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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/24/1998 MEETING MINUTES • • City of Bremerton Parks & Recreation Department Parks & Recreation Commission Meeting UNAPPROVED MINUTES March 24, 1998 5:30 p.m. Sheridan Park Community Center 680 Lebo Blvd., Bremerton, WA 98310-3308 ATTENDANCE: Wanda Butler, Barry Cook, Douglas Groneman, Carol Johnson, Russ Johnson. ABSENT/EXCUSED: Terry Dodge, Nick Garguile Sr., Charles McWhorter. AUDIENCE: Patricia Black, Ronnie Brown. STAFF: Jim Spencer, Interim Director, Jodi Wroblewski, Assistant Director, Becky Lorber, Recreation Coordinator II, Lena D'Agostino, Office Assistant II I. CALL TO ORDER: Chairman Barry Cook called the meeting to order at 5:33 p.m. II. ITEMS FROM THE AUDIENCE: Patricia Black informed the Commission that she is interested in finding a way to build a BMX course here in Bremerton. She represents a group of children 12 to 15 years of age, who have been helping her distribute letters and gathering signatures of support. The kids are willing to help put the project together including having a design contest, raising funds for their helmets, assisting with the clean-up, etc. Ms. Black further added that this project will also benefit children with special needs. Interim Director Jim Spencer stated he is willing to look at this proposal with no commitment. He is definitely interested in any information Ms. Black could find out relative to this project, e.g. cost, space requirements, design, etc. Jim would be available to confer with Ms. Black at a later date to further discuss this project. He added that this is something that Commissioner Charles McWhorter had expressed similar interests, and was sure that he would also be interested. Commissioner Russ Johnson suggested that Ms. Black work on the signatures from both parents and children, and have the signatures ready by September to submit to the City Council to have the base chance of impacting the 1999 Budget. He added 1 Page • • that if we are to proceed with this project, we should do so the right way due to possible liability issues involved. Commissioner Carol Johnson asked Ms. Black if she had any particular sight in mind. Ms. Black said initially it was Evergreen Park, but she would like to know what the plans are for Haddon Park. Jim explained that the master plan has already been developed, and is the result of a number of public meetings involving the neighborhood. Jim suggested scheduling a tour of other park properties and see if there is something we can work on in an interim basis. At this point, the group entered into a discussion on possible site(s) for this proposal: Lower NAD (end of Shorewood Drive), Forest Ridge Park, Pendergast Regional Park, and Stephenson Canyon. No conclusions were reached. III. AGENDA: No change. VI. OLD BUSINESS 1. Park Bond - Survey Committee Assistant Director Jodi Wroblewski reported that we have 164 surveys returned. We're doing tabulating at this time and should be done by middle of April prior to next meeting. 2. Haddon Update Jodi spoke with Parametrix who informed her that they are just now finishing up on the final design. A meeting was scheduled for Thursday morning at the site to finalize the specifications needed to go to bid in mid-April. Jodi said cost estimates have not been done yet. We'll probably bid the restroom as an alternate, and end up with the walking path and irrigated interior grass area. Jodi reported that we were fortunate to receive a donation of a large piece of playground equipment from Eastpark Housing. Jim mentioned that he's not very optimistic with our ability to get the restroom installed at this time and has included its construction as well as Haddon Phase II development as Capital items. He does not think that $150,000 will go that far. The big play toy donated by the Eastpark Housing will definitely make a huge difference to this park. Jodi also informed the Commissioners that the Department is once again the recipient of the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) grant for $15,000. Part of the grant will be used to purchase 50 trees for Haddon, which will be a good addition to the park since no landscaping was included in the master plan. 2 Page • • 3. Kitsap Lake Jim mentioned that he attended a very interesting meeting on Kitsap Lake last night with Becky Lorber. Relative to the weed problem at the lake, two out of 6 residents who were at the meeting thought there was no weed problem. The survey, however, showed that only one person on the Committee indicated there was no weed problem. Jim added that he was not 100% convinced that we have a weed problem. Becky announced the next meeting will be held on April 16, Thursday, at 7:00 p.m. at the Cascade Natural Gas Building. V. NEW BUSINESS — Kitsap Rifle & Revolver Club Jim mentioned that a lot of things happened since he actually generated the agenda relative to groups of people who have been allowed over the years to use the small storage shed at the Sheridan Community Center building. Likewise, the Kitsap Rifle & Revolver Club (KRRC) have used the indoor shooting range located downstairs with no formal documentation or lease agreement. We are now in the process of generating a written lease agreement with KRRC, and looking at the possibility of trading off classroom time (or capital improvements) in lieu of rental fees. Jim added that we're trying to understand the requirements associated with running a range. In the meantime, due to safety reasons, we've temporarily closed down the shooting range pending inspection by the Fire Department (and