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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2015 10 21 15-REC-min Town of Lexington Recreation Committee Frederick DeAngelis, Chairman Tel: (781) 698-4800 Lisah Rhodes, Vice Chairman Fax: (781) 862-2747 Sandra Shaw Ruixi Yuan Recreation Committee Minutes of Meeting October 21, 2015 A meeting of the Recreation Committee was held on Wednesday, October 21, 2015 at 7:00 p.m. at the Lexington Community Center, 39 Marrett Road, Lexington. Members Present: Rick DeAngelis, Lisah Rhodes, Sandra Shaw Members Absent: Ruixi Yuan Staff Present: Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation and Community Programs, Chris Filadoro, Superintendent of Public Grounds, and Peter Coleman, Assistant Director of Recreation Others Present: Peggy Enders (Greenway Corridor Committee), Tom Griffiths and Nancy Sofen (Munroe Center for the Arts), Doug McDonald (1387 Massachusetts Avenue), and Tom Shiple and Will Thompson (Lexington United Soccer Club) The Recreation Committee had its picture taken for the Annual Town Report before the meeting began. The meeting officially started at 7:07 p.m. The meeting acted on the following items: 1. Meeting Minutes from September 9 th, 2015 Lisah Rhodes moved and Sandra Shaw seconded approval of the Recreation Committee Minutes The Recreation Committee voted 3-0 to approve the minutes of of September 9, 2015. September 9, 2015 . 2. Citizens and Other Boards None 3. Liaison Reports None 4. ACROSS Lexington Route E Peggy Enders, member of the Lexington Greenway Corridor Committee, presented the proposed Route E for ACROSS Lexington. This would be the fifth route in the ACROSS Lexington network and it would pass near the Pine Meadows Golf Club and through the Freemont Street play area. Ms. Enders reported that there is an abutters meeting scheduled for Tuesday, October th 27 where this proposed route will be discussed with the abutters within 100 feet of the property (Asbury Street, Martingale Road, Richmond Circle, Freemont Street, Cedar Street, and Constitution Road). Ms. Enders indicated that there is no maintained trail there now, but a trail has been flagged and would involve minor work. Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation and Community Programs, and Karen Mullins, Conservation Administrator, have walked the site and stated that the goal of the project is to increase connectivity between recreation, conservation, open space, neighborhoods, and schools throughout the community. The Recreation Committee briefly discussed this item and expressed its support for the project. Rick DeAngelis, Chairman of the Recreation Committee made the following motion: The Recreation Committee supports the 1625 MASSACHUSETTS AVENUE LEXINGTON, MASSACHUSETTS 02420 2 concept of ACROSS Lexington Route E as presented by Ms. Enders and that the Greenway Corridor Committee has the authority to utilize Route E through the Freemont Street play area th subject to the results of the abutters meeting on October 27, receiving a negative determination from the Conservation Commission, and the plan receiving final approval from the Director of The Recreation and Community Programs, or her designee. Lisah Rhodes seconded the motion. Recreation Committee voted 3-0 to approve. 5. Update on Lincoln Park Light Feasibility (LUSC) Tom Shiple, president of the Lexington United Soccer Club (LUSC), and Will Thompson, LUSC board member, made a presentation and provided an update on where things stood regarding the feasibility of permanent lights at Lincoln Park. Mr. Shiple stated that the focus continues to be on Lincoln #2. Four poles would be located at approximately the 20 yard line on each end of the field and the electricity would come from across Lincoln Street aboveground and then go underground to the transformer and light poles. Mr. Shiple stated that there are extra costs associated with the lights being installed on top of a landfill. The standard concrete pad is approximately 10 feet by 10 feet and located 6 ½ feet underground. With the lights being installed on top of a landfill, it is estimated that the foundation system would extend down between a total of 50-60 feet underground to make sure the landfill cap is not compromised, which increases the cost substantially. If the concrete pad can be placed higher than the standard 6 ½ feet, it would reduce the material cost. stimates for this project if there is a reduced pile cap size range between $458,000-$508,000, as compared to a range of $533,000-$568,000 if a standard pile cap size is needed. Mr. Shiple stated that three neighborhood meetings have been held with the majority of responses being neutral to in support of the project. LUSC initially proposed to fund the entire project privately, but Mr. Shiple stated that whether or not this is still feasible will need to be determined given the estimated cost of the project. The question was then asked what the next steps would be if enough donors came forward to provide the necessary funding. Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation and Community Programs, stated that the Recreation Committee would need to host a public meeting where LUSC would formally submit and present the proposal and abutters and the public would be invited to attend and ask questions about the project. At the conclusion of the public meeting, if the Recreation Committee approved the proposal, the next step would be for the proposal to go to the Board of Selectmen seeking their approval, then DEP. 6. Munroe Parking Lot Nancy Sofen (Business Manager), Tom Griffiths (Board Member), and Doug McDonald (abutter) attended the meeting on behalf of the Munroe Center for the Arts to present its revised proposal to expand the parking lot to the Recreation Committee. This issue was first presented to the Recreation Committee at its April meeting as a result of Munroe being interested in improving the condition of and expanding the parking lot. Mr. McDonald stated that while there were initially four conceptual ideas, it has now been narrowed down to one option. Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation and Community Programs, reminded the Committee that the initial proposal called for the loss of 24 feet of green space, which the neighbors opposed. After they revised the plan, it is now estimated that approximately 16 feet of green space would be lost. A temporary fence would also be installed to separate the parking lot from the playing field and it would be taken down for the winter each year. The approximate budget for the project is between $50,000-$150,000 (not including the fence) and Ms. Sofen reported that approximately $120,000 has been saved up in recent years. Department has reviewed the plan and their input has been incorporated into the proposal. After reviewing the plan, Rick DeAngelis, chairman of the Recreation Committee, indicated that he needed more information before making a final decision. Specifically, he requested to see a color copy of the plan and the proposed green space that would be transferred into parking should be 3 clearly identifiable. The other members of the Recreation Committee agreed with this. It was determined that Munroe will come back with the requested documents, along with their engineer, to review this information with the Recreation Committee at their next meeting. 7. Recreation 5-Year Capital Plan Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation and Community Programs, presented the amended FY2017-FY2021 5-Year Capital Plan to the Recreation Committee. Since the last Recreation Committee meeting in September, the Town Pool renovation has been modified, based on a meeting that Ms. Simmons had with the Town Manager Carl Valente. In the modified proposal, funding for the design/engineering costs and bid documents will be requests in FY17 and construction funding will be requested in FY18. The Recreation Committee was in support of this modification. Going forward, staff will present the capital improvement projects to the Capital Expenditures Committee on Tuesday, October 27 th and to the Community Preservation Committee in November. 8. Recreation Report Karen Simmons, Director of Recreation and Community Programs, provided a summary of the Community Center Grand Opening and Ribbon Cutting Ceremony that took place on Saturday, th October 17. Overall, it was a fantastic day with approximately 150 people at the ceremony and approximately 1,000 people came to the facility throughout the course of the day. Ms. Simmons stated that the Pine Meadows Golf Club remains open and is in excellent condition. A copy of th the USGA On-Site Visit report from September 18 was distributed. Peter Coleman, Assistant Director of Recreation, provided a brief update on the ongoing fall programs and upcoming winter programs. The winter program brochure should be mailed out around Thanksgiving and st winter program registration is set to begin on December 1. 9. Parks Report Chris Filadoro, Superintendent of Public Grounds, provided the Parks Report. The renovation project at the Clarke multi-purpose field has been completed. Mr. Filadoro is very pleased with the condition of the field and it is tentatively scheduled to come back online next May. The staff is in the process of winterizing the Town Pool. Mr. Filadoro complimented Larry Anderson and the staff for all of the time and dedication they put into the facility this summer. The practice field on Worthen Road has been seeded. The LHS football field is in good shape, especially given the use it has received this fall. Mr. Filadoro stated that the condition of the Center Track Field will be addressed this fall and next spring to help improve the overall quality of the field. He also indicated that a total of five baseball/softball fields have been laser-graded this year. The next meeting of the Recreation Committee is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, November 18, 2015 at 7:00 p.m. in Room 237 of the Lexington Community Center. The October 21, 2015 meeting of the Recreation Committee adjourned at 8:48 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Peter Coleman Assistant Director of Recreation The following documents/exhibits distributed at the meeting are attached: Map and Letter of ACROSS Lexington Route E (proposed), Lexington United Soccer Club Conceptual Design for Lights at Lincoln Fields presentation, Munroe Conceptual Layout E, and USGA On-Site Visit Report from September 18, 2015