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Minutes 01-25-10 MINUTES OF THE RECREATION AND PARKS ADVISORY BOARD MEETING HELD ON JANUARY 25, 2010, 6:30 P.M., AT THE SENIOR CENTER CENTER, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA PRESENT: Betty Pierce-Roe, Chair Wally Majors, Recreation and Parks Director William Orlove, Vice Chair Jody Rivers, Parks Superintendent Robert Lapin Janelle Sloan ABSENT: Corey Cook, Alternate Thomas Gresh, Alternate John McVey I. CALL TO ORDER Chair Pierce-Roe called the meeting to order at 6:27 p.m. II. ATTENDANCE Chair Pierce-Roe called the roll. III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES FROM: November 23, 2009 Motion Vice Chair Orlove moved to approve the minutes. Mr. Lapin seconded the motion that passed unanimously. IV. UNFINISHED BUSINESS None V. NEW BUSINESS A. Support Letter for Grant from Florida Department of Agriculture and th Consumer Services for Reforestation Grant for Pence Park and 4 Street Jody Rivers, Parks Supervisor, noted the City would be applying for a grant in th conjunction with Public Works for Pence Park and SW 4 Street. The State grant is 1 Meeting Minutes Recreation and Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida January 25, 2010 fully funded and would require no match by the City. Board approval was required. Motion Vice Chair Orlove moved to approve. Mr. Lapin seconded the motion that passed unanimously. B. Public Feedback regarding Pence Park Wally Majors, Recreation and Parks Director, noted that Commissioner Rodriguez had received several telephone calls regarding the homicide that had occurred at Pence Park, and he requested the community have an opportunity to provide feedback on the issue. Jose Rodriguez, Commissioner, noted he resided across from Pence Park and believed parks should be a safe place for families to visit. After the incident, the Park was shut down after hours as a temporary measure. He remarked on the merits of the Park and invited comments as to the manner in which the Park should be used. Mr. Majors explained to the attendees the Recreation and Parks Board was advisory in nature and provided recommendations to the City Commission. The Board would be listening to the views of the attendees at this meeting and at some point, would be making a recommendation to the City Commission. Commissioner Rodriguez also invited the citizens to contact him or Board members with further comments or suggestions in order to keep the lines of communication open. Ms. Rivers provided an overview of the City's accomplishments with respect to Pence Park, the oldest park in the City. Improvements included replacing the playground and park equipment, revitalizing the basketball court and converting the softball field into a multi-purpose use. She wanted to ensure everyone in attendance was heard from and comments were invited. Doug Brueggermann, SE 4th Street, had utilized the Park. He observed that the street behind the park and near the railroad tracks contributed to "elements" cruising and parking. He suggested the road be blocked off or used for parking, and he did not favor turning the lights off in the evenings. He suggested opportunities be available for those people interested in playing soccer. Lisa Adams, SE 9th St., felt recreation leagues and walking paths should be incorporated into the Park. 2 Meeting Minutes Recreation and Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida January 25, 2010 th Candy Bruerggermann, SE 4 Street, learned of drug activity in the Park and was advised that neighbors had seen condoms in the playground. She believed shutting down the Park at night would help to avoid this kind of activity. Mario Tomei suggested the Park be reconfigured, adding gates for parking and sidewalks and paths. He suggested the use of cameras, patrolling on a regular basis and establishing a neighborhood watch group. He requested areas be added for hopscotch, volleyball, picnic tables, bocce ball, shuffleboard, tennis and possibly a community pool. th Kristin Hardy, SE 9 St., suggested, in addition to all of the comments made, renting the field on a Saturday in order to generate revenue. Rick Katz felt there was a drawback to late-night basketball. If the basketball court remained open until 10:00 p.m., people would be encouraged to "hang out" in the Park. He suggested the hours be limited, and the lights left on. He felt the response time by police officers should be quicker. He had no objection to the soccer activities or to the multi-uses of the Park. Mark Daly agreed with Mr. Katz's comments regarding late-night basketball. He also rd remarked about the speeding on SE 3 Street and suggested speed bumps be installed. rd Warner Rother, SE 3 St., agreed with most of the comments offered and would favor the installation of speed bumps, especially since a large number of children resided