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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2000-03-06 REGULAR MEETING PARKS AND LEISURE SERVICES BOARD March 6, 2000 CALL TO ORDER The regular meeting of the Parks and Leisure Services Board was called to order at 7:05 p.m. on Monday, March 6, 2000, in the Council Chambers of the Euless Municipal Building by Chairman Eric Owens. Other Board Members present were: Glendora Waldrup, Stacey Hollinger, Boyce Byers, Bruce Ebert and alternates Mike Daniel and Carroll"Scotty" Scott. Members absent were: Carl Miller. Staff members present were: Director of Community Services Rick Herold, Parks Superintendent Johnnie Green, Leisure Services Manager Julia Wakeley and Administrative Secretary Linda Lux. Visitors present were: Council Member Leon Hogg, Sue White, Ray Kunze, Bill Byers, Brian Kline and Tom Hoover with Hoover Klein Group and Elaine Markley with some of the Mid- Cities Rustlers square dancers. INVOCATION The invocation was given by Bruce Ebert. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Chairman Owens asked if there were any additions or corrections to the minutes from the February 7, 2000 regular meeting. There being no changes Boyce Byers made the motion to approve the minutes as presented and was seconded by Stacey Hollinger. The vote was unanimous. OLD BUSINESS I. Board Members' Reports Mr. Daniel said the Athletic Complex looks great and the construction on the Dr. Pepper Stars Center is really coming along. Parks and Leisure Services Board Page 2 March 6, 2000 Mr. Ebert stated the area by Sulphur Branch looked very nice and had been planted with flowers. He said both South Euless and Heritage parks recently have had lots of usage. The poles at the Ruth Millican building need painting and mulch is needed un the playground area. At South Euless Park he noticed trash in the creek and eroision problems and also said there was rust on the iron bridge. Mrs. Byers stated she has two of the prettiest parks being Westpark and Wilshire parks. At Westpark she said a water fountain was needed and the stones are really nice. Wilshire Park looks great but asked if some flowers could be planted. Mr. Hollinger said Midway Park looks nice and lots of work had been done on the ball fields. He had no report on Blessing Branch Park. Mrs. Waldrup said lots of kids walk home from school through Kiddy Carr Park and they have to step across stones through the creek area. She suggested a bridge be installed to cross the creek to make it safer for the kids. She also suggested that the creek be cleaned out at least every three months. At J. A. Carr Park she said the park looked good but mentioned the creek area was dirty and needed cleaning, and said the gazebo also needed painting. Mr. Scott said Trailwood Park looked good. At Bob Eden Park he mentioned the port-o-lets need to be changed more often, a pile of tree limbs over by the ballfield and also debris clogging the area in the creek. Mr. Owens said the Special Events recently held were: the Arbor Daze 2000 Auction which had an excellent turnout, the Parks Appreciation Dinner for the park and recreation employees and a teen event with high school bands at the Ruth Millican building. Mrs. Byers mentioned the musicals and suggested the Board be more supportive and try to attend these whenever possible. OLD BUSINESS II. Volunteers of the Month The Volunteers of the Month for March are Sue White and Ray Kunze. Chairman Owens presented Sue and Ray with plaques and thanked them for all their hard work with the Arbor Daze 2000 Auction and also during the Dixie World series. This year Sue will be coordinating the VIP tent at Arbor Daze and Ray will again be coordinating the main stage front gate area. Parks and Leisure Services Board Page 3 March 6, 2000 NOTE: Item No. 3 (Presentation to Julia Wakley) was moved and comes after Item No. 7 (Parks Master Plan) NEW BUSINESS IV. Business of the Tree Board Tree Board Chairman Ebert said the 1 + 1 = 2 program is now at 77,000 and there were 255 man hours during the month of February. Some of the highlights during the past month were: (1) landscaping at Midway Recreation Center, (2) plant materials were ordered for the Dr. Pepper Stars Centre landscaping and (3) 553 trees had been planted from new apartments, new businesses and housing construction throughout the city. Mr. Ebert said the new landscaping at the Rec Center looks very nice. V. Parks Report Parks Superintendent Johnnie Green was absent from the meeting due to being sick. VI. Community Services Report Rick Herold, Director of Community Services, advised the Board that the original mowing contract with Dynamic Lawn did not meet bonding