BOARD OF PARK COMMISSIONERS REGULAR MEETING Park and Recreation Department 11th Floor City Hall Monday, July 9, 2007 3:30 p.m. Present: Janet Miller, Doug Leeper and Bryan Frye Absent: Glen Dey and Andy Solter Also Present: Karen Walker, Assistant Director of Park and Recreation, and Myca Bunch (staff) President Miller called the meeting to order at 3:30 p.m. Miller recognized Dennis Brunner, former Park Board member, for his 4 years of service to the Board and the City of Wichita. Miller presented Brunner a plaque in recognition of his commitment to the Board. Miller notified the Board that there are Park Board vacancies in Districts I and II. PUBLIC AGENDA M.S. Mitchell, 1215 Forest St. Mr. Mitchell said that he lives on Forrest St (a block North of 11th Street). He said that all of the properties in his block back up against Oak Park and/or North Riverside Park and that the area behind his house has not been mowed since a photographer asked that the City delay its mowing schedule in that area, allowing him to film wildlife this past spring. The photographer finished his work quite a while ago but the City has not resumed mowing this area. Mitchell said that he recently learned that this area is divided into two districts and that each district is mowed at different times. Mitchell said that last week the City came out and mowed the area behind his house but left the area between the edge of the path and the woods with high weeds. Karen Walker said that she and Doug Kupper, Park Department Director, went out and looked at this area a few days ago and they know it has been an issue. She said that she would have the Park Dept crews look at the area again to find out why this particular section of land was not mowed. James Crowder, 6009 E. 17th St. Mr. Crowder said he would like to ask that the Park Department mow the area behind his house. He said he has been requesting that the area be mowed since April 17th. The area is part of the 17th St. Rail Corridor between Woodlawn and Oliver. Crowder said that the last time they mowed they cut the area along the trees but did not mow the area toward the back yards of the surrounding houses. Walker asked if there was standing water in this area right now. Crowder said that he did not think there was at right now, but there could have been in the past. Walker said she would look into the matter and would have someone from the Park Department call Mr. Crowder with a date of when Park Department crews would mow his area again. REGULAR AGENDA Item 1: Approval of Meeting Minutes Approval of the June 18, 2007 meeting minutes was postponed until the August Park Board meeting. Item 2A: Cell Phone Tower Request Greg Ferris, PO Box 572, Wichita, KS 67201 Mr. Ferris asked the Board to consider T-Mobile's request to build a cell phone tower on Park Department property. He said that there are several areas within Wichita that currently do not have cell tower coverage and this new tower could help alleviate the problem. Ferris presented a map to the Board members that highlighted the two areas he would like to place the new tower. He said that the Millbrook area was the main area he would like to use since this area lies in the flood plain and cannot be used for many other purposes besides parkland. Ferris said that putting the tower in this area would not have any effect on the existing park and would not be extremely visible due to the amount of trees in the area. Ferris said that he would like to build a 120 ft pole and that the Millbrook area meets all of the criteria for cell phone towers as set forth by the City's wireless communications plan. They would have to build an approximately 1,200 ft long access road along the creek as well as a 2,500 sq ft. compound around the tower. He said that the estimated yearly payment to the city would be around $10,000. The second site he would like to use is located off of the Auburn Hills Golf Course and also lies within the flood plain. Ferris said that the tower would have no impact on the golf course. The area would be surveyed before any construction began and the Park Department would have to approve the survey before they could continue development and zoning of this parcel. Item 3A: Criteria for Creating New Memorials Karen Walker presented a draft document outlining the criteria for accepting new memorials in City parks. She said that she felt that the Board needed to look at several aspects such as why the proposed memorial is important, the financial aspects related to the project and how the memorial may affect Wichita citizens. Walker said the Board would also have to look at the design aspects of each memorial to ensure that it meets acceptable guidelines. She said that the three-step process she designed would begin with review by applicable Park Department staff and end by gaining approval from the Park Board. Walker said she also recognizes that there may be times when these proposals would require City Council involvement and that the criteria allows for those instances. Leeper said that he would be in favor of the Park Board having a ready-made catalog of benches, prices, and other recommended memorial design items that could be provided to the requestor at the beginning of the approval process. Miller said that it would be nice to be able to solicit contributions in this way, as we currently do not have a way to accept these types of memorials. Leeper asked if there were any existing policies pertaining to accepting these donations. Miller said that there is not one in existence, but she agreed that they need some sort of criteria on memorial donations and acceptance. Miller asked that Walker pull out the areas related to donor sponsorship and create a separate policy regarding those matters. She then asked that each Board member look over the criteria and take note of any recommended changes for possible future discussion. Item 3B: Dry Creek Item postponed. Item 5: Updates from the Director and President Miller reminded the Board members of the remaining PROS meetings. Walker said that they were recently notified that Wild West World had filed for bankruptcy. She said that the Park Department was impacted by this as Wild West World was supposed to sponsor the Youth World Series Baseball Tournament, hosted by Park and Recreation, and they were to provide a banquet dinner and discounted amusement park tickets for family members. Walker said that staff is now looking for a new sponsor to cover these costs. Miller asked why Wild West World showed that they owed the Park Department $8,800 when it was the Park Department who owed them money. Walker explained that she was not sure what those charges were for, but that she thought it was related to the banquet. She said she would follow up at the August Park Board meeting. Item 6. Issues on the Horizon. No Items. Item 7. Adjourn Miller adjourned the meeting at approximately 5:15 p.m. ___________________________________ Janet L. Miller, President ATTEST: _______________________________ Myca J. Bunch, Recording Secretary ?? ?? ?? ?? Board of Park Commissioners July 9, 2007 1