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Minutes 03-28-11 MINUTES OF THE RECREATION AND PARKS BOARD MEETING HELD AT THE SENIOR CENTER, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA ON MONDAY, MARCH 28, 2011 AT 6:30 P.M. PRESENT Elizabeth Pierce-Roe, Chair John McVey, Vice Chair Corey Cook Charles Kanter Robert Lapin Janelle Sloan Wally Majors, Recreation & Parks Director ABSENT Catherine Scantlan Brian Hopper, Alternate I. CALL TO ORDER Chair Pierce-Roe called the meeting to order at 6:28 p.m. II. ATTENDANCE Chair Pierce-Roe called the roll. A quorum was present. Mr. Majors announced Jody Rivers, Parks Superintendent, was no longer with the City. III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Motion Vice Chair McVey moved to approve the minutes as presented. Mr. Kanter seconded the motion which passed unanimously. IV. UNFINISHED BUSINESS A. Renaming of Parks (Veterans, Veterans Bicentennial, Boat Club) Mr. Majors explained there was a meeting regarding renaming the above referenced park. The Board had previously discussed renaming Veterans Park in honor of Harvey Oyer, and renaming Veterans Bicentennial Park to Bicentennial Park, which would alleviate redundancy. Since then, Mr. Oyer's family stepped forward after someone else 1 Meeting Minutes Recreation and Parks Advisory Board Boynton Beach, FL March 28, 2011 put forth a recommendation to rename Boat Club Park in Mr. Oyer's honor. The City Manager asked for feedback on renaming the park and the family indicated Mr. Oyer had a strong association with Boat Club Park and spent a lot of time there with the family. Harvey Oyer, III confirmed out of the two parks, his father favored Boat Club Park. The City Commission asked for the Recreation and Parks Board to participate in a review committee with members of other advisory boards to review the matter and put forth a recommendation to the City Commission. The three items the Review Committee would consider were: ~ Rename Boat Club Park in honor of Mr. Oyer ~ Rename Veterans Park in honor of Mr. Oyer ~ Rename Veterans Park and Veterans Bicentennial Park which the Recreation and Parks Advisory Board had already made a recommendation. Mr. Majors requested the Board nominate two volunteers to sit on the committee. He anticipated the meeting would last one hour and would meet before the end of April. Chair Pierce Roe and Vice Chair McVey volunteered. It was noted the Park was named Bicentennial Park because it was created during the Bicentennial. At one time, it was the preferred location for the Police Department and then became the Animal Control Center. It has some significance in the City's history. v. NEW BUSINESS Mr. Majors explained the next three items were needed for accreditation. Five years ago, the department was one of the few departments in the nation to meet accreditation standards. The standards are applicable to the department's way of operation which were deemed to be appropriate. The Department is now approaching re-accreditation and it is necessary for the Board to endorse some of the things the Department does. Although the Board does not function in an administrative way, it is important they be aware of the way the department administration works. Accordingly, the Board was given the Department Administrative Manual (DAM) and the Goals Report. As to the Goals Report, staff is required to create goals as part of their budget process. To help accomplish this, there are broad department goals, and then staff has to have goals that are related and contribute to the accomplishment of those goals. The department annually reports on them, good or bad. Lastly, as part of the accreditation, staff wanted the Board to be aware that as they operate, they operate with a high degree of structure. The same applied to the Goals Report. The mission statement details why the Department exists and Mr. Majors wanted the Board to be aware of it. In keeping with the City's Green Policy, Mr. Majors did not 2 Meeting Minutes Recreation and Parks Advisory Board Boynton Beach, FL March 28, 2011 make individual copies of the plan, rather he distributed one copy for the members for review and requested the Board's endorsement. The DAM was in electronic format and was not on line, but could be moved so the members would have access to it. It was an Administrative Policy manual dealing with administrative functions. The members already had some items. He noted some positions have little opportunity to have a goal to perform any other functions other than their job descriptions, such as a lifeguard. Quarterly reports are distributed. There are travel policies, digital displays, FDLE background checks, employee orientation and basic Standard Operating Procedures. Accreditation wants to ensure the Department has a manual, similar to other departments. One advancement the Commission for Accreditation of Parks and Recreation Agencies recently made was, they added a new tract for military recreation. The main focus was to have a manual for administrative functions, and they also provide textbooks that provide greater detail. Accreditation was a big undertaking. Two full-time employees were dedicated to it for 14 months. The second accreditation is usually updating and modifying the original documents. The Department has to submit an annual report. With Ms. Rivers gone, they will reorganize the department again, and the Parks Maintenance Division will move employees under Public Works. This will need to be modified. The Department tries to adhere to the accepted best practice methodology. The Accreditation Commission trains the "Visitors". Visitors are retired recreation directors, retired city managers or active supervisors who are part of the Accreditation Commission. They fly in and review evidence of compliance for every standard. There are 144 standards. They go through each file in nine chapters and review the policies associated with them, The accreditation does help with grants, but mostly its a proactive practice in case something happened. It reduces liability and taxpayers have a right to know that every dollar they pay is being used to the highest and best use. A. Department Administrative Manual Chair Pierce-Roe requested the Board vote to endorse the Department Administrative Manual. Vote The members unanimously voted to accept the Department Administrative Manual. B. Goals & Objectives Report Chair Pierce-Roe requested the Board vote to accept the Goals & Objective Report. 