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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPRB 2004-06-07 Minutes MINUTES OF THE PARK AND RECREATION BOARD OF THE CITY OF NORTH RICHLAND HILLS, TEXAS HELD AT THE PRE COUNCIL CHAMBERS LOCATED AT 7301 NORTHEAST LOOP 820 June 7, 2004 ATTENDANCE Present: Board: Mark Haynes Chairman Brad Greene Vice-Chairman Janie McGuigan Board Member Marlin Miller Board Member Marty Kusmierski Board Member Fred Durko Board Member Kim Kirby Alternate Absent: Virginia Stencel Board Member Present: Staff: Jim Browne Director of Parks and Recreation Vickie Loftice Assistant Director of Parks and Recreation Christina Lopez Administrative Secretary Chris Swartz Aquatic Park Manager ITEM 1. CALL TO ORDER Mr. Mark Haynes, Chairman, called the meeting to order June 7, 2004 at 6:01 p.m. ITEM 2. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES APPROVED MOTION: Mr. Miller made a motion, second~d by Mr. Greene, to approve the minutes of the April 5, 2004 meeting. Motion to approve carried 3-0 Since several of the Park Board members are missing, Chairman Haynes suggested moving on the Item 5 to give them time to arrive. ITEM 5. PR 04-20 RECREATION, ATHLETICS, SENIOR ADULTS, TEENS, TENNIS CENTER AND CULTURAL ARTS PROGRAM REPORTS Ms. Loftice updated the Park and Recreation Board on the following: Training was held May 24-27 for 11 staff members for Camp NRH. Camp NRH has been filled to capacity with 60 campers per week, since early April. The 2004 camp season begins on June 1. The 18th Annual Recreation Center Dance Recital was held at the Shannon Center on May 15. Ms. Carolyn Riehl, Dance Instructor, produced and directed 26 different dance numbers with 150 dancers. The 3~d Annual Preschool Graduation was held this month. Elizabeth Tanner, Preschool Instructor, graduated 25 students in patriotic red and blue cap and gowns. The event was attended by 130 proud parents, siblings, relatives and friends. The Recreation Center will undergo interior painting and replacement of ceiling tiles and light fixtures. Building Services is overseeing the project and working with staff on color selections. The 2004 North Texas Softball Classic was held at Northfield Park on May 15. Eight teams participated with over 300 people in attendance. NRH is preparing to host the 2004 TAAF Men's Church State Softball Tournament on June 25-26 at Northfield Park. City playoffs for Spring Adult Softball Leagues will take place on June 12 with the winners advancing to represent North Richland Hills at various TAAF State Tournaments. Staff has been focusing a lot of time on the TAAF TXU Games of Texas. The Press Conference is scheduled for June 23 at the Colleyville Center. The Sonus Hearing Company provided hearing tests for 20 seniors at the Bursey Road Center. Each of the seniors tested qualified and received a free amplified phone. Bursey Road held their monthly luncheon and 45 people attended. This months theme was "Tough Luck". Each of the participants dressed according to how a tough luck day would be for them. Everyone had a good laugh and a great time. Park and Recreation Board Minutes June 7, 2004 2 Dan Echols Senior Center has begun an exchange program with a senior center in Fossway, England. One of Dan Echols participants lives in England for several months out of the year and got both the centers interested. The next concert in the Spring Concert Series will be Me and My Monkey. The Richland Tennis Center held the NRH Adult Open on May 7-9 with 314 participants. They used Birdville High School and Colleyville City Park as additional sites. Richland Tennis Center had ten women's USA Team Tennis teams advance to the local playoffs held at RTC on May 22-23. Five of the teams advanced to the finals. The Tennis Center is introducing the new Cartoon Network Tennis Club as an additional option for juniors who enroll in entry level classes. With their membership they receive merchandise with the Scooby Doo logo on it. Ms. Kusmierski arrived at 6:07 p.m. Ms. Kirby arrived at 6:18 p.m. ITEM 3. PR 04-18 LIBERTY PARK ART Ms. Loftice updated the Park and Recreation Board on the Public Art Initiative that was established in 2001 for the purpose of introducing art in public places. Ordinance No. 2524 established an arts fund, general guidelines for administering public art and the incorporation of an Internal Public Art Committee (IPAC) appointed by the City Manager. Currently, five new neighborhood parks are planned and will begin construction soon. Each of these sites will have a public art element as did the five previous parks which were completed in 2003. The IPAC has the option to prepare a"Call for Artists" or directly select an artist based on qualifications and or special needs of the space involved. For Liberty Park, the committee has recommended