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HomeMy Public PortalAbout15-Parks Rec Dept. Rpt. March 2019Monthly Department Report – Parks & Recreation Memo To: City Council From: Kurt Wolf, Parks and Recreation Director CC: Anette Spickard, City Manager Date: 3/31/2019 Re: Monthly Department Report – March 2019 1. Winter Rec Programs & Registrations: Elementary Volleyball is slowly collecting registrations; and the Recreation Supervisor is on the hunt for 3 more volunteer coaches for the short season. Tots and Tykes kicked off another session, this time with all new participants, most of which are new to parks and recreation. A toddler cooking class will begin in April. The second session of pickleball has started; meeting every Monday evening at the elementary school gym from 7:00-9:00 p.m. Local parents have come together to form a competitive youth little league for ages 7-12 in McCall. The group calls themselves Little League of Central Idaho and will begin their first season in April. The group approached staff to team up with the City to help advertise, collect registrations and help book practices during their first season (much like the McCall Youth Football situation from fall 2018). Tara Woods, Recreation Supervisor, will present the idea to City Council on April 11th. Staff is working on finalizing the summer activity guide. This season, staff was able to include many local resources (i.e. summer camps, schools, etc. for area youth) and is researching better ways to publish the activity guide with paid advertising space to help offset the cost of printing guides at a more professional level. The standard guide will be out to public April 22nd, registration begins May 1st. 2. Trainings: Staff is preparing for and assisting Boise Parks and Recreation with planning for the 2019 Idaho Recreation and Parks Conference in April to be hosted by Boise Parks and Recreation. The conference takes place April 09 -13. 3. Special Events: To honor Earth Day, members of the Environmental Advisory Committee (EAC) and the Payette Land Trust, will be showing the documentary “Standing on the Shoulders of Giants- Preserving Public Lands Monthly Department Report – Parks & Recreation in Montana” on Wednesday, April 24th at the McCall Community Center. This event will be free to the public, and a 3-person panel will host discussions following the 24-minute film. The panel will consist of representatives from the Idaho Land Trust, Payette Land Trust and West Central Mountains Economic Development Council. The EAC has planned to present their Recycling Report during the Library’s Doing Democracy event on April 30th. EAC chair, Julie Thrower and members of the committee will present their report at the meeting and hold discussions with the group. The event begins at 6:30 p.m. Staff is busy planning the 3rd Annual Arbor Day event with Franz Witte, set for Saturday, April 27th. The event will be much like prior years with the reading of the Lorax and photo opportunities with the Lorax, free food and drinks, live music and educational booths. The event will take place 12:00-3:00 p.m. 4. Parks Overview and Staffing: Staff will continue to work on punch list maintenance projects as weather permits and will begin preparing for spring and summer projects as weather permits. Projects include: equipment fabrication, planning and scheduling, and noxious weed and irrigation system mapping with the GIS department. Both Parks and Recreation are working hard to secure summer seasonal help and have already begun the recruiting process. We have commitments from four prior seasonal employees. Staff has worked with the City Manager and Human Resources to shift a portion of the Parks seasonal salary funds to cover a full-time position in an effort to attract applicants and better cover the shortfall created with the lack of seasonal applicants. In Summary: We will be able to hire the same number of seasonal employees as the past three years with the addition of a full-time employee, utilizing the existing and current budget. Tyler Padgett, a long-time seasonal employee with the department interviewed for the job and was highly recommended by Parks staff. He brings much experience to the table and has a great background with the City of McCall. His experience with other municipalities coupled with his education will be an immediate asset to the department. His strongest attributes cover some of our current weaknesses which will make for a great fit. 5. Waterways Committee – Valley County Waterways Ordinance Update: Director Kurt Wolf has been attending the Valley County Waterways Committee meeting in Cascade on the first Tuesday of each month. During the April 02 meeting, the Waterways Committee with the Sheriff’s Marine Deputies discussed the updated status of the waterway’s ordinance as well as the petitions and comments circulating through social media. Areas of significant concern include: regulations on boats capable of generating a wake over 24” and the changes to infractions and penalties/tickets/fines. County Commissioners will be holding additional public hearings on the ordinance on April 22 & 23. • April 22 Public Hearing: Cascade - Legion Hall Building at 6:00 p.m. • April 23 Public Hearing: McCall – Idaho First Bank Building at 6:00 p.m.