Loading...
Park Board Minutes 2022 11-17-22 APPROVED 1/19/23 Page 1 of 3 UNITED CITY OF YORKVILLE PARK BOARD MEETING Thursday, November 17, 2022 6:00pm Parks Maintenance Building, 185 Wolf St., Yorkville, IL Note: This meeting was held in accordance with Public Act 101-0640 and Gubernatorial Disaster Proclamation issued by Governor Pritzker pursuant to the powers vested in the Governor under the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act. This encourages social distancing by allowing remote attendance at the meeting, due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Call to Order: The meeting was called to order at 6:05pm by Board member Sash Dumanovic. Roll call was taken and a quorum was established. Roll Call: Tiffany Forristall-yes, Gene Wilberg-yes, Jorge Ayala-yes, Kelly Diederich-yes, Sash Dumanovic-yes, Rusty Hyett-yes Absent: Dan Lane Introduction of Guests, City Officials and Staff: The Board members, staff and new members, Tiffany Forristall and Jorge Ayala, all introduced themselves. Mr. Dumanovic recognized the following staff and guests: Director of Parks & Recreation Tim Evans, Superintendent of Parks Scott Sleezer, Superintendent of Recreation Shay Remus (6:26pm-6:55pm), Certified Playground Specialist/Safety Inspector Ryan Horner, City Council Liaison Ken Koch. Public Comment: For the benefit of the new members, Mr. Evans said the Board serves as an advisory group. They purchase playgrounds and any expenditures over $25,000 go to the City Council for final approval. The Board provides input to the Mayor and Council. Ms. Forristall asked how the north and south side trails can be joined. Mr. Evans and Mr. Sleezer explained the current trails which includes some sidewalk and has natural barriers such as major roads and the river. They also discussed future proposed connections. Mr. Sleezer hopes for grants for a trail to Hoover and to develop the old trolley line. However, a creek traverses the trolley line several times which would drive up the cost. Alderman Koch said the Park Board has discussed the old trolley line as early as 2003. On another note, Mr. Dumanovic thanked Mr. Evans and staff for allowing the Board members to participate in community events. Presentations: None Approval of Minutes: July 21, 2022 The minutes were approved as presented on a motion by Mr. Hyett and second by Mr. Wilberg. Roll call vote: Forristall-yes, Wilberg-yes, Ayala-yes, Diederich-yes, Dumanovic-yes, Hyett-yes. Carried 6-0. Bills Review: Bill List – August - November 2022 Page 2 of 3 Budget Report – July - October 2022 Mr. Evans said a large amount of the bills was $50,000 for Hometown Days and a profit of $15,000-$20,000 is expected. Other activity expenditures included the pre-school partnership, pickleball court, fall athletics and Halloween activities. Four new vehicles were purchased a year ago and just received. He said the budget is good and more pre-covid activities have resumed including getting back into the schools for sports. Part-time salaries are being monitored because they skyrocketed due to difficulty in finding and retaining people. Shipping costs also rose. Director Evans explained the functions of land cash and capital budget. He said the Parks generate about one-third of their revenue from programs and the city provides two-thirds for expenditures. Old Business: None New Business: Playgrounds Purchase Proposal Mr. Evans said there is a playground replacement plan and each year two are replaced. The wait time to receive new equipment is long, so it was decided to order for next year. Some money was also designated for a park in Countryside since they have no park. The church has offered land for a park (including a solar aspect), which is still in negotiations. Parks and Rec has also tried refurbishment of some parks using staff labor to save money. There is money in the budget to purchase new playgrounds for Sleezer and Kiwanis Parks and staff would like to move forward with the purchase. If Countryside does not come to fruition, the equipment at Prestwick Park will be replaced. The cost would be about $178,000. Mr. Sleezer added that better pricing is obtained if 3-4 parks are replaced and a 40% discount is possible. There are 5 manufacturers. He said the equipment at Kiwanis Park and Sleezer Park is wheelchair accessible. Mr. Evans added that Mr. Sleezer is outstanding with management, construction and providing staff labor to save $30,000-$40,000. Mr. Sleezer noted there are 28 playgrounds in the city and the Park Board has felt that they do not want children to go more than a half-mile to a park considering the area highways and the river. Mr. Horner is a Certified Playground Safety Inspector, handles risk management and