artist Donna Dobberfuhl from San Antonio, Texas. As the name "Liberty Park" implies, the park and artwork will represent the themes of liberty, democracy and freedom. Ms. Dobberfuhl is being recommended to design a brick wall carving to incorporate these themes. Also included will be a "Liberty Walk", a trail that winds throughout the park which will have quotes of patriotism and liberty cast in granite, concrete or stone inlayed panels. Staff and the IPAC are requesting that an Ad Hoc committee be formed to select ten quotes or inscriptions for the "Liberty Walk" as well as thoughts and direction on ways to honor veterans in the park. Liberty Bank may consider sponsoring some of the inscriptions. Due to the timeline of construction of Liberty Park, Ms. Loftice would like the committee to meet directly after the Park and Recreation Board meeting. Park and Recrearion Board Minutes June 7, 2004 3 Discussion was held. Mr. Durko wanted to discuss the number of figures planned for the brick wall sculpture. Ms. Loftice said they planned on three - five. Mr. Durko and the other Board members felt that three-five figures would not make as significant as an impact and recommended at least seven to ten figures. Mr. Miller, Ms. Kusmierski, Mr. Greene and Mr. Durko volunteered to serve on the committee MOTION: Mr. Durko made a motion, seconded by Ms. Kusmierski, to endorse the selection of Ms. Dobberfuhl as the artist for Liberty Park and requested that the brick wall carving be as grand as possible with at least seven to ten figures, try to cover all wars, include women and various branches of service and make as significant of an art piece that we can and review any funding options that may be available. Motion to approve carried 5-0 ITEM 4. PR 04-19 FOUNDERS PARK AND LEGACY PARK NAMING CRITERIA The Park and Recreation Board have been requested to appoint and lead an Ad Hoc committee to study, research and make recommendations on how to officially incorporate the themes of Founders Park and Legacy Park. The purpose of this committee is not to rename the parks, but to recognize by plaque or memorial someone who has made a significant contribution to the City. The Ad Hoc committee has been provided with minutes and discussions of the Facility Naming Board and guidelines for the naming criteria. MOTION: Mr. Durko made a motion, seconded by Mr. Miller, to put an Ad Hoc committee together to study, research and make recommendations on how to officially incorporate the themes of Founders Park and Legacy Park. Mr. Durko will serve as Chair and Mr. Miller will serve as a committee member. They will also select other committee members. Motion to approve carried 5-0 ITEM 6. PR 04-21 PARK OPERATIONS AND CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM STATUS REPORT Mr. Browne updated the Park and Recreation Board on the following: Park and Recreation Board Minutes June 7, 2004 4 The Parks Maintenance and Operations Division had a man-hours shortfall of 1,561 hours for the Month of May. In accordance with the adopted Park Maintenance Standards, the month of May mandates the greatest number of man-hour expenditures, 5,108, for park maintenance tasks compared to other months. Special events required the assistance of park maintenance and included Corporate Challenge, stage setup/tear down, NRH2O Opening, adult and girls softball tournaments at three different complexes and the preparation of the Trees for Tots program. Due to the man-hour shortfall, the division expended over $1,000 in overtime and comp time and several areas missed a mowing cycle which resulted in numerous citizen complaints. Staff also had to contract services for tree/brush removal and the mowing of developed and undeveloped city property at a cost of $3,000 due to the shortfall. The contractor is complete with clearing, grubbing and rough grading of Tommy and Sue Brown Park. The trail construction is now in progress. Clearing and grubbing are also complete at Liberty Park with the contractor beginning the rough grading and layout work. The contractor is also beginning layout work for the culvert extension. City Council awarded the professional services contract for the design work for Little Bear Creek and Goode Place Neighborhood Park sites and Norich Park Renovation to David C. Baldwin & Associates. City Council awarded the professional services contract for the design work for Holiday Heights and Smithfield Elementary Neighborhood Park sites to Dunkin, Sims Stoffels, Inc. The TUCOR irrigation system has been installed at the Richland Tennis Center. The "Splashatory" is substantially complete. A Ribbon Cutting ceremony was held and the park has been getting good responses on the new attraction from guests. Staff met with the Hydraulic Consultant for the Little Bear Creek Trail to review a potential trail