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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1985-05-06 '5at Regular Meeting Parks and Recreation Board May 6, 1985 CALL TO ORDER The regular meeting of the Parks and Recreation Board was called to order at 7: 05 P.M. , May 6 , 1985 in the Council Chambers of the Euless Municipal Building by Chairman Ron Henson. Other members present were Mrs. Helen Lightbody, Messrs . George Zahn, Ken Balsinger, and Rod Ashford. Recreation Director Julia Wakeley, Parks Director Bob Phillips , and Ophelia Smith, recording secretary, were also present. VISITORS Chairman of Volunteer Services , Leon Hogg, was present at the meeting. INVOCATION The invocation was given by Mr. Ken Balsinger. APPROVAL OF MINUTES The minutes of the regular meeting dated April 1 , 1985 , were approved with the following amendment; "The Board agreed with the recommendation by Mrs. Helen Lightbody that a letter of commendation be sent to Mr. Bob Phillips for the recent successful Disaster Emergency drill with copies to Mayor----°= Samuels , Mr. W. M. Sustaire, and Mr. Jack Bullard. " I . OBJECTIVES REPORTS Chairman Henson recognized Mr. Leon Hogg, chairman of Volunteer Services. Mr. Hogg remarked that everything was going fine, and that the next activity where volunteers will be needed is the dance recital on May 19th. Mr. Hogg stated they had met with the Assistant Fire Chief, and have almost completed the Single Senior Citizen call program. Mr. Hogg stated that the program would be set up with four Seniors for each volunteer to call. The Fire Department will have a book with the Senior' s medical records, in case of emergency, they will have needed information at hand. Mr. Hogg also remarked that the City was mentioned in "Cheers and Jeers" in the Fort Worth Star Telegram on the Easter Egg Hunt. The City was cheered for their efforts , and the parents were jeered for helping their small children find eggs. Page Two, Regular Meeting, Parks & Recreation Board, May 6 , 1985 Chairman Henson remarked that Mr. Phillips has asked for volunteers to "adopt an island" in the median strip on Hwy. 10 . The Park Department has prepared fourteen (14) color beds in the median strip, and planted them with plants that will give color, withstand the hot summer weather with minimum watering. Volunteers are needed to mulch the beds and keep them free of weeds and wild grasses. Mr. Balsinger announced that Mr. Phillips has the gift catalogues assembled. He gave one to each person present, and stated that others are available if needed to present to organiz- ations. He stated the normal procedure was to present a catalogue to an organization and ask them to look it over. If they are interested in making a donation, there is a letter of instruction in front of the catalogue and who to contact. Mr. Balsinger stated that the book could be expanded to include recreation equipment. A different cover could be used, and items for use inside recreation building could be listed. Mrs. Lightbody, who coordinates joint meetings with Hurst, Euless and Bedford, stated that Ken Oler in Bedford is anxious to participate in joint efforts , but Hurst seems to be well organized and not too interested in joint efforts with her sister cities . Mrs. Lightbody stated that she does not feel her objective needs to be pursued unless we have a project that would really benefit each city. Mrs. Lightbody stated that she is leaving it to the Board to suggest projects to pursue. Mrs. Lightbody stated that in the future when we have less space and more people there is likely to be a greater need for coordination of projects in the Mid-Cities area. II. AREA AND FACILITIES REPORTS Mr. Ashford stated that he had nothing to report on Bear Creek Park except that it is beautifully kept and looks great. Mr. Balsinger cited Wilshire Park as being very secluded and seldom used except for swimming during summer months. He stated that, in the future, should land be offered we should accept it, but take a close look to see the potential of the area before developing. Mr. Balsinger stated that the light reflectors have been shot out at Wilshire Park. Mr. Phillips stated that vandals have destroyed the Page Three, Regular Meeting, Parks & Recreation Board, May 6 , 1985 light bulbs at the ball diamond in Bear Creek Park. Also, vandals removed two nets from the tennis courts, cut them and threw them in the creek. The lights were shot out. Mr. Phillips stated that vandals cut down ten, four and five inch caliper pecan trees that the Park Department saved when they clearedthe east end of Bear Creek Park. Mr. Phillips stated that Police Chief Wilson plans to have the area patrolled more often in the future. Mr. Phillips stated that vandals trimmed up the mileage markers on the Hike and Bike trail in Bear Creek Park. Mrs. Lightbody stated that she is satisfied with what Mr. Phillips has been doing in West Park, and does not feel that she needs to contribute more. However, she remarked that she is concerned over those units in Bedford being adjacent to West Park. Mr. Phillips stated that a lot of cyclists riding motorcycles come across the street from Bedford into West Park, and he thinks eventually we will need to install a fence between the two cities. Chairman Henson stated that he has noticed increased usage of Midway Park as the weather gets better. Softball leagues have begun league play, and now things are more organized than when teams were only practicing. Mrs. Wakeley stated league play lasts