HomeMy Public PortalAbout8-Parks & Recreation Monthly Department Report - March 2022Monthly Department Report – Parks & Recreation
Memo
To: City Council
From: Kurt Wolf, Parks and Recreation Director
CC: Anette Spickard, City Manager
Date: 3/31/2022
Re: Monthly Department Report – March 2022
1. Rec Program Updates & Registrations
Program descriptions, free events and local resource guide are available on www.mccallrec.com. As we
continue to operate and manage programs within the national guidelines and recommendations
pertaining to COVID-19, we will update program participants of any changes to guidelines.
o Summer Activity Guide- will be out to public April 22, available in print and online. The first day
to register for any summer activity is May 1. Volunteer Coaches will be able to register on April 22.
Activities include mountain bike camp (3 sessions), Soccer Tots and Soccer Spuds (formerly Wee
Soccer), T-ball, tennis lessons, slip and slide Wednesdays, Mile High Mile Open Water Swim
Event, Adult Softball League, Cornhole League, Movie Night Under the Stars
o Youth Baseball & Softball- Registration is open as of March 28.
o Coach Pitch (ages 6-8)- 23 enrolled; need 2 more coaches; 14 on waitlist
o Modified Coach Pitch (ages 8-10)- 14 enrolled; 10 spots available
o Softball (ages 10-12)- 14 enrolled; 10 spots available
o Baseball (ages 10-12)- 5 enrolled; 19 spots available
o PLCA After School Program Rec Days – March Rec Fun Days included downtown Art Walk and
swimming at Hunts Lodge. We will continue to partner with PLCA in April and May.
o No School Fun Days –This fall and winter series has become popular enough with teachers and
working parents, that we usually fill them within a day or two. We provided four No School Fun
Days (in Oct-Jan. And April); for a total of 42 participants. Activities include swimming at Cascade
Rec Center OR Zims Hot Springs and a movie a Black Hawk movie theater.
o Winter/Spring Recreation Programs – Staff is planning a variety of programs and winter/spring
events including:
Monthly Department Report – Parks & Recreation
o Tots and Tykes – Another youth program that is gaining popularity in the local mom’s groups.
Both sessions lasting a total of 3 weeks, twice a week in both February and March hosted 35
toddlers and babies. This program a gateway toward our other programs as parents want to
know more about other programs we offer for their child(ren).
o Messy Munchkins- 2-day series of art projects for toddlers and their parents. The classes are
hosted at the McCall Senior Center, include 4-5 art projects during the hour and always end up
messy! The seniors are excited to see the young one's paint, glue and make a mess; as well as
watch Tara clean it all up. A holiday art series was offered in December; a total of 18 kids total
participated in the program.
o Indoor Soccer Open Gym- Indoor Soccer wrapped up the last Thursday in March. A total of
150 registrations were collected over the 7-week series. A gym monitor was hired to set up,
time games and take down each week.
o Recreation Staffing- Our 2021 summer recreation aide will be returning for summer 2022 in
June. Staff has been working on offering both a virtual and in-person internship program for
college students. Outreach has been positive, and this program could make a significant impact
to staffing shortages on the rec side.
2. Coronavirus Recreation Updates
Staff continue to work on a variety of responses to address recreational offerings, partnerships, and
future strategies as it relates to pandemic updates and the challenges faced within the community as a
result.
Online Recreation Center: Update: We are discussing ways to re-vamp and refresh these offerings to
reflect the ever-changing circumstances around the pandemic. Virtual recreation and educational
opportunities will continue to run live and have been well received. Please visit the website and view
the drop-down menu at the top of the page to view activities and ideas associated with the virtual
recreation center. Staff will continue to assess and revise if things change throughout the summer and
into Fall.
3. Special Events
Arbor Day 2022
Arbor Day will be recognized Saturday, April 30th from Noon-2pm at Franz Witte Nursery. We can
return to our original event format with minor adjustments for COVID. This will be an outdoor event
including informational booths and learning activities hosted by Idaho Power, PLCA4KIDs, McCall
Library, Payette Children’s Forest and more. Live music a live story read, and free food will also be
available for the community to enjoy.
Classic Wooden Boat Show 2022
Staff have been working with the McCall Chapter of Classic Wooden Boats to partner and host the
event from within City Parks this year on the weekend of August 06. The advisory committee is in full
support of this event and a partnership with the department. Staff will continue to iron out the details
and work towards supporting a fun community event around classic wooden boats and the history of
such in McCall.
