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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES Parks Advisory Board 2018-02-15 Town of Estes Park, Larimer County, Colorado, February 15, 2018 Minutes of a regular meeting of the Parks Advisory Board of the Town of Estes Park, Larimer County, Colorado. Meeting held in the Conference Room of the Estes Park Museum on the 15th day of February, 2018. Present Carlie Bangs Vicki Papineau Merle Moore Ronna Boles Geoffrey Elliot Also Present: Megan Van Hoozer, Public Works Administrative Assistant Patrick Martchink, Town Board Liaison Kevin McEachern, Public Works Operations Manager Absent: Dewain Lockwood Wade Johnston Acting Chair Merle Moore called the meeting to order at 8:31 a.m. PUBLIC COMMENT No public comments GENERAL BUSINESS It was moved and seconded (Papineau/Bangs) to approve the January meeting minutes and the motion passed unanimously. PAB BY-LAW MODIFICATIONS Chair Moore presented the modifications to the by-laws as requested by Town of Estes Park Administration, to the PAB. The suggested changes are as follows:  Section IV.C.7 – (wording in red removed) “The Chairperson has the same right as any other member of the Board to vote on matters before the Board and to speak for or against proposals, provide, however, that if the Chairperson desires to speak for or against a proposal which has been formally moved and seconded at a public meeting, the Chairperson shall relinquish the chair to the vice- Chairperson while he or she is speaking.”  The other modification was to Section VIII – (wording in blue added) “A member of the Board who has a personal or private financial interest in a matter proposed or pending shall disclose such interest to the committee; shall not vote on the item; and shall not attempt to influence the decisions of other members voting on the matter.” A motion was made and seconded (Papineau/Bangs) to accept the modifications to the by-laws and all were in favor. DECORATING UTILITY BOXES (DUB) UPDATE Parks Advisory Board – February 15, 2018 – Page 2 Member Boles updated the PAB on the current happenings with the DUB program. She reminded all that the program was transferred to the Parks Division from the Light & Power Division and that it would be led by Parks Supervisor Brian Berg moving forward. During this time of year, there are specific items needing to take place for the purposes of timing. Boles met with Supervisor Berg and sent him a timeline for DUB preparation. At this time it is important to get in contact with Kent Smith so he’s aware and can order the appropriate supplies to prime the boxes. Light & Power will be changing the process to allow the utility boxes to be stickered immediately after priming due to the length of time it takes for the paint and seal to cure. In March a discussion will need to occur to approve sending out the RFP. Boles posed the question of whether an RFQ should still be issued prior to the RFP or if could be combined into one solicitation. The approach will need approved at the March PAB meeting. Another item needing determined is the method of advertising the solicitation – newspaper, Town email blast, Facebook, etc. If using the Town email blast, approval of the verbiage will need expedited to allow enough time for responses. Nick Smith, Chair of the Estes Arts District (EAD) offered to send out information on the solicitation as well. Once the Town decides to advertise, Smith will need notified so he can do the same. Supervisor Berg will create a list of recommendations on specific utility boxes to be painted for the coming season and will bring to the March meeting for approval. Chair Moore thanked Member Boles for all the work she’s put into the DUB program. PARKS DIVISION UPDATE Public Works Operations Manager, Kevin McEachern presented the Parks Division Updates in Supervisor Berg’s absence:  Most of the Parks Division staff is currently in attendance at the ProGreen Conference held in Denver this week. This provide Continuing Education Credits (CEUs) for staff certifications and is a valuable annual conference.  Tricia Morales-Diaz has been studying to become a certified arborist  Matt O’Reilly is working to get his backflow certification. Matt is the primary staff person that works on the irrigation in town.  Supervisor Berg and Tonya Ziegler are applying for their applicator license to spray weeds in town. This will enable the Town to tackle spraying the weeds in between Larimer County spray efforts or handle those that get missed.  A rough draft of the plant listing for Veterans Monument Park has been completed. Ordering of these plants is anticipated to take place soon.  The Town has received the new binoculars for the Knoll Willow property (both standard and ADA binoculars). Installation is planned within the next few weeks.  