until around July 1st. Then they go into tournaments. Boy' s Baseball goes on to Regionals , State, and then to National play-off. Girl ' s Softball goes to State play-off. Mr. Zahn inquired if the sand could be wet down before games on the T-Ball field. The strong south wind blows sand in the little fellows eyes. The age has been lowered to five years, and they are not very tall. The City is introducing the parents who are moving their children into the program on that field, and when they have to to stop playing ball, and go see mother to wipe the sand out of their eyes , it is not a good introduction. Mr. Zahn stated there needs to be a garden hose of something available for the umpires or coaches to use to surpress the dust. Mr. Phillips stated that the irrigation map shows an underground, two inch water line to the area. If the line can be located we will tie on to it and bring a sprinkler system over to water the out-field. Then put a quick-coupler on the in-field and water the field down before games. Page Four, Regular Meeting, Parks & Recreation Board, May 6 , 1985 -^ Mr. Zahn stated that J. A. Carr Park seemed to be in good shape. Mr. Zahn stated that Kiddie Carr seemed to be in good shape, but that he does not see much usage in that park. He stated that, since there are only the small buildings , picnic tables, and a pavalion, perhaps it is limited to small outings or weekend get-togethers. Mr. Zahn stated that the Simmons Building looked good from the outside. Mr. Zahn stated that there had been an accident at Oakwood Terrace playground approximately a week prioe to this meeting. A piece came loose on the slown swing, and struck a young lady on the forehead. Mr. Zahn stated that a teacher and several parents have contacted him regarding the playground equipment. They are not concerned about the age of the equipment, but the concern that he is hearing from parents is that they have lost the little rocking-horse play things that were there at some point in time. Mr. Zahn stated that a teacher claims there was a geodesic dome at Wilshire Terrace playgorund at one time which was moved out. Parents are concerned whether the clown swing can be repaired, and if not, and has to be taken out, this will leave only a a swing set, slide, and a see-saw. Mr. Zahn stated that, since he is getting some feed- back from the community on this, he feels that he should be able to answer their questions . Those questions being; when the Park Department takes out those facilities are they to be replaced, and can the clown swing be repaired and placed back in the play- ground, if not, who do they need to see to maintain the facilities in Oakwood Terrance playground comparable to what they were at one time. Mr. Zahn stated that the P.E. teacher and concerned parents want the geodesic dome returned. Mr. Phillips stated that he would find out if the geodesic dome had been moved out of the Wilshire Terrace play- ground before he started to work for the City. Chairman Henson Stated that the Lakewood tennis court is in terrible shape. Mr. Phillips stated that the condition of the Lakewood tennis court was caused by severely freezing weather two years ago. He stated that the Park Department has tried to repair it without success, and will add the cost of refinishing this court to next year' s budget. Page Five , Regular Meeting, Parks & Recreation Board, May 6 , 1985 III. FILM PRESENTATION Mrs . Wakeley presented a short film by the National Youth Coaches Association, titled "Winning Isn' t Everything. " Mrs. Wakeley remarked that the film is very timely, as we are using our parks and facilities more and more for youth sports . After some discussion the Board agreed that it would be worth-shile for both parents and coaches of youths participating in sports to review the film. IV. RECREATION DIRECTOR' S REPORT Athletics: Mrs. Wakeley reported that Adult Softball leagues are now in their seventh week of play. Wverything is running smoothly. The Adult Spring Tennis league is in their eighth week of play. hey are moving along as scheduled. The Adult Spring Soccer closed out their 1985 Spring season on Sunday, April 21st. , 1985. They had a very successful year. Boy' s Baseball has over 500 participants this seasori: 'Q=— The High Juniors are playing in Irving this season, because they did not have enough players to have a league. They are going to have a tournament on July 8th. at Trinity High School. Euless Girl ' s Softball Association will begin playing on May 7th. at West Park. Youth Soccer ended their season. Saturday, April 20th. They had a successful program. The Euless Recreation Department is now taking reg- istrations for an Employee Summer Bowling league through Alpine Lanes. This will begin on June 3rd. We are also sponsoring a Boy' s Basketball league this summer which will be at Euless Jr. High four nights a week. This league will be for boys from the seventh, eight, and nineth grades . Recreation: Mr. Wakeley stated that the Summer Recreation program will be coming out in the Shopper' s Guide on May 13th. , and mailed through the Water Department billing. Page Six, Regular Meeting, Parks & Recreation Board, May 6 , 1985 Mrs . Wakeley stated that registration will begin on May 20th. , and continue through May 31st. All registration will be held at the Ruth Millican Center on Cullum Drive. Classes will begin on June 3rd. The Dance Recital will be at Wilshire Elementary School on May 19th. The Euless Pre-School will have their Graduation - Exercises on May 