PRCR Advisory Board Minutes

TOWN OF CARY
Parks, Recreation & Cultural Resources Advisory Board
2001 MINUTES

March 5, 2001, 5PM

111 James Jackson Avenue
Cary, NC 27511

ATTENDANCE:
Board Members: Chair Liza Weidle, Allison Ascenzi, Lisa Duke, Jamie France, Vibha Goel, Tom Hemrick, Toby Kennedy, Stan Latta, Greg Lytle,
Absent: Rose Brown

Staff: Mary Barry, Lyman Collins, William Davis, Dwayne Jones, Doug McRainey, Gail Taylor, Alice Webb, Judy Willard


I.	Call to Order – Chair, Liza Weidle called the meeting to order.
II.	Minutes of February 5, 2001 ACTION: Tom Hemrick made a motion to approve the minutes of the February 5th meeting. The minutes were unanimously approved as presented on March 5th.
III.	Citizens Speak Out - None
IV.	Special Presentations
	A. State Capital Soccer Park – Bill Wynne with the State Capital Soccer Park gave an overview of the components of this complex. This 150-acre complex is located off Chatham Street, just east of Maynard Road, and is currently under construction. The land is being leased (50-year lease) from the State of North Carolina. Phase IA will include 5 fields and a 3000 seat stadium; parking for 1,064 and three buildings: (field house, bldg. B ticketing/concessions and bldg. C public restrooms). The completion of Phase 1A is anticipated in November 2001. Phase 1B will add two additional fields; 2,000 additional seats to the stadium and one additional building E (public restrooms and concessions); and 700 additional parking spaces. Phase II to include a 20,000 seat stadium will be funded at a later date. Mr. Wynne noted that this will be a soccer facility first. All fields will have international dimensions. To date, he had not received footprints for an aquatic facility or an ice facility. He indicated that CASL would be open to new ideas as long as they fit. B. Sears Farm Road Park Master Plan – Park Planner Alice Webb introduced Mark Robinson, of Mark Robinson and Associates, and gave an overview of the design process for this park. The park, located off Sears Farm Road in west Cary is located on approximately 13 acres. A public meeting was held on October 10^th to discuss ideas for the park. A Citizen Master Plan Committee consisting of neighborhood representatives, staff, landscape architect Mark Robinson and Advisory Board liaison Tom Hemrick held three subsequent meetings (Nov. 1^st, Jan. 23^rd and Feb. 21^st) to help develop the park master plan. The first meeting was to gain input on general ideas for the park and a list of components they would like to see in the park. Mr. Robinson then incorporated their ideas into three alternatives and the committee then chose aspects of the three they liked the best. Mark Robinson then presented the final plan to the Board. This park is proposed to include a playground; small picnic shelter; basketball court; restrooms and a skate element. The park layout will lend views down the hill toward the buffer. It will include a small entry garden with a couple of additional gardens with seating nooks and intensive plantings. Natural trails will be located throughout the wooded area. The larger planted areas will be sculptured. Parking for 20-24 spaces is planned. A promenade would be included that would parallel Sears Farm Road. This walkway would replace a traditional sidewalk and would bring pedestrians into the park, while still allowing access through the park. This project is budgeted at 1.4 million. Board member Toby Kennedy recommended the inclusion of a traditional sidewalk along the street edge of the park property, to provide safety for those that park on the street and walk to the park. He commented that a traditional sidewalk serves a different purpose than the promenade that was proposed for the park. Mark Robinson noted again that the design of the park was to bring the sidewalk into the park. Mary Barry, Director for Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources noted that this is not a heavy facility park that would encourage users to come by car. Tom Hemrick, advisory board liaison to the citizen master plan committee noted the whole concept was to be a walking park not a "destination park" and he was comfortable with the design. He further noted that the citizen master plan committee had reviewed the sidewalk option and felt that the walkway within the park property was preferable. The committee felt strongly that because this is a neighborhood park, the majority of its use would be from the adjacent subdivisions, and many people would access