2025.12.10 PRGDBC ADVISORY BOARD MINUTES APPROVED.PDF

Minutes of the Parks, Recreation, Golf and Double Butte Cemetery Advisory Board meeting held on 
December 10, 2025, 6:00 p.m., Hybrid Meeting- Pyle Adult Recreation Center, 655 E Southern Ave, 
Tempe, AZ, and virtual through Microsoft Teams. 
 
Members Present: 
Elizabeth Hatch – Chair 
Lane Waddell – Vice Chair  
Sharon Doyle  
Mary Farmer 
Thomas Klabunde 
Shereen Lerner 
Gerardo Lopez 
Cory Pechtl 
Regina Ponder 
Lisa Zyriek 
Members Absent: 
Susan Carlson 
City Staff Present: 
Alexander Jovanovic, Deputy Community Services Director – Parks (Staff Liaison) 
Craig Hayton, Community Services Director 
Shawn Wagner, Deputy Community Services Director – Recreation 
Shelbie Meyer, Administrative Analyst – Parks 
 
Other Guests Present: 
None 
 
Upon the establishment of a quorum, meeting was called to order at 6:00 p.m. by Elizabeth Hatch.   
 
 
 
 
 
Agenda Item 1 – Public Appearances 
None 
 
Agenda Item 2 – Approval of Meeting Minutes 
November 12, 2025 
Motion by Lisa Zyriek to approve November 12, 2025, meeting minutes. Seconded by Gerardo Lopez. Motion 
passed by a 7-0 vote. 
Ayes: Elizabeth Hatch, Lane Waddell, Mary Farmer, Thomas Klabunde, Gerardo Lopez, Cory Pechtl, and Lisa 
Zyriek 
Absent: Susan Carlson. Sharon Doyle, Shereen Lerner, and Regina Ponder arrived after the vote.  
Minutes 
Parks, Recreation, Golf and Double Butte Cemetery 
Advisory Board 
December 10, 2025

2 
 
 
Agenda Item 3 – Annual Report 
Alex Jovanovic re-presented the 2025 Annual Report draft for board approval after the edits were added by 
board members. Board members did not have any more changes for approval.  
 
Agenda Item 4 – Recharge Wells 
Alex Jovanovic introduced representatives from Wilson Engineering (Mike McBrady) and the City’s Public 
Works Department (Erich Bonz) to discuss recharge wells at Ken McDonald Golf Course (KMGC). 
• 
Presentation Overview 
o Who are the owners, designers, and contractors for this project. 
o Maps and locations of all of the wells. 
o Kyrene recharge program schedule. 
o Recharge system pipelines and trenches. 
o Recharge wells and facilities (4 total). 
o Recharge system pipelines and location of temporary pipelines with crossings through KMGC. 
o SRP canal crossing – underground boring operation. 
 
• 
Board members asked questions and made comments about: 
o Are recharge wells real wells or just reclaimed water from the pipeline? 
o Why recharge the well at KMGC particularly? 
o Did we consider putting water into Kiwanis Park? 
o Is all the water coming from the plant considered Tempe’s water? Are you going to swap with 
SRP? Is the cooling water for consumption? 
o Were you impacted at all from the storms through KMGC? 
o Is the irrigation part ending in October? 
o If we look at the timeline for recharge, it goes well into 2027. 
o Is this the only network of recharge wells in Tempe or there more? 
Agenda Item 5 – Recreation Facilities Needs Assessment (MAKERS) 
Shawn Wagner introduced MAKERS to present the updates and findings from the Recreation needs 
assessment. 
 
• 
Presentation Information 
o Background and project goals and currently on phase three (final phase). 
o Recreation facility portfolio (6 recreation centers with equity priority zone).  
o Prior related plans and studies to guide the assessment. 
o Key findings and recommendations with context. 
o Kiwanis and Pyle are the most outdated centers. Whereas Escalante and Westside are in a high 
priority equity zone and labeled as a priority.  
o Recommendations at Kiwanis Recreation Center with target dates. 
o Recommendations at Pyle Recreation Center and the needs for adult recreation. 
o Recommendations at Escalante and Westside based on the equity priority zone. 
o Recommendations for capital maintenance and asset preservation.  
o Recommendation portfolio and overlap timeline in investment and functional improvement.

