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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1996-05-06 REGULAR MEETING PARKS AND LEISURE SERVICES BOARD MAY 6, 1996 CALL TO ORDER The regular meeting of the Parks and Leisure Services Board was called to order at 7:05 p.m. on Monday, May 6, 1996 in the Council Chambers of the Euless Municipal Building by Chairman Leon Hogg. Other board members present were: Richard McNeese, Bruce Ebert and Carl Miller. Staff members present were: Rick Herold, Julia Wakeley, Johnnie Green and Anicia Wiltshire. INVOCATION Invocation was given by Richard McNeese. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES Chairman Hogg entertained a motion on the minutes from the April 8, 1996 regular meeting. Mr. McNeese motioned that the minutes be approved with changes, Mr. Ebert seconded the motion and the motion carried. AWARDS PRESENTATION Mr. McNeese presented Chairman Hogg with a plaque for appreciation of his service to the Parks Board. Because of his upcoming induction to the City Council, this will be his last meeting as Chairman. OLD BUSINESS Mr. Miller reported that at the South Euless Park, the trees were overgrown in areas and a picnic table was in the creek. Mr. Green stated the table had been removed. Mr. Miller also reported Ruth Millican Park looked good. Mr. Herold stated the new marquee sign would be going up soon. Mr. Ebert reported Westpark was very well kept and the park has been receiving much use during lunch. He also stated Wilshire looked good but there was graffiti on the swimming pool building. Mr. Green stated the wall would be sandblasted and repainted. Mr. Ebert reported the tennis courts at Wilshire were in horrible condition and there was very little lighting. Mr. Green stated the surface is used as a playground by the neighborhood kids, but that there had been discussion on getting Facility Maintenance to repair lights and perhaps use a reservation system. There was discussion on possibly getting Public Works to re-surface the tennis courts. Chairman Hogg reported that Arbor Daze was tremendous and that he would let Mr. Herold give a more complete report on the actual numbers. PALS Board Mtg. 050696 page 2 Mr. McNeese reported that at the Athletic Complex, a lot of dirt work was being done. The entrance and two parking lots (the driving range lot and the one above it) had been paved. NEW BUSINESS I. PARKS REPORT Mr. Herold thanked Chairman Hogg for the great service, support and guidance he has given as well as the volunteer hours. Mr. Herold reported the following: Staff is awaiting final approval from the State on the Athletic Complex. On April 14, the State released a new grant program which involves the creation of indoor facilities. It has to meet the master plan and be currently ongoing. The department has been working with the Women's National Disc Golf Champion, Tracy Nations, in putting the Euless Open together. The frisbee golf tournament was held last week and had participants from six states, including Michigan and Oklahoma. Mr. Green stated that it is her goal to have a course in Euless with Arlington and Grand Prairie involved in a world class tournament. Mrs. Wakeley stated that there was a good write up in the Fort Worth Star Telegram. Windscreens are down in all areas. Mr. Green and Parks staff have started on it. Three new signs, like the one at the Villages of Bear Creek Park, are ready to go up. At the golf course, grassing will be done the week after next. Arbor Daze saw a record attendance, 175,000, and record volunteer hours. Sunday was the biggest crowd in history for a concert attendance. It is estimated that 30,000 people came for Little Richard, 20,000 of which were inside the fence. KLUV estimated the value of their advertising to come to $651 ,000 and committed to providing a brand new stage and sound equipment for next year. Winn Dixie did a tremendous ad campaign with both TV spots and coupons in the Shoppers Guide. There were many great sponsors, both returning and new. Final figures are not in, but it is possible that this year's success will amount to about $75,000 to the good after all bills are paid. Thanks to the two ideas from the Board, $20,000 was raised for Arbor Daze, $12,000 from the Auction and $8,000 from the VIP ticket sales. Coupons sales came to about $415,000. A. Needs & Assessment List Mr. Herold referred to the current list and described why recommendations were broken up as they were. He made note of some items that were already done and wanted to address the subject of aquatics. Asking the Board to consider the City's PALS Regular Mtg. 050696 page 3 lack of a good aquatics facility, Mr. Herold described how the 1/2 cent sales tax was divided amongst the Library, Economic Development and Parks & Leisure. He described Hurst's new aquatics system which was a smaller, but effective, leisure style system ( like the major water parks in the area. ) He asked that the Board consider upgrading the Midway Recreation Center into a gym/pool facility with a retractable roof for year-round swimming. This would be accomplished by expanding the gym onto the fields east of the center. This would also allow for a larger walking track and more space for possibly larger exercise and dancing rooms. In response to Mr. McNeese's question of basis, Mr. Herold stated that the number one trend in the southern region at this time was that children flock to places where they can have fun and not get bored. Discussion followed on future funding. Chairman Hogg recommended that the Board think seriously about moving the subjects of aquatics and the Morris Estate to a higher priority and that they address the erosion crisis on Little Bear Creek which is causing the loss of 100 year old trees. His second recommendation was in reference to Phase 8 - infrastructure - getting directional signage throughout the city to identify parks sites. II. LEISURE SERVICES Mrs. Wakeley reported the following: In reference to Arbor Daze: Little Richard did a good show. Home Depot was a sponsor for Leslie Gore and also had a food booth selling hotdogs for the employees fund. Odyssey Group came through with the use of their building and grounds. There were no major injuries. In reference to the racquetball usage sheet, numbers were down from the first months. Employee usage was down but resident prime time was up. Chairman Hogg and members recommended to wait a longer period of time to observe trends. The Mayor received a plaque from the DFW Writers Workshop for support of their group. III. BUSINESS OF THE TREE BOARD Mr. McNeese thanked the Park Board and everyone that participated this year. 11 ,650 trees were given away making the 1+1=2 total 41,831 . The tree booth was a tremendous success, received huge compliments both from repeat customers and new comers. Many stories were heard about peoples' trees and the growth or non-growth. It was determined that two varieties were plenty for making the giveaway more efficient. Winn Dixie gave away discount coupons for their photolab. PALS Regular Mtg. 050696 page 4 IV. OTHER NEW BUSINESS Mr. Miller proposed that the gym at South Euless Elementary be opened up during the summer and on weekends during the school year for the area children to use as a recreational facility. In the proposal that he passed out, it was suggested that Leisure Services staff run the facility and that HEB-ISD provide most of the equipment. He had spoken with HEB-ISD officials and needed approval from the Parks & Leisure Services Board. After some discussion on the matter, Mr. McNeese made a motion to approve implementing the program with the agreement of and in coordination with city staff. Mr. Ebert seconded the motion and the motion carried. Mr. Herold stated that the Parks & Leisure Services Department was beginning an Employee of the Month program. He also stated that during Arbor Daze, Mr. and Mrs. Green furnished the Parks Staff with sandwiches throughout the event. Ms. Wiltshire announced auditions June 1 at the Simmons Center from 1 to 5 p.m. for Starlight Musicals' "Hello, Dolly! " . V. INPUT FROM CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS AND VISITORS Mr. Green asked for patience and understanding. The Parks Staff will be working hard to catch up with the mowing and park maintenance. Chairman Hogg stated that he enjoyed his 11 years on the Board and that he hated to leave but believes he could do beneficial things for the City, through the Council. ADJOURNMENT Chairman Hogg gave the benediction. There being no further business to conduct, the meeting was adjourned at 8:58 p.m. . ArAiIC/t/ Chairman / � Attest