Monthly Department Report – Parks & Recreation
4. Parks Overview and Staffing
Parks staff continue to complete projects and catch up on larger maintenance projects. Spring cleanups
are underway consisting primarily of coordinating with streets on sidewalk and pathway sweeping and
pressure washing.
Recent Projects and Tasks:
Special Note: With significant price increases in materials the parks crew continue to capitalized on
resources and carry out new projects. The crew continues to take ownership in this process and pride
in their work. Below are a few unique projects that have saved thousands of dollars and have created
unique opportunities for staff and amazing site furnishings for our facilities.
• Custom Park Benches & Building Siding: The parks crew leased some sawmill time from
Randy Acker and Ben Gua to mill logs that came from trees being removed from other city
projects. Beams where cut for custom park benches at Brown Park and siding was milled from
the trees at the museum site to be used on buildings within the site.
• Batting Cage Construction at Gold Glove Park: Parks crew worked with Brundage Mtn. Resort
to salvage old poma and chair lift tower poles to use for uprights on batting cage at Gold Glove
Park.
• Historic Chair Lift Benches: Parks staff is in the process of fabricating metal support structures
to support two of the original Brundage lift chairs that will be used as benches/swings at Brown
Park. Chairs were donated by the DeBoer family last year.
• Custom steel work bench for new shop: This was something Eddie designed and fabricated
himself to last a lifetime and will set the department up to move into the new space efficiently
as we work to keep the Library project on schedule.
• Pine Top construction has made significant progress on erecting the building through the month
of March. The structural framework is complete, and the roof is on. They began siding and
insulation and expect to wrap up the building envelope by mid-April.
• Improved ADA access to the Club house at the Golf Course: Working with the Golf Course
and the engineering team to move this project forward.
• Planning and ordering materials to organize the new shop and streamline the transition process
to keep Library project on schedule.
• Working on purchasing summer supplies now to counter projected price increases.
Staff Training & Professional Development:
Tara Woods and Stefanie Bork plan to attend the Idaho State Parks and Recreation Conference in Idaho
Falls in April. They will use the time to attend classes and promote the 2023 conference which is to be
held in McCall.
Sidewalk Maintenance Program: Primary focus currently is snow removal and ice management.
Documenting snow fall, hours, and overall cost of program both summer and winter.
Brown Park and Shoreline Restoration Update: Project is back online. Parks crews have been
knocking out punch list items outside the scope of contracted work to avoid overlap with the contractor.
Contractor began mobilizing and preparing for work in late March. Remaining work includes sod
throughout the center and north end of the project, paving, concrete steps off lake street, minor grading
Monthly Department Report – Parks & Recreation
in planting areas, drip irrigation, and final play equipment installation and surfacing. Projected
completion date is Memorial weekend.
Brown Park Playground: All components of the playground have been delivered and the installer is
scheduled to be here either the last week of April or first week of May to finish installation.
Parks Shop Relocation Update: Pine Top Construction has the structural framework and roof
complete and have started on siding and insulation. Expect the building envelope to be complete by
mid-April so that the electrical rough in can begin.
Parks & Recreation & Open Space Plan: Staff continue to meet with Logan Simpson and work has
begun to define the public outreach component of the project. Staff will work closely with our advisory
board on public outreach to assess communities needs and goals. Logan Simpson will be in town in
late April to meet with staff and the advisory committee and begin a site inventory and start
implementing the public outreach portion of the project.
Potential Projects: Over the past six months Director Kurt Wolf has been working with Mile High
Marina on an expansion project of the breakwater and marina slips. This project would in turn create a
public amenity in the form of a public boardwalk out and around the marina. The Marina is entering
into the PUD process with the city. The Parks and Recreation Department will continue to work on
partnership opportunities regarding the public amenity associated with this project. More to come as the
project takes shape and moves forward.
Applying for grant funding through Idaho Department of Parks & Recreation to make repairs and
improvements at the public boat ramp. This funding will come from the Waterways Improvement Fund
with a total project cost estimated at $220,000
Working with CIMBA on locations and feasibility of constructing a Mtn. Bike Jump Park. Currently
we are drafting conceptual plans to incorporate something along the paved bike path between Stibnite
and Deinhard Lane. The terrain between the pathway and the airport approach is perfect for creating
something along these lines. A project of this nature has the potential to be a fun and unique amenity
for our community and visitors alike. It is also great opportunity to utilize local resources through a
grassroots approach to implementation.
Monthly Department Report – Parks & Recreation
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