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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2012-11-14-REC-min`S US Moo o� 1 775 c T own own ®f Lexingt ®n o Recreation Committee V APFILI9 � F XI NGI Frederick DeAngelis, Chainnan Tel: (781) 862 -0500 x 262 Howard Vogel, Vice Chairman Fax: (781) 862 -2747 Wendy Rudner Sandra Shaw Lisah Rhodes Recreation Committee Minutes of Meeting of November 14, 2012 Members Present: Wendy Rudner, Sandra Shaw, Rick DeAngelis, and Howard Vogel Staff Present: Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation, Sheila Butts, Assistant Director, and Chris Filadoro, Superintendent of Public Grounds Others Present: None Members Absent: Lisah Rhodes The Recreation Committee meeting began at 7:09 p.m. The meeting acted on the following items: 1. Citizens and Other Boards: none 2. Meeting Minutes from October 9, 2012 Sandra Shaw moved and Wendy Rudner seconded acceptance of the Recreation Committee Meeting minutes from October 9, 2012, The Recreation Committed voted 3 -0 to approve the motion and accept the meeting minutes as presented. 3. Little League Bob McConnell, past president of Lexington Little League was scheduled to make a presentation to the Recreation Committee regarding the possible renovation of the Worthen Road field by Lexington Little League, Mr. McConnell has indicated to Director of Recreation, Karen Simmons, that they would like to build a new little league field on the Worthen Road practice football field footprint, complete with lights. Mr. McConnell did not attend the meeting as scheduled. If approved, Little League has indicated they would fully fund this project. 4. Liaison Reports Recreation Committee members who serve as liaisons to the Bicycle Advisory Committee, Greenway Committee and Lincoln Park Subcommittee had no new updates or reports. 5. Football Field Project Update Chris Filadoro, Superintendent of Public grounds updated members of the Recreation Committee on the current status of Phase II of the Center Playfields Drainage Project — Football and JV baseball fields. The Town rejected the sod installed on the field, as it was contaminated with an invasive grass not suitable for athletic play, as it has a shallow root structure, which is not ideal on athletic fields. David White and Sons will again laser grade the field and replace 100% of the 1625 MASSACHUSETTS AVENUE • LEXINGTON, MASSACHUSETTS 02420 sod the week after Thanksgiving. The contractor has allowed the High School use of the field for two home games and practices leading up to the games. The field will hopefully reopen in May 2013. The town will reassess the conditions after the winter and make a determination at that time as to an opening date. Rick DeAngelis inquired about the drainage on the JV Baseball field (Phase II) and additional drainage work completed along left field of Center 1. Chris Filadoro explained that right field of the JV baseball field was most challenging because it has such a long surface run. At this point the system is working well, but it is possible that DPW might install some additional surface drains in that area to assist with drainage in this very wet area. The drainage ditches installed in late summer are a permanent fix for the left field grass on Center 1. Mr. Filadoro indicated that this too is an area DPW might consider adding more drains too. He did indicate that the current additional drainage areas are working very well, Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation, explained the sand fingers that you see on the 3` base side of C -1 should fill in with grass this spring so the area does not stand out. Chris Filadoro will monitor the area. 6. Letter from Shubhra Bhattacharya Chandra The Recreation Committee reviewed the letter attached, requesting that the Recreation Department consider (1) installing a bubble over the Town Pool Complex to allow for year round use by residents, and be available to the Lexington High School Swim teams for practices and /or (2) build a full size pool for the High School for year -round use by the boy's and girl's swim teams. Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation, explained that Ms. Chandra was invited to attend the Recreation Committee meeting to present her request, but that she indicated that she was too busy to do so. Ms. Simmons also indicated that many of Ms. Chandra's concerns and requests were under the jurisdiction of the LHS Athletic Director, not the Recreation Department. The department does allow the girl's swim team to hold pre- season practices until Labor Day at the Town Pool Complex at no charge. Ms. Simmons will draft a response letter to Ms, Chandra on behalf of the Recreation Committee signed by Chair, Rick DeAngelis. 