2023-06-21-REC-min - Laserfiche WebLink

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Town of Lexington Recreation Committee Frederick DeAngelis, Chairman Tel: (781) 698-4800 Christian Boutwell, Vice Chair Fax: (781) 861-2747 Carl Fantasia Lisa O’Brien Claire Sheth Renen Bassik Weiwei Li Recreation Committee Minutes of Meeting June 21, 2023 A meeting of the Recreation Committee was held on Wednesday, June 21, 2023 in person and via Zoom as a hybrid meeting at 6:30pm in Room 237 of the Lexington Community Center. Members Present: Rick DeAngelis, Renen Bassik, Carl Fantasia, Weiwei Li, Lisa O’Brien, and Claire Sheth Members Not present: Christian Boutwell Staff Present: Melissa Battite, Director of Recreation and Community Programs, Peter Coleman, Assistant Director of Recreation, and Christine Dean, Community Center Director Others Present: Meghan Caldera (39 Bernard Street, Lexington), Doreen Karoll (76 Bloomfield Street, Lexington), Joseph Lehar (33 Parker Street, Lexington), Kathleen Lenihan (School Committee liaison), Eric Pearlman (47 Parker Street, Lexington), Hal Miller-Jacobs (17 Swan Lane, Lexington), Katherine Riester (39 Bernard Street, Lexington), and P.K. Shiu (1024 Massachusetts Avenue, Lexington) 1. Public Comment Joseph Lehar, resident of 33 Parker Street, expressed concerns that a notification that was sent to abutters of the Center Recreation Complex seemed to indicate that the Gallagher Courts would be lined for pickleball during the ongoing reconstruction project. This was surprising to Mr. Lehar and other abutters based on the Tennis & Pickleball Working Group (TPWG) report that was presented at the May Committee meeting which highlighted the concerns regarding noise associated with pickleball and the close proximity of the abutters by the Gallagher Courts. Eric Pearlman, resident of 47 Parker Street, is a pickleball player himself and reiterated that pickleball noise is concerning Claire Sheth described that this was a matter of syntax in the notification and that the court layouts that were at Gallagher previously will not necessarily be the same once the new courts are constructed. Ms. Sheth added that the notification was meant to be a reference, not imply what courts will be installed at the site, and emphatically stated that the final decision about whether or not to line the Gallagher Courts for pickleball has not been made. Ms. Sheth reassured those in attendance that the decision-making criteria outlined in the TPWG report will be used when considering current and future site for pickleball play. P.K. Shiu, resident of 1024 Massachusetts Avenue, is a founding me mber of the recently-formed Lexington Pickleball Club (LPC). Mr. Shiu thanked the Committee for making pickleball more accessible in Lexington and distributed an update on LPC, which is attached to the meeting minutes. LPC currently has 205 members and over 80 people attended their June Open House. Mr. Shiu emphasized that there is a very real need for dedicated pickleball courts in Lexington and recommended that the Committee look at repurposing the Adams Courts for dedicated