17th. at the Simmons Building. We are offering something new this summer. We will have "Movies in The Park. " We will show "G" rated movies. The movies will be shown in J. A. Carr Park on the second and fourth Fridays. Bring a blanket to sit on, and we will have Coca Cola and popcorn for sale. Movies will be shown during June, July, and August. The Senior Citizens took their Spring trip to Dallas on April 18th. We went to Fair Park, Dallas , and visited the Museum of Natural History, and the Garden Center. We had lunch at The Old Mill , and went through the Aquarium. Then we drove to Farmer' s Market where they purchased fresh fruit and vegetables. We returned to Euless at 3 : 30 P.M. Twelve of the Senior Citizens have registered for the T.A.A.F. Senior Games. Ten Seniors will be playing Forty-Two on May 16th. Two Seniors will play Bridge and one Senior will compete in the one-mile bicycle race. A representative from the Euless Fire Department will show the Senior Citizens a film and give a short talk on smoke detectors and other safety devices in the home at the Simmons Building on May 9th. They are always glad to have someone from the Fire Department come to see them. The Senior Citizens were given a two hundred dollar ($200 . 00) donation from MBank Euless on Behalf of the retirement of Mr. W. W. McCormick from the Board of Directors. Euless Summer Track will begin June 3rd. Coach Massey from Hurst Jr. High will direct the program this season. Summer Youth Tennis program will begin Monday, June 3rd. Cal Hopkins will be in charge of youth tennis. This program is for youths to age 18 . The attendance at the Ruth Millican Center for the month of April was 1 , 181 . The Community Building had an attendance of 2 , 299 . Mrs. Wakeley replied to and inquiry from Mrs. Lightbody regarding plans for the Sesquicentennial Celebration in 1986 that we will be receiving two pieces of recording equipment to aid in oral interviews which we will be starting soon in preparation of the oral history of Euless. Also, Mrs. Wakeley stated that she and Betty Yarbrough would be meeting soon to start planning the Sesquicentennial Celebration in Euless on April 5 , 1986 . Page Seven, Regular Meeting, Parks & Recreation Board, May 6 , 1985 V. PARK DIRECTOR' S REPORT Mr. Phillips reported that Euless Boy' s Baseball Association is sponsoring a team for the Park & Recreation Department this season. The Park Department has made fourteen (14) new color beds in the median strip on Hwy. 10 . The beds have been planted with lantana, copper plants, Joseph ' s coat, and periwinkles which will give a mixture of colors. Several volunteers have "adopted an island" , and others are expected to volunteer to care for the beds. Permanent signs will be installed signifying volunteer responsible for each bed. Plans are to make a picture of each volunteer working a bed to publicize the Volunteer Services program. All the color beds at the Civic Center Complex and in the park areas have been worked and planted with plants that were propagated in the Greenhouse. The Park Department has built a new front on the building at the Shop area in Midway Park and repainted the building. Installation of the portion of irrigation system that the Park Department agreed to do at Softball World in exchange for use of their fields has been completed. The Park Crew has planted two hundred trees in the growing area at the Greenhouse that will be grown by a new drip -system_ of irrigation with fertilizer included. This is an experiment to speed the growth of a tree. Growth is expected to be four times that of normal growth. The experiment includes red oak and live oak trees. The Park Department has received a donation of two hundred dollars ($200. 00) from MBank Euless on behalf of the retirement of Mr. W. W. McCormick from the Board of Directors to be used in McCormick Park. Mr. Phillips stated plans are to use the money to purchase picnic tables. A plate naming Mr. McCormick as the donor will be attached to each item. The Park Department has repainted the inside of the . restrooms and office building at Midway swimming pool. Also, the base to the springboard stand at Midway pool had to be replaced due to rust and corrosion. The Park Department has received and assembled new mowers. They have new push mowers, weed-eaters, and back-pack blowers . The Park Department has installed two new gates at Harwood Soccer Field. The Soccer Association purchases the material to make the gates, and the Park Crew installs them. Page Eight, Regular Meeting, Parks & Recreation Board, May 6 , 1985 The Park crew has recently transplanted over thirty (30) cedar elm trees on Midway Drive median strip in front of an apartment complex now under construction. The developer of the project has donated forty (40) white crape myrtles, wholesale value of seventy-five dollars ($75 . 00) each, to add to the median. Mr. Phillips stated that mowing was now at 100% . Mr. Phillips stated that the irrigation system has been installed on the small girl ' s softball field at West Park. A water fountain has been ordered for that field, and the field is now wired for electricity. Red oaks have been planted around the field. Mr. Phillips stated around three-thousand dollars ($3000) has been spent at West Park recently including the new fence. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business before the Park and Recreation Board, the meeting was adjourned at 8: 35 P.M. with a closing prayer by Chairman Henson. Ak41/4-19-1-t/ Chairman Attest