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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2020-08-12-REC-min (includes attachments) `opS MORNS 775 Town of Lexington 4 o W Recreation Committee APRIL I T" �FXI N 6 Frederick DeAngelis, Chairman Tel: (781) 698-4800 Lisah Rhodes,Vice Chair Fax: (781) 861-2747 Lisa O'Brien Christian Boutwell Francesca Pfrommer Recreation Committee Minutes of Meeting August 12, 2020 A virtual meeting of the Recreation Committee was held on Wednesday, August 12, 2020 at 6:30pm through the Zoom platform. Members Present: Rick DeAngelis,Lisah Rhodes,Lisa O'Brien,Francesca Pfrommer, Christian Boutwell Staff Present: Melissa Battite,Director of Recreation and Community Programs,Peter Coleman, Assistant Director of Recreation, Christine Dean,Community Center Director,and Katharine Labrecque,Management Fellow Others Present: Meredith Applegate (42 Reed Street, Lexington), Suzie Barry(Select Board liaison),Austin Hochstetler(PROS Consulting) 1. July 15,2020 Minutes Francesca Pfrommer moved and Lisah Rhodes seconded the approval of the minutes,with edits, from the July 15'meeting. The Recreation Committee voted 4-0 to approve the July 15 minutes. 2. Public Comment—None 3. Welcome to new Recreation Committee Member, Christian Boutwell Christian Boutwell was welcomed to the Committee and shared a brief overview of his experience and qualifications. 4. Community Needs Assessment Presentation Austin Hochstetler presented key findings and recommendation areas from the Community Needs Assessment(presentation and discussion points are attached). A discussion by the Committee followed the presentation. Lisah Rhodes expressed her excitement about the process and especially the recommendations for the Old Reservoir. Christian Boutwell inquired about the survey response rate and how it compared to other communities. Austin Hochstetler, of Pros Consulting, confirmed that there was an above average response and public engagement in Lexington compared to what he has witnessed in other, oftentimes larger, communities. He noted that he received direct emails from community members which is not typical. Francesca Pfrommer pointed out that the goal of 400 responses was chosen to be a representative sample of the community and wondered how the 700 online survey responses would fit into the picture. She inquired if we had access to the disaggregated data. Austin explained that the statistically valid survey provided a breakdown of the responses by household, and then by the survey respondent. The results reflected a 50150 split of male and female respondents. The race demographics closely matched census data for the Town. It also showed the amount of time that the respondent has lived in Town. Because the 2 online survey trends similarly but typically skews the data a bit,there is a comparison report focused on key questions. The survey also includes all the open comment boxes to use for data points. The actual graphics used in the report are from the statistically valid survey,however, the consulting firm looks at the commonalities and uses the data packs to confirm their findings. Lisa O'Brien expressed her appreciation to Austin and went on to add that she was surprised by the identified need for indoor space. Austin affirmed that there are a lot of fitness and wellness programs in Town that need space, and the demand is for a multi-functional facility. Ms. O'Brien went on to add that she was impressed by the coordination between the departments to collect data and support the process. Ms. Pfrommer was surprised to learn that walking and biking trails were the#2 facility that the community was satisfied with and yet it was also the#2 priority for facility investment. She also asked if there was anything in the results about ADA accessibility. Austin responded that there is nothing in the key recommendations but it was included in the facility assessments. Melissa Battite, Director of Recreation and Community Programs, explained that the trails and open space lands are all owned by the Town of Lexington but are connected through different entities. This would be a perfect opportunity to identify a leader for a movement to unify the properties. The recommendations will allow us to look at the key partners and identify support. Ms. Battite is excited to collaborate on the initiative together instead of in independent ways. Mr. Boutwell added that this is a great opportunity to apply the MacMillan Matrix to assist the conversations of if we should reach out from a lead perspective, or be a support when it is out of our core competencies. Ms. O'Brien shared that she was surprised by the funding results, and found it interesting to know that Lexington has an appetite for partnerships to get projects funded. Ms. Battite explained that use of the Town's trails is not a fee-generating service. The question of who supports and maintains the property is an important one, especially during this time of COVID. The Department is making difficult decisions when it comes to facility capacity and resources for programming so the core services conversation is already helping to guide us. Suzie Barry, liaison to the Select Board, expressed that she is looking forward to the presentation later in September. She recommended requesting more than 20 minutes in order to fully present the findings. She also suggested putting it out to the Town Meeting Members so they can hear the presentation and not just read the report. Ms. Rhodes commented that it is obvious how interconnected all the entities are in Town. She asked for next steps to which Ms. Battite directed the Committee to ask questions and identify any areas that were unclear. Ms. Pfrommer responded that the report is thorough and clear, that Austin added a lot to the story and provided a compelling narrative. After the discussion concluded, the following important dates were announced: • Monday, August 24th-the Assistant Town Manager of Finance will present a financial summary of FY20 and FY21 forecasts to the Select Board. This includes the Recreation Enterprise Fund, its FY20 fund balance and proposed revised FY21 operating