re-alignment in relation to the proposed development adjacent to the corridor. American Civil Constructors are very close to completion of the Cottonbelt trail. They will be installing the bridge and culvert extension crossing soon. Mr. Miller was amazed at how fast the bike trails are going in. Mr. Browne commented that the most time consuming part is the TxDOT reviews. Mr. Miller asked about the lake at Liberty Park. Mr. Browne responded that a change order has been executed so the contractor who is widening the channel will also create the lake. Park and Recreation Board Minutes June 7, 2004 5 ITEM 7. PR 04-22 AQUATIC REPORT Mr. Chris Swartz updated the Park and Recreation Board on the following: Staff has received great reviews on the "Splashatory". The Dallas Morning News came out for the ribbon cutting ceremony and ran a story on the attraction. Both Channel 4& 8 ran segments to promote Frogstein's Splashatory on the morning of May 21St NRH2O celebrated it's 10th season of operation on June 1, 2004. To commemorate the day the park rolled back its ticket prices to 1995 pricing, and held a birthday celebration which included clowns, ring master on stilts, free popcorn, Krispy Kreme doughnut decorating factory, carnival games, hula hoop contests, face painting and photo opportunities with Professor Frogstein. Channel 5 ran a segment on the birthday party during the 4pm news broadcast that day. Mr. Durko asked about the creek that leads to the Splashatory and about not being able to walk in it. Mr. Swartz said the creek was designed as an aesthetic feature to tie in the seating areas to the structure. Staff is looking at putting up some signage and guest education. Mr. Greene asked about NRH2O getting an ATM machine. Mr. Swartz said they cannot locate a vendor due to the seasonal nature of the site. Staff is working on a POS system to use ATM/Debit cards with cash back. ITEM 8. OTHER INFORMATIONAL ITEMS Ms. Kirby asked if there were guidelines for memorials in parks as she noticed a couple of plaques at Linda Spurlock Park that were rather large. Mr. Browne said those are Remembrance Tree plaques and they are usually small plaques. Staff will check it out and verify. Ms. Kirby expressed concerns about combining the Summer/Fall Time Of Your Life Brochure. Due to the high demand of some of the classes, when the brochure comes out you need to sign up for classes far in advance or risk the chance of not getting into the class you want. She felt that some people cannot afford to sign up and pay for multiple classes that far in advance. Mr. Browne commented that the third printing of the brochure was cut from the budget and appears to have been cut from the proposed budget. He said he would share her and the boards concerns with city management. He also commented that the Time Of Your Life brochure was the most visited site on the city's web site. Internet class registration increased by 54%, but there are some classes that you cannot register for on the Internet. Chairman Haynes recommended sending out post cards to remind people to register for classes, but there is a cost associated with that as well. The Recreation Center is not the only facility affected by Park and Recreation Board Minutes June 7, 2004 6 the decrease in brochures mailed; it also affects RTC, NRH2O, Games of Texas, special events, senior adult programs, athletics and youth association contacts. The Park and Recreation Board would like Mr. Browne approach city management to try and get the third printing of the brochure reinstated. Mr. Miller has concerns about parking at Linda Spurlock Park. Ms. Kirby said she calls the police a lot, but they run and move their cars when they see the police coming. She also said that emergency vehicles cannot make the turn when people have parked in the street, Mr. Browne will forward their concerns to Police Chief Shockley. Mr. Durko asked if funding has been included in the CIP Budget for a Master Plan Update. Mr. Browne said funding has been submitted and requested for an update. Staff will also be working on a Recreation Strategic Plan since the city is close to build out. Mr. Durko said he fuUy supports that and has received comments from other people in support of that. The Board inquired about the Town Center Recreation Center. Staff responded that the economy needs to improve and the values of the property have to hit certain benchmarks before we can begin design work. Mr. Miller asked about the Dog Park. Mr. Browne responded that it has been included in Staff's submittal in the CIP Budget. ITEM 9. ADJOURNMENT MOTION: Mr. Greene made a motion, seconded by Mr. Miller to adjourn the meeting at 7:16 p.m. Motion to approve carried 5-0 Mark Haynes, C 'rman ATTEST: , ~ Christina Lopez, Administra ecretary Park and Recreation Board Minutes June 7, 2004 7