3 Meeting Minutes Recreation and Parks Advisory Board Boynton Beach, FL March 28, 2011 Vote The members unanimously voted to accept the Goals & Objective Report. C. Mission Statement (Endorse) Chair Pierce-Roe requested the Board vote to endorse the Mission Statement. Vote The members unanimously voted to endorse the Mission Statement. D. Future Meetings Mr. Majors inquired when the Board wanted to meet again. Mr. Majors wanted to update the Board on how the department was progressing with the budget. It was decided if an issue arose, Mr. Majors would email the members. Accreditation will occur in May. Mr. Majors wanted the Board to meet the visitors, similar to what they did the last time they were attempting accreditation. They will schedule a reception to meet with the visitors. Mr. Majors spoke about the Opening Ceremony at Boat Club Park, on April 16th, but noted the artist would not be present. The Department tried to have the artist, or Guy Harvey attend. Additionally, the Florida Fishing Academy, who is a partner with the City, is sponsored by former Presidential candidate Michael Dukakis. Mr. Dukakis wanted to be a part of the event. However, he cannot attend. Subsequently, the event is being rescheduled and Mr. Majors will email the members when the event will take place. Mr. Kanter commented the charette on Saturday for the Old High School was phenomenal and all those in attendance agreed to save the Old High School. One way to do so was to use the roof of the high school to make a fancy bar, similar to Roxy's on Clematis Street. Most importantly, he was attending the Quantum Development District meetings and they asked him to represent them at the May 3rd City Commission meeting to present the name of Mike Fergueson as an honorary name for Quantum Park. He indicated the Board at Quantum endorsed the name. He was a popular commissioner until his recent death. He was unsure of the protocol to follow to rename the park. Mr. Majors explained he could write as an individual or as a representative of the Homeowners Association submitting the name to either the City Manager or the Commission. Most likely, the Recreation and Parks Advisory Board would be part of the process. He should list the reasons why the park should be named in Commissioner Fergueson's honor. The City Manager likes to have input from the Board, especially 4 Meeting Minutes Recreation and Parks Advisory Board Boynton Beach, FL March 28, 2011 when it deals with a park. The City Manager or the City Commission initiates the process. Mr. Kanter also mentioned the City owns the Police building adjacent to the park property on Miner Road and it would be the perfect venue if the park could obtain or use that parking lot for the new park. They could swap some space. Mr. Majors noted the building was a Fraternal Order of Police building and the Association would have to be consulted. Mr. Majors will investigate who owns the building. The land there could be an incredible entrance to the new park as all the facilities are already there. The dog park on the corner was also discussed. Mr. Kanter wanted to know how to go about researching if the District wanted to create a regional park and have the developer of Renaissance finance it. Mr. Majors recommended putting something in writing. He explained each year the Board puts together a list of priorities. Quantum Park was high on the list and if funding was available, the project could possibly be moved up. The Optimist Club in the past was ready to make a commitment to raise $1 million to build the park. They raised just a few hundred dollars and then disbanded. If the people were really committed, and due diligence was done and the interest determined, the Board could be approached and perhaps more strongly endorse it. Then it goes to the City Commission. Mr. Kanter also commented his HOA was establishing an Adopt-a-Park program. Quantum Park is available for many opportunities, and grants. It was important to see who would support the idea. At some point, he could sit with the Grants Coordinator. There are options, but the key is to determine the interest. Viewing the project from the perspective of the entire community was important. The City does not have an eco- park. The park was behind Target. It was recommended the Sky Lake community be consulted. In the past, the Department had interfaced with them on the Bikeway and Blueway. Chair Pierce-Roe commented when the baseball field at Pence Park was redone, some of the No Parking signs were removed and Prohibited Items signs were installed. Individuals were parking all over the grass. The issue could be caused by a language barrier. Chair Pierce-Roe had been contacted with the complaint and Mr. Majors agreed to look into the matter. VI. ITEMS FOR THE CITY MANAGER'S ATTENTION None. VII. NEXT MEETING TBD Mr. Majors would be in touch with the members before the next meeting. 5 Meeting Minutes Recreation and Parks Advisory Board Boynton Beach, FL March 28, 2011 VIII. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to discuss, the meeting was properly adjourned at 7: 13 p.m. Ii I} (!iuluLi/'AL ~ Catherine Cherry Recording Secretary 042011 6