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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPark Board minutes 2-8-10 ADVISORY PARK BOARD MINUTES FEBRUARY 8, 2010 Present: Tony Duff, Bob Freid, Bill Gogolewski, Dennis McHugh, Jim Michelson, Mark Philipp, Allan Siiman, Terry Wohler Excused: Kay Hansen Staff: Bill Sturm, Interim Parks Director/Landscape Operations Manager/City Forester; Scott Greuel, Chief of Police; Tim Franz, Fire Chief; Lynn Lorenson, City Attorney; Trish Wendorf, Recording Secretary Mr. Sturm introduced the new Parks Director, Ray Maurer, to the Board. Mr. Maurer gave a brief synopsis of his employment & educational background. He stated he is looking forward to working with staff, the Board, City Council and the City Manager. CALL TO ORDER & ROLL CALL Chairman Gogolewski called the meeting to order at 6:00 P.M. A quorum was determined to be present. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Motion by Wohler for approval of the January 11, 2010 minutes, as submitted. Seconded by Siiman. Motion carried 8-0. PARK BUSINESS 1)Dogs in Parks/Enforcement of Ordinances At Mr. McHugh’s invitation, Scott Greuel, Chief of Police, was present to discuss enforcement issues with City Ordinance violations. Chief Greuel stated that the dog in parks issue, from an enforcement standpoint, is complaint based. He stated his force does not spent a lot of time actively enforcing animal complaints. The CSO’s (Community Service Officers) handle the dog at large violations. Dogs being walked by their owners in parks are not one of those top priority issues. Most people that walk their dogs appear to be responsible dog owners. Chief Greuel stated he spends a lot of time of the trail behind Traeger School and he sees first hand responsible pet owners walking their dogs. Mr. Michelson stated in Menominee Park it is a violation to have a dog in the park, yet they are present. He doesn’t feel it is up to the public to address those violations. Who is responsible for enforcing the no dogs in parks, no feeding geese/gulls, etc.? Chief Greuel stated it is a shared enforcement – Parks Department staff and the Police Department. Ms. Lorenson stated generally the Parks Department staff has the authority to enforce the ordinance under the Municipal Code (Chapters 6 and 19). Parks staff does not carry citation books and are not trained, so it does fall onto the Police Department. ADVISORY PARK BOARD MINUTES PAGE 2 FEBRUARY 8, 2010 Mr. McHugh inquired as to how many patrol officers are employed by the Oshkosh PD? Chief Greuel stated there are 99 sworn officers and 62 patrol officers. Mr. McHugh stated he does not feel that enforcement of the no dogs in parks issue could be enforced. 2)Special Event Policy Ellen Schmidt, 4303 Swallow Banks Drive, stated she was present on behalf of the Oshkosh Patriotic Council and read a proclamation (said proclamation on file at the City Parks office and made a part of these minutes). She stated the Patriotic Council’s goal is to urge the City Council to reconsider the proposed Special Event Policy. Roy Helms, 2540 Clover Street, member of the American Legion and a Veteran, gave a brief history of the American Legion Riders Association’s parade to salute the troops and the Aces Motorcycle Ride fundraiser. He stated that both these associations do not have the funds to pay the proposed special event fees. Ms. Lorenson stated the proposed special event policy contains criteria for waiving fees and noted that parades usually would meet those criteria. Butch Kuehl, President of the Patriotic Council, stated their group only has minimum funds. He noted other units have been assessed fees so the Patriotic Council could become incorporated and now they are being asked to assess more fees to those units for the proposed special event policy and these smaller groups do not have the funds available. Mr. Maurer stated there are a lot of factors for waiving the fee, i.e. financial burden. He does not think that the proposed special event policy will hinder their parades. Mr. McHugh stated that Sawdust Days is the largest event held in the city and inquired as to the perceived impact the proposed special event policy might have on that event. Ms. Schmidt stated the proposed special event policy would have a large negative impact on the event since the event funds are very low. The Sawdust Days committee was directed to upgrade their security and they complied to their financial detriment. The proposed special event policy contains more fees and the Sawdust Days committee does not feel they can continue to pay more and more each year especially in light of the fact th that they already pay for one-half of the expense of the 4 of July fireworks and the extra security. Ms. Lorenson gave a brief overview of the proposed special event policy which was a directive of the City Council. There were concerns that the Council had about city costs of special events and who should bare those costs. Different city departments dealt with different events and public information wasn’t always easily accessible. Extra ordinary services that specifically resulted from special events (i.e. city employees being assigned to a certain events resulting in overtime) needed to be addressed. The proposed special event policy allows for all departments within the city to be made aware of any extra ordinary services that may be required and also allows for all city departments to be made aware of an event that may affect how they conduct their business during that time period. Duane Cannon, 1733 Lombard Avenue, stated it would financially hurt the Patriotic Council to have to pay the special event fees for each event to recognize our veterans. ADVISORY PARK BOARD MINUTES PAGE 3 FEBRUARY 8, 2010 Tina Hafemann, 907 Washington Avenue, stated safety and accountability is important and the proposed special event policy