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Minutes 05-27-99 MINUTES OF THE ADVISORY BOARD ON CHILDREN AND YOUTH MEETING HELD IN CONFERENCE ROOM C, WEST WING CITY HALL, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA ON THURSDAY, MAY 27, 1999 AT 7:00 P.M. PRESENT Shanna St. John, Chairperson Melody Green, Recreation Superintendent Amy DeVries, Student Charles Fisher Stephen Waldman Laura Henley Shepard, Voting Alternate ABSENT Bob Borovy, Vice Chairman Hattie Miller Mary Morera Dorothy Davis Steven Kuehn, Student I. CALL TO ORDER Chairperson St. John called the meeting to order at 7:10p.m. II. MOMENT OF SILENT PRAYER – PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE Chairperson St. John called for a moment of silent prayer and requested that Charlie Fisher lead the members in the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag. III. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Chairperson St. John asked for a motion to approve the Agenda. Motion Ms. Henley-Shephard moved that the Agenda be approved. Motion seconded by Mr. Waldman and carried unanimously. IV. APPROVAL OF MINUTES MEETING MINUTES ADVISORY BOARD ON CHILDREN AND YOUTH BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MAY 27, 1999 Chairman St. John requested that two corrections be made to the minutes of the April On Page 13 with reference to the two motions, Chairperson St. 19, 1999 minutes. John requested that it be added, “Chairperson St. John abstained from voting”. Motion Mr. Waldman moved that the minutes of the April 19, 1999 meeting, as amended, be approved. Motion seconded by Mr. Fisher. Motion carried unanimously. V. ANNOUNCEMENTS A. CDF Updates Chairperson St. John referred members to the updates in their packets; specifically the new Juvenile Justice Bill recently enacted. Mr. Fisher requested that under “New Business” in the Agenda, the new YMCA facility be added for discussion. Chairperson St. John requested that under Item G., Child Safety Forums, “Youth Violence Workshops” be added. Motion Mr. Waldman moved that the Agenda be amended as presented. Ms. Henley-Shephard seconded the motion, which carried unanimously. B. TCS May 26, 1999 Chambers Not discussed. VI. PUBLIC AUDIENCE None VII. OLD BUSINESS A. “Stand for Children” Proclamation – June 1, 1999 Chairperson St. John asked members to refer to the copy of the Proclamation in their st packets and stated it is on the City Commission Agenda for June 1. Chairperson St. John said she spoke with LeeAnn Samuda today from Kidstop who indicated that there 2 MEETING MINUTES ADVISORY BOARD ON CHILDREN AND YOUTH BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MAY 27, 1999 would be four children and three adults attending the meeting. There will be three quilts that will be donated to the City. Chairperson St. John said that while Mayor Broening reads the Proclamation, the children could be in front of the dais with the quilts. Chairperson St. John said that she purchased “I Stand for Children” pins for all the members to wear and showed what the pin looked like to the members. Chairperson St. John said she purchased Marty Wright Edelman’s Book Stand for Children, which has been signed. Chairperson St. John said she was going to request that the Book be placed in the Library for viewing. Ms. Green stated that Chairperson St. John could request that the book be placed on reserve. th Mr. Waldman noted there was a typo in the Proclamation in the 5 Whereas and the word “it’s” should be “its”. Chairperson St. John said she sent out press releases. Chairperson St. John said she was going to request that Mayor Broening ask everyone in the audience to stand during the reading of the Proclamation as a sign of solidarity. Chairperson St. John requested that all members be present that evening. Also, Chairperson St. John noted that the Proclamation is being co-sponsored by the Education Advisory Board. B. “Big Help” – Workshops June 3, 1999 at 10:00 a.m., Recreation Department (Butterfly Garden) 6:00 p.m., American Legion (Beautification) Chairperson St. John stated that the Butterfly Garden has now become a larger project and in the agenda packet there is a list of the current sponsors. The American Legion has decided that they would like to have the Board do work on the building, the parking lot and the area around the building and will be donating $1,000. Also, Chairperson St. John said she received the grant from the Audubon Foundation for $800. Chairperson St. John noted that there is a meeting with the Parks Department on June 3, 1999 at 10:00 a.m. on the Butterfly Garden. The meeting is scheduled for the conference room in the Recreation Department. That same evening, there will be a meeting at 6:00 p.m. at the American Legion. Chairperson St. John said that a Boy Scout from Troop #304 would be coordinating the project for the American Legion beautification. Mr. Waldman has volunteered to be the coordinator for the entire project. Ms. DeVries inquired about the involvement of Nickelodeon in the project. Chairperson