Culture, Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes 10/26/2017

TOWN OF SIMSBURY – CULTURE, PARKS AND RECREATION COMMISSION –

Subject to Vote of Approval – Regular Meeting Minutes – Thursday, October 26, 2017 – 2 pages

Call to Order

The meeting was called to order at 7:33 p.m. in the main meeting room of town hall by David Bush, chairman. Other commission members who were present included Gerry Wetjen, Kelly Kearney, Dennis Fallon, Bill Mullen and Steve Spalla. The C. P. & R. Director, Gerry Toner, was also in attendance.

Minutes of Previous Meeting

No changes were made to the September 28, 2017 Regular Meeting Minutes. Mr. Bush declared the minutes approved, and requested that they be put on record.

2018 Meeting Schedule

Mr. Toner explained that the C., P. & R. Commission meetings will follow the normal annual schedule. They will take place every fourth Thursday of the month, except for August, when there will be no meeting, and November and December, when one meeting scheduled for the first Thursday of December will cover both months. Mr. Wetjen made a motion to keep the annual schedule of meetings the same, but to change the time of the meetings from 7:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. After a brief discussion, Mr. Fallon seconded the motion. All were in favor. The motion passed. Mr. Toner will submit this change as a notice to the town clerk.

Program Cancellation Policy – Proposed Change

Mr. Toner distributed a 1-page report titled, “Simsbury Parks & Recreation Department Cancellation Policy.” It showed the current and proposed policies. The proposed policy raises the processing fee from $5 to $10, and more clearly details when and how a refund or credit will be issued. Bus trips, special events and passes will be non-refundable. Mr. Bush made recommendations about clarifying the language in the proposed policy to eliminate possible misunderstandings. Mr. Kearney made a motion to approve the proposed policy, as amended. Mr. Mullen seconded the motion. All were in favor. The motion passed. The new policy will take effect on November 1, 2017. 

Golf Course – Report

No spreadsheet was distributed. The numbers for the fiscal year look good, but the numbers for the calendar year, to-date, reflect a 10% drop in rounds and a $30,000 deficit in revenue. However, Mr. Toner and Mr. Wetjen reported that the SF Golf Course is doing relatively well and still operating at a profit.

Capital Projects – Report

Mr. Toner distributed a 2-page report. The first page was a spreadsheet titled, “Park Improvement Projects: FY 2017/18.” All projects listed are generally on time and on budget. The park maintenance facility road repair project is completed. Most other projects will start this fall, except for re-painting the interior of the ice rink roof. This will be done in the spring, after damaged insulation panels are replaced. A trench line project, to upgrade communications at Simsbury Farms, will be combined with the re-lighting project for the Farms. Mr. Wetjen asked that this project continue to be an agenda item until computer and phone lines at the golf course are working consistently. Sales have been negatively affected by frequent outages.

The second page was a spreadsheet titled, “Ironhorse Boulevard Playground Improvements: FY 2017/18.” Mr. Toner noted that the renovation of the playground is progressing well, and staying on or under budget. Re-surfacing and re-fencing has been completed. Additional site work and landscaping will be done in the spring. Mr. Kearney recommended that Mr. Toner publicize the upgrade in the local media.

Rink Scoreboard Control Panel – Approve Gift from Simsbury Farms

Mr. Toner distributed an undated letter from Mr. Paul Simeon to the Friends of Simsbury Farms board members. It explained the need to upgrade the 12-year-old hockey rink scoreboard control panel, as well as buy a back-up.  The total cost of the gift is $3,680. The FoSF board unanimously approved funding this project at its last meeting. Mr. Fallon made, and Mr. Mullen seconded, a motion for the C. P. & R. Commission to approve the purchase of a new scoreboard controller and a back-up by the Friends of Simsbury Farms. After a short discussion about how a reliable scoreboard would help attract new teams and retain existing teams, commission members were all in favor. The motion passed. Commission members requested that an acknowledgement of the gift from FoSF be prominently posted.

Simsbury Farms Basketball Court Project

To begin the lengthy approval process through the town’s selectmen, planning, conservation and zoning boards, Mr. Kearney made a motion to endorse the construction of a basketball court at SF. Mr. Bush seconded the motion. All were in favor. The motion passed. This is a capital project that has been carried over for several fiscal years.

Simsbury Celebrates Event

Mr. Toner reported that there is adequate funding to run the event, but a decreasing number of committee volunteers left. Because of this, next year’s event may feature just the Firetruck Parade and fireworks.

Old Business. None.

New Business. In last year’s C. P. & R. budget, there was a line item specifically for funding an Open Space master plan. Mr. Toner noted that most parks in town are bordered by open space areas, and it made more sense to combine the open space plan into an overall Parks and Open Space Master Plan. Mr. Wetjen made, and Mr. Mullen seconded, a motion to combine the Parks and Open Space master plans into one Master Plan. Since the C. P. & R. Department provides the equipment and man hours to maintain both types of properties, commission members were all in favor. The motion passed. Mr. Toner will create a draft RFP for a combined master plan. In addition, Mr. Wetjen recommended that Mr. Bush, or another member of the C. P. & R. Commission, be present at future meetings of the Open Space Committee.

Mr. Bush reported that he hoped to have a new commission member appointed by now. A candidate has been identified. She is willing and excited to volunteer for the position, but because she is an unaffiliated voter, the appointment has been stalled. While the position has been extended to each party, no volunteers have come forward. With a shortage of individuals willing to volunteer for any position in any organization, he is frustrated that the town’s policy is making the process difficult.

Adjournment

Mr. Wetjen made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Mr. Fallon seconded the motion. All were in favor. The meeting was adjourned at 8:30 p.m.

Next Meeting
The next Regular Meeting of the C. P. & R. Commission will take place on Thursday, December 7, 2017 at 7:30 p.m. in the main meeting room of town hall.

Respectfully submitted,

Lorrie McElligott

Commission Clerk