addresses those issues. She believes the proposed policy is good, well-written and thorough. Mr. Fried stated he believes the proposed policy is great and the fees are more than fair. Mr. Philipp stated he had conversations with Steve Lenz of the Sawdust Days committee to get his input and Mr. Lenz informed him that Sawdust Days is a non-profit organization that has minimum funds available to keep it going and with the proposed special event fees being imposed, Sawdust Days may not be able to return in future years. Mr. Lenz stated he feels the proposed policy is similar to the one that Appleton has and noted that Appleton put their policy in place because they don’t want festivals there. Mr. Duff stated he feels staff did a wonderful job with the proposed policy and concurred with Mr. Fried’s comments. He feels it is responsible planning on the part of the City and event organizers and supports the proposed special event policy. Mr. Michelson stated he has mixed feelings with respect to the proposed policy. He likes the checklist and noted that when special events were brought before the Park Advisory Board for approval, he always asked for a site plan which helped to determine how the event would be affecting City services. But, he feels the proposed special event policy is too complicated. Mr. McHugh inquired as to why the million dollars worth of insurance required. Ms. Lorenson stated anyone can sue anyone over anything for any amount and the required million dollar insurance policy is for both the City’s and the event organizers’ protection. She noted staff is also investigating a tiered type of insurance requirement for the proposed special event policy. Chairman Gogolewski stated he feels the proposed special event policy is a good check list and shows good planning. Mr. Wohler stated he will not support the proposed special event policy. Mr. McHugh stated when the proposed special event policy comes before the City Council for approval, he will attempt to pass the resolution in such a manner that it will sunset in 1-2 years to determine the policy’s effectiveness. Motion by Fried for approval of the proposed special event policy as submitted. Seconded by McHugh. Motion carried 5-1 with 2 abstaining (AYES: Duff, Fried, Gogolewski, McHugh, Siiman; NAYS: Michelson; ABSTAINING: Philipp and Wohler). 3) Miller’s Bay Weeds Issue Update Mr. Maurer stated staff is trying to set up a meeting with the DNR personnel and personnel from Onterra to finish up the management plan. Mr. Siiman stated he thought a weed harvester was part of the Onterra’s recommendation. Mr. Sturm stated that was one of their recommendations and noted that once there is a finalized plan, said plan will be brought before the Board for consideration. ADVISORY PARK BOARD MINUTES PAGE 4 FEBRUARY 8, 2010 4)Ice Skating Ring – Quarry Park Mr. Fried stated that he would like future discussion on this issue. He is of the opinion that private sponsors would be able to help maintain a rink at Quarry Park. Mr. Siiman stated that Public Works Director, Dave Patek, stated that the Quarry Park would be closed off until June 2011 and after that time, it would be up to the Parks Department as to what they would like to do with the park. Mr. Wohler agreed that there should be at least one rink in the city. Mr. Michelson stated a city this size should be able to support at least one ice rink as it fits a need within the City. Mr. Maurer stated that future discussions could be held on this issue and noted that he will have staff investigate past cost records with regard to ice skating rinks. 5) Fast Club Organization Update No determination had been made as to the cost of the 40 acres that the School Board was requesting, but Mr. McHugh stated he would check into it. Chairman Gogolewski stated that staff felt that they would be able to place one diamond at Rainbow Park for the Fast Club. He suggested that Bauman Park would allow for a small diamond. Although neither location would allow for a concession stand, at least the girls would be able to play ball. Discussion ensued as to moving the BMX bike area to enable two diamonds to be placed at Rainbow. Chairman Gogolewski pointed out that with the boat launch area and golf course, during the summertime, parking is a problem. There was also discussion in the past as to putting in another boat launch in that area which would make parking even more of an issue. Mr. Maurer stated he has not had the opportunity to meet with Mr. Kuehl as to the Fast Club organization’s immediate needs, but hoped to be able to do that in the near future. He also suggested that the comprehensive park and open space plan be updated, but in the interim, the club’s immediate needs could be addressed. CITIZEN’S STATEMENTS There were no citizen’s statements. PARK DIRECTOR/STAFF REPORTS 1)General Parks Operations Update Mr. Maurer thanked staff for their help during his transition to the Parks Director position. He stated he is working with Ms. Wendorf on the Leach Amphitheater events and noted that to date they have booked the Kids from Wisconsin and the Dragon Acrobats from China as well as the Waterfest Concert series, among other events. ADVISORY PARK BOARD MINUTES PAGE 5 FEBRUARY 8, 2010 2)Landscape Operations Manager’s Report Mr. Sturm stated he is working with the Oshkosh Area Community Foundation on an urban beautification program (Taking Root campaign) which is designed to implement a city-wide tree program and gateway nd landscaping throughout the city. There is a kick off meeting scheduled for Monday, February 22 beginning at 5:30 P.M. at the Oshkosh Convention Center which he invited the Board members to attend. ADJOURNMENT There being no other business, Motion by Wohler for adjournment; seconded by Fried. Motion carried 8-0. The meeting adjourned at 8:11 PM. Respectfully submitted, Trish Wendorf Trish Wendorf Recording Secretary