St. John said that Nickelodeon has furnished a packet for use by the Board and the Board is allowed to use their logo. An architect is working on the design around the building itself and xeriscape is being considered. Chairperson St. John said it needs to be determined if butterfly plants can be planted in the rotary because they grow so high, 3 MEETING MINUTES ADVISORY BOARD ON CHILDREN AND YOUTH BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MAY 27, 1999 and may not be appropriate plants for this location. In that case, consideration is being given to doing more of an English Garden. Chairperson St. John said Sam’s Club would be donating a gift certificate and Cone law firm will be contributing ice cream for one of the days. Chairperson St. John said that “Fishbone Fred” who is an entertainer contacted her through the web site and he will be utilized at the ribbon cutting ceremonies. Mr. Fisher inquired if the Board has enough funds for the project. Chairperson St. John said she wouldn’t know this until it is determined how much the paint would cost and well as the amount and cost of the plants. Chairperson St. John said she continues to look for contributions and will be soliciting Home Depot and Home Rich Nurseries. Also, Chairperson St. John has prepared a letter to the Westwind Group, which owns several Burger Kings and Burger King is the official Big Help Headquarters. Chairperson St. John said she was going to approach Home Depot for the paint and she will be soliciting plants from prior donors. C. Youth Volunteer Bank Chairperson St. John said the banquet was a great success and everyone enjoyed themselves. Ms. Morera has the certificates, which need to be delivered to the schools th beginning June 7. Mr. Fisher inquired if thank you letters would be sent to all the sponsors and Chairperson St. John said they would. Mr. Fisher noted that one of the young female students, who won a scholarship at the Youth Banquet, also won a scholarship at the Kravis Center at few nights later. Chairperson St. John said that a report would be available at the next meeting. Chairperson St. John also requested that each member pay their $10.00 portion of the Board’s sponsorship. D. Youth Council – Mondays at 6:30 p.m. – Madsen Center Mr. Waldman said that two meetings have taken place. At the first meeting, Ms. Lula Butler who is involved with the Delray Beach Youth Council, together with three officers, attended the meeting. Mr. Waldman requested that the Board send a thank you letter to Ms. Butler for her assistance. The second meeting was held at the Civic Center which was attended by 50 youth that decided to hold a third meeting, at which time officers would be elected and that criteria for the officers would be established. Mr. Waldman said that this Board has done as much at it can with the Youth Council and people will need to be found to serve on an advisory board and hopes that someone from the City staff could assist in this area. 4 MEETING MINUTES ADVISORY BOARD ON CHILDREN AND YOUTH BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MAY 27, 1999 Mr. Waldman said the next meeting would be held on Monday, June 7th at 6:30 p.m. Ms. Green stated that Ms. Carolyn Sims and Steve Lulkin, who are directly involved with the Teen Club in the Civic Center, could determine the appropriate representative for the Youth Council. Mr. Waldman and Ms. Henley-Shephard indicated they would like to assist with the Youth Council. Mr. Waldman said he is very enthusiastic about the Youth Council, that the youth appear to be eager to be involved and he was very impressed with the group. Mr. Waldman said that after the officers of the Youth Council are elected, he would like to bring them to a City Commission meeting and introduce them to the Commission, since this Board was asked to do something about the feasibility of the Youth Council and the Board has done so. Chairperson St. John suggested that the Board concentrate on fundraising as a priority for the next month. Mr. Waldman stated for the record that Ron Washam, Chair of the Community Relations Board, was present and contributed to the meeting. Discussion ensued regarding reimbursement for the pizzas that were purchased by the members. Ms. Green suggested that Chairperson St. John prepare an invoice on the Board’s stationary requesting reimbursement for the pizzas and submit it for payment. It was decided that the pizzas would be a gift from this Board to the Youth Council. Chairperson St. John suggested that a car wash could be held to raise funds and said she has discussed this with Interim City Manager Wilfred Hawkins who said it could be held on the Senior Center parking lot. Chairperson St. John suggested that flyers could be sent to all senior communities with half the funds going to the Senior Center and half going to the Youth Council. Chairperson St. John inquired when the Senior Center would be opened and Ms. Green said it should be completed by the end of June. However, a grand opening is being planned for the fall. Ms. Green said that the parking lot at the Senior Center should be available around the end of August. Also, Chairperson St. John inquired if tours of the Center could be offered at that time. Chairperson St. John said she suggested to the Senior Advisory Board that they could have a table to sell their bags and pins, as well as serving coffee and donuts in the morning. The Youth Council could sell hot dogs and soda. Mr. Waldman said it was determined at the last meeting that anyone wishing to run for an office must telephone him and inform him of what position they would like to run for and Mr. Waldman said he has not received any phone calls. The purpose of this was to provide enough time to prepare a ballot. 