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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPRC Agenda 12062023 AGENDA Orange County Parks and Recreation Council Gina Reyman, Chair; Mikki Fleming,Vice-Chair; Chris Colvin; Louise Flinn; Rod Jones,Trevor Robinson; Rebecca Truluck; Xilong Zhao; Natalie Ziemba; Andrea Zimmerman; Lilly Kohout(YD), Grayson Shinn (YD) December 6, 2023 6:30 p.m. Davis Center Board Room 1020 US 70 West Hillsborough, NC Time Item Title 6:30 I. Call to Order 6:32 II. Report of the Chair a. Chair Comments b. Additions or Changes to the Agenda 6:40 III. New Business a. Approval of October 4 Meeting Summary (Attachment 1) b. Election of Chair and Vice-Chair c. Lands Legacy Annual Action Plan 2024-27 (Attachment 2 - Chris Hirni, Land Conservation Manager) d. Appointment Recommendation / Reconsideration of October Action (Little River, Hillsborough Township* - Please see Attachment 3) e. BOCC Annual Report 2023 / Work Plan 2024 (Attachment 4) 7:25 IV. Old Business a. The Nature of Orange — 2023 Photo Contest (Attachment 5) b. 2024 Meeting Schedule 7:45 V. Report of the Director a. P&R Master Plan 2030 Report — Status b. Project/Program Updates 7:55 VI. Council and Committee Reports a. Intergovernmental Parks Work Group (10/25/23) b. Items from the Council / Sharing of Volunteer Opportunities 8:00 VII. Adjournment Next Meeting: February 7, 2024 Draft Meeting Summary— Parks and Recreation Council October 4th, 2023 Bonnie B. Davis Center, Hillsborough Members Present: Gina Reyman (Chair), Mikki Fleming (Vice-Chair), Natalie Ziemba, Xilong Zhao, Chris Colvin (remote), Trevor Robinson, Louise Flinn, Andrea Zimmerman Members Absent: Rod Jones, Grayson Shinn Staff: David Stancil, Abby Mattingly, Kalani Allen Chair Gina Reyman called the meeting to order at 6:31pm. Report of the Chair: a. Approval of September 6 Meeting Summary- No changes were made. b. Membership Vacancies— David Stancil informed the body of membership vacancies. Due to recent resignations, current vacancies now include an at-large, Little River Township, Hillsborough Township, and a youth delegate. There were no applicants from Little River to discuss. Stancil provided clarification on recommendations, and how individuals on the board could move to a different residency requirement seat. Natalie Ziemba offered to move to the Hillsborough Township position, to free up her at-large seat. Mikki Fleming brought up issues of diversity, and how Commissioners may value filling seats on the boards rather than waiting for a more diverse applicant pool. The council proceeded to look through available applicants. The Council sought to nominate three candidates, but it was explained that only two nominations were able to be made, considering the Little River vacancy had no applicants. Hannah Darr and Allen Parker were selected as the applicants that the council would recommend to the Board of Commissioners. Xilong Zhao asked if there was ever a history of interviewing potential candidates in the past. There had not been, but staff agreed to inquire about the potential. Andrea Zimmerman motioned to move Ziemba into the Hillsborough township seat and to recommend Darr and Parker. Kalani Allen asked the body to break the actions into separate motions. Zimmerman motioned for Ziemba to move into the Hillsborough Township seat, Ziemba seconded, all in favor, none opposed, motion passed. Zimmerman moved that Allen Parker be recommended for the at-large position previously filled by Greg Hughes. Fleming seconded, all in favor, none opposed, motion passed. Zimmerman made a motion to recommend Hannah Darr for the at-large position previously held by Natalie Ziemba, Ziemba seconded, all in favor, none opposed, motion passed. New Business: a. Year of the Trail Update: Stancil asked if the body would allow an addition to the agenda so that Kalani Allen could present an update on the Year of the Trail. Allen introduced the group to the year of the trail efforts. The North Carolina General Assembly has designated 2023 as the Year of the Trail. The Great Trails State Coalition is a statewide initiative to showcase the networks of trail greenways and blueways throughout the state. Allen walked the council through the initiative, as well as several events that have taken place. She informed the group on upcoming events for the Great Trails State Day on October 21St. There will be an event hosted at Brumley Forest hosted by Triangle Land Conservancy that DEAPR staff are participating in, and Orange County DEAPR will be hosting a hike at Hollow Rock Nature Park. Allen requested that two members be present for the November 18t" Historic Hike at Blackwood Farm Park led by Peter Sandbeck. Ziemba volunteered to be there. Reyman inquired about what Allen referred to as "blueways" and if there was any resource about water trails. Fleming informed the Council that the Year of the Trail website has information on floating and paddling trails. b. Report on New Hope Advisory Committee: Louise Flinn presented the New Hope Advisory Committee update. The committee is a multi-jurisdictional planning