenever the Board has an issue, they do communicate with the City Manager and the Commission through the letter- writing process. Mr. Bressner pointed out that the City Commission agenda now contains an item called "future agenda items" so that people are aware of what would be coming up at future meetings. Chairperson Thomas pointed out that the plans for phase 2 of the Senior Center have been drawn up, but there is a lack of funds to complete the project. Mr. Williams said that the Commission does listen to this Board's recommendations, because at a prior meeting, the Board requested two buses, and one has already been approved by the City Commission and another one should be forthcoming. Mr. Williams thanked the Commission for the buses, because he has been trying for years to get the City to purchase buses for the Recreation Department, which are needed to run their programs. Also, Mr. Williams said that this should result in cost savings to the City, instead of having to rent buses all the time. 3 MEETING MINUTES RECREATION & PARKS BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA July 24, 2000 Mr. Bressner suggested that the Commission could take a City tour on the bus to view the recreational facilities in the City. Mr. Wildner stated that this had been done in the past with prior Commissions. C. Boat Club/Intracoastal Parks Mr. Wildner reported that the City Manager informed him that the County likes the City's $1.7 million request for funding for the Park and this should be approved in due course. Mr. Williams inquired where all the sand was coming from that is on the site and Mr. Wildner said this is the sand being excavated for the retention Pond being built behind the old Winn-Dixie. Mr. Winters asked if the City was still interested in the property to the north of the park site? Mr. Bressner announced that the CRA has authorized the acquisition of that property and the City is in the process of getting the property appraised and is doing a due diligence. There are some questions concerning the dockage rights and this has to be determined. The City would like to have some kind of sustaining form of revenue on this location to cover the O&M expenses for the Park, which is projected at $180,000 yearly. Staff has been speaking with the County's Economic Development Department regarding some type of educational, institutional use for the property, which would also be a draw for people to come to the Park. Ms. Pierce thought this would be a good location for the Chamber of Commerce to occupy to welcome people as they enter the City. Chairperson Thomas inquired about the condition of the building and Mr. Bressner said the building is in reasonably good condition structurally. Ms. Pierce inquired what the plans were for Boat Club Park and Mr. Wildner said there are plans to add 75 new parking spaces and improvements will be made to the slips. Ms. Pierce stated that she used to vote at the Royal Palm Clubhouse and she has received notice that she would be voting at Boat Club Park. Mr. Wildner said he was not aware of this. Mr.. Bressner requested that the Recording Secretary determine with the City Clerk in the morning if there is voting at Boat Club Park. Mr. Williams asked if the City would be able to charge a fee for non-residents who use Boat Club Park? Mr. Bressner said that the County would not allow this. Mr. Wildner said that the same price has to be charged to everyone and the City is considering selling decals for the use of Boat Club Park. Mr. Wildner also pointed out that not only did the City receive County-money, but received State money in the past, which would probably make it difficult to charge a higher fee to non,residents. Mr. Wildner felt that people would still pay a fee to purchase a decal to use the Park because of its location. If a decal system were instituted, it would be necessary to have staff present. Mr. Wildner replied that staff is 4 MEETING MINUTES RECREATION & PARKS BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA July 24, 2000 present on weekends and holidays, which is really the only time there is a problem with parking. He did not see a need to have the Park staffed during the week. An honor system could be in place during the week. Chairperson Thomas inquired if there would be any additional slips added and Mr. Wildner said there were no plans for additional slips. However, there are plans to add a holding dock facility to allow people to load up their boats to increase efficiency. Adding more ramps would only add more congestion. Mr. Wildner also pointed out that there is a problem with the dive boats that like to load and unload their passengers and this takes quite a bit of time. Mr. Williams inquired if the City could sell fuel at Boat Club Park and Mr. Wildner said that this never was looked at. Mr: Williams felt this would be a good way to bring in additional revenue to the City. D. Tennis Center (North American Corporate Games, October 26-29) Mr. Majors reported that staff would be meeting with representatives from the Corporate Games to determine what is expected of the host site. The Recreation Department has plans to open a hospitality tent, which would have refreshments available. Mr. Majors said he would also be taking a survey to determine the participants' feelings about the event. The Chamber of Commerce also plans to participate. Information about