Cary Parks, Recreation and Cultural Resources Advisory Board Meeting Minutes 

  Monday, April 9, 2007 @ 5:15 p.m. 

 Cary Town Hall

316 N. Academy Street -  Cary, NC 27513

 www.townofcary.org     

Attendance:
Jeff Boucher; Robert Bush; Sal Cammarata; Tony D’Amico; Susan Davenport; Marilyn Goldman; Dennis Hoadley; Tullie Johnson; Steve Smutko; Kay Struffolino; Snayha Nath, Teen Council Representative

Absent:  Nels Roseland, Council Liaison

Staff: 
Mary Henderson; Lyman Collins; Bruce Crocker; Dwayne Jones; Doug McRainey; Helen Stanfield; Gail Taylor; Paul Kuhn

Guests:  Marvin Goldman; Bob Dolan, Rob & Karen Throckmorton; Janii Pearce

I.  Call to Order/Roll Call – Steve Smutko, Chair
Steve Smutko called the meeting to order at 5:15 p.m.

►Dwayne Jones read a Proclamation from Town Council proclaiming April as Volunteer Appreciation Month and board members were provided refreshments courtesy of the Town Council.

II. Adoption of Agenda – Steve Smutko, Chair

ACTION:  Kay Struffolino made a motion to adopt the April agenda; the motion was seconded by Jeff Boucher.  The motion carried by a unanimous vote.

III. Adoption of Minutes of March 5, 2007 – Steve Smutko, Chair

ACTION:  Kay Struffolino made a motion to adopt the March minutes; the motion was seconded by Tullie Johnson.  The motion carried by a unanimous vote.

IV. Public Speaks Out
Walker Townes Homeowners Association – PRCR Board Member and homeowner Marilyn Goldman spoke of the land acquisition that was occurring within town center and its impact on she and her neighbors.  PRCR Director Mary Henderson is planning to meet with the Town’s real estate staff; engineering director and the Walker Townes homeowners to make certain that everyone receives accurate information..

V. Special Presentation
►Walnut Street Master Plan – Paul Kuhn, Parks Planner
Paul reviewed the Walnut Street Park Master Plan that was approved in 2006 for the 11-acre park on the corner of Walnut Street and Lawrence Drive.  Paul presented the final design elements that include: a playground; trails; picnic shelter; restrooms and a 2-acre open lot area. This is Cary’s first park that has incorporated public art into the park design.  The goal of the art component is to enhance one of the park elements.  Artist Barbara Gragutis has designed the promenade as the signature feature of the park.  The existing landscape has been preserved to the extent that mature vegetation will remain and flowering Redbuds and Dogwoods will be planted.  Board member Tullie Johnson asked that native plantings be used.

Board members voiced concerns on the appearance of the restroom building.  Staff pointed out that the building was concrete and not prefabricated metal.  Parks Planning Manager Doug McRainey noted that color and landscaping will be added to enhance the building’s appearance.

Board member Robert Bush asked about waterless urinals.  Staff indicated that the Town does have them at the Bond Park Community Center but they are not intended to be used at this facility.

Board member Susan Davenport asked if plans included recyclable plastics (i.e. trash receptacles & benches) in the park.  The Public Works Department has reported that the plastics do not hold up as well as their metal counterparts.  Mary Henderson indicated she would check with Public Works regarding the general use of recycled plastics.

ACTION:  Kay Struffolino made a motion to accept the Walnut Street Park final design; the motion was seconded by Dennis Hoadley.  The motion carried by a unanimous vote.

VI. Land Dedications – Doug McRainey, Parks Planning Manager
►Manors At Green Level
The property is located off of Roberts Road just west of NC Highway 55 and the proposed I-540 corridor.  The property is bordered by White Oak Creek on its north side.

·         # of Units – 74
   Required Dedication – 2.11 acres

Staff Recommendation

• Approval of a payment-in-lieu in place of any required parkland dedication.
• Approval for developer to construct a private trail connection along the west side of the property, ultimately to link up with the White Oak Creek Greenway. 
• Approval for developer to donate to Town of Cary a conservation easement over the northern half of the property (approximately 9 acres).

