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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1979-06-11 Regular Meeting Park and Recreation Board June 11 , 1979 CALL TO ORDER The regular meeting of the Park and Recreation Board was called to order at 7: 15 p.m. , in the Council Chambers of Euless City Hall by Chairman Don Calhoun. Other members present were Messrs. Billy Owens and Jay Hileman; Mesdms. Zella Stierwalt and Sherry Kachel . (Absent was Mr. Winn Porter.) Also present were Park and Recreation Coordinator Larry Morgan and Recording Secretary Maurine Butler. VISITORS Visitors in attendance were City Manager W. M. Sustaire, Administrative Assistant Lynn Shackelford, Messrs. Victor Baxter, and Clay Nettles. INVOCATION The invocation was given by Mr. Don Calhoun. APPROVAL OF MINUTES The minutes of the regular meeting dated May 14, 1979, were approved as written. Mr. Owens stated with reference to Item VII , regarding the Resolution to the City Council , he thought in addition to the two staff members mentioned, other personnel of the Park and Recreation staff had contributed and done an outstanding job in the past year also. REPORT ON LITTLE BEAR CREEK COMMUNITY PARK Mr. Lynn Shackelford stated he met with the Park and Recreation Board some months ago and gave a report on Phase I and Phase II of Little Bear Creek Community Park and the application to the state for a grant, and recently drawings were delivered to each member for their review. He stated he would like to bring them up to date on what has transpired and what has not transpired since that time. Mr. Shackelford stated the Council authorized to advertise for bids on the park; the bids were received and we were about $100,000short of funds and the bid submitted by the general contractor. He stated they found that some of the items would have to be postponed, and the contractor had put most of the cost in the items they wanted to postpone. He stated they could not delete anything and build the (Phase Two, Regular Meeting, Park and Recreation Board June 11 , 1979) park and as a result, he recommended that bids be taken again on an individual basis, and without a general contractor. The City Council authorized to do this, and we were still short some money. Mr. Shackelford stated the original grant for the park was $570,600, in June, 1976, and due to inflation the total projected cost at this time is $793,803, an increase of $223,203. He stated they could not build a park with the amount of money they had and the park project was divided into two phases. Mr. Shackelford had previously given board, members a copy of a list showing costs of individual items in Phase I and Phase II . The total cost of Phase I is $335,911 and the cost of Phase II is $231 ,477. Mr. Shackelford stated the City will be the general contractor and a superintendent has been hired to supervise the project. He stated the superintendent is Mr. James Welty who was the superintendent of the City Hall remodeling and he is experienced in all phases of construction. Mr. Shackelford stated many of the items such as utilites, drinking fountains, roads and parking, picnic stations, landscaping, concrete work, earthwork and grading, bike trail for the east end of the park and architecture will be done by park personnel and other city personnel . He stated a record of inhouse labor will be kept and the city will be reimbursed for 50% of this. Bids were taken and contracts will be signed for electrical work, irrigation for softball field, and fencing. He stated they have a tenative committal with the county to build the road going into the park. The county will furnish the labor and the city will furnish the materials to build this road. Mr. Shackelford stated a Resolution is needed from the Park and Recreation Board and a Resolution from the City Council , along with other documents, and they will go back to the state for an additional grant for funds to complete the park project. He. stated the application for the new grant has to be in to the state by June 30, 1979. He stated there is a 90% chance that it will be approved, and if it is approved, it will be approved by August 30, 1979. He stated the contractors have agreed to hold their bid prices. Mr. Shackelford stated the city staff did not intend to bypass the Park and Recreation Board, it was just that nothing had been done until about two weeks ago when they took the second set of bids. He stated if the new grant is approved, they will have two more years to add the things that are being postponed. Chairman Calhoun asked if the City has matching funds on the second grant? Mr. Shackelford stated yes, the City Manager is planning to sell some bonds. We are still $100,000 short but by applying for the second grant and the money that will be reimbursed, we will be able to complete the job. (Page Three, Regular Meeting, Park and Recreation Board, June 11 , 1979) Mr. Owens stated he had been concerned about the information he received from the newspaper, which led him to believe changes had been made, and the Park and Recreation Board had not been advised of the changes. He stated the funding of the park was not his business and he is happy if the park can be built