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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1993-06-07 REGULAR MEETING PARK AND LEISURE SERVICES BOARD JUNE 07, 1993 CALL TO ORDER The regular meeting of the Park and Leisure Services board was called to order at 7:00 PM, Monday, June 7, 1993, in the Council Chambers of the Euless Municipal building by Chairman Hogg. Other members present were Mrs. Lynne Moffatt, Messrs. Eric Owens, Jerry Robinson, Charlie Miller, Richard McNeese, and Chuck Behrns. Also present were Rick Herold, Community Services Director; Julia Wakeley, Parks and Leisure Services Manager; Kelli Dickerson, Recording Secretary; and Jimmy Beck and Nick Mitchell, both Horticulturists with the Parks Department. VISITORS Visitors included Jim Stabb, Bill Stabb, J.R. Smith, David McNeil, Brian Smith, Ben Adams, Jeff Kuhn, and Nic Andreani, and Fred Foote & guest. INVOCATION The invocation was given by Chuck Behrns. MINUTES The minutes of the meeting date May 03, 1993, were approved with the following changes: page 2, paragraph 3: a sentence was not completed. page 2, paragraph 9: a sentence needs to be corrected to read ". . .monies and a sample of comments. . . . ". AWARD PRESENTATION Richard McNeese presented Certificates of Appreciation in recognition of the Boy Scout Troop volunteers at Arbor Daze. He thanked them for their service at Arbor Daze 1993 and presented the attending representatives with certificates. Leon Hogg read and presented a letter of recommendation to Kelli Dickerson in recognition of her service during Arbor Daze 1993. Kelli Dickerson accepted the letter with her thanks. Leon asked Jimmy Beck and Nick Mitchell from the Parks Department for their recommendation of a Volunteer of the Month. Jimmy recommended Sonny Sizemore, describing the volunteer work Mr. Sizemore has done and continues to do, which has added to the beautification of Bear Creek Elementary and the city as a whole. The board, in agreeance with the nomination, discussed when the award should be presented to Mr. Sizemore and decided to wait until school was back in session. Jerry Robinson moved to nominate Mr. Sizemore as Volunteer of the Month for October and Charlie Miller seconded the motion. The vote was unanimous. PRESENTATION Rick Herold introduced Nick Mitchell and Jimmy Beck to talk about Xeriscaping. Jimmy gave a history of Xeriscaping and discussed the theory behind it: A practically water free landscaping technique. He went on to explain the seven principles of the technique. Nick presented a slide show on the flowers and grasses used around the city in landscaping and explained how they are becoming less and less in need of frequent watering. He made the point that watering times and manhours are significantly reduced from three days per week to two days, six to eight hours on those days. Rick said that the bush along the Midway ballfield is blooming. Julia Wakeley asked Nick if he had seen vandalism of the landscaping. Nick replied that he had seen little, except damage done by facility rentals. He noted that the sign marking the Xeriscaped bed had been damaged. Leon recognized Fred Foote from the audience. Mr. Foote commented that he had observed the trail in J. A . Carr Park being admired by people who walk it. He also noted he was very impressed with the maintainance and beauty of the landscaping. Charlie asked Jimmy to clarify a comment he had made regarding the use of mulch in flower beds. Jimmy went on to clarify and explain and noted that the mulch collected from the Christmas Tree Recycling program saves the department approximately $2000.00 per year. Charlie commented that the McCormick Farms Homeowners Association greatly appreciates the service the horticulturists provide. Jimmy updated the board on the Highway 10 Tree Project. He said it is struggling because the trees used were low-bids but that he is continuing to work with them to develop the area. Leon stated he thought it looked good. OLD BUSINESS I. BOARD MEMBERS REPORTS Chuck said his areas are Blessing Branch and Midway Park. Both are in good shape. Richard said his area is Special Events. He said he had nothing to report and deferred to Julia and Rick for any information he did not have. Neither added any information. Charlie said that he has not been able to visit his assigned parks and apologized for not having a report. Jerry reported that his areas are Oakwood Terrace and J. A. Carr Park. He said he was unable to inspect Oakwood Terrace but said that Carr Park was in good shape with the exception of the gazebo which had been vandalized. Rick told the board that there is funding for a project in that park and that he will get in contact with Jerry Crane about repairing the gazebo. Fred Foote was recognized by the chair and said that a pothole in the Carr Park parking lot needed to be filled. Eric Owens said his areas are Wilshire and Westpark. He said that he was unable to visit Westpark but that Wilshire was good but he was concerned with the drainage issues. He said that he hopes that the board will come up with some suggestions on improvements for the park, like a walking trail. He also recognized that steps were being taken by the Department to address and resolve the drainage problems in that area. Lynne Moffatt reported that her areas are McCormick Park and Bear Creek. She noted that McCormick was in good shape but quiet and not being used much, and hopes to see increased usage. Bear Creek was also in good shape and in heavy use. Leon commented on the memories that Westpark holds for his family because of its ballfield usage. Lynn said that Westpark has been well maintained. Eric