Culture, Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes - 11/3/2016

TOWN OF SIMSBURY – CULTURE, PARKS, AND RECREATION COMMISSION –

Subject to Vote of Approval – Special Meeting Minutes – Thursday, November 3, 2016 – 2.25 pages

Call to Order

The meeting was called to order at 7:30 p.m. in the Simsbury Farms Apple Barn by David Bush, chairman. Other commission members who were present included Gerry Wetjen, Dennis Fallon, Gerry Post, Sarah Cramer and Steve Spalla. The C. P. & R. Director, Gerry Toner, was also in attendance.

Approval of Minutes

No changes were made to the June 23, 2016 or the September 22, 2016 Regular Meeting Minutes.
Mr. Bush declared the minutes approved, and requested that they be put on record.

Golf Course Restaurant Agreement - 2017

Mr. Bush reported that since the last commission meeting, Mr. Toner and Ms. Heavner, the First Selectman, have been called and/or emailed by residents who would prefer that the restaurant contract to go out to bid. A petition was also circulated and signed by many residents. In response, Ms. Cramer made a motion to rescind last meeting’s motion to extend the current restaurant vendor’s contract for a period of two years. It was seconded by Mr. Fallon. During the discussion time, Mr. Bush requested that residents come to the C. P. & R. Commission to voice their concerns, since it is an advisory board to the Board of Selectman. All were in favor of the motion. The motion passed unanimously. Ms. Cramer then made a motion to put the Simsbury Farms restaurant vendor contract out to bid, for a period of 2 years, pursuant to town rules and regulations, which has had a minimum or floor based on previous budgeting. Mr. Wetjen seconded the motion. There was another brief discussion, when Mr. Spalla joined the meeting. In order to include Mr. Spalla in the motion, Ms. Cramer withdrew her motion, and then resubmitted it. Mr. Spalla seconded the motion. All were in favor. The motion passed unanimously.

Special Revenue Fund Subcommittee - Recommendation

Mr. Wetjen distributed a 13-page report titled, “Recreation Funding:  Simsbury Farms Special Revenue Fund History and Analysis / Recommendations for the Tri-Board Revenue Fund Committee / Culture Parks and Recreation Commission / October 2016.” The first 11 pages describe the many reasons why the Special Revenue Fund (SRF) has not been a suitable or successful budget solution for the Simsbury Farms Recreation Facility for the last seventeen years. Mr. Wetjen states that the SRF is in a constant state of uncertainty, and uses 11 points to prove it. He also lists 7 ways in which the golf course has been negatively impacted by the SRF. Detailed exhibits are included. The last two pages of the report offer an alternate financial model for the Recreation Department that will have minimal impact on the General Fund. Mr. Fallon made a motion to adopt Mr. Wetjen’s report as the C., P. & R. Commission’s position statement for Special Revenue Fund Subcommittee meetings. Mr. Post seconded the motion. All were in favor. The motion passed unanimously.

Eagle Scout Project Presentations

Chris Reilly. Mr. Reilly’s Eagle Scout project is to refurbish the Memorial Park skateboard park. He will get rid of trash, clean off graffiti, repair cracks in the concrete, and replace the plywood on the ramps. He will also add a small concrete pump track and flat bar rails. Mr. Reilly noted that Sartorius Sports in Avon agreed to hold a fund raising event at the store, while also having a project donation box by their cash register. He expects to finish work by spring 2017. The Park and Recreation and Engineering Departments will be consulted so that maintenance will be minimal and the improvements will be structurally sound. Mr. Wetjen made a motion to approve Mr. Reilly’s Eagle Scout Project. Ms. Cramer seconded the motion. Mr. Bush abstained. All the other commission members were in favor. Since a quorum was met, the motion passed.

Ryan Smith. Mr. Smith’s Eagle Scout project is to spruce up the triangular park area between West Mountain and Notch Roads. The parts of this project will include: 1. Replacing five rotting wood flowerboxes with new ones featuring drainage holes. 2. Planting three new trees to replace one dying tree, and to prevent traffic from cutting through the park. 3. Mulching around the trees. 4. Painting bench supports green. 5. Replacing a rotting post at the end of a wall. 6. Adding a bike route sign to direct bikers traveling from or to the West Mountain Road and Town Forest Road bike paths. Mr. Toner recommended that Mr. Smith meet with the Police and the Public Works Departments to approve and create the bike path sign. Commission members advised Mr. Smith to check with Warner or Monrovia Nurseries for the trees, and Steven Mitchell, co-chair on the board of trustees for the East Coast Greenway Alliance, for bike path advice. The project will cost more than $350.00, and should take about 5 to 10 scouts from his troop to complete. Since he is only 15 years old, Mr. Smith has plenty of time to finish his project. Mr. Wetjen made a motion to approve Mr. Smith’s Eagle Scout Project. Ms. Cramer seconded the motion. All were in favor. The motion passed unanimously.

Akash Kaza. Mr. Kaza’s Eagle Scout project is to create and install back-to-back benches between the Simsbury Farms Tennis Courts and the neighboring playground. Placing benches here will allow parents to watch a child taking tennis lessons while also watching another child navigate the playground. He expects to use manufactured wood, and build the benches off-site with the help of 4 to 5 scouts. The design of the benches will be consistent with others on the Simsbury Farms campus. The estimated cost for the project is about $1,500.00 to $2,000.00. Mr. Kaza will conduct can drives and accept donations to gather funds. Since he will turn 18 in June, he will finish the project in spring 2017. Mr. Wetjen made a motion to approve Mr. Kaza’s Eagle Scout Project. Mr. Fallon seconded the motion. All were in favor. The motion passed unanimously.

Capital Projects – Update

Mr. Toner was happy to report that the work on the SF tennis courts is complete. He noted that they look great and have been well-received. In addition, the new rink warming room is 90% complete, and due to open in the next couple of weeks. Work has been done on the SF pool renovation project. Among the numerous improvements, a new gutter system will be installed to help reduce the replacement water in the main pool.

Golf Course Report

Mr. Toner distributed a 1-page spreadsheet comparing 16 years of greens fees and rounds from March to December of 2000 through 2016. The numbers were collected through the end of October 2016. He reported that the golf course had favorable weather, and did well in October. Mr. Wetjen noted that if you look at the 3 year average for the course, it is doing great. However, he is concerned that non-resident weekend play is down. Mike Wallace and his staff have been improving the playability of a couple of tees, especially for senior golfers. They also created two new sod farms for the course. One farm will grow sod for the greens, while the other will grow sod for the fairways. Friends of Simsbury Farms will donate two new benches for the second and third tee boxes. They will be installed in the spring.

Old Business. None.

New Business.

Mr. Bush announced that the first meeting of the 2017 Plan of Conservation and Development (POCD) was this evening. He noted that the responsibilities of the POCD dovetail with the responsibilities of the C. P. & R. Commission. Because of this, Mr. Bush encouraged commission members to: 1. Fill out and submit the online POCD survey, 2. Attend subsequent meetings on December 13, 2016, January 10, 2017 and February 14, 2017 and 3. Read the Parks & Recreation section of the 2007 POCD online.

Adjournment

Mr. Spalla made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Ms. Cramer seconded the motion. All were in favor. The meeting was adjourned at 8:40 p.m.

Next Meeting
The next Regular Meeting of the C. P. & R. Commission will take place on Thursday, December 1, 2016 at 7:30 p.m. Location TBD.

Respectfully submitted,

Lorrie McElligott

Commission Clerk