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Parks Advisory Board Minutes
Meeting of February 6, 2008
Roosevelt Gardens Park — Fort Lauderdale
| Members Present: |
Members Absent: |
Others Present: |
| Sharon Kent |
Terry Danger |
Bob Harbin, Parks & Rec. |
| Alanna Mersinger |
Marc Kiar |
Mike Harlan, Parks & Rec. |
| Quentin Morgan, Chair |
Ed Portner |
Sarah Perkins, Parks & Rec. |
| Stephen Oyer-Owens |
Guy Roper |
Chester Pruitt, Parks & Rec. |
| Jack Talabisco |
Sheila Rose |
Dave Gardner, Parks & Rec. |
| |
Bill Spute |
Bill Gilmartin, Parks & Rec. |
| |
Milette Thurston |
Rich Laudia, Parks & Rec. |
| |
Gretchen Menk Tindle |
Jerry Long, Parks & Rec. |
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Meoshi Jackson, Parks & Rec. |
The meeting was called to order by Quentin Morgan at 6:10 p.m., after which all present recited the Pledge of Allegiance.
Approval of Minutes
A quorum of members was not present for this meeting. Therefore, approval of minutes of the meeting of December 5, 2007, is postponed until the next meeting.
Employees of the Month for January and February 2008
Jerry Long was congratulated as Employee of the Month for January. He was applauded for his accomplishments and work ethics and was awarded a framed certificate of appreciation and a gift certificate for an area restaurant. Bobby Simmons, Employee of the Month for February, was unable to attend. Bob Harbin accepted his award on his behalf.
Park Manager's Report
Rich Laudia, Parks & Recreation Manager III, who supervises the neighborhood parks, welcomed the Board and gave them an update on Roosevelt Gardens Park. Roosevelt Gardens has been open for two months and staff will soon be hiring a park manager and a few other positions. The Board meeting was being held in the Round Hall, which is pretty popular. Mr. Laudia estimated that, within another month, the hall will be booked every weekend through the end of the year for activities such as birthday parties, small weddings, etc. The park has three pavilions available to the public for renting, a covered playground and swing area, a basketball court, two water spray areas, and rock climbing. There is a game room that is utilized for after school programs, a small meeting space, and a computer lab with nine computers available to public. The park now offers karate classes, a mom and tot program, and a sports program.
Jaime Plana, Planning and Design Superintendent, explained to the Board that the property was acquired over a number of years and mainly through the 2000 Safe Parks and Land Preservation Bond Program. The park was built within five months of construction. Staff is still trying to acquire property for the park through the Land Preservation Fund. When Sharon Kent asked what the park’s budget was, Mr. Plana replied that is was approximately $3.3 million. Chester Pruitt, Central District Superintendent, thanked Dave Gardner, the project manager. Mr. Pruitt then explained to the Board that the community surrounding Roosevelt Gardens Parks is a low income area with hardly any recreation within the unincorporated areas. The residents are very appreciative. Mr. Pruitt reminded the Board that this is the neighborhood that Commissioner Eggelletion grew up in, and that he had a great interest in having this park built during his tenure as mayor.
Parks and Recreation Division (Parks) update
Mr. Harbin explained that the County will go through a budget reduction exercise using Zero Based Budgeting. The County Commission held a Budget Workshop on February 5 and their plans are to protect the employees at all costs, reduce as little services as possible, and generate revenues without raising taxes. He used advertising in County facilities and raising fees as examples.
Staff will go through a process involving a Results Team that consists of individuals appointed by the County Commission. Recommendations made by the Results Team will be submitted to the County Administrator who, in turn, reports the team's findings to the Commission. The final budget hearings will be held in late September, prior to the new fiscasl year in October. Mr. Harbin will report to the Board on a monthly basis.
On Friday, February 22, 2008, Central Broward Regional Park (CBRP) will host its first official professional soccer game. The game will begin at 7:30 p.m. with teams from Colorado and Utah.
The bike trail at Quiet Waters Park is almost ready to be opened. Although there was a considerable amount of tree damage, Mr. Harbin said that staff would like to have at least half of it open for use very soon.
The Long Key Nature Center and Natural Area will open on March 14, 2008, at 4:00 p.m. Mr. Harbin reminded the members that they will be receiving an invitation shortly and encouraged them to attend.
The Helene Klein Natural Area opened on February 1, 2008.
All aquatics facilities will open by the first week in March, including the new one at CBRP.
Stephen Oyer-Owens asked if there were future possibilities of having more trees planted at CBRP. Mr. Harbin and Mr. Plana explained that approximately 1,000 trees were planted on 110 acres. However, the shade trees are very young and it will take a while for the vegetation to mature. It could possibly take several years.
Bond Construction Update Mr. Plana gave the Board an update on construction projects that are coming to their final stages.
Planning and Design staff are obtaining permits for the prototypes, which should be breaking ground all over the County.
T.Y. Park renovations are complete.
Design builds for Tradewinds North and South and Markham are being created.
>Staff will renovate the exterior of the house at Hollywood North Beach Park in order to prevent it from deteriorating. It will be restored for environmentally educational purposes, such as a sea turtle program. The Division received over $4 million in Florida Community Trust grants toward this project. Staff, along with Commissioner Gunzburger, will also meet and strategize with members of the Hollywood Beach Homeowner’s association, who are opposed to the renovation.
Mr. Plana was happy to report that, in relation to constructions costs, staff received a couple of bids that were 30% cheaper than a year ago.
Staff is working very hard on the master plan for Everglades Holiday Park. Several meetings have been held and, before bringing it before the Advisory Board, staff would like to receive input from the County Commissioners.
The renovations to Plantation Heritage, Tree Tops, and C.B. Smith parks are almost complete.
Mr. Morgan asked for the status of the City of Oakland Park ’s Challenge Grant. Mr. Harbin responded that the Spiher/Spangler projects had been abandoned and the City will now be renovating a building into a Community Center.
Old Business
Parks Trust Funds
Mr. Morgan asked that this item be tabled to the next meeting when more members are present.
New Business
Park Safety Measures
Tabled.
Next Meeting
The next meeting will be held on March 5, 2008 at the Quiet Waters Skate Park.
Adjournment
There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 6:56 p.m.
Public Forum
The following are comments, suggestions, and questions raised by the public.
Speaker: Willis Hale
Mr. Hale commented on the campgrounds at T.Y. Park. He felt that local residents were not able to take full advantage of the campgrounds because the out-of-state users were reserving the spaces so far in advance.
Mr. Hale asked that staff consider a different outlook for resolving budget issues while maintaining services and keeping the parks open. He made such suggestions as raising the user fees in order to be more competitive, and more intense marketing of the annual park passes.
Mr. Harbin responded that the current fees are based on an annual tri-county survey that is conducted by staff. The goal is to be in the mid-range when compared to governmental agencies and some private sector agencies. In addition, the Division raised total revenues by about 30%.
Ms.Kent asked that staff consider finding a way to prohibit non-County residents from reserving the campgrounds during a certain registration period so that Broward County residents have the opportunity to reserve them first.
The Public Forum was adjourned at 7:20 p.m.
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