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HomeMy WebLinkAboutParks and Recreation - 08/30/2004 APPROVED MINUTES PARKS, RECREATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION MONDAY,AUGUST 30, 2004 7:00 P.M., CITY CENTER Council Chambers 8080 Mitchell Road COMMISSION MEMBERS PRESENT: Tom Bierman, John Brill, Tom Crain, Jeffrey Gerst, Randy Jacobus, Ian Mackay and Michael Moriarity COMMISSION MEMBERS ABSENT: Rob Barrett and Cari Grayson COMMISSION STAFF PRESENT: Bob Lambert, Director of Parks and Recreation Services; Laurie Obiazor, Manager of Recreation Services; Stu Fox, Manager of Natural Resources; Bob Lanzi, Athletic Program Coordinator and Carol Pelzel, Recording Secretary I. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL The meeting was called to order by Vice Chair Gerst at 7:00 p.m. II. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Bierman asked that an item be added under Old Business regarding the results of the referendum survey. Lambert explained that the information is not yet available. It will be presented to the City Council at a workshop on September 21 at 5:30 p.m. and he asked that the Commission members plan on attending that meeting. Motion: Mackay moved, seconded by Jacobus, to approve the agenda as presented. The motion carried, 7-0. III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES —August 2, 2004 Gerst pointed out that his name was misspelled in the first paragraph of Item VI. A. Motion: Motion was made by Brill, seconded by Bierman, to approve the minutes as corrected. The motion carried, 7-0. IV. REPORT OF CITY COUNCIL ACTION—August 3 and August 17, 2004 Lambert reported that at the August 3 meeting the Council approved the softball building plans, the improvements to the Community Center and the language for the referendum survey. There were no items before the Council at their August 17 meeting. PARKS, RECREATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION August 30, 2004 Page 2 Mackay asked if staff had any information on Lifetime Fitness announcing that they are moving from the City and if the City were aware of their intention to move. Lambert said he had no additional information and that they were aware of their intent to relocate. V. PETITIONS, REQUESTS AND COMMUNICATION VI. OLD BUSINESS VII. NEW BUSINESS A. Turf Athletic Field Usage and Issues Lambert explained that the memo included in the Commissioner's agenda material was an attempt to describe some of the frustrations and issues that City staff has with athletic fields. Issues to be discussed include compaction and field wear issues; field use capacity; game vs. practice fields; camps, clinics, tryouts and tournaments; and, reporting requirements and field maintenance requests. There has also been an issue of who they charge for fields and how they make the decisions of who can use the fields. Most of these issues foster from getting information from Athletic Associations for scheduling of the fields. Lambert pointed out that the various Associations are making decisions on their own without consulting City staff. He explained that the City's goal is to provide the safest and best conditioned fields possible and the City is willing to work with the users and the fields they have. Other organizations are using the City's facilities to run camps and some do contact the City while others think use of the facilities are on a first-come-first-served basis. Lambert stated that staff is recommending that an ad hoc Sports Facility Committee that reports to this Commission be formed for the purpose of requiring public discussion of facility use requests. Fox reviewed with the Commission the various issues addressed in his memo. He stated that staff is trying to provide the best facilities for everyone in the community. They are dealing with compaction and field wear issues and looking at field capacity and at game fields versus practice fields. They also look at camps, clinics, tryouts and tournaments to determine what facilities are being used. They are unable to do daily maintenance if a camp or clinic is being conducted without the City knowing they are going to be there. Fox explained that staff does meet with the Associations twice a year. These meetings allow them to get some idea as to the number of participants they have and the number of fields they will need for practices and games. The information is readily available in January; however, it is more difficult to get the information from the Associations in June. Fox reported that the High School has had a successful program with softball and girls lacrosse and they have basically started withdrawing their facilities that were used as game fields. This has put additional pressure on existing City facilities. There is also frustration within the community because residents want to be able to use the facilities. The Associations indicate that they need the fields for a specific amount of time and the residents say the fields are not being used. Staff is looking for a balance for the use of the fields. Mackay said he appreciates the work staff has put into this and appreciates the frustration they are experiencing. He said he agrees with staff's recommendation that a Committee be PARKS, RECREATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION August 30, 2004 Page 3 formed but that he feels that whatever the Committee decides it will come down to a process issue. There needs to be some type of reservation system in place and that is the only way to manage the use of these fields. Money will need to be budgeted for such a system. They need a tool to help manage the use of the fields. Lambert said staff is suggesting that this Committee be an ad hoc committee to this Commission and would probably meet four times a year. All Associations using City facilities will have to have a representative on this Committee and will be required to attend the meetings. At each of those meetings, they will be required to present certain information. Lambert suggested that the Committee be a group of citizens that are representing the Associations who use the facilities plus a couple of members of this Commission. When requests for field usage are received, they will be presented to this Committee rather than to City staff. This Committee will decide what is fair based on the rules developed. Lambert said staff is not only concerned about maintenance of the fields but also the impact the decisions have on all of the organizations using the facilities. This Committee will allow public discussion with all of the people involved or represented. In response to a question from Jacobus, Lambert explained that this Committee would have to develop the rules. Staff will draft a set of guidelines for this Committee. This Committee forces Athletic Associations to get involved in public discussion and process on how decisions are made to utilize these facilities. Crain said another variable is the groups accountability. There has to be a system that the organizations have to follow to let the City know what they need for planning. Accountability is a very important factor. Lambert explained that this Committee and Commission would ultimately have to decide how