Culture, Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes June 28, 2018
TOWN OF SIMSBURY – CULTURE, PARKS, AND RECREATION COMMISSION
Subject to Vote of Approval – Special Meeting Minutes – Thursday, June 28, 2018 – 1.25 pages
Call to Order
The meeting was called to order at 7:04 p.m. by David Bush, chairman, on the upper pool deck at the Simsbury Farms main building. Other commission members who were present included Dennis Fallon, Lori Coppinger, Gerry Wetjen, Kelly Kearney, and Sarah Cramer. The C. P. & R. Director, Thomas Tyburski, and the C. P. & R. liaison from the Board of Selectmen, Chris Peterson, were also in attendance.
Minutes of Previous Meeting
One change was made to the May 24, 2018 Special Meeting Minutes. Under the “Next Meeting,” heading, the date of the next C. P. & R. Commission meeting was listed incorrectly as Thursday, June 27. It should have been listed as Thursday, June 28. Mr. Bush declared the minutes approved as corrected. He requested that they be put on record.
Friends of Simsbury Farms – Report
The FoSF Charitable Golf Event, which took place on Friday, June 22, 2018 raised about $15,000 net, to date. Matching donations are still coming in. Participation was not as high as last year, nor was local sponsorship. However, non-local sponsorships and silent auction donations had increased. Mr. Wetjen invited Mr. Tyburski to attend the next FoSF board meeting on Monday, July 30 at 6 pm.
Golf Course / Summer Programs – Report
Mr. Tyburski distributed a spreadsheet titled, “Simsbury Farms Golf Course Annual Income.” It compared 18 years of greens fees and rounds from March through December 2000 to 2018. Figures were collected through the end of May. Mr. Wetjen reported that the golf course is doing well. In fact, it is ahead in revenue compared to the same time last year. There is an increase of scheduled outings. On September 21, SF will welcome 175 golfers to support the Make-A-Wish Foundation. He also noted that the actual figure for Groupon sales is in the range of $29,000, rather than the $8,388.66 listed on the report.
Mr. Tyburski distributed a 1-page report titled, “Summer Program Revenues and Registrations Comparison,” which equated camp, swim class, and pool pass numbers from 2017 and 2018, through June 28 of each year. He reported that sports camp enrollments have been up, while enrichment camp enrollments have been down. The Summer Explorers camps (for children in grades 1 to 6, with swim component) have been at or near capacity, while the Junior Explorers (for 5 to 6-year-olds) and the Playground Explorers (for children in grades 1 to 5) camps have not. Overall, however, revenues and registrations from camps, swimming, and pool passes have been close to last year. One of Mr. Tyburski’s goals is to greatly increase the amount of social media advertising his department does for its programs.
Capital Projects – Update
Work on the new SF basketball courts is moving along on time, and on budget. When it opens in mid-July, commission members suggested publicizing it in local papers. Work on the SF pool is nearly complete. The contractor has just been given a list of a dozen minor issues to remedy.
Old Business. None.
New Business
Mr. Bush noted that he and Mr. Tyburski should meet with the restaurant concessionaire soon to review the
golf course restaurant’s operations.
A letter regarding a new “Water Shortage Ordinance” was sent to all town commission chairmen. Mr. Bush made special note of it because it could affect the pool and the golf course. Mr. Peterson explained that it is being drafted by a subcommittee of the Board of Selectmen, to have something on record if the town ever experiences an extreme drought.
Adjournment
Mr. Wetjen made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Mr. Fallon seconded the motion. All were in favor. The meeting was adjourned at 7:50 p.m.
Next Meeting
The next Regular Meeting of the C. P. & R. Commission is scheduled for Thursday, July 26, 2018 at 7 p.m. in the main meeting room of Town Hall.
Respectfully submitted,
Lorrie McElligott
Commission Clerk