and the plans had not been changed. Mr. Shackelford stated they were misquoted in the newspaper. He stated the plans have not been changed from the time the board members looked at them. Chairman Calhoun stated he noticed the location of the pavilion was moved from the north end of the park to the south end of the park. He stated if there is a good reason for this change he would like to know it, because the convenience of the pavil.ion . to. the parking area is important. Mr. Shackelford stated there is a good reason for moving the location of the pavilion. He stated the reason was primarily cost, and also the north end of the park is in the flood plane. They wanted the pavilion and restrooms to be above the flood plane. The further north you build in the park, the more dirt you have to move to elevate above the flood plane and the more it would cost. He stated another reason is if you start moving a lot of dirt in a flood plane area and cause a problem either upstream of the creek or downstream, you have to deal with the Corp of Engineers. He stated it would be nice to fill some of the creek and have more land, but this would change the water flow. Mr. Owens inquired what happens if the grant is not approved? Mr. Shackelford stated if the grant is not approved, we will still be able to get most of the items listed in Phase II , it may not be in this year or next year' s budget but we will eventually get them. He stated if the grant is not approved, we will not get the tennis courts. Chairman Calhoun stated it was his understanding when the City applied for the first grant, everything had to be built according to the plans, or we had to go back and get approval for any changes. Mr. Shackelford stated there are some things you have to build, but because of inflation the state' s thinking has changed somewhat. He stated the city had all of the documented estimates and bid proposals and we have taken them back to the state and told them we had all of these in our original grant and the cost has gone up from $570,000 to $793,000. He stated the state realizes this and this is why we feel like we have a good chance of getting the second grant approved. The state has approved some in the past for this same reason. (Page Four, Regular Meeting, Park and Recreation Board, June 11 , 1979) Mr. Shackelford stated you have to build the restrooms and you have to try to build everything in the original plans but you can go back to the state and say we don' t have enough money to build the tennis courts and this is what we are saying in this second application. If the grant is not approved, with the help of the park personnel we can get most of the items through the normal budget, except the tennis courts. Mr. Owens stated it was his personal opinion that tennis courts are needed more than softball fields and soccer fields. He stated he is for baseball , softball , soccer and track, but there are some people who can not participate in organized sports and they need a place to go. Mr. Heilman stated we should look at the per capita youth. Mr. Owens inquired about the fencing? Mr. Shackelford stated this is new perimeter barbed wire fencing which is primarily on the north side of the lake and a piece by Mr. Bob Eden' s property. He stated Mr. Morgan and his crew have been installing some fencing and we need more perimeter fencing. Also, the clearing and grubbing on the north side of the lake is to be done by the park crew. These two items, fencing and clearing, were added to the original plan. II . CONSIDER RESOLUTION APPROVING APPLICATION FOR ADDITIONAL FUNDS FOR BEAR CREEK PARK Mr. Shackelford introduced Mr. Victor Baxter with Schrickel Rollins & Associates, Inc. and stated that he would present the resolution to the board for their consideration. He stated this is a resolution of the Park and Recreation Board requesting the City Council to authorize participation in the Laad and Water-Conservation Land Act of 1965 by the City of Euless. He stated Schrickel Rollins will hand carry the application to Austin. Mr. Baxter stated the resolution is basically the same wording as used in the application for the original grant and tailored to fit this project. He passed the resolution around for each board member to read. Mr. Owens made a motion to approve the resolution requesting the City Council to authorize participation in the Land and Water Conservation Land Act of 1965 by the City of Euless for application for additional funds for Bear Creek Park. Mrs. Kachel seconded the motion and the vote is as follows: Ayes: Mr. Owens, Mrs. Kachel , Messrs. Calhoun, Heilman, and Mrs. Stierwalt. Nays: None (Page Five, Regular Meeting, Park and Recreation Board, June 11 , 1979) Chairman Calhoun declared the motion carried. III . PARK AND RECREATION COORDINATOR' S REPORT ATHLETICS Mr. Morgan stated a track meet is scheduled at Pennington Field, and a swim meet will be held at South Euless pool on Saturday, June 23. He extended an invitation to these activities. Mr. Morgan stated there are 24 teams, 350 participants and play on two fields in girl ' s softball ; 16 teams, 240 partici- pants in men' s church softball ; 25 teams, 350 participants in men' s open league softball ; and 