budget. • Thursday, September 10'-a Financial Summit will be held which will include a more detailed description of the state of the Recreation Enterprise Fund. • Wednesday, October 14'-Fall Special Town Meeting will begin. Lisa O'Brien made a motion to adjourn, it was seconded by Christian Boutwell. The August 12th, 2020 meeting of the Recreation Committee adjourned at 8:22pm. 39 MARRETT ROAD,LEXINGTON,MASSACHUSETTS 02421 3 Respectfully submitted, Christine A. Dean Community Center Director The next virtual meeting of the Recreation Committee is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, August 26'at 6:30pm through the Zoom platform. The following documents are attached: • LexRecNeeds Key Findings Presentation • Notes from LexRecNeeds presentation 39 MARRETT ROAD,LEXINGTON,MASSACHUSETTS 02421 #LexRecNeeds Presentation Notes Recreation Committee Meeting-August 12,2020 Key findings Vision of planning success • Understand the opinion of non-users • Speak to how we should identify needs • Priority ranked needs assessment, how do we know this need is more important than this need. • Articulate that a needs assessment has a shelf life • A tool/map for the next several years Through dialogue we learned (driving points for our research) • It is critical to identify and distinguish needs from wants • Indoor space is lacking • There is a desire to have community coordination • How does the community value parks and recreation • Integral part of programing: cultural diversity, inclusion, accessibility, not duplicating services • Alternate funding sources may be required. We learned this from the pandemic. • Sports field maintenance can be improved. Identifying needs • High priority based on the service • Facilities-see indoor frequently in the high priority area • Who should be responsible for responding to the needs? Indoor spaces • .99 sf per person, best practice is 2.00 sf per person. • Data shows that need exists Coordination • 55%of respondents are somewhat familiar with parks & rec Maintenance • Majority of respondents would invest improvements and maintenance of existing parks and facilities • There is a reliance on departments for maintenance Key recommendations • Programming o Leading outdoor recreation and outdoor water recreation o Continue to lead therapeutic recreation o Partner/support with school system for enrichment services- better marketing o Leverage partnerships with the library to deliver programs-74%of respondents use the library o Use MacMillan matrix • Facilities o Invest in support facilities that deliver high priority programming and meet community needs: invest in the old reservoir, connecting the park system (can lead connecting parks within the parks, but utilize other departments), multifunctional indoor rec space o Partner with schools to understand schedules and space • Maintenance o Ensure formalized facility maintenance agreements with other dept. o Ensure there are equipment maintenance schedules o Ensure there are formalized maintenance standards (level of care) o Advance forward the field feasibility study; playability calculator o Continue to make ADA improvements • Community Marketing o Look at internal and external partnerships and have someone dedicated to closing/narrowing the communication coordination gap. o Traditional marketing strategies are still important.The idea of the guide is very much used and preferred. Even if it's online. • System Funding o Create a support mechanism for recreation; create a foundation to help with project specific funding.This would help provide additional funding o Explore an overarching maintenance endowment fund. Charge a fee that will go towards maintenance. o Dedicated bikeway maintenance funding as trails/pathways are becoming more and more a priority. • Park classification o Adopt nomenclature and terminology that classifies each recreation site based on: service range, desired length of stay, support amenities, size, and intended use. • Business Planning o Cost recovery goals, accounting methods, KPS, and preparation to ■ How can we actually develop a cost recovery model for therapeutic rec? Do we assign a cost to the program? o Leveraging mini business plans by core program areas (what are we paying attention to why we are delivering program to make adjustments) ■ Cost recovery goal ■ Target audiences ■ Marketing strategies • Discussion o Surprised that the Old Res was attractive to residents o Response rates was above average o People are very satisfied but yet the want more o Expanding pathways for ADA accessibility o Interesting to know where Lexington has an appetite for funding r! /r. r i� 1111111 I I I u IY � I I I i 4 I m m r, HIM r j�rrr e �r jr rrr I I �� I � r�I t f / Z ox fig I h' r B 9 � B G�% ,,,, I �` '!� �% i% iir ;'�;, jai"� � �/ I w� � � f ',!' i �': � �y� //� �/,, l (� ���h i ��� � '�If ' � � ���'`; � f . . �� '� �� �j f �l � ,/% to ��i �� v� 4� V Illlilll .............................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 0 4— N Cie .................................. 06 4) 0 Do 4- 0 LL ----------------------- ----- 14- 0 o b m® u �r .ry S '� m® III III III III III / m® uuu � ulu,Vgi u m it � r IIIf�J��'! i i 111 � SII Ili li CL I 0 4 r,�I u.j V) a. llll�����Jjjj, ljj�����Jjll, r m® �uuuuuuuuuumuuuuuuuum VII / m® i i m® i s %i IIIIIIII� 0 0 ry 1114ummmmmmi � W � o L � � O � O O qp 0 CL •L � o -o0CLv O m v m'u ao a a I o v o N 3 N Ol vi C 4I O E w q U 75 q c OV gorO2 Q UO O U ` 0O w ov ' c3 O 0 a NN$ m m O q N d Q E y3j C d +1= 3 C h O l7 o O Z m q ® W G O w t75 0 o S �a WIC I� m WIWI L •�/ i&ro I i&ro O L a %IBM % '~ 0 v £ c g E o © E E £ � E � •� E �i � £ E a � g � E ❑- E •c � E La 2 L° m L° L° m H L° o 4I O t0 Q N hb v 0➢ hb 0.0 tla � by 00, b0 bA � 09 N O pp V © O 2,0� q O q CEJ G O O o ��1 0 0 4 u o O a.� v � Y o-s ^ v v t" `o L g v w u m 'E j O Q C U lS ri j O o C b o uc / Co a"S aci °o `c Q m Z m.. ap ° m 'n oa m Q O c u u ` m cJ ,�, `t in 'q W n Q a% Q i 2 Q o o u0 v v rJ' O c -5 ,°cc° G a O 4 �. c No a an = E c � 5 O W U Q G F L � W � W C > uUJ U U1 m® i v Ua o o „,,,, a S Oa T ff _ LL I _ V ✓" " er,'" s " -� rn M Cl) r) CM I. 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