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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2019-12-18-REC-min us MOg ITIS G Town of Lexington �w = Recreation Committee s V APRIL Pr �FXINGI-V Frederick DeAngelis, Chairman Tel: (781) 698-4800 Lisah Rhodes,Vice Chair Fax: (781) 861-2747 Lisa O'Brien Ruixi(Ray) Yuan Francesca Pfrommer Recreation Committee Minutes of Meeting December 18, 2019 A meeting of the Recreation Committee was held on Wednesday, December 18,2019 at 7:00pm in the Room 237 of the Lexington Community Center, 39 Marrett Road, Lexington. Members Present: Rick DeAngelis, Lisah Rhodes, Lisa O'Brien, Francesca Pfrommer, and Ruixi Yuan Staff Present: Melissa Battite, Director of Recreation and Community Programs, Christine Dean, Community Center Director, Hayato Tsurumaki,Program Supervisor, and Chris Filadoro, DPW Superintendent of Public Grounds Others Present: To be added 1. Meeting Minutes from November 18,2019 Lisah Rhodes moved and Lisa O'Brien seconded the approval of the Committee Minutes of November 18th. The Recreation Committee voted 3-0 to approve the November 18 minutes with one member abstaining. Rick DeAngelis proposed a suggestion to put Lexington Little League on the agenda for next month's meeting. They would like to talk about field improvements,in particular ones that they would like to contribute towards. Melissa Battite stated that they should submit their request to be on the agenda at least a week in advance prior to the meeting. 2. Community Needs Assessments Christine Dean presented the memo that was sent to the Committee earlier in the week for review. Christine, along with Management Fellow, Katharine LeBreque, and Melissa Battite have reviewed three difference companies who have proposed to provide a community-wide needs assessment for the Town. After consideration and reference checks, the Recreation Department has proposed that the project be granted to PROS Consulting. Francesca Pfrommer asked how they will ensure that the survey will represent a cross-section of the community. Lisa O'Brien stated that she is very much looking forward to it and inquired if PROS will be coming in person to present to the Committee. Ms. Dean affirmed that they would. Mr. DeAngelis asked Melissa Battite if she had worked with PROs directly and she explained that while in Baltimore, she and Christine had the opportunity to meet with Austin Hochstetler,the consultant who will be the lead in the project. Rick asked if there was a total project cost, to which Ms. Battite replied just under the $50 thousand mark. Rick DeAngelis moved that the Recreation Committee endorse and support the concept and the engagement of PROS Consulting Inc.to perform a Community-wide Needs Assessment and Francesca Pfrommer seconded. The Recreation Committee voted 4—0 in favor of the motion. 2 Ms. Battite took a moment to acknowledge the work of Christine Dean and Management Fellow, Katharine LeBreque,who will be assisting with conducting the project and focus groups. Mr. DeAngelis expressed that he would like to hear from Katherine in the future,not just about this project but about what she's working on in general. 3. Park&Athletic Facility Permit Policy Hayato Tsurumaki presented the updated policy that was sent to the Committee for preview earlier in the week. Mr. DeAngelis asked for clarification sake if the red lines in the document represented the changes. He went on to point out that under the checklist for permit application there is a not to check with the Police Department. After checking,you may or may not require the permit holder to check in directly to see if a detail is needed. Hayato explained that it is really more for the Tier 5 permit holders,to assess if any fees are applicable. Francesca Pfrommer inquired if considerations were made for playing conditions, specifically in reference to conversations about the temperature of the synthetic turf. Athletic Director Naomi Martin mentioned regulations about when it is safe to play. If there is an MIAA endorsed policy Francesca suggests that the Department adapts the field policy to reflect it. Mr. DeAngelis stated that he is not sure if the Recreation Committee should adopt the MIAA policy for non-High School play. Melissa Battite said she was unsure if they have adopted the procedures in place as to when you test, and how long you wait,we are definitely planning to include something about temperature and can add it. Francesca added that the policy has a lot of language about protecting the field but not a lot about protecting the children. It is the Committee's responsibility to do both. Lisa O'Brien asked where the pain points are in the process. Hayato