Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2022-09-29-REC-min Town of Lexington Recreation Committee Frederick DeAngelis, Chairman Tel: (781) 698-4800 Christian Boutwell, Vice Chair Fax: (781) 861-2747 Carl Fantasia Lisa O’Brien Claire Sheth Renen Bassik Weiwei Li Recreation Committee Minutes of Meeting September 29, 2022 A meeting of the Recreation Committee was held on Thursday, September 29, 2022 at 6:30pm in Room 237 of the Lexington Community Center. Members Present: Rick DeAngelis, Christian Boutwell, Renen Bassik, Weiwei Li, Lisa O’Brien, and Claire Sheth Members Absent: Carl Fantasia Staff Present: Melissa Battite, Director of Recreation and Community Programs, Peter Coleman, Assistant Director of Recreation, Mike Cronin, Public Facilities Director, Christine Dean, Community Center Director, and Chris Filadoro, DPW Superintendent of Public Grounds Others Present: None 1. Public Comment – None 2. Meeting Minutes – August Lisa O’Brien moved to approve the minutes from the August 17th meeting. Claire Sheth seconded the motion. The Recreation Committee voted 6-0 to approve this motion. 3. Recreation Committee Email Correspondence Lisa O’Brien reported that the proponents of the bike pump track submitted a proposal through the participatory budget process. Conservation has included a placeholder in its capital plan in the amount of $200,000 to install a connector trail between the Community Center and Cotton Farm that would be 0.3 miles. The abutters of the Center Recreation Complex that live on Parker Street have expressed concerns about how late the lights remain on at the complex, especially now since the white pine trees have been removed. Melissa Battite, Director of Recreation and Community Programs, added that the neighbors are concerned with the excess light and excessive cheering late at night and have claimed that there is inequity for them as abutters since the lights do not go off at 9:00pm like they do at Lincoln Park. Ms. Battite stated that the shut off time for the lights at the Town Pool and Gallagher and Farias Courts is 9:00pm, whereas the lights at the Center Track Field and Center #1 baseball field and Center #2 softball field remain on until 10:30pm (in the offseason, the Center Track Field lights remain on until 9:00pm, weather permitting). Ms. Battite that the shut off time at Center #1/Center #2 has been in place for 25 years. The neighbors have requested clarity on how the shut off time is decided, how it is approved, and how abutters are notified. 2 39 MARRETT ROAD, LEXINGTON, MASSACHUSETTS 02421 Christian Boutwell, Vice Chair of the Recreation Committee, stated that this should be an agenda item for the October meeting that could involve a presentation and more in-depth discussion. Rick DeAngelis, Chairman of the Recreation Committee, reminded the Committee that he was a part of the group that privately fundraised the amount needed to install lights at Center #1 back in 1997 and that the Board of Selectmen at the time approved a shut off time of 10:30pm. Mr. DeAngelis added that the Center Recreation Complex is a recreation facility and it would be impossible to have the lights turn off at 9:00pm. Mr. Boutwell said it would be important to explain the rationale for the different shut off times at the park. Chris Filadoro, DPW Superintendent of Public Grounds, indicated that an extensive replanting restoration plan will be implemented at the site. Lisa O’Brien thought it would be a good idea to reach out to the abutters and invite them to the October meeting. 4. Liaison Report Lisa O’Brien, liaison to the Lincoln Park Sub-Committee (LPSC), indicated that the LPSC has still yet to meet. Regarding the Bicycle Advisory Committee, Melissa Battite mentioned that the Select Board is looking to consolidate some of the Town committees and she was unsure what the status of that committee will be going forward. Christian Boutwell emphasized he would be in favor of another Committee member becoming the liaison to the Greenways Corridor Committee. 5. Center Recreation – Town Pool – Hot Water Heater – Mike Cronin Mike Cronin, Public Facilities Director, provided the Committee with a brief summary on this project to date. A copy of the design memorandum and supporting documents is attached to the meeting minutes. The water heater at the Town Pool has reached the end of its useful life and this domestic water heater is used to heat the water for showers and handwashing. Facilities was tasked with looking into water heaters that have power sources other than fossil fuel. Mr. Cronin reported that SED Associates Corp looked at a dozen options and narrowed it down to seven options for the Town to consider. Of the seven options, the decision needs to be made based on what makes the sense from an installation, cost, and operations standpoint. With this in mind, Mr. Cronin presented the final two options to the Committee. Option 3 was for a solar-assisted heat pump water heater and Option 7 would involve placing a solar panel on the roof the bathhouse. Mr. Cronin stated that Option 7 would be a better cost over 20 years from a long-term operational cost standpoint as well as provide a smaller carbon footprint. For these reasons, Option 7 is the preferred option and the presentation made at Special Town Meeting this fall will recommend pursuing Option 7. While Option 3 is a European model with only 300 installations in the United States, the plumbing parts for Option 7 are readily available. Mr. Cronin indicated that the Public Facilities Department would winterize the system. One drawback is that the solar collector capability would be minimized as Option 7 would take up half of the roof. Melissa Battite said that a draft of the presentation would be completed within the next week and Christian Boutwell suggested that a Committee member could give an introduction and then turn the presentation over to Mr. Cronin to speak to the technical aspects of the water heater. After a brief discussion, Rick DeAngelis made the following motion: “The Recreation Committee supports the Department of Public Facilities’ recommendation to select Option 7, which is a non-fossil fuel, solar-powered domestic water heater, for installation at the Irving H. Mabee Town Pool Complex.” Christian Boutwell seconded the motion. The Recreation Committee voted 6-0 to approve this motion. 6. 