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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2014-06-18-REC-min (includes attachments) Town of Lexington Recreation Committee Frederick DeAngelis, Chairman Tel: (781) 698-4800 Vacancy Fax: (781) 861-2747 Wendy Rudner Sandra Shaw Lisah Rhodes Recreation Committee Minutes of Meeting of June 18, 2014 A meeting of the Recreation Committee was held on Wednesday, June 18, 2014 at 7:00 p.m. at the Town Office Building, 1625 Massachusetts Avenue, Parker Room. A quorum of 3 was present. Members Present: Sandra Shaw, Wendy Rudner and Lisah Rhodes Members Absent: Rick DeAngelis Staff Present: Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation, Peter Coleman, Recreation Supervisor, and Sheila Butts, Assistant Recreation Director Citizens Present: Tom Shiple, Lexington United Soccer Club, Richard Neumeier, Carl Mamuszka, and Thomas Romano, Recreation Summer Intern The meeting acted on the following items: Lisah Rhodes acting as Chairperson of the meeting asked for a moment of silence for Rick Abrams, who passed away on Sunday, June 15. Mr. Abrams was instrumental in the planning and organizing of the ACROSS Lexington initiative, which links Conservation and Recreation land together. The statement read by Ms. Rhodes is attached. 1. Citizens and Other Boards The agenda for this meeting was modified on June 16. Two items were removed from the original agenda: Fitzgerald Little League Field Lighting and Lights at Lincoln Park Tom Shiple, co-president of the Lexington United Soccer Club (LUSC), informed the Recreation Committee that Sami Eladhari, Lexington High School varsity soccer coach, passed away unexpectedly that morning. 2. Meeting Minutes from May 21 The meeting minutes of May 21 were discussed. Wendy Rudner noted 3 typographical errors in the minutes. Ms. Rudner moved acceptance of the minutes as corrected. Sandra Shaw seconded. The Recreation Committee voted 3 - 0 to accept the May 21, 2014 Recreation Committee minutes as amended. 3. Liaison Reports Wendy Rudner told Committee members that she would provide a Lincoln Park Subcommittee update at the next meeting. Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation spoke of the upcoming dedication of the Lincoln Park Bathroom facility. She offered thanks to the Lincoln Park 1625 MASSACHUSETTS AVENUE LEXINGTON, MASSACHUSETTS 02420 Subcommittee, Lexington United Soccer Club, LexFun, the Lexington Lions Club, the contractors and all other private donors for their contributions and hard work in making this a reality. Sandra Shaw, liaison to the Bicycle Advisory Committee, had no new updates to provide. 4. Dick Neumeier Ice Skating Mr. Neumeier, a former Recreation Committee member, spoke to the Recreation Committee about revisiting the past practice of flooding Kinneens Park for winter ice skating. He wondered why the town stopped flooding the area, and why it could not be flooded in the future? The Recreation Committee discussed potential liability concerns, DPW costs to flood the area, plow or shovel it off after snowfall, and the potential damage to the open field area used in the spring as a T-Ball field. Sandra Shaw agreed that the Town needs a public skating area, but noted that the Old Reservoir is used by many, and consideration could be given to that area for skating in the winter. Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation told Mr. Neumeier and Mr. Mamuszka that she would investigate the history of flooding Kinneens Park, and past maintenance of the skating surface at the Old Reservoir, and would report her findings at the August or September Recreation Committee meeting. 5. Lincoln # 1 Update Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation reported that Town Counsel is now involved in the remediation process with the contractor for Lincoln Park Field. Lincoln Field # 1 has not been accepted by the Town. The field was permitted during the spring at the request of the contractor, who thought that it would help alleviate the problems. The installation does not meet specifications. The infill was not installed properly and fibers are bent over in sections of the field with infill sitting on the top. The seams are also a problem. No permits will be issued for Lincoln # 1 until the situation is rectified and the Town has accepted the field. DPW will install a snow fence around the perimeter of the field and post signs indication that the field is closed. 6. Community Center Advisory Committee Update Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation, provided members of the Recreation Committee with a status review of the Community Center project. She reported that Town Meeting approved an additional $500,000 on June 16 for the renovation of the building. Bid documents are being finalized. The Recreation Department storage area will be temporarily relocated to the Carriage House next to the main Community Center Building temporarily until the construction is completed and the building occupied. The Recreation Department has tested its Sportsman Registration and Facility Reservation system to see if the system can be used for room reservations at the new center. The results to date are positive. 