7. Recreation 5 -Year capital Plan: FY 14 — FY 18 Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation, distributed an amended (11/13/12) copy of the Five - Year Capital Plan Summary. She explained that she, Dave Pinsonneault and Chris Filadoro had met with the Community Preservation Committee (CPC) last week to present the requests for CPA funding, and with the Capital Expenditures Committee on November 13 to review all capital Requests. The amended plan reflects a change in the project title for Lincoln Park that was suggested by the CPC and Capital Expenditures Committee. The new title for project ID 4848 is Lincoln Park Field Improvements. 8. Recreation Report Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation, reported on the following: • Recreation Strategic Plan —all the necessary paperwork has been submitted, signed, and received by the town. The project will begin in December and continue through spring 2013, with a final report due in June. Lisah Rhodes is the Recreation Committee liaison for the project, which will also involve both a half -day and possible full -day session with members of the Recreation Committee and Recreation staff. Additionally there will be meetings with focus groups throughout the process. The goal of the strategic plan is to look at where we are now, where we want to be in five years, and what steps we need to take to get us there. The plan will inform our decision making in the years ahead. It is an exciting project. • Hurricane Sandy damage —a portion of one of the tall fir trees next to the Gallagher Court fell into courts 9 & 10 during Hurricane Sandy, damaging the posts and fence fabric. The Parks Department removed the tree and debris. George Spartachino will be repairing and replacing the damaged posts and fence fabric. Clarke Tennis Court fence vandalism — On Wednesday, November 14, Sheila Butts discovered that a sign attached to the tennis court fence at Clarke had been removed with wire cutters leaving a 12" by 15" (approximate) hole in the fence. The Lexington Police were notified and a vandalism report has been filed. We hope to patch the fence fabric using materials removed from Gallagher Courts 9 & 10. The sign will be replaced and reinstalled in the spring. Marrett Road property — Howard Vogel asked about the status of the Marrett Road property. Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation, told the Committee that the town had hired a consultant to evaluate the property and its potential use by Town. It is her understanding that the report will be completed in December. 9. Parks Report Chris Filadoro, Superintendent of Public Grounds reported on the following: • The contractor for Phase II has done a very nice job with the project. The area in front of the stands is now asphalt, which is a great improvement. • Lawhorn Irrigation has been hired to complete the irrigation systems at Clarke, Diamond and Garfield. This is an FY2013 capital project. Work at Diamond was completed on November 13. • The Parks Department has done some minor work on ball fields throughout the town, most recently at the Clarke baseball field, and will continue to laser grade and improve infields. • Town pool complex is officially winterized for the season. Larry Anderson did a great job this summer replacing Ron Russo. • The Parks Department has submitted a Program Improvement Request for the purchase of a new piece of equipment to facilitate the cleaning and upkeep of the synthetic turf fields at Lincoln Park. This "sweeper" filters the debris and old fibers from the infill and cleans the rubber infill. Karen Simmons told the Recreation Committee that Recreation has been asked to make a contribution towards the cost of the equipment. • General clean up work has been done this fall at Marvin and Garfield playgrounds. The Parks Department will continue playground area clean ups throughout the year. • The work building the bathroom building at Lincoln Park has begun. Unfortunately when initial ground breaking occurred the irrigation lines and possibly some electrical lines were breached. Chris Filadoro will contact Dick Perry, who is spearheading the private group responsible for the project, to discuss the timely repairs to the broken lines so that the irrigation system can be winterized and turned off. Also to be sure that Dig safe has properly marked out the utilities. The excavation area has a water line, sewer line and electrical. The next meeting of the Recreation Committee will take place on Wednesday, December 19, 2012 at 7:00 p.m. in room 201. (Recreation Department Office). The November 14, 2012 meeting adjourned at 8:07 p.m. The following documents /exhibits distributed or discussed at the meeting are attached: 1. FY2014- FY2018 -Recreation 5 -Year Capital Plan Summary. 