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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2015-04-29-REC-min Town of Lexington Recreation Committee Frederick DeAngelis, Chairman Tel: (781) 698-4800 Lisah Rhodes Fax: (781) 862-2747 Wendy Rudner Sandra Shaw Ruixi Yuan Recreation Committee Minutes of Meeting of April 29, 2015 A meeting of the Recreation Committee was held on Wednesday, April 29, 2015 at 7:00 p.m. in the Parker Room of the Town Office Building. Members Present: Rick DeAngelis, Lisah Rhodes, Ruixi Yuan, and Sandra Shaw Members Absent: Wendy Rudner Staff Present: Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation and Community Programs, Sheila Butts, Assistant Director, Chris Filadoro, DPW Superintendent of Public Grounds, and Peter Coleman, Recreation Supervisor Citizens Present: Tom Shiple, Lexington United Soccer Club, Michael Schroeder, Lexington Little League, Nancy Sofen and Tom Griffiths, Munroe Center for the Arts, KT Wilsack, Doug McDonald, Andy Friedlich, Pamela Lyons, David Williams, Jean Ricci, and Michael Juliano of Eagle Brook Engineering The meeting was called to order at 7:05 p.m. The meeting acted on the following: Meeting Minutes from March 2, 2015 and March 25, 2015 1. Lisah Rhodes moved and Ruixi Yuan seconded approval of the Recreation Committee Minutes of The Recreation Committee voted 4-0 to approve the March 2, 2015 and March 25, 2015. minutes of March 2, 2015 and March 25, 2015. Citizens and other Boards - 2. None Liaison Reports 3. None Munroe Center for the Arts Parking Lot Project 4. Michael Juliano from Eagle Brook Engineering gave a presentation on the proposed parking lot renovation at the Munroe Center for the Arts. In his presentation, Mr. Juliano identified the significant issues at Munroe given the current conditions as the lack of ADA accessibility, the pavement is in disrepair, the shared s narrow based on industry standards, lack of traffic patterns, and storm water runoff causes slippery conditions in the winter and puddles on the playing field. In an attempt to improve the conditions, Eagle Brook Engineering has considered four concepts moving forward: a. Repave the current parking lot and leave the rest of the site unchanged. b. 1625 MASSACHUSETTS AVENUE LEXINGTON, MASSACHUSETTS 02420 c. Create a one-way entrance and have a traffic pattern where vehicles would circle around to the right and then exit on Massachusetts Avenue using a different exit. d. Widen the entrance and create a traffic flow pattern in the back and address storm water parking, creating approximately five additional parking spaces. Mr. Juliano indicated that the fourth option (Option D) was the one that proponents from the Munroe Center for the Arts would like to pursue and was seeking support from the Recreation Committee. There was a lengthy discussion on this topic. Those in attendance had a chance to offer their support or express their concerns with the proposed plan. Proponents of the plan stated that the ultimate goal is to improve safety for the approximately 1,000 people who go to Munroe each week by creating a traffic pattern and widening the entrance/exit so two vehicles can access it at the same time. Several questions were asked and concerns were raised by the neighbors, including if the class schedule at Munroe could be staggered to help reduce congestion during drop-off and pick-up, if resurfacing the parking lot would actually change behavior of drivers, and that land designated as parkland should never be converted into parking. The neighbors in attendance expressed their concern and did not support removing green space. An additional concern that was expressed was the impact this would have on the Munroe Field, which is used by Lexington Little League for T-ball, and the safety of the children playing on the field. Michael Schroeder, President of Lexington Little League, expressed his concern that the ball often rolls into the parking lot and recommends that a fence be installed to prevent the ball from going into the parking lot. This could be a safety issue with children running after the ball. Members of the Recreation Committee agreed that the parking lot needs an upgrade, but have concerns about removing green space and potential drainage problems that may impact the Little League field. At the same time, they believed that more information was needed. Rick DeAngelis, chairman of the Recreation Committee, stated that the Munroe site benefits two (2) worthwhile causes, open space/recreation land and the Munroe Center for the Arts and concluded that more work needed to be done looking at all of the alternatives before the Recreation Committee is prepared to take a vote to support this issue. Update on Lincoln Park Light Feasibility (LUSC) 5. Tom Shiple, Lexington United Soccer Club, thanked Chris Filadoro, Superintendent of Public Grounds, and the entire DPW team for the support they gave LUSC throughout the beginning of the spring season. Mr. Shiple reported that a second neighborhood meeting had taken place. This meeting was for Lincoln Street residents with nine adults representing six households in attendance. According to Mr. Shiple, the attendees were neutral to generally supportive of the concept with one individual in opposition. While these individuals were very pleased to be included in the process, some safety issues that were raised included if a light curfew would be enforced as well as the amount of overflow parking that there is on Lincoln Street. A third neighborhood meeting will be held with residents who live on Middleby Road. Mr. Shiple reported that LUSC had signed the contract with Sanborn, Head & Associates and received the CAD drawings from Haley & Aldrich. In a report prepared by Kevin Stetson of Sanborn, Head, and Associates, (which will be made available to the Recreation Committee at its May meeting), he recommended that Lincoln #2 be designated as the actual site for this project and Mr. Shiple asked the Committee if this could be done. Mr. Shiple asked if having the electrical lines above-ground had ever been considered. Rick DeAngelis stated that all electrical lines should go below ground. 