added that he felt all the ballfields and parks have been well maintained this year considering the heavy usage of the fields. Leon said that he has received a great deal of compliments on the new material used on the ballfields in the area. II. DISCUSSION OF OLD IRON BRIDGE Julia commented that she understands that a younger age group will be used in the ceremony according to the notes of the Historical Preservation Committee meeting in May. Leon showed the replica of the original sign on the bridge which will be affixed to the bridge while the original is encased for display. NEW BUSINESS I. LEISURE SERVICES REPORT Building use for the month of May was as follows: Midway Recreation Center meeting rooms: sports associations, 6; city, 2; rentals, 1; gym,1; other, 13 (includes absentee voting). Ruth Millican Center: Sr. Dances, 6; Rentals, 3; Bridge, 8;Writers, 4; Sports Associations, 1. Simmons: Rentals, 2. Villages of Bear Creek Pavilions, 13. Simmons Gazebo, 1. Bob Eden pavilion, 11. McCormick Gazebo, 1. Recreation units for the month of May were as follows: Midway, 8,886; Simmons, 884; RMC, 1,260. Julia said that Midway Morning Madness has begun. Also, the swimming pools have opened. She said that passes to the pool would be provided to board members so that they could visit and critically review the operations of the three pools and their lifeguard staffs. Leon strongly recommends that every one on the board visit the pools to offer critical praise or comments on the safety and upkeep. Leon noted that because the lifeguards do not know who they are, they will be treated like any other guest. Julia said that the Leisure Times indicates which pools are open late. II. PARKS REPORT Rick introduced the "Service Friendly Program" which will involve all PALS staff. All employees will be retrained to provide friendly service to the public. Rick also said that the use of the half-penny revenues to purchase park land had been initiated and was in the works. Rick informed the board that from now on a parks employee would be on duty all day Saturday for rentals because of the increase in activitiy. Rick went on to say that a video of the parks and recreation activities will be made to document the volume of work the staff does. In particular, on July 4th, a camera will be at Bear Creek to document the rental and the park. Rick mentioned that Schrickel, Rollins & Assoc. was awarded for the design of the Bear Creek park. Also, the organization which presented them with the award has asked for a presentation in October on Arbor Daze. Rick discussed the All-Ways funding and asked the board to advise the city council on the road construction concessions needed. The system will connect bike routes and lanes together to allow transportation of bikers in the metroplex. Julia made the point that the All-Ways grant is an 80%/20% grant. Rick agreed and added that there is a large amount of funding for this type of program. He said he has asked Schrickel, Rollins & Assoc. to examine the travel system and create a plan which best integrates the bike lanes. Rick commented that the parks crew has been behind in repairing the irrigation systems in the parks, and that the Bear Creek park was still experiencing some difficulty. City Council will hold a work session this Saturday with Development on the issues of drainage, creeks, and flooding problems. He went on to report that Bear Creek Elementary is developing an environmental corridor program with the help of some city staff. Rick mentioned that since the Villages of Bear Creek park and Highway 10 have been added to the parks maintenance system, a great deal of added responsibility has fallen on the parks staff. TCJC and the PALS staff are coordinating a joint effort in presenting "Oklahoma" the last weekend of this month. TCJC will be responsible for the program, we will provide the facility and staff for the event. Eric Owens excused himself from the meeting and called on Lynne Moffatt to take his place at 8:30 pm. Leon asked about the revenues generated from the "Oklahoma" production. Rick replied that it is a 50%/50% split between TCJC and PALS. Leon asked if people will be allowed to set lawn chairs up around the ampitheater area. Rick said yes. Charlie asked about staff's access to telephones for security issues in the case of an incident which needs to handled by the police. Rick replied that it is an issue that will be addressed. Julia said that we will consider using a mobile phone for the event staff. ' Rick went on to remind the board that zero tax dollars are used to fund events like "Oklahoma" and Arbor Daze, Fall Music Festival, and the Ultra. He also announced the appreciation party to be held on June 17 at North Main BBQ to thank everyone for their participation in Arbor Daze 1993. Lynne asked if the dates for next year's Arbor Daze had been set, and Rick replied that the festival is scheduled for the 22nd-24th of April in 1994. III. TREE BOARD REPORT Richard McNesse gave the Tree Board Report and said that on Saturday June 26th, at 9 am there will be a tree planting meeting. Rick reported that a local apartment was interested in the "1 + 1" program and there will be information to follow. Charlie Miller made a statement in reference to his recent win of a place on the City Council. He stated that the board had meant a great deal to him and that he would not forget the individuals or the importance of his experience on the board. IV. INPUT FROM CITY COUNCIL None. V. INPUT FROM VISITORS None. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to conduct the meeting adjourned at 9:00 PM with a closing prayer by Chairman Hogg. Chaff ` Attest