responded that most of the groups have rented in the past and are familiar with the process.Melissa added that it can be a struggle to maintain a consistent level of communication and sometime difficult when groups do not get their information in on a timely manner. It presents a domino effect if Tier I or 2 submit their request late and then field space is released to subsequent groups. Lisah Rhodes commented that the plan is very logical and laid out in a user friendly manner. Ruixi Yuan arrived at 7:35pm. He commented on the checklist and a Certificate of Liability for organized sports programs,but questioned what happens with a group of players who are unorganized. Rick explained that the application process applies to groups, organizations or leagues. Melissa asked for clarification if the group was discussing play for one day or a series. Rick pointed out the information on page I for organized or regular use. Francesca Pfrommer stated that the policy needs to be clear about where the line is between I person and a group. Melissa agreed that Staff would come to a future meeting with revisions to the document including temperature considerations and language about the liability insurance. Hayato shared that he solicited feedback from user groups and has incorporated their suggestions as well. Rick DeAngelis moved that the Recreation Committee approve the Park&Athletic Field Policy as written with the caveat that adjustments will be made with the one-off use of fields and incorporating the MIAA approved temperature policy. Lisa Rhodes seconded the motion and it passed 5—0. 4. Pilot Program —Portable Restrooms Melissa Battite presented the portable restroom policy as it was previously viewed by the committee. She added that the Department needs to account for the non-permit holders who use the facilities. The permit holders will bear the burden of the fees. This needs to be taken into consideration when evaluating the pilot program. Francesca Pfrommer inquired if there is any other way to evaluate the program and what would the criteria be. Chris Filadoro,DPW Superintendent for Grounds,indicated that he has some concerns about the maintenance of the portable restrooms with the threat of vandalism and misuse of the stations. Rick DeAngelis 39 MARRETT ROAD,LEXINGTON,MASSACHUSETTS 02421 3 questioned the terms of the lease. Melissa does not know at this time as each user group will be handling the rentals individually. Ms.Pfrommer confirmed that they will be accessible units. Ms.Rhodes made the motion to approve the pilot program for portable restrooms consistent with the memo to the Recreation Committee from the Director of Recreation. Ms.Pfrommer seconded and the vote was passed 5—0. 5. 2020 Fee Proposal Melissa Battite presented the proposed fee increases for the FY21 season. Aquatic programs will see a nominal increase especially compared to area competitors. Adult tennis lesson fees have not been increased in 5 years but the proposal is to align with the senior lessons at the pool. Youth tennis lessons are increasing due to the program expanding from 4 days to 5 days per week. The summer camps and clinics will see a slight increase due to an increase in minimum wage. Even so, the Department will remain at a below market rate for camps. Mr. DeAngelis asked if there would be push back from seniors. Ms. Rhodes commented on other benefits, such as the daily water aerobics offered for free. Ms. Battite stated that most seniors frequent the pool so the membership is a cost savings over the drop-in rate. Ms.Pfrommer agreed that it is difficult for seniors on a fixed income to absorb another cost. She added that it is still a great deal at$60, and less expensive than Hayden. Selectman Suzie Berry proposed to split the difference and adding an early bird discount. Mr. DeAngelis suggested the increase be spread over the next two years with an incremental raise by $5. Ms.Battite then presented the Field Use Fee,which after market analysis,remains quite low. Mr. DeAngelis inquired if there would still be an admin fee. Ms.Pfrommer requested clarification that the Tier 2 grass fee is per participant as opposed to per season. She recommended clarifying that. Mr. Yuan asked why that tier is different than the others, to which is was explained that it keeps the programs affordable because that group is led by parent and community members, mostly residents of Lexington. He pointed out that the synthetic turf fees are per hour. Mr. DeAngelis the explained that there are costs associated with running a recreation operation. As an enterprise fund,the Department must recover costs and make aprofit to put towards future projects. Tim Clackson,representative of the Lexington United Soccer Club(LUSC) stated that the changes make sense. He was concerned however because LUSC runs clinics in the summer on Tier 5 they would moves to an hourly rate causing the fee to double or triple. It was explained that Tier 2 groups that want to run summer clinics will not be charged the Tier 5 rate. There will be an opportunity to create an MOU with those partner groups. Rick DeAngelis made a motion to approve all three components of the fee structure as proposed. Ruixi Yuan seconded and the motion passed 5 -0. 