HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES Community & Family Advisory Board 2021-02-04
Town of Estes Park, Larimer County, Colorado, February 4, 2021
Minutes of a regular meeting of the Community and Family Advisory Board of the Town
of Estes Park, Larimer County, Colorado. Meeting held virtually on Zoom, on the 4th day
of February 4, 2021.
Present: Laurie Dale Marshall
Jodi Roman
Nancy Almond
Sue Strom
John Bryant
Christy DeLorme
Rachel Balduzzi
Absent: Michael Moon
Chris Douglas
Also Present: Cindy Younglund, Town Board Liaison
Jason Damweber, Assistant Town Administrator
Suzanna Simpson, Executive Assistant
Guests: Claire Bouchard, United Way of Larimer County
Chair Dale Marshall called the meeting to order at 3:35 p.m.
PUBLIC COMMENT:
None
TRUSTEE LIAISON UPDATE:
None
APPROVAL OF JANUARY MEETING MINUTES:
It was moved and seconded (Roman/Almond) to approve the January meeting minutes
and the motion passed unanimously.
PRESENTATION AND DISCUSSION: GUEST QUINN BRETT:
Guest Quinn Brett’s discussion centered on her perspective as a person with a mobility
disability living in Estes Park. Some challenges mentioned were parking lots, as many
are privately owned and the pavement is only painted without placing signs, adding to
visibility concerns when it snows and paint is covered. Another concern mentioned was
ensuring that snow is cleared from all crosswalks and sidewalks. She expressed
Community and Family Advisory Board – February 4, 2021 – Page 2
appreciation for the thoughtfulness given to connecting trails around town and
encourages the continuation of connecting trails. It was recommended to share some of
these concerns with the Transportation Advisory Board. Board members asked Quinn
about specific challenges with buildings and other facilities around town, as well as
recommendations for improving accessibility overall. She encouraged anyone with a
website to look out for pages or forms that time out after a few seconds or minutes, and
to ensure that emergency warnings are duplicated so that they are conducted using
both sound and visual methods.
REPORT ON TOWN BOARD PRESENTATION OF FOCUS AREAS:
Chair Dale Marshall thanked Vice Chair Balduzzi for assisting with the presentation to the
Town Board. Both focus areas for 2021 were unanimously accepted by trustees. Chair
Dale Marshall thanked Trustee Younglund for her help and support.
SUB COMMITTEE REPORT ON CURRENT CHILDCARE NEEDS & GAPS
Member Almond provided an update on the data gathered so far. She has used the
Childcare Needs Assessment from 2017 to guide the work. She provided an update on
some of the current areas of interest, including the lack of data on children in the
community under age 5, low Kindergarten enrollment, which is a statewide trend likely
due to COVID-19, and the need for the birth count from the hospital. The board further
discussed some changes from the time of the Needs Assessment in 2017, including a
reduction in licensed home providers (2 closed), which reduces capacity from 104 to 92,
leaving just 4 licensed home care providers, Mountaintop has taken the YMCA Bennett
Preschool, increasing capacity and for the first time having center-based care for children
under 2.5 years old. Member Bryant shared that the Boys & Girls Club is offering after
school care for students at the elementary school and they are doing a spring break
program.
Chair Dale Marshall asked how the board could align with this assessment and determine
recommendations for the Town Board as to how the Town can contribute to the effort,
based on the current state versus the state of the original assessment in 2017. Member
DeLorme requested to review the recommendations that the Workforce Housing and
Childcare Task Force presented. Executive Assistant Simpson will send that information
to the board. The board will discuss the findings of the task force assessment at the March
meeting and make recommendations at the March Study Session.
Community and Family Advisory Board – February 4, 2021 – Page 3
TOWN’S COMMUNITY RESOURCES WEBPAGE UPDATE:
Executive Assistant Simpson provided an update on revisions that will be made to the
Town’s Community Resources webpage – www.estes.org/communityresources. Member
Roman asked about translation features on the website. Executive Assistant Simpson will
confirm the changes that were made when the website was updated in early 2020. Chair
Dale Marshall announced that the Estes Park Nonprofit Resource Center will take over
updating the Family Advisory Board Community Resource Guide. They currently manage
a similar list and this will help with consistency.
OTHER BUSINESS
Member Almond announced on behalf of Claire Bouchard that United Way has committed
to supporting the Boys & Girls Club at $75k per year for 3 years (year-round).
Chair Dale Marshall met Julian with the school district who is managing the Immigrant
Family Program. She will share his information with the board.
Seeing no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 5 p.m.
NEXT MEETING
The next regular meeting of the Family Advisory Board will take place Thursday, March
4, 2021. The format will be virtual through the Town’s Zoom account.
Suzanna Simpson, Recording Secretary