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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMin - Parks and Recreation Board - 1996 - 12/09 - RegularMINUTES PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD REGULAR CALLED MEETING DECEMBER 9, 1996 - 7:30 P.M. PARR MEMBERS PRESENT Jim Waldbauer, Chairman Mike Rippe, Secretary Mark Stout Kevin Pierce Cheri Jones MEMBERS ABSENT Dan Turner, Vice -Chairman Anne Campbell GUESTS PRESENT Doug Gallagher, Allen City Council Member Laurelle Zamparelli, Leadership Allen Class Member Byron Nielsen STAFF PRESENT Rhoda L. Savage, Director of Parks and Recreation Larry Kirk, Program Coordinator Sue Witkowski, Secretary I. CALL TO ORDER The meeting was called to order at 7:50 p.m., by Chairman, Jim Waldbauer. PAGE 2 PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD MEETING DECEMBER 9, 1996 II. CITIZENS COMMENTS Mr. Byron Nielsen appeared before the Board to relay concerns expressed to him regarding the use of the gymnasium on Monday nights for Adult Volleyball leagues. The person complaining to Mr. Nielsen felt the City had not treated the users fairly by canceling the "open basketball" time on Monday nights in favor of league play by City of Allen adult volleyball teams. It was pointed out by Mr. Nielsen that Wednesday nights are already available for "open volleyball" play, and that if a night were going to be utilized for league play, perhaps it should have been the Wednesday night already set aside for that sport. He indicated that some of the people playing on the volleyball teams were not Allen residents and therefore, could not be members of the Joe Farmer Recreation Center When asked, Larry Kirk, Program Coordinator indicated that he had put the adult volleyball league at the Center to free up a gymnasium at one of the schools for ASA to use during their winter basketball season. Rhoda Savage suggested that it was probably time to review the guidelines for operation of the recreation center since the facility has been open since April without any revisions to those rules. Laurelle Zamparelli, Leadership Allen Class Member introduced herself to the Board and indicated that she was attending the meeting as an observer, and that she had a strong interest in Parks and Recreation. III. APPROVE MINUTES FROM NOVEMBER 11, 1996, REGULAR CALLED MEETING AND NOVEMBER 21, 1996, SPECIAL CALLED MEETING Mike Rippe indicated that he wanted more information regarding the suggestion of removing a concession/restroom facility from the proposed Phase I of Allen Station Park. MOTION: Mike Rippe moved to accept the Minutes as amended and Mark Stout seconded. The Motion carried 5 for, 0 against. IV. STUDY AND ACT ON ITEMS RELATED TO LESCHER AND MAHONEY'S STANDARDS FOR UNDERBRUSHING AT ALLEN STATION PARK El Larry Kirk, Program Coordinator for the City of Allen announced that on December 17, the AISD and Allen City Council will be holding a joint meeting on PAGE 3 PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD MEETING DECEMBER 9, 1996 the Allen Station Park project and Allen Educational Park. One of the items to be discussed will be the handling of underbrush, and trees along some segments of the hike and bike trail. Larry made a brief presentation regarding the recommended standards for underbrushing and limb height for two of the pedestrian crossings at Allen Station Park. He indicated that these standards would not apply to all walkways, but two in particular, those being the bridges from the school into the parksite. Lescher and Mahoney Architects and Engineers have provided the recommendations that Larry indicated was to have the limbs no lower than 15 feet for a distance of 150 feet on either side of the walkway, and all underbrush cut away within that 300 feet. He indicated that the Allen Independent School District had requested the above standards to provide a "view" into the park facility from the school site. Larry briefly reviewed the standards recommended in the Comprehensive Plan, those being that the land be left in as natural state as possible. The Public Works Department has an Ordinance which states: "Trees, shrubs or plants shall not create a hazard or an obstruction and shall be maintained within the following minunum clearances: 1 Overhead clearances of public sidewalks and other public pathways - seven (7) feet vertical clearance. 2. Lateral clearance of public sidewalks and other public pathways - six inches from each edge of sidewalk or pathway " It was discussed that the above referenced Ordinance deals primarily with situations in neighborhood walkways. The Linear Greenbelt Park Study recommends that branches above trails should be pruned to at least 10 feet, with a minimum 8 foot trail, with 4 feet on either side of the walkway for a total width clearance of 16 feet. The recommendation requested from the Parks and Recreation Board by Lescher and Mahoney should contain the following information: 1. Desired buffer zone between sidewalk and trees 2. Height of trees along sidewalk 3. Swath for this height requirement 4 Any additional tree trimming requirements desired PAGE 4 PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD MEETING DECEMBER 9, 1996 Underbrushing standard and applicable area from the sidewalk Rhoda asked Jim Waldbauer to review what had transpired at the CASPER meeting just prior to this PARB meeting. It was suggested that the pedestrian bridges be moved further north of the current proposed site. It was also discussed that for security reasons we could not protect the entire facility with an open view, and therefore should lean more toward a natural state. The cost of clearing the recommended areas was also discussed, and it was determined that it would be very costly Following a brief discussion, it was determined that the Board would support the recommendation of the Linear Greenbelt Park Study, with those specifications being: 16 feet wide path (including an 8 foot walkway), with a clearance height of 10 feet. V. OTHER BUSINESS Rhoda Savage informed the Board of the development of a piece of property that �1 is currently in the ETJ of Allen and East of Malone Road, North of Main Street. She asked the Board if they would prefer the land to be taken or take funds in lieu of land. She indicated the land would be a 5.5 acre donation. It was determined that based on the comprehensive plan of projected park needs in that area, the land should be obtained rather than the money It was also discussed that 10 acres would be preferable to the 5 acres called for It was also discussed that the City needs to update the Mandatory Land Dedication Ordinance to bring the City of Allen fees more in line with those of neighboring cities. Rhoda indicated she would be polling area cities for information on their fees. Kevin Pierce provided the Board an opportunity to review the City of Allen Bikeway Technical Assistance Project Prepared by the Department of Environmental Resources, North Central Texas Council of Governments for the City of Allen. A brief discussion followed regarding the need for such a plan. Jim Waldbauer reminded the Board that the Boards and Commission Appreciation Dinner is scheduled for Tuesday, December 10. A I PAGE 5 PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD MEETING DECEMBER 9, 1996 VI. ADJOURN There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 9 p.m. These minutes read and approved this 13th day of January, 1997 I� Ji W dbauer, Chairman u, Mike Rippe, Secretary