in the area. st JW Rowland, 1 St., noted he had to travel to Delray Beach to find a dog park. He suggested something be done for people who walked their dogs. rd Mark Haskell, SE 3 St., had observed "No Dogs Allowed" signs in Pence Park. However, the City had previously held an event which allowed dogs in the Park. Perhaps dogs should be allowed in the Park or provisions should be made for people to walk their dogs. He felt 9:00 p.m. would be a good time to shut the lights off at the basketball court. th Allan Hendricks, SE 4 Ave., did not use the Park but rode his bicycle around the Park. He had no objection to the basketball activities. He commended the Recreation and Parks Department. He agreed with many of the comments made to keep crime at bay, including lighting, programming, neighborhood watch groups, closing off streets putting in parking areas, installing speed bumps and reconfiguring the Park. As neighbors on the other side of Seacrest had organized, he proposed that neighbors on this side of Seacrest do the same. 3 Meeting Minutes Recreation and Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida January 25, 2010 rd Shari Tellman, SE 3 St., suggested speed bumps be installed to prevent speeding before another tragedy occurred. Commissioner Rodriguez pointed out a fatal traffic accident had occurred on the other side of Seacrest. The residents had organized a homeowner's group that met th regularly at the church on 6. Jeff Livergood, Public Works Director, had evaluated the roads and discussed at a meeting the installation of speed bumps and closing of roads. Mr. Livergood would be conducting an analysis and would report his recommendations to the homeowner's group. A separate session could be held with regard to comments made at this meeting. Frank Call, noted he owned a house and apartment buildings in the area. He advised the noise level had dropped tremendously since the lights had been shut off at Pence Park. The youngsters playing basketball on the court were not the cause of the problems, but rather the individuals in cars drinking and smoking "dope." The recent incident was the second murder to have occurred in the Park. Gunshots could be heard on numerous occasions at the Park. He disagreed with closing the road but favored designated parking in the area. He suggested the neighborhood be patrolled more often and felt speed bumps would help. rd Brenda Haskell, 3 Street, agreed with many of the comments made, including the use of lights and speed bumps. She inquired whether anyone knew if the occupants of the new condominiums and apartment buildings on Woolbright would be bringing their children to the Park. Ms. Rivers responded it was possible as the City attempted to provide neighborhood parks within a half-mile walking distance, and the new structures rd would fall into that radius. She inquired whether there were any plans to beautify 3 Street from Las Ventanas to the Park to make it more inviting and family friendly. She suggested sidewalks and post lights be installed and parking be added. She had no objection to closing the road. Mr. Katz commented that his wife worked at the Library and on nights and afternoons when there was a good deal of activity occurring at the basketball court, she opted to take the longer route to get home rather than drive by Pence Park. It was questioned whether the bathrooms remained open all night at the Park. Ms. Rivers responded the bathrooms were locked after the arrival of the custodians (between 7:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m.). She also noted the doors to the bathrooms faced the street. th Gerald, a resident for 58 years, remarked that SE 7 Street used to be very safe but th was now dangerous. People would cut through SE 7 Avenue and drink and use drugs 4 Meeting Minutes Recreation and Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida January 25, 2010 in their cars as well as in the Park. A fence should be installed at the railroad tracks and a parking area should be created. Dogs should be kept on leashes. Sidewalks should be installed on 5th and a green market or yard sale should be held regularly at the Park. He questioned the merits of a neighborhood crime watch as many of the homes on his block had been burglarized. Additionally, crime watch could result in retaliation. The lights should be switched off when the Park was not in use. He did not believe the police should relocate to the west side of the City and felt Dispatch asked too many questions. Mr. Katz felt the neighborhood was a "gem," as it was close to the beach, shopping, restaurants and downtown. At the time he purchased his home, there was no grass at all. Now, everything from Macadamia to Tapioca was growing. He would not wish to live anywhere else. It was suggested security lights be installed in the Park when the lights were off. The lights