5 MEETING MINUTES ADVISORY BOARD ON CHILDREN AND YOUTH BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MAY 27, 1999 Motion Ms. Henley-Shephard moved that the Advisory Board on Children and Youth support the Youth Advisory Council and pay for the pizza in the amount of $94.00. Mr. Waldman seconded the motion. Mr. Fisher said that in the future we should plan to budget the money in advance, rather than coming back to the Board for reimbursement. Motion unanimously carried. E. Web site – http://www.ci.boynton-beach.fl.us.com Chairperson St. John showed a copy of the Board’s web’s page to the members, which allows for a person to click off the page to other pages. Mr. Fisher asked that members furnish text for inclusion on the web page with the photographs. Discussion ensued on what new items should be added to the web page. Chairperson St. John also suggested that the names of the sponsors of the various events of the Board should also be included on the web site. Ms. Green noted that because this Board is going to so much work to create a wonderful web site, Ms. Green would like to track the progression of the web page to submit it to 3CMA, which is a national marketing organization for a national award. Ms. Green said that this Board’s web page is going to be something sensational and she would like to submit it for an award. Ms. Green suggested that all the pages to date be saved to show the different phases of the progress of the web page. Chairperson St. John said she would like to include the Youth Expo logo in the web page, with a list of the sponsors. Also, the bowling tournament could be included. Chairperson St. John would also like included the verification form, pictures of children doing volunteer service, and the Proclamation of Stand for Children with the logo. F. Charter Revision – Workshop, Saturday, June 5, 1999 at 9:00 a.m. Chairperson St. John stated that a copy of the Board’s Charter has been furnished to th each member and that on Saturday, June 5 at 9:00 a.m. a workshop would take place. G. Child Safety Forums 1. Youth Violence Workshops Mr. Waldman said that he would like to change the name of the “Child Safety Forum”. Also, Mr. Waldman said that at least a couple of forums should be held next year and 6 MEETING MINUTES ADVISORY BOARD ON CHILDREN AND YOUTH BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MAY 27, 1999 the Board needs to look for ways to increase the audience. Mr. Waldman said he would contact the PTA’s and SAC committees. Mr. Waldman said he has a list of speakers that could be used. Also, Mr. Waldman would like to hold some workshops on youth violence and perhaps that could be the kick-off workshop for next year. Chairperson St. John noted that the safety forums originated as the result of a shooting and now there are more shootings. Chairperson St. John said she received a call from Ms. Anne Centi asking what could be done to help the Board to stop children from killing each other. Ms. Centi said she would be glad to assist the Board with any type of workshop or seminar on this issue. Chairperson St. John said she spoke to someone in Children’s Services Council and there are funds available for informational seminars up to $2,000. Chairperson St. John said she suggested that this Board host a countywide youth violence seminar. Also, Chairperson St. John said she would like to invite the principals and vice- principals or at least one representative from each high school and middle school. Mr. Waldman also suggested including religious leaders in the workshops. Mr. Fisher inquired if this would be an all-day event. Chairperson St. John said that Children’s Services Council would assist. Chairperson St. John said she wants the City of Boynton Beach to host the workshop. Mr. Fisher asked about the timing of the workshop. Discussion took place on the type of workshop that could be offered. Mr. Fisher suggested that the first workshop only include parents and not have participation with the students. Mr. Waldman thought that students who assume a leadership role should be included. Mr. Fisher also questioned whether anything could be accomplished in one day. Mr. Waldman suggested that if the Board wished to sponsor this type of workshop, it should get together with the experts in this area and set up some type of conference. Chairperson