2, September 19, 2012 Lincoln Park Subcommittee meeting minutes. 3. Letter from Shubhra Bhattacharya Chandra dated 10/10/12. Respectfully Submitted, Sheila Butts L? 46 ;� T®ten ®f Lexington Dep artment. Recreation FY 2014 -2018 Department Summary of Capital Improvement Projects Priori A Project Name K-A- IFY 2014 IFY 2015 FY 2016 FY 2017 FY 2018 Totpl 1 848 Lincoln Park Field Improvements > $565,000 $570,000 $570,000 $0 $0 $1,705,000 2 282 Park and Playground Improvements $147,500 $65,000 $65,000 $65,000 $65,000 $407,500 3 518 Park Improvements - Athletic Fields $65,000 $100,000 $110,000 $200,000 $210,000 $685,000 4 280 Pine Meadows Improvements $75,000 $0 $275,000 $0 $75,000 $425,000 5 530 ADA Accessibility Study $0 $60,000 $0 $0 $0 $60,000 6 278 Athletic Facility Lighting $0 $0 $287,552 $0 $483,150 $770,702 7 519 Pine Meadows Equipment $0 $53,560 $47,000 $0 $0 $100,560 8 283 Town Pool Renovation $0 $0 $0 $1,188,308 $0 $1,188,308 9 532 Park Improvements- Hard Court Resurfacing $0 $85,000 $50,000 $55,000 $60,000 $250,000 10 732 Center Track and Field Reconstruction $0 $0 $0 $0 $3,000,000 $3,000,000 Department Totals $852,500 $933,560 $1,404,552 $1,508,308 $3,893,150 $8,592,070 Approval by: (Department Head Signature required) 11/13/2012 4:07:32 PM Page 1 of 1 O-lecreation and Lincoln Park Sub-Committee joint meeting at Lincoln Park September 19, 2012 Present: Rick DeAngelis, Howard Vogel, Sandra Shaw, Lisah Rhodes, Wendy Rudder, David Williams, Lynne Wilson, Robert Pressman, Karen Simmons, Chris Filadoro, Sheila Buffs, Peter Coleman, Wes Wirth, Wirth Associates. Wes: • Hired full time maintenance crew recently • Weekly, bi-weekly, monthly plans • Added a few replacements, nothing new • Keep edges at bay • Boy Scout work • Placed logs on edges for mound and cart path areas • Culvert under road - possibly have them do this • Selective clearings - open certain areas to allow for vista - more to do • Over 300 azaleas at mounds - over 12 native varieties • No permanent irrigation system, but new connections to get watering done • Improvements still to do: • At intersection of mounds - culvert under road with catch basin to alleviate run off /residue left on path (safety issue, especially for bikers, as Karen Simmons noted) • Build something across from Pat's Meadow out of the granite that David Williams found • Drainage /underground well at rhododendron area by fields • Continue to establish understory - will cut down on maintenance • Stone dust paths need work Dredge Skating pond • Pare down on work next year Goal: Ecological nitch/self-sustaining with native plantings, being a model for other areas/towns Misc • Send more pamphlets to Karen Simmons • Some art work on benches • Dawn Redwood are on site and not a native tree, but great for this area. • VOTE of Recreation committee: Five Year Capital Plan revision • Project - Pine Meadows Improvements to dredge pond between the 2nd and 8th fairways@ $75,000., for FY 14. • Motion to accept modified plan by Dick DeAngelis, 2nd by Sandra Shaw, unanimously approved, 5-0 informal notes by Wendy C. Rudner, Recreation Committee liaison to Lincoln Park Sub-Committee �OVS MORN/ x p Town of Lexington Recreation Committee 3 a V APRIL 1r �FX I N G"Spc� Frederick DeAngelis, Chairman Lisah Rhodes Wendy Rudner Sandra Shaw Howard Vogel November 15, 2012 Ms. Shubhra Bhattacharya Chandra 10 Childs Road Lexington, MA 02421 Dear Ms. Chandra, Tel: (781) 862 - 0500 x262 Fax: (781) 861 - 2747 On behalf of the Recreation Committee, we reviewed your request to install a bubble over the Town outdoor pool complex at their November 14 meeting. The Recreation Committee views your request as two separate issues. The first item which has to do with installing a bubble over the existing pool facility or building a new indoor complex was discussed. While the committee believes it would be a great benefit to the community to have a year round indoor swimming facility, recreation does not have the resources to build a new swimming facility at this time. A bubble was explored about 15 years ago and at that time it was determined that