7. Recreation Reports Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation, reported on the following: a. The Pool and Old Reservoir opened on May 31. Pine Meadows Golf Course is operating smoothly. A contractor has been hired to rebuild 6 tee boxes. o Winter damage to the 4 th green is slowly improving. The temporary green may o remain in effect for another month. Revenues are 3% below 2013 o The USGA completed their semi-annual inspection of the course on May 21 st. The o full USGA report was distributed to the Recreation Committee (attached). The report will be reviewed at the July Recreation Committee meeting. 2 The Hanscom Air Force Base wants to open its golf course to the public in the future. The impact this may have on Pine Meadows is not known. A final determination has yet to be made. The Lions Club Carnival comes to Town the night of June 29. They will be in Lexington through July 5. The Fireworks are scheduled for July 2. 8. Parks Reports Chris Filadoro, Superintendent of Public Grounds was unable to attend the meeting. His Parks report is attached. 9. New Business The next meeting of the Recreation Committee will take place Wednesday, July 16, 2014 at 5:30 p.m. at the Pine Meadows Golf Club. The June 18, 2014 Recreation Committee meeting adjourned at 7:59 p.m. The following documents/exhibits used at the meeting are attached: 1. Statement by Lisah Rhodes 2. Parks Report 3. USGA Report Respectfully Submitted, Sheila Butts, Assistant Director of Recreation 3 I know we are to begin the agenda for the evening, yet ask my fellow members to pause for a moment to remember a great friend of recreation, Rick Abrams, As you may be aware, Rick passed away this past Sunday. Rick is beloved and revered in our community. As one of our members commented to me the other day, "It was an honor to know him95. I agree, it was an honor to know hizn. Rick had a vision. He wanted to link all of our conservation and recreation areas together to form trails for people to enjoy the hidden treasures of our town. Together with other like - minded individuals, he came up with a plan of how to fulfill this vision. and presented it to this committee a few years ago, eager to work with our committee at every step. The master plan will be complete with four trails. At this point there are two completed. What many of your aren't aware of is Rick's "other" life. He was a software developer managing critical thinking educational software, As an educator with experience in technology, the programs he developed were thorough and ahead of their time. Rick was always generous, with his time, products and finances. He met my husband through their work on the Sustainability committee and after realizing my professional job, would often ask if I needed copies of his software to distribute to fellow educators. He never asked for feedback or compensation, the intent was to build resources in the classrooms. Instead of gifts for his retirement, Rick created the ACROSS Lexington trust fund. The last time Rick visited our committee was to ask permission to erect the beautiful ACROSS Lexington signage on the trails. As I remember from the earlier presentation, he and his committee presented a complete, thoughtful presentation and were eager for feedback. Rick was one of those rare individuals who, despite losing his voice, had a strong, pleasant presence. Any and every time I saw him around town, he had a smile on his face. He was champion of recreation.. I will miss him and I, too, feel proud to have known him. Karen Simmons From: Christopher Filadoro Sent: Tuesday, June 17, 2014 1:22 PM To: Karen Simmons Ce: Sheila Butts Subject: Recreation Meeting Hi Karen, We had something come up last night had home that I need to take care of and will not be able to attend tomorrow night. Below is the Parks report, if you have any questions please feel free to contact me. Thanks, Chris Pool: Everything is running well and no issues, Fields: all fields were just fertilized last week, center 1 and Center 2 were both core aerated and slice seeded in two directions as well as fertilized. The bull pens behind Center 1 have been worked on and waiting to have a contractor make repairs to the fence in this area. Pine Meadows: Worked with John Allen and assisted them with some slice seeding of areas. They also had a visit inspection of the maintenance facility from MDAR ( MASS Dept. of Ag Res.), John commented that all went well. Playgrounds: All playgrounds have been inspected. In working with Shelia the playgrounds at Munroe Center for the Arts will be removed on or before June 25tH Old Res: The Tent has been installed for another season for the school picnic and Teddy Bear. The Beach is also being groomed on a weekly basis. 1