the park on foot. ACTION: Toby Kennedy made a motion to accept the design with the addition of a sidewalk; Vibha Goel seconded the motion. The board voted: 4 in favor; 3 against and 2 abstained from voting. Skate Park – Last February Council asked staff to gather information on skate parks. Subsequently, in June, Dick Paton of Paton, Zucchino & Associates and John Woodstock Design were hired to design a park. Staff and the design team looked at existing parks for site selection because of the time element. Final sites considered include Bond Park, North Cary Park and the recommended site of Godbold Park. In October, Godbold Park was selected and approved as the site. The initial public input session on design was held July 15^th with potential users and their parents present. During this meeting, citizens set three goals to achieve on building the Skate Park: 1) skill development; 2) social environment and 3) safety. Additionally, kids were asked to draw desired ramps. From that meeting John prepared a conceptual design and reviewed it at a second public input session on August 19^th. At the February 2001 public meeting, the consultants presented the schematic design of skate park elements and infrastructure. This will be a staffed facility at an estimated cost of $380,000. The final design includes a 12,000 ft. slab, parking, restrooms, concessions, ticket and covered viewing area. Staff is working on the operation plan. Discussion: Stan Latta asked staff what type of revenues this park would generate. Dwayne Jones responded he was continuing to collect data (estimated admission $2-4/hr). Liza Weidle asked if one day would be designated as a ‘free day’, Dwayne noted he would look into her request. It was noted that this will not be a beginners facility. Mary Barry estimated groundbreaking to take place in July or August with an estimated 4-month construction period. ACTION: Tom Hemrick made a motion that the board recommend approval to move forward with the design and that the lighting be a part of the initial construction. Toby Kennedy seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously.
V.	Committee Reports
	A. Cultural Arts Committee – Toby Kennedy Chair Toby Kennedy reported eight applications were received for four openings on the Cultural Arts Committee. ACTION: Toby Kennedy made a motion that the Board endorse the following appointments to the Cultural Arts Committee: Kay Struffolino; Debra Yalacki; Cynthia Mollenkopf and Vincent Howard; the motion was seconded by Stan Latta. The motion carried unanimously. The Arts Forum will tentatively be held in September due to the volume of work necessary for the Public Arts Master Plan. This added time will allow the new members to become integrated into the Forum. Chair Liza Weidle offered to speak to CAC and show the video, "The Vital Role of Citizen-Board Members". Toby will advise the meeting time. The CAC reviewed requests and recommended funding to the following cultural arts groups: 1) Cary Town Band/$1000; 2) Concert Singers of Cary $7,500; 3) Fine Arts League of Cary/$1,500; 4) Cary Visual Arts/$2,500. A funding request from the North Carolina Symphony was removed from the list. Lyman Collins explained with the opening of the Regency Amphitheater, the Town’s relationship is changing and this would allow the Town to negotiate funding needs directly with the Symphony. The Public Art Master Plan Charrette held January 27^th was a great success. Vibha Goel noted that many great ideas and positive feedback came from the community. Consultant Jennifer Murphy is collating the information and will do a presentation to this committee. The Public Art Master Plan meetings are open to the public.
	B. Greenway Committee - Greg Lytle Chair Greg Lytle reviewed the applications to the Greenway Committee. ACTION: Toby Kennedy made a motion that the Board endorse the following appointments to the Greenway Committee: Reid Miner; Karl Thor; and Bob Morris. Also, that Allison Dillard and Mark Ivey’s terms be extended to 2002; and that Carol Wilcox’s term expire in 2003. The motion was seconded by Jamie France and carried unanimously. Members received a meeting schedule of community and Town Council and Advisory Board meetings on the Open Space and Historic Resources Plan and members were encouraged to attend. A tentative joint meeting with the Planning and Zoning Board is scheduled for June 18^th. Greg Lytle noted that he is chairing the volunteer committee for Celebration for Umstead taking place on April 21st.
