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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes_Recreation_04/02/2003 r v �� � VILLAGE OF TEQUESTA '`�! Post Office Box 3273 • 250 Tequesta Drive, Suite 300 �' �"`� a � Tequesta, Florida 33469-0273 • (561) 575-6200 f, �. i . � Fax:(561)575-6203 i PARKS & RECREATION ADVISORY BOARD MEETING MINUTES April 2, 2003 I. CALL TO ORD�R AND ROLL CALL The Village of Tequesta Parks & Recreation Advisory Bc�ard held its regularly scheduled meeting in the Tequesta Recrea�ion Center, 399 Seabrook Road, Tequesta, Florida, on Wednesday, April 2, 2003. The �neeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. A roll call was taken hy Recording Secretary, Betty Laur. Boardmembers present were: John Bonnell, Elizabeth (Betsy) Evans, Kevin Pittman, and David Becker. John Vadala, Vi Laamanen, and Royce Hood were absent from the meeting. Also in attendance was Greg Corbitt, Director of Parks and Recreation. II. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Betsy Evans made a motion to approve the agenda with addition of discussion of bathrooms for Constitution Park under New Business. Motioaa was seconded by Kevin Pittman and unanimously carried by 4-0 vote. III. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Upon motion by Betsy Evans, seconded by John Bonnell, and unanimously carried, the minutes of the March 5, 2003 meeting were approved as amended changing "died" to "did" on page 8. Recycled Paper Parks & Recreation Board Meeting Minutes Apri12, 2003 Page 2 ................................... IV. NEW BUSINESS A. Review of Resolution 9-Ol/02 which established this Board and discussion of the responsibilities of the Board as to the necessity of establishment of a Chair and Vice Chair Mr. Corbitt read a note from Boardmember Laamanen who was in New Jersey, reporting she had read the resolution and calling attention to the fact this was an ad hoc committee and there was no reference made to choice or requirement for a Chair and Vice Chair, and stating that she would abide by the decision of the other members. Mr. Bonnell commented that the resolution did not apply to the duties of the committee and that it read like this was an advisory committee to the Village Council rather than a Recreation Board to help Mr. Corbitt and the committee was really not set up that way, which he found a little disturbing. Mr. Bonnell commented having a Chair and Vice Chair was just a detail and if the Council wanted them, the Board could elect them, and it might help to have a Chair to keep the meetings moving along smoothly, and his view was it was a good idea to have a Chair. Boardmember Becker reported he had talked to Councilmember Geraldine Genco and had learned that the idea behind this committee was to have someone as Chairperson to make presentations to the Village Council when something came up, and commented it would be good to have a Chair and Vice Chair just for that reason. Mr. Becker reported he had discussed duties with Ms. Genco in the past, and the duties were just what the committee was � doing, to obtain ideas from a broad spectrum of people in the Village and pass along ideas to the Village Council, and it was not necessary to come up with an idea every month. Mr. Bonnell commented it was good to support Mr. Corbitt the way they were doing and the verbiage in the resolution did not indicate that. Mr. Corbitt he had researched to come up with rules and responsibilities, and had found that all municipalities had different rules and responsibilities, and basically this committee was just advisors to the Council. If someone in their neighborhood came up with an idea for a certain program or amenity, they should bring it to the advisory board and it could be voted on and Parks & Recreation Board Meeting Minutes Apri12, 2003 Page 3 ................................... the Chair would present it to the Village Council. Ms. Evans commented the committee had put Greg in a difficult position because they had not appointed a Chair and Vice Chair to go to the Council. Mr. Corbitt expressed his opinion it was a learning process, that this was new and as things progressed more things were learned. Mr. Becker commented that the resolution came before the Village even had a Parks and Recreation Director and was done when the Village was proposing bringing this department into being. Ms. Evans questioned what kinds of things should be brought before the Council. Mr. Corbitt responded large budget items, things such as a new park, an amenity to a park, skateboard park, and major events. Mr. Corbitt advised the Council had wanted to hear about Tequesta Idols, and all major events should be presented to them. Mr. Becker asked why Mr. Corbitt attended the board's meetings. Mr. Corbitt explained that he was the liaison for this committee. Mr. Corbitt explained that the Village Manager was sort of a liaison to the Village Council and during their meetings if they had a questions they turned to the Village Manager for an answer. Mr. Griest, a resident, commented that Mr. Couzzo, the Village Manager, was guided by the Village Council, and they may ask him for advice but their decision was final. Mr. Griest commented that the idea for the committee came up because of younger people moving into the Village and if he were a young person and had children he would be coming to these meetings. Mr. Griest commented the minutes were going to give a history of the Village and it was difficult to get people to serve on boards or to attend the meetings. Mr. Corbitt commented this board was very important and would eventually catch on. Mr. Bonnell asked if a Chair and Vice Chair should be selected tonight since Mr. Vadala and Mrs. Laamanen were not present. Mr. Corbitt commented that he did not want to carry this on any longer. Mr. Becker volunteered for one of the positions. MOTION Boardmember Evans nominated David Becker as Chair and John Bonnell as Vice Chair. Mr. Becker seconded the motion, which carried by unanimous 4-0 vote. Parks & Recreation Board Meeting Minutes Apri12, 2003 Page 4 ................................... Chair Becker conducted the meeting from this point and announced he would like to keep this committee as it had been running, that he believed it had been running very well.. Chair Becker stated he knew Robert's Rules of Order but was not efficient in them and really did not want to apply them, but just to work together and not get engrossed in themselves, that this committee was not the Village Council and should not get self-important, just keep things simple and low key. Chair Becker advised a lot of times he could not attend the meetings being out of town the first week in the month, and would advise Vice Chair Bonnell in those cases, but would do his best to attend. B. Bathrooms for Constitution Park Ms. Evans commented it came up at the last meetings that a number of residents had felt the need to have bathrooms available here at Constitution Park, and it needed to be addressed. Mr. Corbitt commented that the skateboard park would be added during the next two months, which would bring more people to the park. Mr. Corbitt advised he had heard a lot of people who wanted restrooms and there were petitions going around. Mr. Corbitt noted the committee could discuss this but before going further should wait to hear back from the State regarding the $200,000 Parks and Recreation grant for which application had been made, since that would including funding for bathrooms. All the money from the grant would go to this park. The Village had scored in the 78 percentile and usually those in that category were funded immediately; however, because of State budget cutbacks the Village was not selected the first go-round. The Village had hired a consultant to go to Tallahassee to convince legislators that the Village needed the money, and the consultant had requested the Village Council send a letter to their representatives from this area, and basically the Village was now waiting. Other items that would be included in the grant besides bathrooms were a pavilion, family picnic shelters, and upgrade of playground equipment. Mr. Corbitt explained that the grant only funded certain things and if the Parks & Recreation Board Meeting Minutes Apri12, 2003 Page 5 ................................... money was going to certain things, and certain things carried more points than others. Chair Becker asked if in the meantime porta-potties could be used, and asked what those would cost. Mr. Corbitt indicated he did not know the cost because the Village got a certain number of dumpsters and porta-potties provided during the year and he had never had to pay. Chair Becker commented it would be great to get two for the park on an interim basis. Mr. Corbitt advised that should be taken to the Village Council. Mr. Pittman asked when the grant would be awarded. Mr. Corbitt advised it would be this year as soon as the State budget came out, and he did not know the date, but thought it would be within the next six months. MOTION Boardmember Evans made a motion to install a couple of port-o-lets in Constitution Park to cover until bathrooms could be provided. Boardmember Pittman seconded the motion, which carried by unanimous 4-0 vote. The committee discussed cleaning of the Port-O-Lets. Mr. Corbitt advised the port-o-lets would be cleaned by the Port-O-Let company, that he thought having them was a good idea, and that when funding was received bathrooms would be added onto the rear of this building with access from outside. V. ANY OTHER MATTERS Mr. Corbitt reported he had received an invitation to attend a meeting at the Solid Waste Authority but had been unable to attend. Mr. Corbitt explained that Dwyer Park, near the Veterans Administration building, used to be a dump and was now a park owned by the Solid Waste Authority and leased to Palm Beach County, who maintained the park and conducted programs there and paid SWA a minimal amount. Mr. Corbitt advised that Tequesta did the same thing with the State, who owned Tequesta Park. Mr. Corbitt reported he and a friend and a person who did mountain bike trails had toured Parks & Recreation Board Meeting Minutes Apri12, 2003 Page 6 ................................... Tequesta Park, and found it would be very feasible to put in approximately four miles of mountain bike trails, which would blend into the landscape. Some hills for BMX riders were also discussed. Mr. Corbitt commented this would be a nice way to clean up the vegetation. Ms. Evans asked if that would interfere with people being able to walk their dogs there, but Mr. Corbitt advised this would not be in the same area since the trails would be where there was more vegetation. Mr. Corbitt announced that for the June meeting he would like the committee to hold their formal meeting at 7 p.m and then get in the van and take a drive together as a group to the park and walk around, and also drive around Tequesta, and they might come up with some good ideas. Ms. Evans commented that the ball fields looked beautiful. Mr. Corbitt reported that some concrete work was still needed in the dugout areas and under the bleachers. Mr. Corbitt reported that John Vadala had a traveling baseball team that was using the front field, and the back fields were not open yet, but should be open in about a month, and now Tequesta's fields were considered as good as Jupiter's. Ms. Evans asked if the rest of the committee was aware of the Village Council's decision at their last meeting regarding the skateboard park. Mr. Corbitt reported the Village Council had approved the park. Ms. Evans added that the Village Council had decided to use the difference between the actual cost and the budgeted amount to hire supervision, since the park did not cost as much as had been budgeted. Chair Becker commented that as a parent he had been to many skate parks in areas around the country and at every one except for indoor ones and YMCA where you had to pay, all others in public parks were just open, which was how he hoped this one could be if the proper signs were put up stating things like skate at your own risk, skate only in designated areas, must wear helmets, must wear pads, etc. If the skate park was open the kids could skate for 10 minutes if they wanted; if it was a structured setup they would have to go for an hour, and he did not want to get involved in that type of thing. Chair Becker commented he hoped it could just be open for the hours the park was open and used whenever someone wanted. His comment was, if something is not broke Parks & Recreation Board Meeting Minutes Apri12, 2003 Page 7 ................................... don't fix it. Vice Chair Bonnell commented there had been concern expressed about bigger kids pushing the smaller kids off. Mr. Becker commented there was a pecking order but they worked around that—many times the younger kids wer� in the park before the older ones came, and the younger kids would usually be on the sections easiest to use while the older kids-would-be-on the -ramps that were harder. Mr-.