replaces/inspects playgrounds and coordinates rehabs. He said rehabs are a good alternative for some of the parks. He gave a slide presentation of the current parks and showed the ADA accessibility. Some of these parks have inclusive swings and some merry-go-rounds have speed limitations. ADA rules have changed vastly and new standards need to be met/exceeded. All construction is done in-house. Ms. Forristall asked if used playsets could be traded to the pre- school. Mr. Evans said Parks has been working with the schools. A slide of Sleezer Park was shown and a complete re-do is slated. Mr. Horner commented on some of the equipment there such as calming stations, sensory caves, and other equipment. It was noted playgrounds cannot be resold. Mr. Wilberg asked if making a handicapped accessible park helps to secure grants. Mr. Sleezer said it would be helpful to include that info on an OSLAD grant request or for private grants. After this discussion, Mr. Dumanovic entertained a motion to approve the purchase of 3 sets of playground equipment for Kiwanis, Sleezer and Countryside from a single-source at a total cost of $177,083. So moved by Ms. Forristall and seconded by Mr. Hyett. Roll call: Wilberg-yes, Ayala-yes, Diederich-yes, Dumanovic-yes, Hyett-yes, Forristall-yes. Carried 6-0. Page 2 of 3 Self Service Kayak Rental Proposal Page 3 of 3 Director Evans noted the bridge and island are done and open. Staff has been looking at how to get more people to the Riverfront and they are considering a self service kayak rental. He asked Mr. Wilberg to reach out to users at the Riverfront for input that could be forwarded to the City Council. Mr. Wilberg said he has researched both the kayak rental and also connecting trails, but will report on the rentals at this time. He said in the last 4 months he has spoken with about 200 people who had ideas and interest. He recommended formation of a charter group/exploratory committee to prepare a study for the city. This would include business people and vendors who would benefit. He also said safety should be considered and skill development classes could be offered when equipment is rented. Mr. Wilberg said this is a much bigger conversation than just renting kayaks and he hopes to bring more users from other states. Input from Board members included offering kayak and other river-related classes, paddleboats/canoes, lack of staff to teach classes and implement the possibilities, safety is first, include info in catalog, work with City Council about funding, financial investors, foundations, determine how to generate revenue and make this concept a 2023 initiative. Fox Hill Park Improvements Update Director Evans and Mr. Sleezer said several baseball/softball groups have an agreement to use city parks. The YYBSA uses Fox Hill Park and is willing to pay 100% of the material cost of $10,000 for a fence and the Parks will install. Mr. Sleezer said YYBSA has been a great partner and he thanked Board member Rusty Hyett for this donation and for temporary fences. Mr. Evans gave a brief history to new Board members regarding the sports groups. Meeting Schedule for 2023 The Board members were OK with the schedule as presented. Ms. Forristall moved and Ms. Diederich seconded a motion to approve as presented. Roll call: Ayala-yes, Diederich-yes, Dumanovic-yes, Hyett-yes, Forristall-yes, Wilberg-yes. Carried 6-0. Parks and Recreation Monthly Report: Mr. Evans listed the upcoming holiday celebrations, reported on the Hometown Days, pre-school is off to great start, sports league partnership, Storywalk partnership with YEA, city is looking at a joint Public Works/Parks facility, no bids on the old Post Office and ongoing discussions for the Van Emmon city building. Mr. Sleezer said the Fox Hill playground should be done by Christmas. He also noted that 4 Parks employees volunteered to distribute Thanksgiving dinners at the Food Pantry earlier today. Board member Dumanovic commented that the data on social media is insightful. The shared marketing person, Kaitlyn Gregory, has greatly increased the posts. Executive Session : None Additional Business: Ms. Diederich said she had informal discussions with attendees of baseball games this summer and discovered two things: many did not know there was a concession stand at Bridge Park and she suggested additional signage. At Beecher, she said there is no path/not wheelchair accessible to get to the far baseball field. She said aside from these, overwhelmingly there was 99% compliments. Adjournment: There was no further business and the meeting adjourned at 7:54pm on a motion by Ms. Forristall and second by Mr. Hyett. Approved on a voice vote. Minutes respectfully submitted by Marlys Young, Minute Taker