St. John said she would continue to discuss the issue with Ms. Marlene Passell, Information Officer for the Children’s Services Council. Chairperson St. John stated she would try to come up with a new name for the Child Safety Forums. H. Open Forum – June 19, 1999, 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. th Chairperson St. John announced that the Open Forum would be held on June 19 at 2:00 p.m. at the Library. After the Forum, the Boynton Heights Neighborhood Block Party is taking place and everyone is invited. Chairperson St. John suggested that each member bring a dish to share, as well as bringing your own chair. The block between Seacrest and Ocean Avenue will be blocked off. I. Youth Expo 7 MEETING MINUTES ADVISORY BOARD ON CHILDREN AND YOUTH BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MAY 27, 1999 Nothing new to report. J. Bowling Tournament – Sunday, July 25, 1999 Mr. Waldman said he would be speaking with the Manager at AMF to determine when the flyers would be ready. Mr. Waldman said when the flyer is ready, he would furnish a copy to Mr. Fisher for the web site. Mr. Waldman said the entry fee is $20 per team. Shoes for the children are free. From the proceeds, the Board will be charged $2.00 per game, and the Board should realize about $12 per game. Chairperson St. John inquired if pizza would be served again. Vice Chair Borovy will be checking with Manhattan Trophy regarding the trophies. Mr. Waldman said that last year Manhattan Trophy donated the trophies and that last year 87 people participated. K. CDF Conference Chairperson St. John said she would have a report ready for the next meeting. Chairperson St. John said she would be making a report to this Board and asked if the Board would like her to make a report directly to the City Commission. Mr. Fisher suggested that the Board could decide this after hearing the presentation. Ms. Green also suggested that Chairperson St. John prepare a list of items that the Board has already implemented. L. Student Award Mr. Waldman inquired if any children would be in need of assistance to attend summer camp and he would like to make sure that every child that wants to attend could attend. Mr. Fisher asked if children were turned away because there was not enough money. Ms. Green said that does not happen and that there are sufficient funds available for 50% scholarships. Also, the Community Action Council assists families that meet their criteria and they pay for the entire cost of the camp. Ms. Green stated the fee for residents was $186 to $236, depending upon what camp the child attends. There are different costs for different camps. Ms. Green stated that not only has no child been turned down, the City charges a lot less for camp than other communities. Ms. Green noted that the $100 parent share covers camp for 8 weeks, all day 7:30 in the morning until 6:00 p.m. Also, children who go to the Wilson Center get free lunch. Ms. Green also stated that the camps have been divided up in accordance with age groups this year. Discussion continued about the different types of funding and the activities offered at the various camps. Ms. Green noted that even when grants are received, the City must match the grant in some manner. Also, Ms. Green informed members that staffing arrangements and guidelines must be adhered to which calls for 8 MEETING MINUTES ADVISORY BOARD ON CHILDREN AND YOUTH BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MAY 27, 1999 one staff member for every 25 campers and for the real young age groups, there is one staff member for every 15 campers. Chairperson St. John inquired if there were any plans to place some of the camps in the south section of the City and Ms. Green stated for several years a playground program was offered at Caloosa Park. Also, Ms. Green noted that there is an issue that there are not many facilities available in the south section of the City. Mr. Fisher said that at last month’s meeting it was brought up about this Board adding a scholarship program. Mr. Waldman suggested that the Board have an award for a graduating senior who made the greatest contribution, which could be judged by a committee. Also, Mr. Waldman said if the Board adopted some type of scholarship program, he would like it named after Vice Chair Borovy, who has made a tremendous contribution to the community and the children of the City. Mr. Fisher suggested that this could be further discussed at a workshop. Mr. Waldman said he would like a consensus from the Board if this was something they wished to pursue. The funding of the scholarship was discussed and whether new sponsorship would have to be located. Mr. Fisher said he was not prepared to make a decision on this tonight and suggested that this should be further discussed at a workshop. Mr. Waldman asked if the Board supports the concept of a scholarship program and there was a consensus on the Board that they support the concept and that it would be further discussed at a future workshop. M. Kid’s Kingdom Playground Ms. Green stated that the insurance is covering the cost of the reconstruction of the playground that was burnt down and would probably take several months to complete. Ms. Green stated that someone from Leathers and Associates would be coming to the City to meet with the construction companies when they make the bids, as well as when construction commences. There probably would not be any playground this summer. Chairperson St. John inquired about the young girl who is selling tee shirts and Ms. Green did not know the status of her fundraising. VIII. NEW BUSINESS A. Board Elections Chairperson St. John suggested tabling the elections until the next meeting until more Board members were present. 