2 votes to support LUSC continuing forward with the project, focusing on Lincoln #2 for lighting the field, pending or subject to Board of Selectmen approval and approval of all applicable The Recreation Committee voted 4-0 to approve. Shaw seconded the motion. Community Center Update 6. Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation and Community Programs, provided the committee with the following update on the Community Center: Sheila Butts has been appointed the Director of the Community Center, effective April 27, 2015. The Youth and Family Program Coordinator position has been filled by Thomas Romano and interviews are ongoing for the Office Manager position. The Assistant Director of Recreation position has been posted internally and applications are due by May 8, 2015. Recruitment for a Part-Time Clerk and Building Supervisor will take place in June. Several organizations have made contributions to help furnish rooms in the Community Center, including the Friends of the Council on Aging (furniture for the mansion), Lexington Rotary Club (furnished the Billiards Room), and the Dana Home (furnished the Wellness Room/Nurses Office and mansion furniture). The Board of Selectmen has also established a gift account designated specifically for the Community Center. The tentative moving date is June 15, 2015. Over one dozen pieces of cardiovascular exercise equipment has been ordered. th Two hard hat tours were given the week of April 13 which were attended by approximately 60 people. Transition and moving plans are still being finalized with the intent of having the department open for business while the move is being completed. Lincoln # 1 Update 7. Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation and Community Programs, reported that the synthetic turf has been installed and the infilling process has started at Lincoln # 1. Town staff and the landscape architect have been doing daily site visits and it is anticipated that the project should be completed in the coming weeks if there are no issues. With the attention that crumb rubber in synthetic turf fields has received in the media recently, the Town is having crumb rubber and synthetic turf from the new Lincoln #1 tested. Recreation Report 8. Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation and Community Programs, reported on the following: The Board of Selectmen goal setting will be held on July 1 st and all items must be submitted by May 29, 2015. Rick DeAngelis and Lisah Rhodes both expressed that the Recreation s desire to protect the existing Recreation infrastructure and to add additional athletic fields should be communicated to the Board of Selectmen. Mr. DeAngelis will write a letter to the Board of Selectmen on behalf of the Recreation Committee regarding this matter. Mr. DeAngelis also complimented Peter Coleman, Recreation Supervisor, for the manner in which he handles the field permitting process for all user groups and organizations. Pine Meadows is now open for the season. Given the winter that we had, the course is in very good condition. During the offseason, some trees were removed next to the 9 th tee box and along the left side of the 5 th fairway. The greens are in nice condition. This can be attributed to the fact that the first snowfall of the year was fluffy, which provided good 3 insulation for the greens. There was some pockets of snow mold and ice damage on the 6 th fairway. The Irving H. Mabee Town Pool Complex and Old Reservoir will open for the season on Saturday, June 6 th and preparations for all summer camps, clinics, and programs are ongoing. The contract for the Lincoln #2 turf replacement project has been awarded and this project will begin in mid-June. This spring, Town Meeting approved funding for the Lincoln #3 turf replacement project and a start date of mid-June 2016 is being considered. All of the Recreation FY2016 capital improvement projects were approved at Town Meeting and Ms. Simmons thanked the Recreation Committee for their support and Lisah Rhodes for her excellent presentation to Town Meeting. Parks Report 9. Chris Filadoro, DPW Superintendent of Public Grounds, reported on the following: Green sand was used on the Battle Green to help expedite the melting process. All of the field layouts for the various spring sports have been completed. The outfield fence at Center #1/#2 has been installed for the season. The Estabrook softball field is back online. The renovation projects at Center #4 and Sutherland are nearing completion. th An Arbor Day event was held at Lincoln Park on Friday, April 24. DPW staff have begun the start-up process at the Town Pool. The bid opening for the capital improvement project at the Clarke soccer field will be opened , Thursday, May 212015. This project will begin once the school year ends. The natural grass turf at the Center Track field has not bounced back very well from the winter. Mr. Filadoro indicated that this does happen from time-to-time when the winter is as harsh as this past winter was. When the soil temperatures rises, DPW will start aerification and slice-seeding of the field. The next meeting of the Recreation Committee is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, May 20, 2015 at 7:00 p.m. in the Parker Room (ground floor) of the Town Office Building. The April 29, 2015 Recreation Committee meeting adjourned at 8:59 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Peter Coleman, Recreation Supervisor The following documents/exhibits used at the meeting are attached: 4