5 Year Capital Plan – FY24-FY28 – Peter Coleman/Christian Boutwell Christian Boutwell began by reviewing the Committee’s FY24-FY28 capital summary statement. The upcoming Lexington High School (LHS) construction project as well as the findings from the 2021-2022 Comprehensive Study of Athletic & Outdoor Recreation Facilities were incorporated in this year’s plan. Mr. Boutwell acknowledged that there were some changes to address the field 3 39 MARRETT ROAD, LEXINGTON, MASSACHUSETTS 02421 deficit as well as prepare for the temporary, but long impacts at the Center Recreation Complex for the LHS project when it could be used for siting, laydown, or construction. One notable change is to accelerate each of the turf replacements at Lincoln Park by one year. That way, Lincoln and Center would not be offline simultaneously. A second significant revision calls for the installation of new lighting systems at Lincoln #1 and Lincoln #3. The inclusion of lights would help to increase playability. As proposed, the turf replacements and light installations would happen at the same time with turf and lights at Lincoln #1 in FY24, turf at Lincoln #2 in FY25 (Lincoln #2 already has lights), and turf and lights at Lincoln #3 in FY26. The inclusion of lights at Lincoln was one of the top recommendations in the recently completed study. The third substantial change proposes to develop fields at the old Harrington School once the building is vacated by the Lexington Public Schools central administration. The project would include the installation of two full-size turf fields (which would be large enough for cricket) as well as lights. This project would also directly address the field deficit. Members of the Committee provided their feedback on the summary statement. Renen Bassik asked about the possibility of moving the light installation at Lincoln #3 up to FY24. Regarding old Harrington, Melissa Battite stressed the importance of putting this project on the radar of the Select Board, Town Manager, and various finance committees to get the conversation started. This project could potentially be even sooner, at the recommendation of Mike Cronin. Since there are fewer abutters at old Harrington as compared to Clarke, Claire Sheth asked about the possibility of installing pickleball courts at that site. Mr. Boutwell indicated that the design could potentially be adjusted, based on the rendering that has been received. Rick DeAngelis commended Mr. Boutwell for his efforts. He also referenced Minuteman High School (MMHS) and thought it would be important to include a recommendation in the summary statement for the Town to revisit a partnership with MMHS during the LHS construction project. Mr. Boutwell was in support of this as well and will include this item in the statement. Ms. Sheth asked if graphics from the study could be included since seeing the deficit would be meaningful and it would demonstrate that staff and the Committee as being creative as possible when it comes to addressing the field shortage. Lisa O’Brien brought up the issues of equity and access and wondered if improvements could be done at multiple locations. Ms. Battite mentioned that land acquisition for conservation or affordable housing purposes remains a high priority for the Town. She added that the Lincoln Park master plan will begin this fall and can gauge the appetite for additional lights during this process. At this point, Peter Coleman, Assistant Director of Recreation, provided the Committee with an overview of the projects that are included in the 5-year plan and highlighted the changes from last year’s plan. In total, there are seven projects scheduled for FY2024 which include cart path restoration at #7 and #8 and dredging the ponds at Pine Meadows, purchasing three new pieces of equipment for the Pine Meadows, the design/engineering costs associated with the Pine Meadows clubhouse renovation, field improvements at Lincoln Park, installation of new water chemistry automated controllers at the Town Pool, playground replacement and ADA improvements at Justin Park, and field renovation and ADA improvements at Bridge. After the overview was given, the conversation went back to lights at Lincoln Park. Melissa Battite informed the Committee that Lexington Public Schools submitted an ARPA funding request for additional lights at Lincoln, so it is likely that they would be supportive of installing lights at Lincoln #1 and Lincoln #3. The Committee decided to move the lights at Lincoln #3 from FY26 to FY24. As a result, the FY24 request would include a feasibility study of all three fields, turf replacement and lights installation at Lincoln #1, and lights installation at Lincoln #3. In looking ahead to the future with the importance of messaging and support for these projects, Christian Boutwell thought it would be beneficial to have an athletic fields capital program session/special meeting and then a working group from that meeting could be suggested. At the 4 39 MARRETT ROAD, LEXINGTON, MASSACHUSETTS 02421 conclusion of the conversation, Christian Boutwell made the following motion: “The Recreation Committee approves the Recreation FY2024-FY2028 5-Year Capital Plan packet, as amended during the meeting, for submission to the Town’s budgeting process.” Claire Sheth seconded the motion. The Recreation Committee voted 6-0 to approve this motion. The amended FY24- FY28 Capital Summary Statement and Recreation FY24-FY28 5-Year Capital Plan are attached to the meeting minutes. 7. Liaison Assignments This will be discussed at the October Recreation Committee meeting. 8. Annual Report The Recreation Committee’s FY22 Annual Report is attached to the meeting minutes and the photo for the annual report was taken at the end of the meeting. 9. Recreation & Community Programs Report The September Recreation & Community Programs Report is attached to the meeting minutes. The next meeting of the Recreation Committee is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, October 19th at 6:30pm. The September 29th, 2022 meeting of the Recreation Committee adjourned at 8:55pm. Respectfully submitted, Peter Coleman Assistant Director of Recreation The following documents distributed at the meeting are attached: • Design Memorandum and Supporting Documents for the Town Pool Water Heater options • Recreation Committee FY24-FY28 Capital Summary Statement • Recreation FY2024-FY2028 5-Year Capital Plan • Recreation Committee FY22 Annual Report • September 2022 Recreation & Community Programs Report