37 teams, 450 participants, playing on four fields in boy' s baseball . He stated because of the rain, they have about 90 makeup games to play on the weekends in softball and boy' s baseball and there will be very little free play available on the fields. Mr. Morgan stated the tennis league is coming to a close. He stated the Junior Tennis is a real success with 140 youth signed up. Junior Tennis is for youth ages 8 to 14 years. They have T-shirts they are paying for and sun-visor type hats with the City of Euless printed on them that we were able to purchase at a discount. Mr. Morgan stated they are having a CPR refresher course, taught by Fire Department personnel , for all swimming pool staff. Mr. Owens inquired if the pools were ready for use on schedule? Mr. Morgan stated there was a lot of repair work and a few setbacks but the pools were ready and opened on scheduled. RECREATION Mr. Morgan reported the Day Camp has begun with a 20% increase over last year. He stated they will have four, two week sessions with about 63 children registered per session. Day Camp begins in Kiddie Carr Park at 9: 00 a.m. and the parents pick the children up on the parking lot at 3:00 p.m. He stated everything is running smooth and they have had no major problems. Mr. Morgan stated they are offering some new classes in recreation in the Community Building and at Simmons. They have summer tap and ballet, leathercraft taught by a staff member, guitar lessons, and children' s ceramics. Mr. Morgan stated the weight lifting program is going very well . We have a very qualified instructor from Euless Jr. High School to work with the boys 14 to 16 years old. (Page Six, Regular Meeting, Park and Recreation Board, June 11 , 1979) Mr. Morgan stated this year they issued a numbered, metal pass that can be pinned to the swim suit. A record is kept of the child' s name and number in the event the pass is lost, and also prevent someone other than the owner from using it. He stated approximately $160 was saved this year by using the metal pass instead of the printed pass. Mr. Morgan stated he believed the increase in the Day Camp and other programs is due to the publicity in the newspaper, mailouts, flyers placed in the apartments and posters. He stated they took in approximately $8,000 in a four day period and held registrations open an extra week. Mr. Morgan stated Mrs. McCormick worked with the staff and was able to get two workers from Congressman Frost' s office to come and speak to the Senior Citizens and approximately 40 attended. Mrs. Kachel inquired if there is an organized program or activities for the Senior Citizens? She stated that she is employed with a real estate broker and they receive questions from people moving into this area about activities and programs available for senior citizens. Mr. Morgan stated his staff is limited but they have a bus and take the senior citizens to lunch, shopping, field trips, bowling, and to Simmons Center to play dominoes, cards and social gathering, twice a week. He stated Mrs. McCormick has been a tremendous help in this program. PARKS Mr. Morgan stated the landscaping around City Hall is almost finished. The berm with "Euless" is doing good and can now be seen from the Freeway. Mr. Morgan stated a puppet theater and "wishing well" drinking fountain, hand washing trough has been built in Kiddie Carr Park. Mr. Morgan stated they have several other small projects, working on Bear Creek Park, and grounds maintenance which includes mowing right of ways, city median strips, and well lots. He stated they have received partial shipment of the greenhouse and will soon begin construction on it. Mr. Morgan stated one of his biggest problems at this time is vandalism and requested help from the Park and Recreation Board with this problem. He stated the previous Sunday night the swimming pool in South Euless was broken into and the candy machine at the pool . A dead bolt on a metal door was beaten off. He stated he had talked to the Police Chief about having more patrol in the South Euless Park. Mr. Morgan stated lights are out in all the parks; 32 lights were shot out in Midway Park and either the lens are broken or the lights shot out of 8 lights in South Euless Park. (Page Seven, Regular Meeting, Park and Recreation Board, June 11 , 1979) He stated they cannot keep up with the repair and do not have the money in the budget. He is postponing repair on some of the lights because of the cost and also because some of the ball field lights are out and they have priority at this time. Mr. Sustaire stated a sub-division is scheduled to begin soon near South Euless Park. He stated there are two- hundred ten lots and houses will be built on both sides of the creek. Streets will be cut to run parallel with the park. He stated he believed this development is the only thing that will help on the vandalism in South Euless Park. IV. DISCUSSION PERIOD WITH CITY MANAGER Mr. Sustaire stated he would address the items as listed in the letter to him and begin with the responsibilities of the Park and Recreation Board. Mr. Sustaire stated the Park and Recreation Board is included in the City Charter, members are appointed by the City Council to serve a two