-Becker- commented-it--- --- -- - worked out on the basketball court, and he thought the best idea would be to wait to see what happened before creating problems that might not exist. Mr. Corbitt commented the Village Council had approved to build the park and he was not sure what direction they really wanted regarding an attendant or just signage. He knew the park was approved to build and they were going to take it slow. A lot of different ideas had been discussed but he did not yet have direction. The skate park had been designed by a professional skateboarder who was a representative for the company who was building the park. The configuration could be changed and if skateboarding fizzled out it could be removed. Mr. Becker reported that Greg planned to have it finished for the End of School Teen Bash with the grand opening then. Mr. Bonnell asked about the tennis courts. Mr. Corbitt reported the nets were currently being replaced, the resurfacing was in the capital improvement plan for 2004 and windscreens would be added for FY 2004. These items would have to be approved in the 2004 budget. Fabico was providing the cost figures for windscreens—they were the company that did the basketball court, bocce court and walking trail, and were providing Mr. Corbitt with people to call about windscreens. Mr. Bonnell commented he had been hoping to get a final report on Tequesta Idols but Royce was not here. Mr. Corbitt commented he had not heard from Royce since the event, and still did not know who won. Mr. Bonnell asked that the report be provided next meeting, and commented there was nothing in the newspaper and next time the Village should have a reporter present. Mr. Griest commented he had been a judge but did not know who won. Mr. Corbitt commented that there would be a summer camp, and that Patti Shumacher had handed in her resignation that day but would stay to finalize Parks & Recreation Board Meeting Minutes Apri12, 2003 Page 8 ................................... things for the camp and she might be interested in running the summer camp. Mr. Corbitt reported applications were now being received for counselors and for a director for the summer camp. Ms. Evans asked if that was a replaceable position. Mr. Corbitt indicated that it was and that an ad would be placed in the paper and he would work on finding a replacement. Mr. Corbitt reported there were a lot of programs and people still coming in, and that he would be providing to the Board a copy of his monthly report for the Village Manager showing the numbers participating in various programs. In February there had been approximately 1,500-1,600 people participating in the programs and in March 2,500. Mr. Corbitt reported an artist from Lighthouse Center for the Arts would be painting a mural on the other side of the west wall of this meeting room of a kid's beach scene, eventually to wrap around to the front desk area. Chair Becker asked that an announcement of the Board's meetings be placed in Smoke Signals, and that anyone who had ideas or suggestions for the committee contact any of the members or leave a note for Greg at the front desk. Mr. Corbitt commented the members names were all in Leisure Times when they met, but agreed there should be something more eye-catching in Smoke Signals. Ms. Evans indicated she would like to extend her tenure on the board, and was advised she would be contacted. VI. COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC Wade Griest, 494 Dover Road, congratulated the Chair and Vice Chair. Mr. Griest commented he believed this Board was subject to the Sunshine Law and if this Board was subject to the Sunshine Law they could not talk to each other about business of this board unless they were in front of the public. Mr. Griest suggested that the Chairman set down what he would like to � nmr�lich� ��z�h, �h� VirP C rrnilrl rPfPr �z�hPn �h� ( �x��� Parks & Recreation Board Meeting Minutes April 2, 2003 Page 9 ................................... absent. Mr. Griest commented the Village Council was very interested in this committee, and Mayor Resnik had expected to attend tonight but had had a conflict. Mr. Griest commented the meetings were in the Post and he thought they should also be in the local paper. Mr. Griest suggested ilame tags be made for the board to help the public become familiar with them. Mr. Griest asked if it would be profitable for the Village to have their own concessions in the park. Mr. Corbitt responded it would be profitable but there might be limits set by the Health Department regarding what could be served. As to whether it would be manageable, if there were voluntecrs or someone to operate it, it would be manageable. Mr. Griest colnmented �hat was something to think about. Mr. Griest suggested sliding doors could be used to divide the room to accommodate more activities or open it up lor large groups. VII. ADJOURNMENT Upon motion by Boardmember Bonnell, seconded by Boardmember Evans, and unanimously carried the meeting was adjourned at 7:55 p.m. The next regular meeting will be held May 7, 2003, at 7 p.m. at the Recreation Center Respectfully submitted, ����w� �`��-'�'�'�=> Betty Laur Recording Secretary Date Approved: