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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPRC minutes 040616FROM: Parks and Recreation Advisory Council SUBJECT: Monthly Meeting DATE: April 6, 2016 LOCATION: Chapel Hill Public Library Meeting Room ____________________________________________________________________________ MEMBERS PRESENT: Neal Bench; Joel Bulkley; Evelyn Daniel; Michael Dempsey; Allan Green; John Greeson; Tori Williams Reid; Haywood Rhodes; Betty McDade Khan; Rob Robinson; MEMBERS ABSENT: Rachel Massai STAFF PRESENT: David Stancil; Lynn Hecht; David Caldwell ____________________________________________________________________________ I. Beginning time of meeting: 6:30. Roll was called. Introductions were made. II. Meeting Summary (2/3) was approved with no comments from the Council. III. Report of the Chair (Bench) a. Membership. Siler’s departure from the board leaves an At Large seat open. The board will review applications at the next meeting. Haywood Rhodes and John Greeson have both completed incomplete terms and agreed to allow their names to be put forward for new full first terms. IV. New Business a. Community Centers Update-David Caldwell. Caldwell spoke of the Rogers Road Community Center and how the County is using that as a model for organizing the Efland Cheeks and (soon to open) Cedar Grove Community Centers. An Orange County Advisory Board will be developed to represent all three community centers, and groups are being formed to help guide each center. There have already been neighborhood meetings in both communities. He described activities that could go on at each center, including library functions at each center with the support of the Orange County Library. A question was raised about how the community groups for the centers were being organized. The Council thanked him for the update. b. Chair/Vice-Chair Elections. Bench nominated Williams Reid for Chair. She agreed to run. Khan seconded the motion. All voted in favor. Bench then nominated Rhodes and Greeson for vice-chair. Rhodes agreed to run with Greeson agreeing to cover if necessary. Khan seconded the motion. All voted in favor. Bench agreed to finish out this meeting as chair with the concurrence of Williams Reid. V. Old Business a. March 2 Joint Advisory Boards Meeting. Joint Advisory Board meeting was held and the representatives broke into small groups. Four areas were discussed as follows (names in parenthesis are PRC members who will serve on the committee of that area): 1. Trail and greenway connectivity between jurisdictions (Greene) 2. County and municipalities partnerships with focus on Millhouse Road Park (Greeson) 3. Focus on preserving wildlife corridors and riparian buffers (Khan, Bench) 4 Recreation programming for teens (Dempsey) b. Mountains to Sea Trail (MST) Update. There will be a MST meeting on April 21 at the Cane Creek Community Center from 7-9 to discuss the OC section of the MST trail. A letter of invitation with Frequently Asked Questions and a map has been sent to a section of OC residents in the swath of area for the proposed MST that needs connecting (Occoneechee Mountain to Haw River). c. Hollow Rock Nature Park – Update. The Hollow Rock Park is close to being open per Stancil. A paved parking lot is in and trails almost complete. The date of Saturday, May 21 has been identified as the opening date. There will be a phase 2 perhaps beginning in 2016-17 that will add an ADA loop trail, wildlife observation deck, and a vault toilet. The park should have dawn to dusk hours of operation. VI. Report of the Director (Stancil) a. The recommended Capital Improvements Plan (CIP) has been presented by the County Manager and a lot of work is going with this. Blackwood Farm Park is one of the primary potential projects. Year one proposes a new entrance further north on NC 86, turn lanes and a bigger parking area. Year 2 and 3 would see park construction adding more amenities, plus the Parks Operations Base. Greene asked about money for camping at Blackwood. Bench asked about the PRC having a walkthrough to look at where amenities might be. The construction in Year 2 might have disc golf (Stancil.) There might be an opportunity to amend the park master plan in a way that might include camping. This fall, the Council may have to revisit the Blackwood Farm Park master plan. Cedar Grove basketball court resurfacing is also in the CIP. Millhouse Road Park has been pushed out to year 3 to reflect plans of the Town of Chapel Hill. However, Stancil noted that the master plan for Millhouse is expected to begin this summer. b. Fairview Park improvements. The new parking lot is well along in the design and should go under construction this fall. A new commemorative sign for James Stewart Field is about to go up. c. Special Events. The egg hunt had to be moved to Thursday this year due to the weather on Saturday and Sunday. Earth Evening is coming on April 29 in conjunction with the Town of Hillsborough’s Last Fridays. VII. Council and Committee Reports a. Intergovernmental Parks Work Group, no report (meeting upcoming April 13). b. Items from Council – none. c. Friends of Orange County Parks and Recreation (FOPR) There will be input at the next meeting. VIII. Adjournment at 7:55. Next Meeting May 4, 2016 (Park Cookout, Location TBA)