the City will be readily available at the registration area. Mr. Williams asked if any sponsors have been located. Mr. Majors said this is an item they would be discussing with the Corporate Games representatives. Mr. Majors said that Bob Howell is trying to get a sponsor for the tennis balls, which could amount to several hundred dollars. Discussion on sponsorship continued and Mr. Majors pointed out that there are many new businesses in the City and if a request were for just a few hundred dollars, most businesses would be receptive to the small amounts, in exchange for visibility. Mr. Winters did not like to see the Parks and Recreation Department become beggars every time they need money and that the City should be a supporter of the Parks and Recreation Department. Mr. Winters pointed out that it is the Parks and Recreation Department that exemplifies the status of the City. E. Special Events (TNT Concerts, Holiday events) Mr. Winters complimented staff on a wonderful job they did for the Fourth of July celebration. In particular, Mr. Winters felt the Little Village idea was a great success. Mr. Majors said that next year the amount of booths would probably be downsized, because he did not think that all the vendors did that well and there were too many. Mr. Majors also complimented staff and stated that this MEETING MINUTES RECREATION & PARKS BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA July 24, 2000 generated revenue and it also looked very nice. Also everyone expressed kudos for the fireworks. It was also noted that the parking at Benvenuto's worked out very well and there was plenty of police visibility. F. Greenways Network (Mike Fitzpatrick) Mr. Fitzpatrick did not think he could make tonight's meeting because he might have to work. Mr. Wildner reminded the Board that after the last meeting this Board sent a memorandum to the City Manager's Office regarding a Greenways Special Taxing District. Mr. Wildner and Mr. Majors met with Mr. Bressner to discuss this. It was decided that another meeting would be held to include Mr. Fitzpatrick. The best way to approach this will be to place emphasis on the Greenways and land acquisition. A Greenways network would be desirable to a great many people who do not want to see Boynton Beach turned into another Broward County. Staff will continue to research this and include people from outside the City for input. Mr. Wildner pointed out that the Greenways Committee did a great deal of work on coming up with a preliminary plan and staff would like to build on this concept. Mr. Winters noted that the State is spending a lot of money on the Greenways and there should be a lot of programs that would be available to assist in this effort. Also, more research on the Special District Taxing concept needs to be done. G. Monthly Report The monthly report is included in the agenda packet. Mr. Winters pointed out the large attendance figures at the Senior Center and thinks the Center should be open on weekends. V. NEW BUSINESS Mr. Wildner reported that Mr. Majors just received a Greenway Development Plan, which he received through an inquiry over the Internet. Mr. Majors said the Plan was made available through the NRPA web site. Mr. Williams inquired if anyone from staff would be attending the NRPA convention? Mr. Majors was not certain on this. Mr. Wildner noted that in order to keep up their certifications, they must attend a certain amount of conventions and training. Chairperson Thomas asked Mr. Bressner if he had anything he would like to address the Board on? 6 MEETING MINUTES RECREATION & PARKS BOARD BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA July 24, 2000 Mr. Bressner reported that he had sent to all chairpersons of each of the advisory boards a letter of apology that the changing of the meeting venues changed quicker than he had anticipated. He feels the Commission would like to see the Board try various venues for their meetings. Mr. Winters would like to see more people attend the Board meetings. Mr. Bressner said this could be accomplished by moving the meetings around and that staff will assist in getting the word out. Discussion on the use of the City Chambers ensued and it was noted that some Boards prefer to hold their meetings in the Chambers and are reluctant to move. Mr. Bressner pointed out that in City buildings there are 15 meeting rooms available and the Woman's Club is also available. Mr. Bressner noted that the schools are available for meetings and there is a possibility that a City Commission meeting will be held at Rolling Green School in the near future. Mr. Winters said he could never understand why the City doesn't have a Parks and Recreation Director and he would like to see one. When Mr. Fredericks left, the prior City Manager did not replace him and Mr. Winters asked if that position has now been eliminated. Mr. Bressner stated that was correct. Mr. Winters said this is no reflection upon Mr. Wildner or Mr. Majors, and both are doing an excellent job, but he feels the City has taken a step backwards in not having a Parks and Recreation Director. VI. NEXT MEETING: Chairperson Thomas announced that the next meeting is scheduled for Monday, August 28, 2000. VII. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, the meeting properly adjourned at 8:20 p.m, Respectfully submitted, Barbara M. Madden Recording Secretary (two tapes) 7