BOARD OF PARK COMMISSIONERS REGULAR MEETING Park and Recreation Department 11th Floor City Hall Monday, April 9, 2007 3:30 p.m. Present: Janet Miller, Dennis Brunner, Doug Leeper, and Andy Solter Absent: Mick Tranbarger and Nalini Johnson Also Present: John D'Angelo, Arts and Cultural Services Manager; Mike North, Assistant City Attorney; Doug Kupper, Director; Karen Walker, Assistant Director; and Myca Bunch (staff). President Miller called the meeting to order at 3:30 p.m. PUBLIC AGENDA No Items. REGULAR AGENDA Item 1: Approval of Meeting Minutes Motion 1: On motion by Solter, second by Dey, IT WAS UNANIMOUSLY VOTED that the Board approve the March 13, 2007, regular meeting minutes. Item 2A: Renaming of Park in District 5 for late City Council Member Bob Martz Kupper recapped the life of late Council Member Bob Martz and reminded the Board that Mr. Martz once served on the Park Board and was a great supporter of the City's parks. Brunner said that he took the topic to the District V Advisory Board (DAB) and all of the members agreed that Mr. Martz deserved to have a park facility named after him. Brunner said he like the idea of renaming Harvest Park, as it is not currently named after another individual. He said that some of the DAB members suggested that a golf course be named after Mr. Martz as he was also an avid golfer. Kupper added that it had been suggested that they rename the clubhouse at Auburn Hill Golf Course in honor of Mr. Martz. Brunner said he did discuss the renaming of a park facility with Mrs. Martz and she was very excited about the idea. Kupper mentioned that Mr. Martz loved to play golf and he thought it would be more appropriate to rename the clubhouse after him rather then Harvest Park. Kupper said that at the April 10, 2007, City Council meeting, the Council would be voting based on the recommendation by the Park Board so a decision was needed today. Miller recommended that a staff member contact Mrs. Martz to see if she had a preference between the two park facilities. Walker agreed to make the phone call and left the meeting. Mrs. Walker contacted Mrs. Martz and she said she supported the renaming of the Clubhouse in Mr. Martz's honor. Motion 2: On Motion by Brunner, second by Leeper, IT WAS UNANIMOUSLY VOTED that, as per the wishes of Mrs. Martz, the Board recommend to the City Council that the clubhouse at Auburn Hill Golf Course be renamed the "Bob Martz Memorial Club House." Item 2B: Dry Creek Park Land Designation Kupper reviewed the layout of the Dry Creek system from Mt Vernon down to Elmwood Street and reminded the Board that back in 2001 the area citizens asked Park staff to build a walking path around Clark Road. He said the Park Department did put in a modified walking path within the neighborhood and the City shared part of the costs. He added that for the last several decades the storm water team has been trying to acquire properties in the Dry Creek system because the homes in certain portions were constantly flooding. Kupper pointed to the dark red zones on the map and explain that those areas had been acquired. He also showed the board members the areas that had not been sold and were subject to flooding. Kupper said Council member Jim Skelton, Chris Carrier and Scott Lindeback met to talk about this particular zone and what could be created into park land. He said that Lots 10, 30 and 8 were the areas he recommended to Skelton. He said that since that time more residents have sold their property and currently there is even more area available to use. Kupper said that he is in the planning stages of conducting a meeting with the local citizens in this neighborhood. Motion 3: On Motion by Miller, second by Dey, IT WAS UNANIMOUSLY VOTED to move Item 3C up to become Item 2C. Item 2C: Arts and Culture Integration into Parks and Recreation John D'Angelo, Arts and Cultural Services Manager, presented an overview of the City Arts and Culture Program and how it works as a liaison between many different City programs. He focused on the fact that Wichita as a whole needs to stay focused on providing more arts and culture opportunities to citizens. D'Angelo said he would like to see City Arts and other City departments work closer together. Miller said that eventually she hoped that the Park Board could generate similar kinds of numbers as those presented by D'Angelo. He said that the issue with Parks and Recreation in the Arts and Culture context exists because these facilities become gathering places for the neighborhoods, which is also good for the community. D'Angelo said he would like to see the Recreation Centers offer more arts and culture classes as well. Solter asked if the City Arts staff provided any of the classes currently offered in the Recreation Centers. Kupper replied that there are some elements within the Recreation Centers where they do use City Arts as a resource. D'Angelo went on to discuss the Wichita Design Council, a 50-person (15 maybe?; I know it's not 50) board, appointed members by the City Council. He said the Council reviews all public projects that involved City funds on aesthetic excellence. He said that this council is an advisory board and includes consultants from several area design professionals. If the Park Department has an