ACTION:  Robert Bush made a motion to accept staff’s recommendation; Dennis Hoadley seconded the motion.  The motion carried by a unanimous vote.
.
►Stephens Road Property Rezoning Case - #06-REZ-40

This is a request to re-zone 12.99 acres adjacent to Stephens Road, west of Piney Plains Road. The Town’s Morris Branch park site is adjacent to this property on the north side.  Morris Branch designates the common property line between the Meacham property and the Town’s property.  The request is to re-zone the Stephens Road Property from Transitional Residential Conditional Use (TR-CU) Use limited to Single-Family detached units with a maximum of 48 lots.

          #’s of  Units – 48
    Required Dedication – 1.37 acres

Staff Recommendation 

• Approval of a payment-in-lieu in place of any required parkland dedication.

ACTION:  Tullie Johnson made a motion to accept staff’s recommendation; Kay Struffolino seconded the motion.  The motion carried by a unanimous vote.

VII. Reports
A. Committee Reports
►Athletics Committee – Jeff Boucher, Chair
Jeff reported that the committee did not meet.

►Cultural Arts Committee – Dennis Hoadley, Chair
Denny reported the committee reviewed non-profit funding applications and made recommendations to approve $103,500 in funds to 16 out of 19 applicants.

►Greenway Committee – Robert Bush, Chair
Robert reported the committee reviewed three land development reviews.

Robert noted that the majority of the meeting focused on the current sign plan project.  Lose & Assoc., consultants for the project, gave a PowerPoint presentation on the sign plan.  The consultant will return on April 17^th and present a couple of alternative sign packages.  The final sign proposal will come before this Board for a recommendation.

►Teen Advisory Committee – Tony D’Amico, Chair
Tony reported that the Teen Forum in March was successful; with 55 teens registered.   

►Goals Committee Reports
Safety Town – Jeff Boucher – Jeff noted that he had sent a request to recruit help on this project and Kay Struffolino offered to assist.

Scholarship Fund – Sal Cammarata – Sal outlined his plan to establish a permanent endowment fund through the Cary Community Foundation that will grant funds to those families and individuals that can not afford to participate in PRCR programs.  Beginning in 2007, the Endowment Initial Funding Goal is $222,500 over a 5-year period.
Chair Steve Smutko thanked Sal for his research and report and, suggested that promotional material be prepared to promote the endowment.

B.  Public Meetings
►Community Input Meeting for Public Art & Downtown Cary Streetscape/04/03/07 -
Lyman Collins
Lyman reported approximately 35 people attended the meeting for Artist Elizabeth Conner presentation and also viewed examples of her art projects in other communities.  Elizabeth will come to Cary about once a month for the next eight months to research, gather input and finalize her proposal.

C. Staff Reports

►Selection of Design Team for the Renovation of Old Cary Elementary (PR07-27)

Mary Henderson reported that this staff report is on the consent agenda for the April 12^th Council meeting recommending Clearscapes as the design team for the Renovation of Old Cary Elementary.

D. Administration – Mary Henderson, PRCR Director
►US 1 & 64 Pedestrian Bridge Update – Doug McRainey
Doug reported that this project has three components:  1) pedestrian bridge; 2) trails from the bridge linking MacDonald Woods Park with Kids Together Park; and 3) the public art component. Work is progressing on the trails with completion slated for June or July.

Doug advised board members of the upcoming Community Input Meeting for Public Art & US 1/64 Pedestrian Greenway Bridge on April 11^th at 7:30 p.m. at the Page-Walker Arts & History Center.  Artist Michael Stutz; representatives from the Department of Transportation and the contractor will be in attendance to address all aspects of the public art installation.