should be kept on while the "good kids" played on the courts. It was remarked that since the shooting, the individuals at the basketball court who had caused most of the problems had not returned after the lights had been turned off. It was suggested a water fountain be considered as an additional element and that more money be put into the Park. It was also suggested recreation leagues and sports activities be promoted. One of the attendees heard gunshots on the night of the incident and called 911. He was asked approximately 30 questions by Dispatch. Rather than having so many questions asked, he felt an officer should have been deployed to the scene. Ms. Rivers ensured this information would be passed on to the Police Chief. Lt. Paul Deale, Boynton Beach Police Department, nightshift officer, explained Dispatch was a function of the Police Department and in defense of Dispatch, Boynton's response time on average was less than three minutes for a typical call. Any calls receiving a response time of 40 minutes would be an anomaly, with the exception of delayed calls. In the case of a home robbery which occurred while no one was at home and where the perpetrator was no longer in the home, response time could be 20 or 30 minutes, and a report would be made and evidence collected. If an assault were taking place, the police would respond immediately. When the shots were fired in October, the pOlice responded in less than 30 seconds. Lori LaVerriere, Assistant City Manager, noted the protocol for a 911 call involved questions asked by the dispatcher to collect information to protect the publiC as well as the responding police officers. Lt. Deale advised that in addition to the 911 emergency calls, there were 911 calls received of a non-emergency nature, and it was the 5 Meeting Minutes Recreation and Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida January 25, 2010 dispatcher's job to elicit the nature of the call. Dispatch was "on the public's side" and while it might seem as though intrusive questions were asked, the dispatchers were attempting to assist the police officers. In response to comments made regarding the Police Department's relocation to the west side, Lt. Deale pointed out that regardless of the location of the police station, the officers would still be out patrolling the City. Commissioner Rodriguez noted he was the only Commissioner voting to retain the Police Department on the east side. While police officers were on the road patrolling, there was still traffic to and from the police station on a regular basis. If the police station were to be relocated, this activity would be eliminated. He did feel the pOlice officers should be provided with new quarters on the east side rather than the third floor of a retail building across town. Vice Chair Orlove inquired whether police activity in Pence Park was any more or less than in other parks within the Boynton system. Lt. Deale responded more calls had been received for the Ezell Hester Community Center in terms of calls for services. Fewer calls had been received for Pence Park. In fact fewer calls had been received regarding Pence Park than for Jaycee Park until the gates had been installed at Jaycee Park. Calls received, other than the October homicide, included animal complaints, open container arrests, auto vandalism and a domestic dispute in the Park. Sgt. DeGiuilio was a member of the CRA Police and a number of sting operations had been successful over the past year in ridding the area of those involved in illegal activities. Chair Pierce-Roe noted she resided next to Boat Club Park. She remarked that the area on Federal Highway just between Boat Club and Intracoastal Parks and the Parks themselves had become very safe over the last 13 years as a result of police patrolling. She expressed gratitude to the Police Department. Lt. Deale appreciated feedback from the public and he would pass on suggestions to the Department. Enforcement tools, such as requiring the lights to be shut off at a certain time, were helpful. Mr. Hendricks believed the Park was not necessarily the problem. Safety could be built into a community by its citizens becoming active and communicating with each other. Commissioner Rodriguez invited anyone interested in becoming involved in a crime watch program to contact him. A meeting could be organized, and officers specializing in crime watch would be invited. 6 Meeting Minutes Recreation and Parks Board Boynton Beach, Florida January 25, 2010 C. Items for the City Manager's Attention None VI. NEXT MEETING: February 22, 2010 It was agreed the meeting would be held at the Intracoastal Clubhouse unless the facility was unavailable. VII. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to discuss, the meeting properly adjourned at 7:28 p.m. r (. {) ., ,-k?;j7~~" . L,..__ Stephanie D. Kahn Recording Secretary 100216 7