many fields are enough for the Soccer Association, Soccer Club, Lacrosse, Football, etc. Lambert said another issue that has come up is the scheduling of the swimming pool for the Aqua Jets and the Fox Jets. He said that the two swim groups could be before this Commission in October asking for a change in the City's policy regarding use of the swimming pool facilities. Fox explained that it is staff's responsibility to work with the volunteers from the various associations. One of the issues in dealing with the volunteers is that there is a big turnover and those associations are also dealing with other agencies and relying on them for scheduling information. This makes it difficult to provide the City with the necessary information on a timely basis. Brill asked if the average sports parent or child is aware of the field turf issues. He said he does not believe they are and it is important that they educate them about the various issues. Brill asked if the demand for turf use has grown. Fox said it is hard to get a handle on this. At one time staff thought they were at a saturation point but the associations actually started getting younger aged participants. Fox said it should start leveling off but they have not seen a decrease in the amount of fields being used. PARKS, RECREATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION August 30, 2004 Page 4 Moriarity asked if a Committee had been formed with the School District regarding facilities. The High School is not allowing the City to use their fields and that traffic is now being pushed onto City fields. Lambert said a Committee was formed to discuss fees and the philosophy for the use of both the City and School District's fields. The School District's philosophy is different from the City's. The School District is very protective of their fields and feels they need better field conditions because of the level of play on their facilities. Bierman explained that the associations did have a Director of Fields and that person was responsible for coordinating with the City and communicating with the City. If they do not have a Director of Fields they should be required to have one. Also, the association's ownership and responsibility for those fields has to start with the kids and the coaches and if the association does not take that approach that is the reason for many of the problems. They need to have a discipline structure approach and they can do that by being certain that the Director of Fields understands the importance of field restoration. Bierman said communication is extremely important. Discipline, ownership and communication are the three major issues that need to be addressed. Bierman said he would be delighted to serve on this Committee. Jacobus said he is not convinced that by going directly to each organization individually and asking them what they want will work. They will ask for more than they need and the demands will exceed the number of fields. Jacobus said he liked the idea of having everyone meet in the same room to divide the use of the fields. Moriarity asked if it is staff's intention to provide some technical assistance to the Committee. Lambert said there would have to be some guidelines as to how to efficiently use the fields and how to schedule them. He said staff would provide some assistance. Bierman said he would like to hear a presentation from the Fox Jets and from the Aqua Jets separately so that he becomes more familiar with each group to assist him in making an intelligent decision. Lambert responded that the policy for the use of the pool facility will not change this winter; therefore, there is no rush in considering their request and the Commission will have sufficient time to meet with the two organizations. Bierman pointed out that the School District has a good policy in place for scheduling and he suggested that a copy of that policy be given to the Committee. This would give the Committee a tool or document to assist them in developing their philosophy. Lambert explained that between now and the end of the year staff will develop some information on how they think this should be set up. The Committee would probably start meeting in January and appointments to the Committee would be made in December. Lanzi explained that another big issue is the daytime use of facilities by churches, camps and outside groups including other school districts. Staff is trying to do field maintenance during these times and large groups come and take over the parks. Lanzi said staff feels they need some type of monitoring system in place. He stated that when they are talking about facilities they should include all facilities including tennis courts and parking lots. Lambert explained that the City's current policy is if a field is not reserved, it is used on a first-come-first-served basis. Miller Park is the only park that requires a Recreation Facility Use Permit and they PARKS, RECREATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION August 30, 2004 Page 5 may have to expand this requirement to other parks. Bierman suggested that they look into placing signs at the parks stating that when they are not being used there will be maintenance/rehabilitation work done on them. It is important for the community and organizations to understand that. Moriarity pointed out that one of the problems with resting the fields is that if the soccer organizations rest the fields they are not getting the benefit. There is no incentive for anyone to allow the fields to rest. Everyone wants their season on the fields and are not willing to give them up. Motion: Motion was made by Jacobus, seconded by Mackay, to appoint an ad hoc Sports Facility Commission that would report to the Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission for the purpose of requiring public discussion of facility use requests by all users and involving representatives from all users groups in the decisions made relating to use of sport facilities. The motion carried, 7-0. In addition to Bierman, Jacobus said he would also be interested in serving on this Committee. Lambert explained that staff would be presenting to the Commission a recommended schedule, make up of the group and charter statement. Once the Commission has reviewed this information and approved it, it would be forwarded to the City Council. Bierman asked that the Commission be provided with some information on the Fox Jets and the Aqua Jets. Lambert explained that it is his understanding that these organizations will be before the City Council next Tuesday asking for changes to the City's policy. Lambert said he would recommend to the City Council that these groups appear before the Parks Commission and explain who they are and what they are requesting. At that time, the Commission can ask for additional information if they feel that is necessary. Staff does not expect the Commission to make a decision after one meeting. VIII. REPORT OF STAFF A. Director of Parks and Recreation Services B. Manager of Recreation Services C. Manager of Parks and Natural Resources IX. ADJOURNMENT Motion: Jacobus moved, Mackay seconded, to adjourn the meeting. The motion carried 7-0. The meeting was adjourned at 8:25 p.m.