WASHINGTON BOROUGH RECREATION COMMISSION
Minutes October 19, 2005
Call to Order
The regularly scheduled meeting of the Washington Borough Recreation Commission was called to order on Wednesday, October 19th by Terry Finnegan, Chairman, at 7:35 PM. In attendance were Commissioners Jamie Prendergast, Dawn Higgins, Terry Finnegan, Erin Czarnecki, Angela Wallace, Rick Feldman, and Park Director Adam Payne. Late arrivals were Candy DeFillippis at 8:05 and Joe Kresser at 8:08 PM.
Review of Past Minutes
A motion to approve the minutes from the October 5th meeting was made by Dawn Higgins, seconded by Jamie Prendergast. Motion passed.
Correspondence
An email from Beth Uporski to Terry Finnegan was read, which suggested
that:
·
the Port-a-John should not be placed near 1st
base at Boro Park
·
a full time Park Director would have higher quality
programs
A motion to open the meeting to the public was made by Jamie Prendergast,
seconded by Rick Feldman. Richard Sheola, Boro Manager, Maryanne Van Deursen,
Boro Mayor, and Council members Christina Woykowski and Andrew Turner were
present to answer questions from the Recreation Commissioners, as well as to
give information on future plans for a full time Park Director. The discussion
went as follows:
·
Light Stanchions
The Boro Manager reported that the advertising for bids on fixing the light
stanchions was going out to bid the very next day, October 20th. The
bidding results would take 10 to 15 days, and would be given at the first or
second Council meeting in November. The stanchions are not more precipitously
leaning now than last year, as per Bob Miller's photos. The bolts on the
loosened stanchion were tightened.
·
Vara Field
Bob Miller, Boro Engineer, contacted the
Centex developer. The developer will pay for remediation of the field and bids
are now going out. Sod will be used to make the field ready for play next
spring, and water piping is available at the field.
·
Railroad Avenue Park Proposal
T&M, the park design firm, has suggested that the plans for the park
development be submitted for a Green Acres Loan, and they will help with the
writeup.
Question from the Recreation Commission: Does Council want the Rec Commission
to go ahead with the development plans for the Railroad Avenue Park? The
response was, the developer for an age restricted future development agreed to
pay for the construction of two
tennis courts, pending approval of his final site plan
Hiring of a Full Time Park
Director
A committee made up of the Boro Manager Richard Sheola, Mayor Marianne Van
Deursen, Councilwoman Christina Woykowski, and Recreation Commissioner Dawn
Higgins has visited two towns with full time Park Directors, and will be
visiting Hackettstown next. The question asked by the Recreation Commission
was: Who will the Park Director report to? The Mayor explained that there were
two options:
1. The Park Director would report to the
Recreation Commission, which is the current setup.
2. The Park Director would report to the
Boro Manager, and the Recreation Commission would act as an Advisory Committee.
The Boro Manager would then be responsible for all recreation activities.
The hiring of a full time Park Director will be done by sometime in March,
2006.One of the duties of the Park Director would be to submit a budget to the
Recreation Commission for approval before submitting it to the Boro Manager. In
answer to the question of why the Council is looking to hire a full time
Park Director, it was answered 'to oversee activities that are not currently
being addressed, and relieve the Recreation Commissioners of having to deal
with employee issues'. The Park Director will also be expected to write grants.
Commissioner Dawn Higgins asked if the Recreation Commission would be part of
the hiring process of the new Park Director. The Mayor agreed that the
Recreation Commission would be involved.
·
Office for the Recreation Commission
The Boro Manager stated that space will be found at Boro Hall for an office for
Recreation, but it will take a little time. Meanwhile, a locked file cabinet
will be obtained for the Recreation Commission's use and placed in the
Conference Room.
·
Supervision of Park Employees
At this time the Park Director reports to the
Recreation Commission as a whole, according to the Boro statute. The Boro
Manager does not have a role in directing park employees at this time, but
authority can be delegated to him in extreme situations. A lawyer can add this
to the statute.
·
Financial Procedures – Requisitions -
There has been a problem for Commissioner Prendergast with regard to payment of
soccer referee vouchers. Office employees cannot give out account numbers, and
not all commissioners have the list of account numbers. Also, the procedures
for payment of vendors is cumbersome and lengthy. The Boro Manager explained that
the new procedures were instituted in June, and it has taken some time for them
to be effectively handled. He recommended that next year, a blanket purchase
order can be issued, and that may be drawn down as needed.
·
Exit/Entrance to Boro Park at Broad Street
There is a safety issue in making left hand
turns on Route 31 into Boro Park. The DOT said it was safe to have only one way
entrance and one way exit. A possible change would be to make the Broad Street
exit into a two-way Entrance and Exit. In the opinion of the Boro Engineer
Robert Miller, that drive is not wide enough for safe two way traffic;
possibly an island would help, but four parking spaces would be lost.
·
Replacement for Former Commissioner Pete
Jacobson
Council needs Pete's formal letter of
resignation before appointing a new Commissioner.
·
Liasion of member of Council with Recreation
Commission
The Mayor agreed that a member of the Boro Council acting as liaison to
the Recreation Commission was a good idea, helping keep communication between
the two groups open.
·
Filter Refurbishment for the Pool
The Boro Manager needs specifications and bid forms from Wayne Wade
Associates for bids for the new filter system to be advertised. There is one
correction to be made, and the boro Manager will mail this correction to Wade
Associates. . The storm water project will happen simultaneously with the
renovation, and cost of this project will come out of the Boro budget.
·
Pavilion
The dedication of the pavilion will take
place on the day set for the annual Easter Egg Hunt, which will be April
8th, 2006. A stain sealant needs to be applied to preserve
the surface of the new pavilion. The Boro Manager said the Public Works
Department will do this.
A motion was made by Dawn Higgins to close the Public Session of the
meeting, seconded by Joe Kresser.
Park Director’s Report
Adam Payne, Park Director, reported that two estimates have come in for winterizing the pool, and both are close in cost. This work needs to be done by November 1st. The Road Department has not yet fixed the water leak down at the pool, and the water will be turned off in two weeks. Aerating the fields at Boro Park and Meadows will be done as soon as field hockey and soccer are over. A landscaper is coming to discuss plantings that can be used instead of grass on the embankment on the Route 31 side. The landscaper will also give a cost estimate on removing the unsightly shrubs at Boro Park. Since a Port-a-John will not be used at Boro Park, the men's bathroom has been fixed and will be maintained weekly. The Road Department will remove outdated playground equipment from the park.
Treasurer’s Report
Rick Feldman, Treasurer, is concerned about funds being available through
the end of the year. Budgets are due by the end of November.
Old Business
·
Championship Swim Meet 2006
Washington Boro will host the annual Championship Swim Meet in 2006. Commissioner Terry Finnegan strongly urged that a member of the Swim Team Parent's Group come to the next Recreation Commission meeting to discuss the costs that will be associated with hosting the Championship Meet.
·
Filtration Plan for Pool
After reviewing the plans for the pool filtration project, the Commissioners
had several questions for the designer Wayne Wade Associates:
1. The electrical panels – would they be
moved, or stay in place?
2. What about a second pump?
3. What about replacement of the pvc
piping in the kiddie pool?
Executive
Session
A motion was made to go into Executive Session by Dawn Higgins, seconded by Joe Kresser. A personnel matter was discussed.
Adjournment
A motion to adjourn was made at 10:40 PM by Candy DeFillippis, seconded by Erin Czarnecki.
Respectfully submitted by Judith M. Noonan