E. Recreation Programs – Dwayne Jones, Recreation Manager
►Teen Council – Snayha Nath
Snayha talked about the teens assisting with bingo night for the visually impaired.  The teens donated a new set of cards and plan to attend bingo night every other Friday to assist.  In addition to other current projects, Snayha noted the next Adopt-A-Highway Work Day is scheduled for April 15, 1-3 p.m. and invited Board members to join in. 

Bruce Crocker noted that the Teen Council donated $750.00 to the department’s Scholarship Fund. 

►Board/Committee Teen Member Recruitment – Dwayne Jones
Dwayne Jones noted that the Teen Council is starting to recruit teen service on PRCR board/committees.  A Teen Council meeting is scheduled for next Tuesday and board/committee representatives will be present to inform teens of the various committee responsibilities.  Teen service on the board/committees will empower teens in the decision making process.

Dwayne Jones updated board members on new PRCR staff:  Ronnie Rost was hired in the position of Thomas Brooks Park Assistant Facility Supervisor at the USA Baseball Complex; Danny Bass was hired in the position of Assistant Facility Supervisor at Middle Creek Community Center; and Joy Logan was hired in the position of Park Operations Technician at the Stevens Nature Center.

Dwayne noted the Annual Easter Egg Hunt was a success with approximately 4000 in attendance.

Dwayne announced that the Cary Cycling Celebration joined with the Jimmy V Foundation for Ride for Research on August 19^th.  Dwayne directed board members to the web page for additional information.

►Senior Center Liaison – Kay Struffolino
Kay provided members with a handout of recent events.  Kay noted that 43 health related vendors and 105 took part in the March 22^nd Health Fair and that AARP tax help served 372+ seniors.

F. Cultural Arts Programs – Lyman Collins, Cultural Arts Manager
Lyman referred members to the Program Updates.

►Festivals Committee – Marilyn Goldman
Marilyn reported that the request for Sister Cities Commission to host a Beer Garden at Lazy Daze was passed.  Joy updated members on Spring Daze activities and on the Take A Seat project.
Lyman Collins reminded board members that Spring Daze is April 28^th and there are volunteer opportunities to assist the day of the festival. 

G. Athletic Programs – William Davis, Athletics Manager

Mary Henderson reported for William highlighting the upcoming Cary Road Race on April 14th at the Koka Booth Amphitheatre and, that the Cary Tennis Park will host (April 26^th-28^th) the USA Team Campus Championship with 64 college club teams competing for the national championship.  This is a prestigious event for Cary to host.

VIII.  OLD BUSINESS
►Web Communications Task Force – Dennis Hoadley
Dennis noted there was nothing new to report.
►Black Creek Watershed Project Update – Susan Davenport
Susan gave a background on the project for new members, noting that two of the Town of Cary parks and a greenway were located in this watershed.  Susan further noted that the creek was being monitored.  Susan provided members with copies of the Black Creek Watershed newsletter which included upcoming meetings and events.

IX.  NEW BUSINESS

►Joint Board/Committee Meeting (May 7 @Page-Walker)
Steve Smutko and Mary Henderson talked about the agenda for the upcoming joint meeting.  Items to be presented and discussed include an update of the Master Plan including the concept and development along with the progress over the last 5 years.  Steve will schedule a meeting with PRCR committee chairs to discuss their role at this meeting.  The joint meeting will begin with an informal activity for members to get acquainted.

►Board Member Information Share
Tullie Johnson provided members with article handouts of the April edition of Our State featuring Hemlock Bluffs.  Tullie also highlighted the Stevens Nature Center’s Annual Celebration of Nature featuring Remarkable Reptiles on May 13^th, from 1 – 5 p.m.
 
X. ADJOURN – The meeting adjourned at 7:30 p.m.

The Town of Cary is committed to providing all citizens with the opportunity to participate fully in the public meeting process. Any person with a disability who needs an auxiliary aid or service in order to participate in this meeting may contact Sue Rowland at least 48 hours prior to the meeting. The e-mail address is  sue.rowland@townofcary.org; the phone number is (919) 469-4011; the TDD number is (919) 469-4012.