6. Center Track&Field Renovation Project/Budget Update Melissa Battite reported that two of the items on the list of potential change orders, the re-paving of the parking lot closest to the playground and field improvements to the Worthen Road practice field and installation of the hammer field do not fall within the initial scope of the project and was not approved by Bond Council. The Department was just notified and wanted to update the Recreation Committee and plans to contact the school staff tomorrow (12/19/19). The two projects cost$55,400 and$69,000 respectively. Approval for funding goes back to how the money was voted and bonded initially. She went on to explain that they could use the remaining funds for some of the other pro]ects that qualify. Once the weather breaks in the spring, the contractor will be looking at 3 weeks to complete the project. Mr. DeAngelis inquired if there would be a make-shift hammer area that is serviceable? There is not funding at this time and the Department will need to work with the schools heavily to address next steps. Ms.Pfrommer stressed the importance of speaking with the coaches because the effort that went into plans for a hammer throw area could be lost. Ms. Battite shared that communication so far has been with 39 MARRETT ROAD,LEXINGTON,MASSACHUSETTS 02421 4 Dave Coelho and Naomi Martin. Melissa will share this news with them who can in turn share it with their staff. School Committee liaison Eileen Jay inquired about the funding and next steps and asked that the school staff be notified. 7. BOS Goal Setting The Board of Selectman goals have been accepted. At the February meeting Melissa would like to revisit the Recreation Committee goals after the group has had a chance to review the BOS goals. It is suggested to align the Committee's goals with the pillars for the BOS. In February the Committee will review 19/20 goals and create 20/21 goals. 8. Liaison Reports Eileen Jay, School Committee Chair,reported that MSBA did not accept the LHS application for feasibility. The School Committee has passed the redistricting proposal. The plan accepted has the least amount of impact compared to the other proposals. Current middle school students are grandfathered in. The late start time was passed, and they are expecting an update from Tom Martellone. Ms.Jay stated that the school sports start times will not start past 5:30pm unless they are playing against a community with a later start time. Ms. Battite did reiterate the remaining concerns regarding the impact will be the loss of revenue and reduced programs and services for those offerings held in a school building due to the custodial contracts. Ms. Battite asked to be given an update when there is an agenda item of relevance to the Recreation Committee. Ms.Jay stated that anyone can preview the agendas or have them sent directly. 9. The Recreation & Community Programs and Parks Report Melissa Battite reported that the Department CIP had two revisions. One was that priority 93 — Recreation Software was being removed based on the work completed by staff. This project will remain as an FY21 upgrade and will be supported through the operating budget. The second change is that the Priority 9 2—Athletic Feasibility Study does not qualify for use of CPA funds, and will now be a tax levy ask within the CIP. Mr. DeAngelis requested an updated copy of the CIP with these changes. The Recreation Reports were mailed out for review ahead of time. No questions were asked. Mr. Yuan moved to close the meeting. Rick DeAngelis seconded. The December 18`" 2019 meeting of the Recreation Committee adjourned at 8:58pm. Respectfully submitted, Christine Dean Community Center Director The next meeting of the Recreation Committee is scheduled to take place on Wednesday,January 15"at 7:00pm in Room 237 of the Lexington Community Center,39 Marrett Road. The following documents distributed at the meeting are attached: • Community Needs Assessment Memo • Portable Restroom Pilot Program • 2020 Fee Proposal • Board of Selectman Goals • December Recreation and Community Programs Report 39 MARRETT ROAD,LEXINGTON,MASSACHUSETTS 02421