contingent upon other issues). A meeting was scheduled with KRRC on Friday to further discuss this subject. VI. STAFF REPORT: Clubhouse Design: Per Jim, the Baumgardner architects are making progress on the pre-design and are now quantifying the requirements relative to square footage, site location, utilities, etc., prior to working on the formal design. A meeting with the Mayor was set for this Friday to get her input on the Clubhouse design. We should have sizing information within a month, so that we can begin the actual design. Evergreen Park: Jim met with the consultants (Hough, Beck & Baird) last week on the 75% design drawings for Phase I. We're bidding a few more alternates that we had originally projected basing on available funding versus the projected costs. The new configuration in the center section with the hoop courts, play area, trail system along the water, and sand volleyball court will look really nice without destroying the aesthetic quality of that park. The Rotary Club's donation of $100,000 towards Phase II development at Evergreen is a really significant contribution, and we'll go forward with Interagency Committee (IAC) for Outdoor Recreation grant request for matching funds. No real news on the remediation aspect of that property; discussions continue with Department of Ecology regarding the consent decree which dictates remediation process. Teen Dances: Hats off to Cynthia Engelgau for putting the teen dances together. Jim mentioned an article from an underground newspaper called the "Filthy Rag", 3 Page • • commending Cynthia and the Parks & Recreation Department along with the Bremerton Police Department for sponsoring teen dances and concerts. Cynthia has been successful in maintaining a great arrangement with the Police Department, who co- sponsored our teen dances. There will be another dance this Friday with Jay-Pee Bage (one of our Maintenance staff) as the DJ. Urban Forestry: In addition to being able to purchase trees for Haddon, the DNR grant of $15,000 will provide funding to purchase some trees for Evergreen Park, and construct a greenhouse by the nursery at Jarstad Park in Gorst. And once again, thanks to Jim Trainer, the City of Bremerton was selected as Tree City USA for 1997. The plaque will be presented to us during the actual Arbor Day celebration on April 4th, Saturday at noon, along the west end of Hemlock Street. Jim Trainer had arranged for some volunteers to assist with tree-planting. We also took out some trees at Forest Ridge with root rot, and with the help of volunteers, pulled out ivy off the trees. Compost System: Jim went to the City Council last night regarding this project (20' x 60'/concrete slab/3-bins covered compost system unit). Mayor Horton wrote a letter to the head of the Health District who provided us with workable Operating Procedures for the compost system unit for Stephenson Canyon (Sheridan Rd. and Birch St). Revenue Concerns: Softball: Team registrations are down very dramatically. We lost twenty (20) NSA teams who created their own league and will play out of Fairgrounds. Spring Day Camp: Enrollments went down from 50 last year to 16 this year. Part of this was due to South Kitsap School District's Spring Break was scheduled a week later than Bremerton and Central Kitsap, which was unfortunate for our young patrons from the South Kitsap area. Capital Improvement Plan (CIP): The staff has been working diligently on this and has prioritized our list of 80 items with associated cost estimates. Jim would like to come up with a finalized CIP prior to the next Commission meeting and provide the Commissioners each a copy for review. VII. APPROVAL OF MINUTES — February 24, 1998 (M/S/C/U) (Russ Johnson/Carol Johnson) to approve February 24th minutes. VIII. COMMISSIONERS' COMMENTS & QUESTIONS Commissioner Douglas Groneman mentioned some concerns regarding Evergreen Park. At the south end, some dirt is washing away from there as a result of the whales' presence not too long ago, and there'd been no rocks on top since last week. Also at the very northwest part (at the corner), there is a tree that needs to be looked at. Jim said he'll have our maintenance look at the problem. Commissioner Groneman also inquired about an article he saw in the newspaper about some coalition meeting and wondered if the staff have thought about participating in something like this. Jim 4 Page • s advised Commissioner Groneman that two of our staff are attending this conference ("Reach Out Conference") in Silverdale, tomorrow, Wednesday, March 25th. The conference was put together by a group called "Ethnic Unity Coalition". Jodi added that this same group will also be holding an ethnic festival at the Boardwalk in mid-July this year (this is their 3`d year). Commissioner Wanda Butler said she had one concern regarding the trails at N.A.D. Park. She does not think it is being treated properly and suggested that the Urban Forester take a look at it before the Boy Scouts clean it out. She also commented on how beautiful the Trilliums are out on the trail at Lower N.A.D. Jim thanked Chairman Cook for initiating a donation of computers (11 CPU's and a printer plotter) from Lockheed/Martin. Commissioner Russ Johnson asked Becky if she did anything about Bill Gates article on the Internet. Becky said she tried but she couldn't find it on the net. Commissioner Russ Johnson said he will send Becky an e-mail message/information on this issue. IX. ADJOURNMENT: The meeting was adjourned at 7:45 p.m. Respectfully submitted: jr, eN, lict,mt„..7_, _ r_____: (- i / Lena D'Agostino, Office Asst. II /i Spen -r Interim Director / 5 Page