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1 DRAFT MINUTES City of Glendale Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission Meeting Glendale Civic Center 5750 W. Glenn Dr. Glendale, Arizona 85301 Monday, March 13, 2023 6:00 P.M. PRESENT: Helena Johnson-Bodine, Vice Chair Kathryn Mawby, Commissioner Marie Nesfield, Commissioner Kathleen Roe, Commissioner Bud Zomok, Commissioner ABSENT: Reginald Martinez, Jr., Chair Joseph Jarrett, Teen Commissioner ALSO PRESENT: Jim Burke, Director Paul King, Recreation Administrator Heidi Barriga, Interim Deputy Director John Kennedy, Assistant Director Mike Beck, Chief Librarian Diane Williams, Program Manager 1. Call to Order Vice Chair Johnson-Bodine called the meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. 2. Roll Call Vice Chair Johnson-Bodine conducted roll call. 3. Citizen Comments None. 4. Approval of the Minutes Motion by Commissioner Roe, second by Commissioner Mawby, to approve the February 13, 2023 Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission Meeting minutes as written. Motion carried 5 – 0. 5. New Business It was announced that agenda item 5d would be presented first. d. Action: Heroes Regional Park Library StoryWalk® Mr. Beck gave a presentation on a potential grant opportunity for the Heroes Library StoryWalk®, which included the following information: • A brief history of the StoryWalk® concept. • It is a way to engage participants in an outdoor reading activity. • Pages of a picture book are posted along a walking trail. • It promotes literacy and health at the same time. 2 • There are StoryWalk®s in all 50 states and 13 countries. • The Glendale Foothills StoryWalk® was awarded and opened in 2018. • Staff is applying for an LSTA grant for the Heroes Park location. The StoryWalk® would go around the perimeter of the lake. Signposts will navigate the readers around the lake. Commissioner Roe asked if there could be a ‘takeaway’ at the end of the story, such as a sticker, or an item to take home. Mr. Beck said this was a great idea and will conduct follow-up. Commissioner Nesfield asked about the StoryWalk® at Foothills. Mr. Beck said the Foothills StoryWalk® started at the park and ends at the library. Commissioner Nesfield asked if the StoryWalk® was permanent or temporary. Mr. Beck relayed that it was a minor concrete installation, and the book will be changed quarterly or with the seasons. Commissioner Nesfield inquired about the targeted age group. Mr. Beck said the target was families and elementary school children. Commissioner Mawby asked if there would be a StoryWalk® at the Main Library too. Mr. Beck said staff was applying for an LSTA grant for the Main Library as well. He indicated staff would be partnering with the Water Services Conservation Department as the proposed location would be in the xeriscape garden. He noted the federal grant process was competitive. Commissioner Zomok inquired if the StoryWalk® is only visual and does not include audio or braille. Mr. Beck said there is no audio, however, will see if there is a braille component available. Motion by Commissioner Roe, second by Vice Chair Johnson-Bodine, to support the approval of the grant opportunity to install a StoryWalk® around the Heroes Regional Park Lake. Motion carried 5 – 0. a. Information: Commission Reports No update. b. Information: Update on Sunset Palms Splash Pad Project Mr. King gave an update on the Sunset Palms Splash Pad Project, which included the following information: • The new splash pad will include an Automatic Meter Reader to track water use. • There will be a soft opening, with Councilmember Malnar, prior to the season-opening Memorial Weekend. • A Ribbon Cutting Event will be held, with the date still to be determined. Commissioner Roe commented on reports of homeless individuals using the splash pads to bathe. Mr. King indicated staff and the Police Department were aware of the issue and were looking at steps for mitigation. Commissioner Zomok asked if other splash pad sites had artificial turf as well. Mr. King replied in the positive. Commissioner Zomok indicated artificial turf can get hot. Commissioner Zomok asked if the splash pad was water in and water out. Mr. King replied in the positive. Commissioner Mawby inquired if staff would be on-site during the day. Mr. King explained that there would be no scheduled staff monitoring of the splash pad use. c. Information: Update Sahuaro Ranch Park Master Plan Conceptual Designs Ms. Barriga gave a presentation on the Sahuaro Ranch Park Master Plan Conceptual Designs. She gave details on the following three proposed design concepts: • Low Impact concept 3 • Moderate Impact concept • High Impact concept • Each following concept includes all proposed improvements than the previous concept, plus additional improvements. Mr. Burke indicated the Low Impact concept brought the park up to the quality standard. He said in all design concepts, there would be no changes to the buildings, facades, or additions made to any buildings. Commissioner Zomok asked if staff would work with the Historical Society. Mr. Burke said staff will still work with