The Town will not be competing in the America I n Bloom program this year. There will be more efforts toward community beautification and the Estes Park in Bloom (EPIB) program. One new item this year will be the implementation of the Resident Bright Spot program highlighting residents in Estes Park that have beautified their property.  Planning for the Mountain Heritage Festival is moving along well.  The last of the planned baseline irrigation systems will be installed in the next month. This provides for conservation opportunities when the ground is saturated Parks Advisory Board – February 15, 2018 – Page 3 and no irrigation is needed; when sprinkler heads are broken an alarm is generated; and many other streamlined features will now be available. The irrigation system being replaced was installed in the 1970’s. Chair Moore requested that any landscape plans or permanent planting plans (shrubs, trees, etc.) be brought to the PAB prior to plan execution. This allows the PAB to review the documents and make suggestions to the Town Parks Division prior to them performing these tasks. This will help gear the plantings to more educational purposes and he’d like to see this opportunity maximized. MRS WALSH’S GARDEN ADVISORY COMMITTEE: Chair Merle Moore shared that the committee met yesterday. Moore made a motion to request approval for authorization of funds to be used from the Town’s Mrs. Walsh’s Garden (“Garden”) fund for secretarial supplies not to exceed $100. He also requested the ability for these purchases, since they’re for a Town park, to be tax free. Kevin McEachern stated this would need done by providing the Town’s tax exempt number for these purchases. The motion was made and seconded (Papineau/Boles) and all were in favor. Moore also requested a motion for approval to authorize funds for purchase of cardstock flyers to be used at the Mountain Heritage Festival explaining details about the Garden, as well as the purchase of a banner for the festival. The motion was made and seconded (Bangs/Elliot) and all were in favor. Karen Lynch of the Estes Park Events Complex attended the meeting to discuss event options for this venue and suggested that weddings will take place in the Garden. Supervisor Berg has been in discussions related to this matte r. Residents and visitors are already asking about having their weddings or family members’ weddings at the Garden. The charge for the Garden will be $500. Chair Moore stated these funds would be provided to the Town for Parks Division cleanup efforts after the weddings. Many concerns came up regarding the impacts on this space and with the charge being only $500, the Garden may be completely booked with weddings throughout the visitor season which will inhibit residents and visitors from walking through and enjoying the Garden at their leisure. Moore indicated that several questions were brought up by the Committee for Lynch to explore and provide answers. The Town of Estes Park Events Complex actively has the Garden advertised as a wedding venue on their website. Megan Van Hoozer will take the concern back to the Public Works Director to determine why this was posted as a wedding venue without the knowledge of the Mrs. Walsh’s Garden Advisory Committee or the Parks Advisory Board. If appropriate, the post will be removed. If the post is intended to stay, explanation to be provided the PAB. Member Elliot made the motion to recommend the use of the Garden be restricted to mission-related events and that events in the Garden not exclude the public, which would exclude weddings as an option. The motion was seconded by Co -Chair Bangs. Chair Moore requested a motion to permit the PAB Chair to receive monthly budget reports of all expenditures coming out of the Tree Board fund as well as the Mrs. Parks Advisory Board – February 15, 2018 – Page 4 Walsh’s Garden fund to be made retroactive to the time the Town took over the Garden funds. The motion was made and seconded (Papineau/Bangs) and all were in favor. Chair Moore stated that the Committee would consider making a contribution to the Town’s greenhouse expansion in the amount of $5,000 for a couple years, however prior to committing the Committee would need assured enough space would be available with the existing expansion plan to grow native plant species specifically for the Garden. OTHER BUSINESS  The AIPP Guidelines were briefly discussed with additional edits requested. A motion was made and seconded (Elliot/Boles) to accept the suggested edits and all were in favor.  Parks Division employee, Keri Kelly gave a talk at the Garden Club this week and it was a full house. She explained her process of beautifying the Town properties and discussed the implementation of the Resident Bright Spot beginning in 2018.  Co-Chair Bangs brought up the urgency of getting memo or letter to Town Board requesting a percentage of all large projects be applied to art in Town as is done in other communities. Chair Moore to draft a document for review. With no further business to discuss, the motion was made and seconded (Elliot/Boles) to adjourn the meeting at 10:06 a.m.