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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05/18/2023 PRC Minutes CITY OF CENTRAL POINT PARKS AND RECREATION COMMISSION MINUTES MAY 18, 2023 I. MEETING CALLED TO ORDER II. ROLL CALL Attendee Name Title Status Arrived Eden Foster Parks Commissioner Present Patricia Alvarez Parks Commissioner Present Dennis Browning Parks Commissioner Present Fran Cordeiro-Settell Parks Commissioner Present Stephanie Hendrickson Parks Commissioner Present Lee Orr Parks Commissioner Present Ron Woodhead Parks Commissioner Present III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES A. Parks and Recreation Commission - Regular Meeting - Feb 16, 2023 6:00 PM RESULT: ACCEPTED [UNANIMOUS] MOVER: Ron Woodhead, Parks Commissioner SECONDER: Lee Orr, Parks Commissioner AYES: Foster, Alvarez, Browning, Cordeiro-Settell, Hendrickson, Orr, Woodhead IV. CHANGES TO AGENDA V. PUBLIC APPEARANCES VI. BUSINESS A. Open House - Flanagan Park Tennis Court Replacement Project Dave reported that construction of Flanagan Park had been completed in June 1999. The tennis court was resurfaced summer of 2017 along with all other city tennis courts. The department closed the courts in 2019 due to severe surface cracking that had become a trip hazard. Staff suggestions for future uses included a tennis court, basketball court or a combination of both. A gazebo or bocce ball courts were a possibility as well. Pickleball courts in the area would be problematic due to noise issues since the court is located close to residences. Lee asked what the least/most expensive options would be and Matt said all option would be expensive since the court would be completely removed due to the subsurface issues. Any option would be in the $50,000 to $60,000 range. Ron said that their family used the park and that the existing tennis court was a great place for their grandkids to play. Dave said that this was good information and we would discuss not removing the court until we are ready to replace it. The meeting was opened for public comments. City of Central Point Parks and Recreation Commission Minutes May 18, 2023 Page 2 Carol Ting, 213 Tiffany Way: Carol said that the court is always busy and used. She suggested that a pickleball court should be included but she felt that a gazebo would be a problem since it may attract use by unhoused or drug users, etc. Jon Gasik, 265 Tiffany Way: Jon and family have lived in there house since 1991 and have seen a lot of changes in the park. He felt that having the flat surface was a positive thing and didn’t think a gazebo would be a good idea. He thought a basketball court would be a good use. He did think it would be a good idea to contact all those living right next to the court to get there input. Jon wanted to advocate for butterfly/pollinator garden located at the north side of the park. Eden said that the foundation had provided funds for pollinator garden at the Boes property and this was a priority for the organization so funds may be available to assist. Matt said that there would be no need for commission approval of the garden and he was supported the idea. Rod Husain, 332 Joseph Street: Mr. Husain says their home backs up to the park and the pathway and sees many people of all ages enjoying the park. He appreciates that there are not issues with homelessness and drugs as in many community parks. Mr. Husain said that many kids play basketball in the streets and thought that adding a court in the park would provide for a safer place to play. He asked how the city would pay for the new court. Matt said that the funds could come out of the city's park capital project fund. Donna Campbell, 609 Brandon Street: Ms. Campbell takes her grandkids to the park. She would like to see a combination of tennis, basketball, and pickleball. Pat Havird, 149 Josephine Court: Mr. Harvird’s property backs up to the park and is located very close to the courts. Noise is the number one issue for him. He used the old tennis court for years and thought a new tennis court would work. Pickleball would be very noisy and basketball would also be a problem due to noise. He does like the idea of a butterfly garden. No lights should be allowed. Sally Coates, 3441 Snowy Butte Lane: Ms. Coates loves the tennis court but didn’t like the idea of a basketball court. She is having issues with teenager damaging her fence and believes that a basketball court would encourage more bad behavior. Ms. Coates asked if the city could do anything about the invasive weeds in the area around the bridge and pedestrian pathway. Matt Palmer, 858 Holley Way: Mr. Palmer has three daughters under age eleven and use the park frequently. He asked if there was a possibility of adding an additional pedestrian bridge connecting his neighborhood. Matt said that there had been a bridge planned as part of the subdivision but was the responsibility of the developer. Mr. Palmer asked if a dog park had been discussed for the city. Matt said that we were considering a dog park on the Greenway. City of Central Point Parks and Recreation Commission Minutes May 18, 2023 Page 3 Kit Flanagan-Clark: Ms. Flanagan-Clark’s grandparents, George and Agnes Flanagan, originally owned the park property and would be thrilled to see how the park was used and that family’s love it. She would particularly enjoy seeing a butterfly garden at the park. Matt thanked everyone for attending and offering their opinions. Staff would come back with a draft plan probably by the fall or winter commission meeting for further review and discussion. If there were any issues related to the park to please contact park staff. B. Central Point - Bear Creek Greenway Master Plan & Boes Property Conceptual Plan Contract Award & Project Schedules Dave reported the City had published a Request for Qualifications in January and received two strong proposals from local firms. A selection committee consisting of Dave, Patricia, Ron, Eden and Doug reviewed and scored proposals, interviewed applicants, and checked references. While it was a very close decision, Scharen Design Studio of Ashland was awarded the contracts. Separate contracts were signed with the consultant for the Greenway Master Plan and the Boes Conceptual Plan projects since funding for each will come from a separate source. The master plan will be done in two phases: Phase 1 will take the existing conceptual plan as a starting point and we’ll refine that until a master plan is completed. Phase 2 of the project will finalize the design for construction and create the construction plan and bid documents. An ad hoc committee has been formed to provide input into developing both plans. The committee members are