#9 BOARD OF PARK COMMISSIONERS REGULAR MEETING Monday, July 13, 1998 Present: June Bailey, Lucy Burtnett, Pat Consolver, Bob Martz, Leon Robinson, William Sanders Absent: M.S. Mitchell Also Present: Terry Crayton, Mark Hutton and Charlie Buess, Hoop City, Inc.; Maryann Crockett, John D’Angelo, Janice McKinney, and Tim Vanatta (staff) President Burtnett called the meeting to order at approximately 3:30 p.m. The minutes of the regular meeting of May 11, 1998, were reviewed and approved. 1. Discussion of Hoop City, Inc. Proposal. Director Vanatta introduced Terry Crayton, Mark Hutton and Charlie Buess. He referred board members to the Hoop City, Inc. Business Plan previously distributed. He said Mr. Crayton’s proposal was to lease approximately 5-10 acres of park land at 27th and Hillside to construct a recreation facility. Burtnett asked about the size of the facility and if any design work had been done. Crayton said an architect had provided a preliminary building design which was approximately 35,000 square feet in size. He said the building layout would include four full size indoor basketball courts, six classrooms, locker rooms and a gift shop. Martz requested clarification on the financial figures in the report. Crayton said revenues will be generated from league fees, tournaments, and camps. He added that fees will be subsidized for low-income participants. Buess said he has obtained scholarships and private sponsors for other programs from various companies and corporations through his CPA practice. He said they hoped to obtain team sponsors and camp scholarships for this program. Crayton said the location was selected to specifically target youth in the northeast community. Burtnett asked if staff had reviewed the proposal. Director Vanatta said Recreation staff had looked at the proposal; however, further fine tuning was needed on plan financing. He said the Board needed to decide whether they were interested in leasing park land for the facility. Sanders said he felt there were too many basketball courts in the northeast area already. Burtnett asked if other locations had been considered. Crayton said they had looked at the rock crushing site further north but that location was not feasible. There was discussion concerning other possible sites. Buess said they felt the 27th and Grove site was equally accessible to both the east and west sides of town. Director Vanatta said other issues besides location needed to be resolved before a final decision could be made such as the lease contract provisions, default provisions, and other issues. Burtnett added that the Board needed to develop an entire Grove Park plan and evaluate whether the Hoop City, Inc. proposal would fit into that plan. She suggested the group examine other possible sites. In addition, she requested that staff prepare a Grove Park plan for review at the August meeting. Bailey also mentioned the need to present the proposal to neighborhood groups in the area. Martz requested additional information and drawings on the proposed facility. Director Vanatta briefly reviewed the original proposal for the area when the land was purchased which included a baseball complex. He said a baseball facility was no longer needed, since development of the Northeast Baseball/Soccer Complex at 29th and Greenwich Road. It was agreed that staff would prepare a draft plan of Grove Park for review at the August meeting. 2. Easement Request - Kansas Gas Service. Larry Hoetmer, Landscape Architect. Hoetmer referred board members to Jeff John’s, Kansas Gas Service, (KGS) correspondence dated 6/16/98, and provided a handout of the proposed easement site. He explained that the easement request was for installation of a gas regulator and pipelines on the northwest corner of MacDonald Park Golf Course. He said he had reviewed the proposed site with KGS staff and several conditions had been established including additional shrub/tree screening of the site and installation of a gate on the west side. On motion by Bailey, second by Sanders, IT WAS UNANIMOUSLY VOTED to approve the easement subject to conditions set forth in Jeff John’s 6/16/98 correspondence. 3. Discussion of Vietnam Memorial at Veterans Memorial Park. John D’Angelo, Program Development Coordinator. D’Angelo handed out a drawing of the proposed memorial. He commented that the memorial fits in with the rest of the sites at the park. He said the purpose of the memorial was to honor Vietnamese that served during the Vietnam War. He said the group was requesting permission to pursue fundraising and that they would come back to the Board for final approval of the project prior to construction. He added that the Public Art Advisory Board (PAAB) and City Managers Aesthetic Review Team (CART) have reviewed the concept and have no problem with it. He said they think it fits in with the master plan that has been developed for the park. He briefly reviewed the site location. Burtnett asked whether the groups affiliated with the other memorials at the park have had any say on who can put a memorial at the park. D’Angelo said no; however, they could poll the other groups. On motion by Bailey, second by Martz, IT WAS UNANIMOUSLY VOTED to approve the plan concept subject to construction funds being in place and final project review and approval by the Park Board at a later date. OFF-THE-AGENDA ITEM 1. Sculpture at Brownthrush Park. D’Angelo handed out a rendering of the proposed sculpture by local artist Babs Mellor to be located at Brownthrush Park. He explained that the sculpture was a life-size young boy playing soccer. He briefly explained that in 1997 after the death of her son Zachary, Christine Booze raised $10,000 in private donations to commission a sculpture. He said Mrs. Booze considers the sculpture to be a celebration of life, rather than a memorial. He said the proposed site was close to the parking lot. He concluded by saying that there would be no cost to the City to accept the sculpture. Burtnett asked if the sculpture had an inscription. D’Angelo said there was a plaque and that he would provide the exact inscription at a later date, since he did not have it with him. Burtnett said she has visited with park staff concerning developing a policy for memorials in City parks. She said she is concerned about setting a precedent and stated that she believes a policy needs to be developed. There was discussion concerning repair and/or replacement of the sculpture in case of vandalism or other cause. D’Angelo said normally staff requests that a percentage of the donations be given to the City for deposit into an endowment fund for sculpture maintenance. It was suggested that an agreement be drafted concerning who would be responsible for sculpture repair/replacement. D’Angelo briefly explained the deaccessioning process contained in the Wichita Public Art Plan. He said the City can deaccession a piece if it is beyond the City’s means to repair it. On motion by Bailey, second by Martz, IT WAS UNANIMOUSLY VOTED to recommend that the City Council accept donation of the sculpture. AGENDA 4. Discussion of Correspondence from Ken and Jackie Peterson et al re: Lighting on South Pershing Avenue. The Board reviewed the correspondence. Burtnett asked if the lighting was located on park land, which it appeared that it wasn’t, and why this item was being brought to the Park Board. Since the lighting project was not located on park land, staff suggested that the correspondence be forwarded to the Public Works Department for review and response. OFF-THE-AGENDA ITEM 2. Letter to the Wichita Eagle Editor. Burtnett read the letter she had written to the Editor of the Wichita Eagle on behalf of the Park Board thanking teachers and students at Washington Elementary for their efforts to clean up Murdock Park. There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at approximately 5:15 p.m. ________________________________ Lucy Burtnett, President ATTEST: _____________________________ Maryann Crockett, Clerk Park Board 7/13/98 (contd.) Park Board 7/13/98 (contd.)