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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2013-11-20-REC-minOt1S Moq�,i 1775 U P Q - D L o u b APRIL 19 ' �eXelvG'� c� Frederick DeAngelis, Chairman Wendy Rudner Sandra Shaw Howard Vogel, Vice Chairman Lisah Rhodes Town ®f Lexington Recreation Committee Tel: (781) 862 -0500 x262 Fax: (781) 861 -2747 Recreation Committee Minutes of Meeting of November 20, 2013 A meeting of the Recreation Committee was held on Wednesday, November 20, 2013 at 7:00 p.m. in the Recreation Office at the Town Office Building. Members Present: Rick DeAngelis, Lisah Rhodes, Wendy Rudner, Sandra Shaw and Howard Vogel Members Absent: Staff Present: Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation, Peter Coleman, Recreation Supervisor, Sheila Butts, Assistant Director and Chris Filadoro, Superintendent of Public Grounds Others Present: Hank Manz, Board of Selectmen Liaison, Cindy Kuechle, Joanne Shorter and Todd Cataldo 1. Citizens and Other Boards: none 2. Meeting minutes from September 18, 2013 Wendy Rudner moved acceptance of the Recreation Committee Meeting Minutes of September 18, 2013. with a minor typographical amendment to section 4. Lisah Rhodes seconded. The September 18, 2013 minutes of the Recreation Committee were accepted, as amended by a vote of 5 — 0. Wendy Rudner moved acceptance of the Recreation Committee Meeting Minutes of October 22, 2013. Lisah Rhodes seconded. The October 22, 2013 minutes of the Recreation Committee were accepted by a vote of 4 —0 -1. 3. Liaison Reports Lincoln Park Subcommittee o Wendy Rudner reported that the most recent Lincoln Park Subcommittee meeting took place on November 19'x. She requested that representatives of the LPSC. attend an upcoming Recreation Committee Meeting to provide their annual update. They are not immediately available. Karen Simmons suggested that Ms. Rudner request the chair or vice -chair of the LPSC attend the January meeting. o Hank Manz, Board of Selectmen liaison announce that he was not running for reelection, and therefore would no longer be the BOS liaison to the Recreation Committee as of March 2014. Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation thanked Mr. Manz on behalf of the staff and committee for his advocacy of Recreation in Lexington and all his accomplishments during his tenure on the BOS. o Howard Vogel reported that the second trail of the ACROSS Lexington initiative was nearing completion. 1625 MASSACHUSETTS AVENUE • LEXINGTON, MASSACHUSETTS 02420 o Sandra Shaw, liaison to the Bicycle Advisory Committee (BAG), reported that the O'Toole Study of the Minuteman Bikeway is informative and extensive. The BAC met with John Livsey, Town Engineer, to review the report. 4. Appointment to Lincoln Park Subcommittee (LPSC) Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation, informed the Recreation Committee that two applicants for vacancies on the LPSC were joining the meeting to discuss their applications with the Recreation Committee. She reminded the members that a goal of the Recreation Committee is to facilitate both active and passive recreation at Lincoln Park. The Recreation Corm- nittee met first with Cindy Kuechle, a 13 year resident of Lexington. Ms. Kuechle is active in the community and as a resident of Audubon Road is a frequent user of the passive areas at Lincoln Park. She also noted in response to a question from Rick DeAngelis that she is a strong proponent of the active and passive recreational aspects of the park. o Following further discussion with Ms. Kuechle, Rick DeAngelis moved to appoint Cindy Kuechle to the Lincoln Park Subcommittee, per the charge of the Recreation Committee, for a three -year term commencing December 1, 2013 and ending June 30, 2017. Sandra Shaw seconded the motion. The Recreation Committee voted 5 0 in favor of the appointment. The Recreation Committee next met with Joanne Shorter. Ms. Shorter spoke of her involvement with Lexington United Soccer Club, a heavy user of the facility, the positive experiences she has had at Lincoln, and her belief that Lincoln Park as both an active and passive recreation area is an important asset to the community. Ms. Shorter further noted that her experience with youth sports and her interest in environmental issues would allow her to bring diverse views to the LPSC. o Following further discussion with Ms. Kuechle, Rick DeAngelis moved to appoint Joanne Shorter to the Lincoln Park Subcommittee, per the charge of the Recreation Committee, for a three -year term commencing December 1, 2013 and ending June 30, 2017. 5. Todd Cataldo — Baseball Lights Mr. Cataldo was unable to attend the meeting due to his attendance at another town meeting this evening. The Recreation Committee briefly discussed the agenda item. • Mr. DeAngelis noted that no limitations have yet been discovered regarding lighting the little League field at Lincoln Park. ® Mr. Manz told the Committee that the Board of Selectmen might find it easier to approve lighting the Fitzgerald Field. • Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation, explained to the Recreation Committee that installing lights at Lincoln Park may require approval from the Department of Environmental Protection. 0 This agenda item will be revisited at the December Recreation Committee meeting. 