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2007-09-06 City of Beverly, Massachusetts Public Meeting Minutes Board: Parks and Recreation Commission Subcommittee: Date: September 6, 2007 Place: Beverly Public Library Board members present: Mark Casey, Bill Lowd, Jack O'Neil, Patty Adams, Mike Ralbovsky Board members absent: Gary Lambert, Brian Chirco, Jeff Rubin Others present: Recreation Director Bruce Doig, Assistant Recreation Director Joscelyn Ruelle-Kersker Meeting called to order at 7:10PM. The 6/7/07 meeting minutes were accepted unanimously (5-0) with an amendment that 3 part time dog officers were hired for the summer instead of 2. The 7/12/07 meeting minutes were accepted unanimously (5-0). Correspondence: Bruce discussed a letter received from neighbors of Dane Street Beach opposing a proposed concession at the park. Bruce also discussed a letter to the City Council requesting permission for the Lynch Park Advisory Committee to serve beert and wine at the Kick Off Party on 10/13/07. Director Report: 3rd Annual David S. Lynch Appreciation Day - Another successful event for the LPAC. Homecoming 2007 - A huge success this year with great weather, great fireworks and big crowds. Summer Parks/Camps/Programs - Bruce reported another great summer thanks to Joscelyn, Gail, Jean and a great summer staff. Special thanks to Kris Melanson and Heather Beaulieu for the "Lynch Lowdown", a new staff newsletter and Jay Comeau for a great job as Head Ranger. 8th Annual Mom's Softball Tournament - Bruce reported that the tournament is scheduled for September 28-30th to benefit Beverly Education Foundation and other charities again this year. INNOCENTI PARK / MCPHERSON YOUTH CENTER: Bruce reported that the plans have changed. Work is progressing rapidly. The paving work will be completed in September and the landscaping of the new field will be completed by the end of fall. The new skate park will be permanently installed on concrete instead of asphalt. Several components were moved to Park Street for the summer but will be moved back as soon as the new surface is completed. The interior renovations of the Youth Center are continuing with several YMCA maintenance staff doing the bulk of the work. FY 2008 BUDGET: City Budget - Bruce reported that City budget was approved for $271,797, an increase of 13.7%. New line item of $30,000 for playground equipment was included. Enterprise Fund - Beginning balance for FY2008 was over $195,000. This is an increase of over $40,000 from the previous year. LYNCH PARK: Dick & June's - Dick William's is retiring from running the concession stand. New bids will be sought this fall. Bruce thanked Dick for many years of great service to our department and the patrons of Lynch Park. LYNCH PARK ADVISORY COMMITTEE / LYNCH PARK CARRIAGE HOUSE: Bruce reported that work to renovate the "Gallery" (GBA room) has begun. Everything has been removed from the room and the floor will be sanded soon. The old fluorescent lights have been removed and will be replaced soon by more attractive period lighting. The cost of the work is approximately $17,000 and will be paid for using LPAC money in the Friends account. There will be an Essex National Heritage Trails & Sails event at Lynch Park on Sunday, 9/30, including park tours and a historical presentation in the carriage house. The LPAC is moving ahead with a Fundraising Kickoff event scheduled for Saturday, 10/13/07, from 4:00-6:30PM. Bruce sent a letter to the City Council requesting use of carriage house for the event since the group is planning to serve beer and wine. The Licensing Board approved the wine and malts license in July. Bruce also reported that the Guild of Beverly Artists met with Mayor Scanlon and is trying to get the city to approve a new "lease" for them to continue using the carriage house for meetings, shows, classes, etc. The existing "lease" cannot be found anywhere but the Guild claims that the city gave them a lease back in the 1950's. They have asked for quite a bit of control in this new agreement but Mayor Scanlon is proceeding cautiously and will not approve anything until we meet with the Guild and discuss this with Roy Gelineau. FALL BASEBALL/SOFTBALL: Bruce reported that Extra Innings is making a lot of money using Beverly fields for their Fall Baseball/Softball Leagues. There are currently 10 teams paying $450 per team to play in these leagues. This money all goes to Extra Innings and is not spent on equipment or umpires. They have not paid permit fees in the past but there were far fewer teams playing in these leagues. The commission agreed that Extra Innings should pay the $25 per hour to use the fields for this for-profit program. Bruce also reported that Extra Innings has not been CORI checking their volunteers as required by law. They have been sending letters stating that they have been doing this but Bruce has talked to 6 of their coaches who told him that they have never been checked by Extra Innings. The commission was very concerned about this issue. COONEY FIELD: Bruce reported that Irrigation has been added to the outfield area. BIRCH PLAINS (VITALE SITE): Only one field is currently being used by BYSA this fall. Art Daignault, ADA Coordinator, has concerns about the area around the concession stand/bathroom building. ADA access needs to be improved by adding stone dust in much of the parking area and the perimeter of the building. This building is not being used by BYSA this fall. They are using portable toilets instead of the building due to lack of resources to clean the building. GAR Hall - No news on the sale of the building. A new card reader will be installed on the door by next week. OSRC: Sally Milligan Park - New signs needed - no mention of the Santin family donation of 20+ acres. Need to speak to Robert Buscbaum from the OSRC about new signs. PARK BENCHES: Bruce reported that we are running out of locations for new benches. He is still getting many requests but is starting to tell people that we may not be offering these benches any longer. He still needs to replace the legs on about 12 benches at Lynch Park and several at Dane Street due to rusting. The new galvanized legs are being sent to us free of charge but the DPW folks will have to replace all of these benches soon. Assistant Director Report: Joscelyn discussed her report and summarized the successful summer programs including camps, parks, and summer classes. She also discussed the fall classes and the fall brochure ads. Dog Policy Discussion: The new dog policy was discussed. It will be necessary to change the times in the new policy from 7:30AM to 8:00AM to eliminate confusion among dog owners. The new part time officers were discussed and it was determined that the new enforcement did not work because the officers were not supported or allowed to issue citations to offenders. Mark will contact new Police Chief Mark Ray to discuss this issue. Playground Equipment Discussion: Bruce briefly discussed the current state of several playgrounds and some cost estimates for replacing equipment. Bruce will continue to prioritize the needs and discuss the options in the future. The goal is to have one park renovated in the spring of 2008 and another in the fall of 2008. Meeting adjourned at 9:00PM. Respectfully submitted, Bruce Doig Director, Recreation Department