3 
 
 
• 
Board members asked questions and made comments about: 
o Are only existing facilities being looked at? 
o When MAKERS was here last, there were more options and more buildings needed to be built. 
Is this just stating the buildings need to be re-built or are there more options available? 
o Regarding Kiwanis: Is that long term building where the soccer fields are? 
o Where in the process is the Pyle plan now for Community Health and Humas Services (CHHS)? 
o Is land identified to build a new facility for Pyle? 
o Would a new building take away from parking at Pyle and other sites? You are not only taking 
away parking but adding people as well. 
o Does this study focus on these six facilities or more within the city? 
o Any safety issues at the facilities that we should be concerned about? 
 
Agenda Item 6 – Cemetery Study Public Distribution 
Alex Jovanovic introduced Lisa Zyriek, who initiated the agenda item to discuss with the Board whether the 
cemetery study should be made available for public distribution. 
 
• 
Presentation Information 
o Background about the Cemetery Study  
▪ 
Site features condition assessment report 
▪ 
Drainage evaluation and recommendations report 
▪ 
Historic Preservation summary report 
▪ 
Aztec Engineering / TYPSA 
▪ 
Done by end of 2025/early 2026. 
o Discussion by Lisa Zyriek (in summary) for support for public distribution through a vote 
▪ 
This was put onto an agenda item because we, the city, think improvements need to be 
made to the cemetery enough to put on the bond. The bond was approved in November 
2024, $2M for improvements to the cemetery, $1M donation from a community member. 
• 
Multiple sources of funds to pay for improvements (CIP, bond, donations, and 
Historic Preservation) 
▪ 
It would be great to share it with the public. She was surprised this study was not for 
public input, like other projects, to look at drawings or plans for recommendations. 
▪ 
This could generate excitement, provide an opportunity to learn, and show transparency. 
 
• 
Board members asked questions and made comments about: 
o What exactly would be shared to the public for input? 
o Curious about any caveats from what the individual donation and if they are able to decide what 
they would be spent on? Did the donor want more visual improvements or parameters as 
opposed to underground stuff? 
o We (the board) cannot just say you must have specific items from the study to Council? 
o This sounds like this is an assessment, but the current motion is anticipating decisions for public 
input.

4 
 
 
o Would you say the cemetery study is similar to the park bench donation policy than it is to 
private/city staff decision? 
o Regardless of whether this is communicated with the community, the next steps would be to 
take the money private/public, hire/select an engineering company? What has been paid so far 
is just the assessment, we still need to prioritize what the city can/cannot afford within certain 
design elements.   
o We are just talking about making this study available to the public, similar to a park project. 
o Excited by taking the initiative before going to Council, as long as we phrase it correctly there is 
an opportunity.  
o I think posting the study makes sense after-the-fact, but do not think the public should have 
comments on what the city should do with donated money. 
Lisa Zyriek made a motion to share what was identified in the Cemetery Study, analyze how the projects are 
being coordinated, and provide recommendations from the study, to then be shared with the public for input 
(similar to a park project). Seconded by Gerardo Lopez. Motion passed 8-0. 
Ayes: Elizabeth Hatch, Sharon Doyle, Mary Farmer, Thomas Klabunde, Gerardo Lopez, Cory Pechtl, Regina 
Ponder, and Lisa Zyriek 
Abstain: Lane Waddell and Shereen Lerner 
Absent: Susan Carlson 
 
Agenda Item 7 – Future Agenda Items 
None. 
 
Agenda Item 8 – Public Meeting Attendance, Notices & Announcements 
Final comments made by Sharon Doyle, Thomas Klabunde, and Shereen Lerner, as it is their last PRGDBC 
Advisory Board meeting. Sharon stated it is an honor to serve on the board and to keep up the good work. 
Thomas Klabundee and Shereen Lerner collaborated on some parting thoughts: board agenda and focus, golf 
course oversight, Cardinals moving - transition into public park land, memorial policy visibility, cemetery and 
preservation, and pocket parks (especially downtown). 
 
Meeting adjourned at 7:30 p.m.  
Prepared by: Shelbie Meyer, Administrative Analyst, (480) 350-8353 
Reviewed by: Alex Jovanovic, Deputy Community Services Director- Parks, (480) 350-5811