9 MEETING MINUTES ADVISORY BOARD ON CHILDREN AND YOUTH BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MAY 27, 1999 B. YMCA Mr. Fisher noted there was a newspaper article recently about the new YMCA to be built at the intersection of Old Boynton Road and Military Trail. Mr. Fisher noted that the money needed has been raised. Mr. Fisher inquired if the City would be working with the facility in some capacity and Ms. Green said they would not. Mr. Fisher asked Ms. Green if she could look into partnering up with the YMCA. Ms. Green noted that the YMCA was in the County and not within City limits. Ms. Green said she would follow through on this. Mr. Fisher said he did not attend the Youth Council meeting because he has offered his services to the Library in working with the youth. It has been determined to offer computer classes on a weekly basis through the summer and would alternate between how to use the Internet on Wednesday evenings from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. The th classes will begin on June 9. Chairperson St. John wished to commend the person in charge of the youth program at the Library who is doing a wonderful job. Also, basic word processing will be taught on the computer. Ms. Green stated if the interest is still there after the summer and provided that the grant funding comes through, there will be ten more computers for these programs at other locations. Chairperson St. John said that the Madsen Center is used mostly during the day for meetings and bridge. Chairperson St. John inquired if the empty lot across from Lucille and Otley’s could be purchased in order to build shuffleboard courts and to market this to the seniors. Chairperson St. John would like to see the programs that are offered at the Madsen Center moved to the Senior Center so that the Madsen Center could be turned into a Teen Center. The Madsen Center is in a good location and is large enough to accommodate the functions being offered at the Teen Club, which is too small. Ms. Green pointed out the key to this idea is whether Lucille and Otley Scott would be selling their property and up to this point they have indicated they are not selling. Ms. Green stated that the City has considered making this property into a small park. Mr. Fisher said he was under the impression that the land at the entrance to Nautica was intended to go to the City for a park. Ms. Green was not sure about this and said she would check into it. Chairperson St. John would like to determine how many City residents use the shuffleboard court and how much money it generates. Chairperson St. John said she would rather see a teen center for the teens than a shuffleboard court that is being used 10 MEETING MINUTES ADVISORY BOARD ON CHILDREN AND YOUTH BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA MAY 27, 1999 by non-residents and does not generate much money. Ms. Green stated that City residents are using the shuffleboard court and at last count the ratio was 60% use by residents and 40% use by non-residents. Ms. Green said she would look into this further. Chairperson St. John stated when she attended the CDF Conference there were buttons that stated “Children are our Future” and Chairperson St. John said she would like to use this as a theme if it is not copyrighted. th Mr. Fisher asked what the City was planning for activities over the 4 of July. Ms. Green stated things are still in the planning stage, except that arrangements for the fireworks have been made. Chairperson St. John noted that during the Friday night concerts there are opportunities to set up tables for fundraisers and this might be something the Board may wish to consider for the Fourth of July. Ms. Green suggested that Chairperson St. John speak with Ms. Meg Hooper to see what groups would be selling certain items. Chairperson St. John suggested that this Board could sell the little flags that are furnished by Bob Borovy. Chairperson St. John will speak with Ms. Hooper about this further. IX. ADJOURNMENT th The next meeting is scheduled for Thursday, June 24 at 7:00 in the Commission Chambers. Motion Mr. Waldman moved that the meeting adjourn. Motion seconded by Mr. Fisher and the meeting properly adjourned at 9:10 p.m. Respectfully submitted, ______________________________ Barbara M. Madden Recording Secretary (two tapes) 11