year term and are responsible to the Mayor and City Council . Their responsibility is to act as an advisory board to the park and recreation staff and furnish any information that is relative to any of the activities in the area of parks and recreation, either to a member of the staff that they feel will take care of it or address it direct to the City Council or to his office. Mr. Sustaire stated there are a number of areas that board members can be involved in; one of these is the Senior Citizen program. He gave an example of a city he recently visited that provides one hot meal , five days a week, for senior citizens. The meals are financed by a government grant which pays 60% of the cost with the balance coming from community donations and transportation furnished by the city. The program is sponsored by the Park and Recreation Board. Mr. Sustaire stated emphasis has been placed on our youth and he would like to see more placed on the senior citizens and solicits the board' s help in this area. He stated he was told of an activity another city has to raise funds and the-money is used in the programs for the elderly. They have a bridge club and charge $1 .00 per player. This could be a way to raise additional funds for our programs. Mr. Sustaire stated there are some considerations being made to set up a special fund that the board will monitor and funds will be expended in areas where they feel there is a need for equipment and for activities they may have a particular interest in. He stated the City Council has requested him to invite the Park and Recreation Board to a work session with them at Dunston' s Steak House on June 26, beginning at 6:00 p.m. At this time the Council will hear any suggestions the board may have to improve our programs. (Paqe Eight, Regular Meeting, Park and Recreation Board, June 11 , 1979) Mr. Sustaire stated the budget is an administrative responsibility of the City Manager, to distribute what funds are available in the city on a fair and equal basis to all departments, based on the need and priority. He stated he solicits the board' s suggestions and they will be given consideration when the budget is approved, but the final responsibility for all budget matters lies in the City Manager' s office, with the approval of the Council . Mr. Sustaire shared some of the problems of the budget and the revenue the city has to operate on. He stated the city is basically operating on the same dollars as in 1974. They have a total revenue increase of some $300,000 and responsibilities have increased some $900,000 and with the inflation factor, another $300,000 can be added. He stated the city has the same number of employees as in 1972 with the exception of police personnel . Salaries are below scale in every department by some 14% as compared with neighboring cities. Mr. Sustaire stated he appreciated the board asking him to attend this meeting and wanted them to know that he is available any time they have a question. V. COMMENTS Chairman Calhoun inquired about the class offered by North Texas State University for park and recreation and wanted to know if money is in the budget for board members to attend this class. Mr. Morgan stated the workshop can be brought here and the entire board can attend for $350. Mr. Sustaire stated they have always provided in the budget for boards to attend workshops and for membership in organizations such as Texas Recreation and Parks Society (TRAPS) . Mr. Sustaire stated he would like the board to review the fees that are charged for summer programs. He stated he noticed from the newspaper that Euless' fees are considerably lower than fees charged by other cities. He stated they should not be raised and possibly keep children from attending, but he did not think it should be a baby sitting service. He stated possibly the board could make a comparison with other cities and stop an influx from coming outside of the city and using our service for less than they would pay in their city. Mr. Morgan stated they have a 20% increase in classes this year and have raised the Day Camp fee from $1 .00 to $3. 00 for residents, and from $3.00 to $6.00 for non-residents. He stated Bedford charges $20.00 and Hurst $12.00. Mr. Owens requested that board members be provided with a break down on all charges. (Page Nine, Regular Meeting, Park and Recreation Board, June 11 , 1979) Mr. Morgan stated he could provide this but the Park and Recreation Summer Program that was given to each one at the last meeting has this information. Mr. Owens stated he thought the mailout was very good and an improvement but he thought as many homes as the mailout touches he would like to see a little more art work and similar in design to the one the City of Hurst sends out. Mr. Sustaire stated members of this Park and Recreation Board will have their names on a sign in Little Bear Creek Community Park. VI . APPRECIATION FOR ATTENDANCE Chairman Calhoun stated he and the other members of the Park and Recreation Board appreciated Mr. Sustaire and Mr. Shackelford being present at this meeting and the information they shared. VII . ADJOURNMENT There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 9:55 p.m. oge5t/r'l&Alet''' Chairman