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HomeMy Public PortalAboutParksRec Dept. Rpt. Nov. 2019Memo / To: City Council From: Kurt Wolf, Parks and Recreation Director CC: Anette Spickard, City Manager Date: 11/27/2019 Re: Monthly Department Report –November 2019 Fall & Winter Rec Program Updates & Registrations: Fall Programs include: No School Fun Days November 8th was a success, with 10 kids loving the pool and watching the new release Maleficent 2 (PG). Many parents signed their kids up for the remainder No School Fun Days in December (2 spots left) and January (8 spots available). Elementary Basketball The Good: parents love the early season, love having a Donnelly team, and are satisfied with the game schedule The Bad: scheduling practice time at the school gyms has been difficult. Original scheduling was revoked to make space for school team practices and games; however, schedules change daily. Resulting in contacting the schools on each day to check which gym is available. Sometimes updating parents’ minutes before the practices start. The Ugly: parents are frustrated with the constant switching. We are stuck with it for the remaining 3 weeks of the season. The Recreation Supervisor is working with the school’s athletic director about the reservation system and school calendars. Possible solutions for next year include (1) cutting practices down to once a week; or (2) increasing program fees to cover facility rental fees at Elk Creek Church (an increase of an estimated $25 per participant). Current program fees are $25/ residents and $28/ non-residents. 2019 Photo Contest: The last time the Department hosted a photo contest was winter 2017. With the slowing down of recreation youth sports program, staff thought it would be nice to pick up the contest again. Photographers must sign up online, for free, but most importantly check the box that the City of McCall may use their photos for marketing, etc. Winners will be selected anonymously by city staff and be awarded a printed version of their winning photo. The 5 categories include: Hometown Pride, Generations, Parks and Recreation, Night Lights, Pets and Water. Special Events: Floral Night: On November 15, staff partnered with The Rambler and Farm to Market Floral to host this successful event. Both host and floral instructor received rave reviews from a full house of participants; and everyone walked away with a fall arrangement they could proudly display. Food and beverages were also provided for the $50 entrance fee. Turkey Free Throw Shoot: On November 22, six families and their cheering squads, participated in this first-time event. Everyone walked away with a turkey and was very happy to attend. Two girl scout volunteers and their families showed up to keep score. The event made $30 in revenue, spent $68 and collected over 30 canned good items to donate to the food bank. Citizens thought the event was a great way to give back. McCall Gives Thanks: On November 25, the Parks & Recreation Director, Kurt Wolf, committed a couple hours of his time to assist the Recreation Supervisor, Tara Woods, to do something fun. They walked the streets of downtown McCall with Kurt dressed up as a turkey, to visit local merchants and ask them what they are thankful for. People wrote their thoughts on a white board and posed for a picture with the turkey. Pictures were uploaded on Facebook #McCallGivesThanks. Parks Overview and Staffing: Parks positions in conjunction with the sidewalk maintenance program where filled in early November. We had great candidates and have accepted offers from the following. Nick Buttler: Nick has been working for Meridian Parks and Recreation and has moved to McCall full time to join his wife who teaches 5th Grade at Barbara Morgan Elementary. Nick has already proven to be an asset and a great addition to the team. TJ Brady: TJ has been working seasonally in the recreation industry for the Forest Service and numerous private agencies and will fill the role left by the vacancy of Tyler Padgett as our facilities maintenance coordinator. TJ has also proven to be an asset and a great addition to the team. Matt Melvin: Matt has been working with a local landscape contractor and snow removal contractor and brings incredible landscape construction, paver, irrigation, and snow removal experience to the table. He, like the other two candidates, are a welcome addition to our team and things are off to an incredible great start. Facility planning is underway for a possible relocation of the Parks department in conjunction with the proposed library project. Staff continues to meet with the Architect and meetings with the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) and the Museum Board have been productive and positive. Staff are currently working with the Public Works Streets Operators and local businesses on the coordination of downtown snow removal. The first storm cycle on the 26th was a perfect transition into this program and conversations with businesses, property owners, and contractors have been positive. The program will continue to be analyzed and adjusted to provide the best possible results as we better understand the operation and challenges. Parks staff where able to get Veterans Park (pathway) reconstructed in advance of Veterans Day despite working around the downtown core project and cold weather. Efforts were well received by McCall Veterans and the McCall American Legion Post 119. Hazard tree removals within public right of ways are complete in advance of winter weather and street tree maintenance pruning is on schedule. Miscellaneous Patch paving on the Warren Wagon Road pathway came in well under budget and is complete. Cost savings were largely a result of contractors being mobilized in conjunction with the County’s Warren Wagon Road reconstruction project. Re-locating Friends of the Library Storage: Parks staff are working with the Friends of the Library and the Library to identify and help relocated their storage space from the Annex building to another location to make room for additional equipment within the annex shops space. Conversations have been positive, and we hope to have a location identified and everything moved in early December. City Christmas Tree: New lights in the tree have been installed and everything has been tested in advance of the community lighting event on December 06. Staff took advantage of the good weather to get the remainder of the seasonal decorations up on the light poles throughout downtown and the parks. Note: There are almost exactly 1 mile of lights in the tree with over 5,000 light bulbs. The new system contains both colored and white lights on two separate circuits.