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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1985-10-07 Regular Meeting Parks and Recreation Board October 7, 1905 CALL TO ORDER The regular meeting of the Parks and Recreation Board was called to order at 7:00 P.M. , October 7, 1985, in the Council Chambers of the Euless Mimicipal Building by Chairman George Zahn. Other members present were Messrs. Marland Ernest, George Zahn, and Ron Henson. Also present were M . Richard McNeese and Mr. Leon Hogg, alternate Board members; Bob Phillips, Parks Director; Julia Wakeley, Recreation Director; Anniece Vargas, substitute recording secretary; and K. B. Fuller, Director of Leisure Services. VISITORS Mr. Gary Chandler and Councilwoman Carolyn Park attended the meeting. INVOCATION The invocation was given by Mr. Marland Ernest. APPROVAL OF MINUTES The minutes of the regular meeting dated September 9, 1985, were approved as written. OLD BUSINESS I. KEEP AMERICA BEAUTIFUL REPORT Chairman Zahn stated that Board Member, Mrs. Helen Lightbody, was on vacation and would not be able to report on this issue. He added that Mrs. Park would present a report later in the meeting. II. AREA AND FACILITY REPORTS Mr. Henson, liaison for Midway Park, mentioned that the facilities were in good order. He reported that there had not been as much activity in the Park lately and that he was uncertain as to the condition of the electrical system. Page TWo, Regular Meeting, Parks & Recration Board, October 7, 1985 Mr. Ernest, liaison for the Community Building, stated that he had not visited the site and had nothing to report. He knew of no problems. Chairman Zahn reported that Carr Park and Oakwood Terrace had seen plenty of activity due to joggers and walkers utilizing the jogging trail. He added that the Boy Scouts had been painting equipment at Kiddie Carr Park. III. OBJECTIVE REPORTS Chairman Zahn suggested the need for volunteers for the Parks. Mr. Hogg suggested that a revision be made to include the hours worked by the Boy Scouts. Mr. Ernest commented that he had no report regarding facility utilization. NEW BUSINESS IV. NEW OBJECTIVE REPORTS Chairman Zahn explained that some of the objectives from the last meeting required participation and he asked for suggestions from Mr. Phillips and Mrs. Wakeley. Mr. Phillips stated that he had no report. Mis. Wakeley suggested taking a community survey to determine citizen needs and desires. This could be done by using several survey methods: telephone calling, mailouts, and personal interviews. She remarked that the phone survey would require approximately 50 man-hours, and result in a ten percent (l0%) sampling of the Euless population. Discussion then centered around the phoning procedures and methods. Mr. Henson felt that the 15-minute time limit that was suggested might be too long. He inquired as to the use of a questionnaire. Mrs. Wakeley answered that there would be no open-ended questions and that the Parks Department would be included in the survey. Calls would be made to all neighborhood districts to achieve a fair sampling. Page Three, Regular Meeting, Parks & Recreation Board, October 7, 1985 Mr. Ernest suggested setting up a phone bank at the Simons Building. Mr. Hogg further suggested a training session for the volunteers. Mrs. Wakeley added that age and income would help to determine citizen needs. She felt the response would be better if the citizens knew they were speaking with a Board member. Mr. Ernest remarked that he estimated that 1,200 calls would be necessary to arrive at a ten-percent (l0%) sampling due to the fact that the average household has 31/2 persons. Discussion then centered around the phone bank and the man- hours required. Mr. Hogg recommended that the Board participate in the calling. A recommendation was made by Mr. Ernest to have a training session rather than a regular called meeting. Mr. Zahn felt that TT'. Ernest's suggestion would require further study before implementation. He concurs with Mr. Hogg regarding Board member participation. Mss. Wakeley suggested that mailouts could be included with the water bills, Mayor's newsletter, handed out through the Library or Water Department. Mr. McNeese expressed his approval of using mailouts with short objective questions; but he inquired as to the rate of return on the questionnaires. Mrs. Park stated that there is a law rate of return. r Fuller concurred with Mrs. Park. Mrs. Wakeley expressed her opinion that more than one method might be utilized to obtain more input. Mr. Ernest felt that false conclusions could be drawn due to the fact that the survey might be only representing one-tenth of one percent of the City's population. Chairman Zahn recommended placement of this item on the November agenda where it could be further discussed and acted upon. ( Secretary's note: Chairman Zahn recognized Mrs. Park and asked her to report on the Keep America Beautiful Campaign.) Page Four, Regular Meeting, Parks & Recreation Board, October 7, 1985 Mrs. Park mentioned that there had been a meeting in which 15 cities were represented. Of the approximate 50 persons who attended, 18 were from Euless. She added that it had been a successful meeting. Mrs. Park and Mr. Phillips pointed out that 15 volunteers would be receiving plaques from the City Council on October 29, 1985, for their service in maintaining the City's flower beds on State Highway 10. Mrs. Park further added that there would be a paper drive on October 19, 1985, at City Hall. Three thousand flyers had been placed in grocery stores promoting the event which would help in