specifications and the mowing contract again will go before City Council on the 16th to the second bidder True Green Landcare. He also passed out the new Arbor Daze brochures to the Board. Mr. Herold mentioned the Arbor Daze Gala is scheduled for Thursday, April 27th at 7:00 p.m. at the Texas Star with Mr. Robert Stanton, Executive Director of the National Park Service. Mr. Stanton will be our guest speaker at the opening ceremonies on Friday, April 28th at 11:00 a.m. The new art piece will also be unveiled at the opening ceremony. He said Arbor Daze will be at the same site as last year but will now have only one main entrance and a new courtyard area. Mr. Herold mentioned he was pleased to have the Dr. Pepper Stars as a new sponsor this year. He also advised the Board that all the fourth graders in Euless are learning some songs for the opening day ceremony. Also in the Euless Today there will be a coupon for free parking for Euless residents during the three day event. Mr. Herold further stated with Julia Wakeley's retiring, he is in the process of doing a staff realignment and Glenda Hartsell will be transfering to Leisure Services as a Special Event Coordinator. He will make the Board aware of the staff changes at the April meeting. Parks and Leisure Services Board Page 4 March 6, 2000 VII. Parks Master Plan Mr. Herold introduced Bryan Klein and Tom Hoover of Hoover Klein Group. There business is in Euless and they will be assisting the staff in completing the Parks Master Plan. Mr. Klein said they hope to work with both the Board and staff on new ideas and plans for Euless. OLD BUSINESS III. Presentation to Julia Wakelev Chairman Owens presented Julia Wakeley with a plaque from the Park Board and commended her for all she's done in the community. The Board also presented Julia with a charm braclet and a golf shirt and shorts for when she plays golf. The city employees had a pizza luncheon for her on March 1st and a community farewell has been scheduled for Friday, March 17th at the Texas Star Conference Centre from 4:00 p.m. until 6:30 p.m. NEW BUSINESS VIII. Other New Business Chairman Owens reminded the Board of the Dr. Pepper Stars Centre tour on Saturday, March 11th at 10:00 a.m. with everyone meeting at the construction trailer. Also on Friday, March 17th from 4:00 p.m. until 6:30 p.m. at the Texas Star Conference Centre is Julia Wakeley's community farewell function. Chairman Owens also mentioned the H-E-B Showcase is scheduled for Saturday, March 25th from 9:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. at L. D. Bell High School. The city will have three booths on display. Boyce Byers and Glendora Waldrup said they would volunteer to help work in the booths on that Saturday. Also the Texas Trash-Off is scheduled for Saturday, April 1st from 10:00 a.m. until noon. IX. Input from City Council Members and Visitors Council Member Hogg said he and Julia go back a long way and have worked together for at least twenty-three years and he wished her well in her retirement. Mrs. Elaine Markley, 2007 Cedar Court in Euless, past president of the Mid-Cities Rustlers Square and Round Dance Club, was present with many of the square dancers. She said they have Parks and Leisure Services Board Page 5 March 6, 2000 been using Midway Recreation Center since 1972 and they are requesting permission to continue using the facility. Mrs. Markley also handed out a letter to the Board Members asking for permission to use Midway Recreation Center along with the Mid-Cities Rustlers brochure. She said a new flooring has been installed in the building and they were told they would not be allowed to use the gym for square dancing. Mrs. Markley said Board Member Miller did show her South Euless Elementary but the school is not acceptable. The school does not have any air conditioning, has concrete flooring, no seating and no windows. The Ruth Millican building is to small and there is not enough parking. Mrs. Markley said they sometimes may have thirty to forty squares (consisting of 8/square) and they need a facility which will hold a large amount of people. Midway Recreation Center is the only building for them to use unless they go to another city such as Bedford. Mr. Herold informed the audience of the new remodeled recreation center and said the primary focus of the new gym flooring is for basketball/volleyball. He said the flooring was very expensive and street shoes would harm the flooring. Chairman Owens said he would check with staff and see what could be done to accommodate the square dancers. ADJOURNMENT Chairman Owens gave the benediction. There being no further business to conduct, the meeting was adjourned at 8:45 p.m. Chairman Attest