	C. Athletic Committee - Allison Ascenzi Chair Liza Weidle appointed board member Allison Ascenzi to chair the Athletic Committee. Allison asked to defer the appointments to the Athletic Committee until the next meeting. Allison did note that the committee met to review and make decisions on special requests for youth baseball/softball. Plans are underway for the Spirit of Sportsmanship and the Cary Road Race.
	D. Teen Sub-committee Report – Chair Liza Weidle noted that Rose Brown, Vanessa Streeter (Meredith College freshman), Sean Cherry and Teri Espy serve on this committee. The next meeting will be March 20^th with Mary Barry, Dwayne Jones and Jeff Lee to review the numbers. As part of the Teen Sub-committee review of teen programming, staff developed two teen programming questionnaires. These were distributed to middle school students (24 participants) and high school students (35 participants) in the Teen Council. Questions were first given to individuals and then they broke into groups. Each group came up with three programs of interest. All programs were listed on the worksheet. Then the teens were asked to vote for the activities in which they would participate and vote for as many as they would like. The two groups agreed dances were not their priority but listening to music was important. The middle school student’s #1 activity was sports and the high school students #1 activity was movies. (Teen Program Questionnaire results were distributed at the March meeting). Teens were encouraged to help staff decide types of programs to implement in the Town. Staff continues to collect information and feedback from other teen centers and organizations. E. Teen Council – Liza Weidle reported that a graduation picnic will be held in May where one teen will receive a scholarship and that the middle school students will be a part of Nickelodeon/Make a Mark on a Park.
VI.	Land Dedications - None
VII.	Department Reports
	A. Administration
	Herbert C. Young Community Center – Mary Barry noted that at the Annual Volunteer Banquet held in February, Town Council issued a proclamation renaming the Cary Community Center the Herbert C. Young Community Center. Aquatics Center Work Session – Consultant Scott Hunsaker gave his final presentation to Town Council on February 15^th. Mr. Hill Carrow with Capital Sports Management suggested that they add significantly to what Cary is already contemplating, at no additional cost to the Town of Cary. He is suggesting that the aquatics center consist of five pools, an ice facility and a health/wellness center. The projected cost for this complex is $44 million. The Mayor gave Mr. Carrow 90 days to come back to the Town with his proposal to fund the expanded scope of this project. Transportation System for Seniors and People with Disabilities – The contract has been awarded to First Transit to operate the Town-wide transportation service for seniors and people with disabilities. The Town will be signing a three-year contract to operate the system, beginning in August, for 1.2 million for the first year. The Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources staff will manage the marketing, the eligibility of riders and ticketing. The contract management will be handled in the Planning Department. White Oak Creek Conservation Project - The Town has received $86,000 in grant monies from the Clean Water Management Trust Fund Program for this project. Staff is working with the Trust for Public Land to negotiate with landowners along the White Oak Creek to define the area to be conserved and location of the White Oak Creek Greenway, currently being designed. Open Space and Historical Resources Plan – The Town has received $50,000 in grant monies from the Wake County Open Space Program to fund the development of the plan.
	B. Athletics - William Davis
	Youth Sports - William Davis noted the youth basketball season went well. Youth baseball registration is underway with 80 slots open. Team placements will take place this weekend. Cary Road Race – The race will take place April 21^st. Board members were encouraged to volunteer at this event.
	C. Cultural Arts – Lyman Collins
	Regency Park Amphitheatre is rising on the banks of Regency Lake – Staff is currently interviewing potential management companies. The final decision is expected soon. Kids Together Playground – The dragon tail is being installed at the Kids Together Playground. Staff is continuing to look at the use of safety surfacing and is working with the artist to extend the neck back into the hill. This piece of public art was funded by Cary Visual Arts. Applause! Cary Youth Theatre – "Wiley and the Hairy Man" has been selected as the spring production. Performances will take place Mother’s Day weekend, May 11, 12 and 13^th at the Sertoma Amphitheater at Bond Park. Auditions are being scheduled for young actors 8 through 18. Spring Daze Festival – This festival will take place April 28^th. Lazy Daze Festival – This year marks the 25^th Anniversary of the Lazy Daze Festival. This festival takes place August 25^th. A poster contest to commemorate this anniversary is being held. The winner will be awarded a prize of $500. April 4^th is the entry deadline. Fine Art Exhibits – Lyman Collins noted the art exhibits currently on display at Page-Walker Arts and History Center and the Jordan Hall Arts Center. On April 1^st, The Fine Arts League of Cary will hold a juried show with a reception at the Page-Walker Arts and History Center. The Mayor will select the Mayor’s Choice Award. People for Parks – There will be a People for Parks meeting on March 8^th at the North Carolina Museum of Art at 7 p.m. to find out what public art is and how to make it a reality. It was noted that Roy Alfred is attending the People for Parks meetings and will be giving us updates.