group formed by four surrounding jurisdictions to preserve New Hope Creek. The group is concerned with the New Hope Creek corridor and monitors large developments planned in the area. While they had fallen into inactivity in recent years, the Committee has regained its momentum following recent planned developments within the corridor. They recently discussed Hollow Rock Nature Park, and Stancil continued the conversation by elaborating on discussions with Durham County on next steps at this location. Hollow Rock Nature Park is a joint project with Durham County and is beginning Phase 2 of its development but is confined by limited funding and the ultimate status of Pickett Road. The second phase is focused on getting electricity to the old store, creating a basic environmental education space, and a overlook. While the two counties manage separate sides of the park, it is planned and developed in conjunction. Flinn informed the group that there is a planned 7-acre acquisition to the park. c. County Strategic Plan—Community Survey Results: Stancil presented the Strategic Plan Survey results to the council. He gave background into the plan, commissioned by the Board of County Commissioners as a part of a larger plan to address some of the County's most important goals moving forward. A survey was developed for the County and some of the most compelling results were discussed. The results revealed that residents find parks and open spaces highly important, and these results, Stancil believes, are incredibly validating to not only the conservation and parks/open space work of the department, but that of the PRC as well. These results indicate that parks are not a secondary concern for the people of Orange County. Old Business a. a. Recreation Division Update: The quarterly recreation update was presented. The Recreation Division staff sent the Council a multi-page document highlighting some of their new staff and programs. There are eight full-time staff members in Recreation now. Reyman requested that the next report offer some insight into the capacity of the programs, and how many families are unable to participate in programs as a result of capacity constraints. b. November/December Parks Tour Planning: Abby Mattingly shared the results from the survey sent out to the council for dates of a potential parks tour. It was determined that November 9t" or December 6t" were the most popular dates selected.The council seemed to be partial towards December 6t", as it is prior to a scheduled PRC meeting. Stancil informed the body that prioritization would be necessary due to time, and not every park would be able to be on the tour. A more detailed plan and agenda would be drafted. Report of the Director: a. Project/Program Updates: Stancil invited the council to attend the upcoming fall hikes. He shared that there is a proposed new development that will construct a new indoor tennis center, pickleball courts, and about 8 softball/baseball fields, as well as an indoor gym. It is a 56-acre development east of Hillsborough and is going before the Board of Adjustment as a special use permit. Stancil has been asked to speak to current county facilities before the Board of Adjustment in the context of this new development. There is an ongoing effort to complete the Headwaters Preserve stewardship plan, and the countywide trail plan. Reyman asked for an update on Perry Hills Mini-Park. The park will be presented to the BOCC as an information item at the November 2nd meeting. Community members have seen the recommended plan and seem eager for development to begin. There was continued discussion regarding the naming of the park and Stancil agreed to bring this up at the appropriate time and work with community members to discuss the eventual park name. b. November Meeting: Staff was recently informed that the Animal Services Center meeting room will not have hybrid capabilities until sometime in Spring 2024. With this consideration in mind, Stancil asked the body to consider moving the November meeting to Hillsborough. Reyman was concerned about moving the meeting for the accommodation of members who live in Chapel Hill, but Zimmerman stated that as a member from Chapel Hill this would not be an issue and made the motion to move the November meeting to Hillsborough. Xilong Zhao seconded the motion. All in favor, none opposed, motion passed. Council and Committee Reports: a. Intergovernmental Parks Work Group (next mtR 10/11/2023)— c. Items from the Council /Sharing of Volunteer Opportunities- Following the recent membership resignations, there are openings that need to be filled. Stancil asked if anyone would be willing to participate in the Story Book trail conversations to replace Becca Truluck in that effort. Fleming agreed to attend those meetings that are a partnership with the Library. The IPWG will also need a representative from the council for the upcoming meeting. Allen informed the group that the meeting is virtual and Reyman volunteered to attend. Adjournment: Reyman adjourned the meeting at 7:57 pm. Next Meeting: November 1 (Davis Center, Hillsborough)