recycling of used newspapers and in raising money for the Keep America Beautiful Campaign. V. PARK DIRECTOR'S REPORT Mr. Phillips reported that he had recently received shipments of bumper stickers and "round tufts" for distribution. He added that a 1,000-outlet drip irrigation system had been installed in the growing nursery. Recently planted in five-gallon containers in the nursery were: 200 slash pines, 200 pandas grass, and 400 crepe myrtles. Per. Phillips commented that the drip irrigation allowed plants to grow three times faster than usual. In addition, calibration of trees is taking place which should hasten their growth. The Midway Park Ballfield No. 3 has a new four-foot cyclone fence with heavy-duty wire and new posts, which should remain for several years. Landscaping on State Highway 10 had been improved and reinforced with landscape timbers and the beds have been planted with 47 red crepe myrtles and 30 dwarf yopan hollies. The new soil has been mixed with ground-up bark and a new solution to assist in the breakdown of the soil and prevention of runoff. Mr. Phillips stated that there was a beautification meeting at the Simmons Center where a landscape architect from the State of Texas made recommendations and expressed favorable opinions of the work done by the Parks crews. The jogging trail at Carr Park had been resurfaced with new chips and had been turf-shaped. Mr. Phillips explained that he receives numerous complaints during these procedures. He added that this is necessary to mix the chips with the sand. Mr. Phillips went on to report that the dead ligustriums at the Simmons Center had been replaced with wax-leaf ligustrwLs which were grown in the City greenhouse. Page Five, Regular Meeting, Parks & Recreation Board, October 7, 1985 The Parks Department has a new chipping machine which is used to break up bark. In that way, the City would not need to buy chipped bark. He explained that the bark is used to control weeds and aid the drainage in the flower beds. Hawing of the City property continued at 100%. Mr. Phillips reported that, during the winter, plans were being made to repair the timbers on the Old Iron Bridge and replace them with new oak timbers. He mentioned that the tennis courts at Midway Park would need to be repainted. He added that resurfacing would be performed later. The City Council also approved the purchase of playground equipment, picnic tables, and cookers for Westpark and Blessing Branch. Plans are being made to patch the tennis courts at Lakewood Elementary. The Parks Crews had difficulty repairing the tennis courts during the summer. If the wintertime patching does not work, the courts will need to be completely resurfaced. VI. RECREATION DIRECTOR'S REPORT Mrs. Wakeley reported that the flag contest was in full swing and that the winning flag would be carried on the Sesquicentennial wagon train and displayed at City Hall. She also explained theprizes:to be awarded. Mr. Henson made a suggestion to send entry blanks to the area schools in order to arouse more interest in the contest. The poster-puzzles have been delivered after having to be redone and are now ready for distribution. Attendance at the Ruth Millican Center was 2,145, and was 808 at the Simmons Center. The Adult Fall Softball Leagues are expected to end on October 25, 1985; the post-season softball tournament is scheduled for November 2, 1985. Mrs. Wakeley further reported that the Youth and Adult Soccer are continuing to play through the month of October. The adult tennis leagues will conclude on October 18, 1985. On Thursday, September 26, 1985, the Senior Citizens lunched at Furr's Cafeteria. The Senior Fall Trip was held on September 27, 1985, at Birdville Coliseumwhere they enjoyed the annual Senior Citizen's Arts and Crafts Fair, lunched at Jonathan's Family Restaurant, and toured the Botanic Gardens and the Japanese Gardens of Fort Worth. Page Six, Regular Meeting, Parks & Recreation Board, October 7, 1985 Mrs. Wakeley also noted that the Thanksgiving Luncheon will be held on Thursday, November 21, 1985, at the Simmons Center. All the members of the Parks and Recreation Board are invited to attend. Other activities scheduled for October are the 10K ran on October 12, 1985, and the Holloween Spook House on October 26, 1985, at the Ruth Millican Center. VII. INPUT FROM CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS There being no input from Council Members, Chairman Zahn proceeded to the next agenda item. VIII. INPUT FROM VISITORS Gary Chandler, Bedford - Euless Soccer Association, asked about the estimated number of entrants in the 10K run. Mrs. Wakeley responded that there had been several persons who had preregistered. She hoped that there would be a good number of entrants. There being no more input from visitors, M . Henson mentioned that Sunday's Fort Worth Star Telegram had an outstanding article about Bob Phillips. Mr. Ernest expressed concern with all the junky cars in the streets, parking lots, and corner lots. Mr. Fuller recommended that concerned citizens could contact Larry Finney, the Chief Building Official, who handles enforcement of such ordinances. Mrs. Park mentioned that the vehicles seem to appear most often during the weekends. Mr. Fuller stated that there is limited staff available on the weekends to enforce the ordinances. He suggested that the ordinance needs to be checked into. Mrs. Park volunteered to look into the ordinance also. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to conduct, the meeting adjourned at 8:05 P.M. , with a closing prayer by Chairman Zahn. irman t--- Attest