HomeMy Public PortalAbout12-Parks Dept. Rpt. Jan. 2019Monthly Department Report – Parks & Recreation
Memo
To: City Council
From: Kurt Wolf, Parks and Recreation Director
CC: Anette Spickard, City Manager
Date: 1/28/2019
Re: Monthly Department Report –January 2019
1. Winter Rec Programs & Registrations:
The Youth Basketball program has 93 youth registered where last year there was 87. Games have begun
and will continue until the end of February.
The first out of three sessions of Tots and Tykes ran twice a week, from January 15-25. Nine youth and
their parents/guardians participated in the class. Most signed up for the next 2 sessions, as well as a music
and cooking program for toddlers starting in February and April. Parents have given positive feedback
on the movement program and space during the winter months. The Rec Supervisor continues to work
on classes and programming efforts for the summer activity guide, due to go out to the public April 22.
2. Special Events:
The loaner equipment program has been heavily used this winter, as the snowshoes, youth xc ski gear
and kinder sleds are rented out every weekend. Quaker Hill generously donated 8 pairs of xc skis, boots
and poles. Ponderosa State Park used the snowshoes 3 times during their annual free ski/snowshoe day.
Lessons and equipment were provided free to patrons.
Re Mastered was a success this year with 94 participants.
Parks staff and the Rec Supervisor participated in the Winter Carnival parade and drove Library staff and
children in the parade. The group efforts landed the McCall Library and Parks & Recreation Department
1st place for group float. Parks and Recreation staff-built study stands in the back of three mini-trucks for
librarians to soar above the crowds during the parade.
3. Parks Overview and Staffing:
Staff will continue to work on punch list maintenance projects as weather permits and working on summer
equipment repairs and or modifications. Projects include: Picnic tables, equipment paint touch ups, trailer
modifications, fabrication, planning, and irrigation system mapping with GIS department.
Monthly Department Report – Parks & Recreation
Parks staff attended the Idaho Horticulture Expo January 16-18. The Expo offered educational
opportunities as it relates to industry standards and CEU credits to maintain herbicide applicators license
and arborist certification. Staff included Eddie Heider, Monika Trapp, Al Becker and Tyler Padgett.
4. Winter Carnival:
Parks staff worked jointly with the Chamber of Commerce and Public Works to prepare for Winter
Carnival. Extra attention was given to sidewalks and areas not usually maintained by Parks staff to
mitigate for larger crowds and prepare for the parade route and vendor court at Legacy Park. The first
weekend appeared to go off without a hitch, snow and ice where managed well by the parks crew, and
janitorial needs were no worse than in years past. The snow bike race at Riverfront Park went well without
any issues directly impacting parks. However, comments were received after it was over about the impact
to residents living in River’s Crossing.
5. Riverfront Park Opportunities:
The City has received funding through the DEQ 319 grant to mitigate stream bank erosion. A site visit
and meeting with the Army Corps of Engineers and Idaho Department of Water Recourses went well and
the permit should be issued the first week of January. Work to lay the bank back above the Ordinary
High-Water Mark (OHM) has begun and is going well despite winter conditions. Sediment controls are
in place and once the permit is issued, the contractor will begin placing rock in the river as per the design
and permit specifications. Planting will take place in early spring.
6. Waterfront Improvements North of the Marina & Brown Park:
The University of Idaho has begun working on a feasibility study for the event center/boat house concept
on the waterfront and permitting is still underway for the dock systems North of the Marina. The
University of Idaho Landscape Architecture class visited McCall and met with department staff and
toured Brown Park, North of the Marina and Riverfront Park, they will be completing design projects
based off these sites.
The City Economic Development Planner helped the department submit Idaho Department Parks and
Recreation (IDPR): Land & Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and Workforce Innovation Fund (WIF)
grants to further fund site improvements and ADA accessibility on the water front from north of the
Marina and throughout Brown Park. Grant awards will be determined in March.
The McCall Redevelopment Agency voted to fund up to $125,000 in match funds with the IDPR WIF
Grant for the non-motorized use area north of the Marina. Idaho Department of Land (IDL) encroachment
permits have been submitted.
7. Central Idaho Historic Museum Site:
Staff continues to work with the museum board regarding the future of the site and museum operations.
Staff has re-introduced the potential for the department to relocate to the museum site as plans are
formalized with the new Library. These conversations are purely conceptual and so far, they have been
very positive.
Staff is working with Public Works on snow storage and parking agreements with St. Luke’s as
construction progresses and the future of the site is more accurately defined.
Monthly Department Report – Parks & Recreation
8. Wooley Boardwalk Pathway Connection:
Survey and preliminary engineering work is complete on the pathway connection project. The bid manual
will be released Friday, February 1 and bids will be accepted until Thursday, February 14. The 404
encroachment permits and mitigation plans submitted last month have been approved and secured with
the appropriate governmental agencies. Project schedule is yet to be determined but it is still our goal to
get piers installed this winter/spring and project completion by June 30.
Spring Mountain Ranch HOA as shown support, in writing, for planting pollinator species on the site.