Taneea Browning, Dr. Neil Olsen, Patricia Alvarez, Ron Woodhead, and Eden Foster. A kickoff meeting facilitated by Shelby Scharen and her team will be held in early June. Eden said that she was very impressed with how thorough the selection process was. C. Don Jones Memorial Park - Seasonal Vendor Policy Matt reported that due to timing for implementation of the Don Jones Seasonal Vendor policy, it had not been brought to the Park Commission for approval. We needed to have the policy in place prior to May 1st in order have vendors for the summer season. The area near the splash pad at the Don Jones Park had been designed with vending in mind and several years ago we had look at adding a concession stand to the park but it was too costly. Illegal vendors had been using the park for years without having proper permits. With all this in mind, staff had developed a policy that would allow for a food truck and one or two food carts to use the site from Memorial to splash pad closure which usually takes place in mid- September. Two vendors have been selected. If outside vendors such as an ice cream truck comes to the park they would only be allowed for 15 minutes only. This process is somewhat experimental and changes to the policy will be made if needed. D. Don and Flo Bohnert Farm Park - Plaque Review The Don and Flo Bohnert Farm Park opened to the public in December 2019 on land previously farmed by the Bohnert family. The park name was approved by the Parks City of Central Point Parks and Recreation Commission Minutes May 18, 2023 Page 4 and Recreation Commission and City Council with the understanding that additional information about the family in some form would be provided at the park at some point in the future. Dave worked Don and Flo’s children to come up with a way to honor them and decided on a plaque which provides information about the family and their farm. The family created the text for the plaque. The plaque will be installed on a boulder in a visible location within the park. City staff plans to have the plaque installed before the mid-July family reunion at the park. Cost for the plaque and boulder will be split with the city and the family. We may also add a QR code that will provide a link to website providing additional information about the family farm. Lee moved that the plaque be approved as presented and Eden seconded and the motion was approved by all. RESULT: APPROVED [UNANIMOUS] MOVER: Lee Orr, Parks Commissioner SECONDER: Eden Foster, Parks Commissioner AYES: Foster, Alvarez, Browning, Cordeiro-Settell, Hendrickson, Orr, Woodhead VII. UPDATES Community Center: Matt said that the project is moving ahead at a good pace. We expect the first cost estimates to come in tomorrow. Based on the estimate city council may or may not move forward with the project. Matt reviewed the current design in detail for the commission. Matt reinforced that the reason for working with the county was that it would provide much needed gym space for Central Point youth sports. Ron asked who would be managing the county side of the facility. Matt said it would be Expo staff and they would have new offices in the facility. Lee asked if there would be solar panels. Yes, they hoped to provide for power for ten months of the year. They are working on a federal grant to provide for electric fueling stations. Eden asked about public transit. Yes, there will be a new route added from Twin Creeks to Costco with a stop added at community center. Central Point Little League: Matt reported that water and sewer lines had been installed onsite but the city had to work with the county to receive a goal exception for the sewer since these services are not allowed in rural areas. Concerning construction, the city cannot afford to build the entire facility so it will be done in phases. Phase one will include three new fields and retrofitting one of the existing fields so that it has a dirt infield and grass outfield. The new fields will have turf infields. Under the current plan, a concession stand/restroom/storage building would not be built in this phase although there may be general funds available for this purpose depending on the results of an audit. For phase two, we’ll work on a series of grants to fund two additional fields, the 300 foot field and small T-ball field, but during this period we’ll start designing an irrigation system. The hope is start construction around September 15th. There will be space for six food truck with electric and water provided. Paving the parking area would be done in phase three of the project. City of Central Point Parks and Recreation Commission Minutes May 18, 2023 Page 5 Robert Pfaff Park Improvements: We will replace the existing band shell, the electrical and irrigation system at the park in the next fiscal year. Hired Rh2 Engineering to develop the conceptual plan and construction plans for the new electrical and irrigation system. Plan should be complete by summer with work beginning after fall special events are complete Boes Property - Use Agreement with DIRT: The city has signed a use agreement for the Bose site with Direct Involvement Recreation Teaching nonprofit. They will develop programs and facilitate educational use of the site. Boes Property - Riparian Rake and Burn Project: City has contracted with Lomakatsi Restoration Project to pile and burn all woody debris in the riparian area on the Boes Property. Piles have been completed and we expect the burn to take place later this spring. Freshwater Trust - Lease Agreement: Council tentatively approved the lease agreement but a few corrections are required before it’s signed. Project will start this fall and we will coordinate the Greenway restoration efforts with them. My Veteran/My Hero Tribute Tree Program: Announced program in the May City Newsletter and have received two applications and two more folks called who are interested applying. Don Jones Community Garden: Dave reported that the city has a small community garden located at Don Jones Park. In the past it has been difficult to manage but Fred Harrison has taken on the role of coordinating and maintaining the garden. He’s done a great job and we want to thank him for his efforts. Recreation Program & Special Events: Elizabeth reported the summer recreation guide has been published. Summer camps are scheduled for every week. Lots of event planned for the months. Made in Southern Oregon was held last Saturday and was a huge success. VIII. UPCOMING MEETING DATE Thursday, August 17, 2023 IX. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 7:46 PM. City of Central Point Parks and Recreation Commission Minutes May 18, 2023 Page 6 The next scheduled meeting is September 21, 2023.