the group, however, nothing major was being done at the park with historical impact. Commissioner Mawby asked if installing automatic gates included the back gate by the pedestrian area. Mr. Burke said it did not and thanked her for the good suggestion. Commissioner Zomok said the lily pond, included in the High Impact concept, did not seem to fit the history of the park. Mr. Burke relayed the lily pond was proposed in an earlier Master Plan. Commissioner Zomok cautioned against planting the Mesquite grove too close to buildings as there were previous issues with termites in the historic buildings. Commissioner Mawby asked how kids would be kept from splashing through the lily pond or drowning. Commissioner Roe suggested reconsideration of the lily pond. Commissioner Mawby asked if the orange trees would be removed. Mr. Burke said the orchards would not be affected. Commissioner Zomok inquired if there was funding for the options. Mr. Burke relayed there was no funding at this time, and these were just conceptual designs. Commissioner Nesfield inquired if there were preliminary cost estimates. Mr. Burke said there were no estimates at this time. Commissioner Zomok said the process made sense and the park made Glendale unique. He said he did not support the lily pond. Motion by Commissioner Zomok, second by Commissioner Mawby, to support the High Impact concept for the Sahuaro Ranch Park Master Plan, with the exception of the lily pond. Commissioner Nesfield supported the lily pond. She noted other parks had lakes and she had not heard of children drowning. She did not see that the lily pond would be deep and said it could be nice with trees and benches. Commissioner Roe said a lily pond could require more maintenance than a lake. Commissioner Zomok said the algae could quickly look not so nice. Commissioner Nesfield agreed the summer heat could cause an issue. She asked for more information on a system to keep the water moving at the lily pond. Mr. Burke said the system was not designed, as it was just a concept. 4 Vice Chair Johnson-Bodine wanted to ensure the orange trees would remain in place. Mr. Burke said all concepts include rehabilitation and renovation of the orchards; not removing anything. Vice Chair Johnson-Bodine called for the vote. Motion carried 5 – 0. 6. Staff Updates Mr. Burke shared information on the following: • Mobile Surveillance Unit: Mr. Burke reported on various vandalism at O’Neil Park, which has necessitated the installation of a mobile surveillance unit with monitoring cameras. He said the same cameras were at Sahuaro Ranch Park and the Civic Center. The unit is being leased for six months. • Thunderbird Paseo Lighting Improvements: The project includes changing the lights at the Paseo Racquet Center, the parking lot, and the soccer fields. The project should be complete in the next month or two. • Sierra Verde Well Site Art Projects: The selected artist has prepared a few concepts that were sent via survey to the Arts Commission, Parks Commission, adjacent HOA, and other neighbors. Construction of the wall the art will be installed on was being handled by the Water Department. The final art design has not been determined. The Commission will be apprised once a decision has been made. • Fishing Clinic at Bonsall Park: Saturday, April 22, 2023, 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. 7. Commission Comments and Suggestions Commissioner Zomok asked the member of the public in attendance to introduce himself. Mr. Bill Pupo, of Core Construction, introduced himself. Commissioner Roe reported that Gas Pump Park has had a lot of improvements. She said there has been improvements with the homeless population and damage to the park as well. Mr. Burke said staff has been working with Park Rangers and the Police Department regarding the park. Commissioner Nesfield reported that there were a lot of motorbikes and dirt bikes in the wash of Thunderbird Paseo Park. She said there used to be signs that said no motorized vehicles were allowed and asked if the signs were still present. Mr. Burke said there was City Code that prohibited motorized vehicles. He said the Police Department was aware of this ongoing issue with a group of about twenty-five people. He said staff has received other complaints and was aware of the issue. He instructed the public to call the non-emergency Police Department phone number so the activity was documented, and the police would know when the activity was occurring. Mr. King announced the non-emergency Police number as 623-930-3000. Vice Chair Johnson-Bodine announced that frequently used City phone numbers were in the water bill and relayed that reports regarding this type of activity could be made through Glendale One. 8. Next Meeting The next regular meeting of the Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission will be held on Monday, April 10, 2023, at 6:00 p.m., at the Sahuaro Ranch Park Historic Area Fruit Packing Shed, located at 9850 N. 59th Avenue. Glendale, Arizona, 85302. 9. Adjournment Motion by Commissioner Roe, second by Commissioner Nesfield, to adjourn the meeting at 7:06 p.m. Motion carried 5 – 0.