Minutes: Evansville Park Board: March 2006

DRAFT Park & Recreation Board Meeting Minutes
Monday March 20th, 200 6at 6:00 p.m.
Council Chambers, City Hall


1 The Chair called the meeting to order at 6:01 pm. Present: Chair & Alderperson Fred Juergens, Members: Ron Carlsen, Barbara Jacobson, Jerry Krueger, Sue Merritt, Lauren Scott, Karla Sendelbach. Staff: Rick Hamacher, Ray Anderson. Absent: none. Quorum present.

2. Minutes of the February 28, 2006 meeting were not approved, as some members hadn’t received them. Approval will be postponed until the April meeting

3. Citizen appearances (other than agenda items)

a. None

4. Lake Leota Draw-down update. Mr. Gib Wiedenhoeft from SOLE reported the following:
a. no knowledgeable contractor has yet been located to consult about possible dredging operations.
b. SOLE personnel have met with representatives of Rock County, DNR, and are attempting to meet with representatives of Dane County to try to form “watershed committee” to identify landowners along Allen Creek and begin to work with them on reducing sediment inflow into Lake Leota.
c. SOLE estimates that the lake bottom has compacted by about four inches.
d. DNR thinks that, for maximum “dry and compact” impact, the lake should stay dry through another winter.

The Chair reported that a public hearing will be scheduled for the PRB April meeting to get citizen input concerning filling the lake this coming Spring 2006.

5. Franklin Park Update

a. PRB member Krueger, Parks Maintenance Supverisor Anderson, and citizen Ayn Steinlein agreed on a recommendation for playground equipment to be purchased. They have also worked out the best place to locate the new swing set and slide they recommend. The delivered cost for this equipment is $7645 from the Burke company.

b. Motion by Member Krueger, second by Member Carlsen to purchase the above mentioned equipment. Discussion followed. One suggestion was to add a “handicapped” swing to the package. Motion passed 7-0. Mr Anderson will order the equipment immediately.

c. It was reported that approximately 26 children of playground age live in the vicinity of Franklin Park.

d. There was a brief discussion of getting some other funds from grants or gifts to add further facilities to Franklin Park.

6. Skate Park Update.

a. Chair Juergens reported that Council’s Finance and Labor Relations committee had tabled the resolution requesting that $10K be transferred from the PRB’s unallocated portion of its budget to the allocation for the Skate Park. They wanted more information to support the request. Juergens requested that FLR’s chair give the PRB specific questions to be answered, and these questions have been received.

b. Discussion ensued. Member Jacobson had been at the FLR meeting and reported that there is significant concern about saving money among FLR members.

c. Chair Juergens will summarize the discussion, attend the next FLR meeting on April 10th and answer the questions posed, as well as others FLR may bring up. He will also contact members of the Skate club for further input as to other possible equipment suppliers, etc.


7. West-side Park Update.

a. Chair Juergens reported that no engineering work has begun due to weather conditions.

8. Countryside Park Improvements for 2006.

a. Chair Juergens reported that Public Works Director Wartenweiler has located the nearest location for utilities to bring into the park. A street will have to be dug up to accomplish this. He roughly estimates that this will cost about $10,000. Member Jacobson moved, Member Merritt seconded, that this work be done this year, with funds to come from the fees given to the city in lieu of Parkland dedication, particularly those from Capstone Ridge, which are earmarked for Countryside Park. Motion passed 7-0.

b. Mr. Anderson reported that he had chosen additional playground equipment from the Burke company to install in Countryside Park. The delivered cost of this equipment will be $4323, if the shipment is combined with the equipment for Franklin Park. Because of previous discussions of getting bids from more than one supplier relative to the skate park, getting a second bid for this equipment was mentioned. Mr. Anderson said he could do so, but he was very satisfied with the service the Burke company had given to the city over the years; he’s always dealt with Burke. They have an excellent warranty for their equipment. Based on this information, Member Krueger moved, Member Carlsen seconded, that PRB accept the bid from Burke and order the equipment recommended by Mr. Anderson, funds also to come from Parkland fees. Motion passed 7-0

c. Mr. Anderson reported that the Evansville high school teacher who has been supervising the high school students building the new bathrooms at Lake Leota Park may interested in possibly constructing a shelter at Countryside Park beginning this fall. PRB directed Mr. Anderson to continue exploring this possibility and bring a possible design and estimated cost to a future PRB meeting for discussion.

9. Aquatic Report:

a. Aquatic Director Hamacher reported that maintenance plans for the pool have been changed. Caulking and touch-up painting will be done this spring. Racing lines will be done this fall.

b. The solar panel project is going forward, with an initial installation to be done this year. This is primarily a demonstration project, given the available funds. The project should be done in phases costing about $5-10K each year, with a total cost in the range of $35-40K.

c. No one has applied to be the Park Store Manager. Last year the Park Store lost about $2500; expenses were more than income. If no one is hired, other pool staff will sell packaged snacks, etc. from the pool itself in 2006, to gauge public response to the change in service. Hamacher says that if this course is followed, the concessions will make money rather than losing money. He anticipates no problem hiring life guards for 2006.

d. A brochure containing information about the pool has been printed. It will be available at city hall, the library and at the pool. It will also be included with the Water & Light bills in May.

10. Improvements and Maintenance Report: Mr. Ray Anderson

a. Bathroom construction in the upper park is coming along with the cooperation of the high-school students. Weather has delayed completion of putting the cultured-stone veneer on the outside of the structure.

b. The new roof on the bathroom in the lower park is complete and looks good.

c. The new bleachers are complete.

d. Mr Anderson wants to order several new units to supply bags for picking up pet waste in the parks. PRB authorized him to do so, at a cost of about $250. Mr. Anderson would like PRB to come up with a maximum dollar amount that he can spend on park maintenance items without making a request of the board. This will be discussed at a future meeting.

12. Old Business: Member Sendelbach reported on volunteers to plant and maintain public garden spaces. She contacted the Evansville Garden Club to discuss how this had been handled in the past. Most members of the Garden Club are getting up in years and cannot do so much work now. Sendelbach will contact ECP, possibly the Girl Scouts, and Landscape classes at Blackhawk Tech to see if there is interest there in volunteering. She would like more direction from PRB on how to proceed; she does not want to be a project coordinator. The bed at the corner of Madison and Union St and the bed at the top of North 2nd Street are areas that will need work this year. It was suggested that perhaps PRB members could take on some of this responsibility, but no decision was reached.

13. New business: Member Krueger requested that the Chair approach the Finance and Labor Relations committee to request guidance from them on two items;

a. how much the PRB can spend on capital items without requesting bids from multiple suppliers;
b. how much discretion PRB has to determine an equipment supplier, while considering price, quality, warranty, likely future maintenance costs advice from Mr. Anderson, etc. PRB does not want to be restricted to the low bid nor does it necessarily have the skills to write up detailed specifications.

14. Adjourn: Motion made at 8:02 pm. seconded and approved without dissent.


Minutes Drafted by Chair Juergens 3/22/06. These are not official until approved at a subsequent meeting.