item that goes before the Design Council, a small committee from the Council will meet with them and develop the design criteria for the project. Kupper said the next project that the two departments will work on together is the development of Chapin Park. Item 3A: PROS Plan Speaker Series Update Miller said that the first Speaker Series event was a success with individuals attending from many different organizations. She said that in the near future they would be putting the presentations on Channel 7 as well as on the Derby city channel. Miller also commented that Karen Mumford would be the next guest speaker on April 24. Miller then asked the Board to help distribute the next speaker series flyer when it was forwarded to them. Item 3B: Dry Creek Pocket Park Creation. Walker reviewed the location of the proposed park with the Board and informed them that they used the new proposed park criteria and completed the basic assessment of the proposed area. She said the overall final score was 23 out of a possible 36 points, which seemed a little low but made sense once the questions on the assessment were evaluated in reference to the area. Walker said that she was presenting this to the Board today to decide if they would like to move forward to the financial phase of the assessment. Motion 4: On Motion by Solter, second by Leeper, IT WAS UNANIMOUSLY VOTED to move the Dry Creek Pocket Park proposal on to the financial phase of the assessment. Item 3D: Riverbank Platting Moratorium Update Kupper referred the Board members to the spreadsheet that outlined all parcels along the riverbank within the city limits of Wichita. He said it would cost $150/per parcel for them to have the titles pulled to find out who has the ownership on the reserve areas. Mr. North then walked the Board members through the legal documents and some of the areas that could present complications. He said that the item would need to go before the City Council within 60 days following the first meeting with the Metropolitan Area Planning Commission (MAPC). Miller asked if this project was something that could be built into the department's next budget cycle. Kupper added that they would first see if they could use the CIP funding and if not they may have to do a service adjustment and ask for more operating funds. Kupper said that they could go ahead with Section 1 at this time and ask the City Council for the additional funding later. Kupper recommended to the Board that they deal with the Moratorium first and then when they are approached about the ownership, they will know who owns which areas. He then informed the Board that the County Commissioners must approve the recommendation as well as the City Council. Miller asked the Board members to gather inputs from relevant individuals instead of taking action on the meeting now. Leeper asked that Section 2 be brought back to the Board in the future for further review. Kupper also said that he would find out the exact amount of time left on the time requirements for the moratorium. Kupper said he would also like to sit down with the head of the MAPC, John Schlegel, and find out if he can offer any further guidance. Motion 5: On Motion by Miller, second by Leeper, IT WAS UNANIMOUSLY VOTED to ask Park Dept staff to look into the funding needed to identify the ownership of the Riverbank parcels. Motion 6: On Motion by Miller, second by Dey, IT WAS UNANIMOUSLY VOTED to take the draft ordinance under advisement for one month and consult other community members who have interest in this topic. Item will be brought back for discussion at the May Park Board Meeting. Item 3E: Quarterly Report on Park Board Goals Miller recapped the Park Board Goals that were established at the annual retreat in October. All items were up to date. Item 4: Review of Pending Issues Miller updated the Board on the items on the Park Board Suspense Tracking Sheet. All items were current Item 5: Updates from the Director and President Kupper informed the Board that the new train track system at Watson Park was in the works and that the entry drive improvements were set to begin at any time. Kupper advised the Board that there is 2.9 acres for sale located on the other side of Old Lawrence Hwy on the old mobile home lot. He said he and Solter have a meeting scheduled with Council Member Skelton to discuss the possibilities of the land, which is being sold for $450,000. Kupper said the Trust for Public Land is supposed to be sending him a document that will allow him to acquire the land down in the Southeast corner of the county that includes a 3-year buyout. Item 6: Issues on the Horizon Brunner informed the Board that cigarette urns were needed at Sleepy Hollow Park where Wesley Hospital employees have been going for a smoking area. Brunner also mentioned that a fence was being built either at the Shriner's Property or on City Property. He said he was worried that it would impede the mowing of the parks. Kupper said he would have someone look at the fence and determine if it will pose any future problems. Item 7: Adjourn Miller adjourned the meeting at approximately 5:30 p.m. ___________________________________ Janet L. Miller, President ATTEST: _______________________________ Myca J. Bunch, Recording Secretary 1