	D. Recreation Programs - Dwayne Jones
	Shelter Use Policy – This policy went to the Operations Committee March 2nd to consider change in the picnic shelter usage policy to include an after hour usage fee and to provide the opportunity to make reservations for new facilities. The new shelters are: Davis Drive Park; Kids Together Park; North Cary Park; White Oak Park and Green Hope Elementary School Park. Hemlock Bluffs Exhibits – A staff report went to the Operations Committee on March 2nd recognizing funding contributions for the Exhibit Hall at the Stevens Nature Center for Habitat Dioramas. The Hemlock Bluffs Preservation Society approached Mary Barry about Town funding to complete the exhibits. Mary responded that it was established as a fundraising project. The staff has not requested money for the exhibits due to the success with fundraising. Mary further noted funds have been received from several grants. SeniorNet – A staff report went to the Operations Committee March 2^nd recognizing $11,000 in SeniorNet donations. These funds will be spent for the remaining balance of dues for the national SeniorNet organization, operations and supplies. Dwayne Jones noted that on the first day of registration for SeniorNet 99 slots filled within ½ hour. Additional classes will be held. Program Report Kite Festival – A Kite Festival will be held on March 24^th, at Bond Park. Kite-making classes will be held at the Cary Senior Center prior to the festival. Pre-registration is required. Daddy/Daughter Dance – This dance, held February 10^th, was a great success with 155 participants. Staff noted that the feedback was very positive.
VIII.	Old Business
	North Cary Park – Mark Robinson looked at the sliding board and the cross rails which were put into place to prevent bicycles, wheel chairs and strollers from rolling down the hill. He suggested replacing the cross rails with "wings" which would still allow children access to the slide. Staff also looked at the request for additional directional signage for the greenway and five signs have been ordered designating access to the Black Creek Greenway from North Cary Park. Toby Kennedy recommended extending the paved area at the Parkway gate access for pedestrians. Lastly, Public Works has been asked to lock the gate at the Cary Parkway entrance. Kids Together Park Fountain – The fountain is complete and has been winterized. Public Works will put the fountain back online in March. However, staff is reviewing standards and looking at having frost free water fountains placed at those facilities that are used year-round. Public Works has implemented a sign-in sheet for crews that open/close as well as clean the shelter. Toby Kennedy recommended posting a sign with after-hour call numbers at the shelter. Additionally, a mid-day trash pick-up occurs on the weekend.
IX.	New Business
	Senior Center Liaison ACTION: Toby Kennedy made a motion to nominate Stan Latta as Senior Center Liaison; Tom Hemrick seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously. Tom Hemrick was appointed as vice chair. Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources Advisory Board Rules – Attachment ‘A’ ACTION: Allison Ascenzi made a motion to approve the rules; Stan Latta seconded the motion. The motion carried unanimously. Mission Statement – Board members agreed to review the mission statement at the next meeting. Tennis Center Groundbreaking – Staff gave a reminder that the groundbreaking will take place Saturday March 10^th at 10 a.m. PRCR Advisory Board/Committees Joint Meeting - Tom Hemrick suggested having a joint dinner meeting with this board and its board committees. Mary Barry indicated that staff will look at ideas. Facility Tour – Board members would like to have a facility tour. Staff will develop options to accommodate this request.
X.	Adjourn