6. Recreation 5 -Year Capital Plan — FY2015 -FY200 Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation, reported she will be amending the Recreation 5 -Year capital Plan to include a small increase in the Lincoln Park Capital Article. Both the Capital Expenditures Committee and the Community Preservation Committee supported all Recreation Capital requests for FY2015. 7. Field Swap — Fitzgerald Field (Center 4) and Lincoln 2 Little League has asked if Recreation will swap usage on two fields. Peter Coleman, Supervisor of Recreation, reviewed the request for swapping the Lincoln 2 Softball Field with the current Fitzgerald Center 4 Little League Field. Naomi Martin, Lexington Public Schools, Athletic Director, has submitted a letter of support for this potential field swap. 2 • The Recreation Committee discussed the problems that might arise due to the official "naming" of the Center 4 Little League Field as the "Fitzgerald Field ". Hank Manz, Selectmen's liaison, suggested that the easiest course would be to keep their field as the Fitzgerald Field regardless of its use. The Fitzgerald Field was dedicated as a Little League Field. Mr. Manz will speak with former selectman, Bill Daley, who was involved in the dedication of the field. He will also speak with selectman Norman Cohen on November 21St regarding the issue. • The Recreation Committee showed support for the swap, if that route is chosen, but are also comfortable with keeping the two fields as they are currently used. They acknowledged that swapping the usage on the fields would limit the options that Little League would have to install lights at a field. • Lisah Rhodes asked how the swap might potentially affect parking at Lincoln as well as future field permitting income. • Little League would be responsible for financing all field work on Lincoln 2. • Howard Vogel asked if Little League was a proponent of the field swap. Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation, responded that it was Little League President, Shane Arnold, who made the initial request. • Since Mr. Arnold was unable to attend the meeting, the Recreation Committee tabled further discussion until December. 8. Recreation Report Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation reported on the following: • The second public meeting regarding the Community Center was held on November 19d' in Battin Hall. The current timetable calls for Phase I work to be completed in the Fall of 2014 with Recreation and Human Services moving into the facility at that time. There will be a soft open house held at the Community Center on Saturday, December 14 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. • There is a possible water leak at the Town Pool Complex, which has resulted in a $17,000 water bill. Peter Coleman has met with the Water and Sewer Superintendent and they will try to find the problem once the facility opens in the spring. Currently the facility is using an "auto-refill" which resulted in the use of 2,500,000 gallons of water last summer. • The In -Town Basketball. League and Winter basketball Clinics have 400 children registered. The clinic began in November and the Clinic begins in early January. • Howard Vogel and Rick DeAngelis will be reviewing the Pine Meadows bid submissions. • Pine Meadows is still open and will remain open as long as the weather cooperates. • The Lincohi 1 turf replacement project in ongoing. The rubber matting is being laid on November 21 ". It is hoped that the turf will be down and stitched within two weeks, pending weather. The walking paths will not be completed until Spring 2014. 80% of the rubber is being recycled on site and will be reused. Chris Filadoro is retaining three rolls of the old synthetic turf, which will be used at the Center 1 & 4 batting cages. • The bathrooms at Lincoln Park are open. 9. Barbs Report Chris Filadoro, Superintendent of Public Grounds, reported on the following: • The little league infield closest to Adams street at Fiske School has been redone by the ball field crew. The Sutherland Park bid openings is scheduled for November 22nd. The information about the bid will be presented at the December meeting. Prase 2 of the Center Drainage Project is completed. The Center Track field renovation with sod has been completed by Sports Turf Management Company. • There was a walk- through at Pine Meadows for the lower pond dredging bid. Karen Mullins, Director of Community was involved in this meeting • Center 1 and Center 2 have been "put to bed for the winter ". The fields were deep tine aerated, core aerated, top dressed and seeded and a dormant fertilizer was applied. • Sandra Shaw asked if there were trees scheduled for removal at the golf course. Karen Simmons informed the Committee that the USGA is doing their semi - annual walk through at the end of November, at which time this will be discussed. • Lisah Rhodes commented that there is quite a bit of vegetation growing in the sand areas at the Old Reservoir. She suggested that Parks staff clean the beach before winter. She also noted that the drains from the storm water mitigation project are still covered in the new basin areas. Chris Filadoro will look into these issues and report at the next meeting. New Business: • The next meeting of the Recreation Committee is scheduled on Wednesday, December 18, 2013 at 7:00 p.m. in the Town Office Building Parker Room. • The November 20, 2013 meeting adjourned at 8:32 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Sheila. Butts Assistant Director 4