it was not feasible. The Recreation Committee currently has a 5 -year capital plan with projects valued at over $8,000,000 to maintain the existing recreation infrastructure in Lexington. A number of years ago, the Town of Concord through private fundraising built an indoor swimming complex at a cost of over $15,000,000. The committee welcomes the opportunity to work with a private group that may be interested in funding such a project. As far as practice time for the LHS swim team, that is the sole responsibility of Naomi Martin, Athletic Director for the Lexington Public Schools. All rental agreements with organizations for use of their swim facility are negotiated and managed by the School District, not the Recreation Department. We recommend you contact Naomi Martin and work with her to obtain a closer practice location. A few suggestions that are closer with either a bubble or indoor pool are the VA in Bedford, Hanscom Air Force Base, and the Fernald Developmental Center in Waltham. If you would like to discuss this further with the committee, our next meeting is on December 19, 2012 at 7:00pm. If you would like to be on the agenda, please contact the Recreation Department and request to be on the agenda. Thank you. Sincerely, Fredrick DeAngelis Chair, Recreation Committee 1625 MASSACHUSETTS AVENUE • LEXINGTON, MASSACHUSETTS 02420 Dear Mr. Richard DeAngelis, Lexington Recreation Committee Date: 10/10/12 Our daughter recently started as a freshman in LHS. She has been in the Hayden swim team for many years and has always enjoyed using the Town pools (center) in the summer too. This year she joined LHS swim team. The girls' swim team started practicing in the summer (late August) in the center town pools. During September, they were swimming in the Minuteman Pool. The Minueman pool is used by the girl's team till the end November and then the LHS boys' team use the pool for their swim practice and meets, November till January. Meanwhile, as Minuteman Tech's pool is used a lot (they have their own swim team and the Northshore teurn) it was not functioning during early O -1tober. The LHS girls' swim team started being bused to Atkinson, so that they could have a pool to swim in. They were coming home on weeknights at 9:30 p.m. Our daughter had never been in that pool before. The girls were sharing lanes and during a flip turn on her backstroke, she crashed head on into another swimmer. She now has a concussion. We are concerned that she has been asked to wait out at least two weeks of this season (no exercise) as well as less schoolwork to let her head heal. I had asked Ms. Naomi Martin- the athletic director at LHS- as to why LHS can't rent space from Hayden. Well, the answer is simple. They have their own swim team (Dolphins) and do swim lessons all year, so there is no room. Which brings me back to the Pools in the Center area (Worthen Road). Has there ever been a proposal to heat the center pools with solar panels and put a bubble over the entire pool area (2 large pools - lap pool and diving pool and attach to the changing rooms ?). The LHS swim teams could practice there all winter. The town could earn more revenue by opening it to the public year round. If you want to see an example of this being successfully done over the winter months and used by everyone, please review the facilities at the Longfellow Club in Wayland. Our family has used their outdoor pool with the bubble for the winter months. It is a great option and one what may the least expensive one. They could continue to use Minuteman's pool for meets, when it is functioning. A second option worth thinking about is renting some space from BSC Lexington or Waltham when the Minuteman pool breaks down, closer place for LHS students to travel for practice and meets. Again, I am not sure if this is an expensive proposition, but it might be easier than busing kids far away. Another option would be to consider building a full size pool for LHS for all year use by the boys' and girls' teams. The space could be rented out during the year for events to earn an income for the town and recreation department. It is hard to be believe that a town the size of Lexington with such a large tax base does not have a covered and heated swimming pool for the high school swim teams to use, consistently, without injuries. Thank you for your consideration. Please call or email me to discuss. Sincerely, Shubhra Bhattacharya Chandra Member Board of Lexington Education Foundation Founder www.shubrah.com Shubhradesign @gmail.com 781 6406019