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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2011-03-08 Recreation Committee MinutesTown of Reading 16 Lowell Street ~ C E I V TOWN CLERK Reading, MA 01867-26Wt=i"ONG, MASS. 2091 JUN 29 P 12.* 38 FAX: (781) 942 - 5441 RECREATION DIVISION: (781) 942 - 9075 READING RECREATION COMMITTEE MINUTES March 8, 2011 Birch Meadow Elementary School - Cafeteria Attendance: Mary Ellen Stolecki, Recreation Committee Chair, Nancy-Linn Swain, Rec. Committee, Frank Driscoll, Vice Chair, Rec. Committee, Mike DiPietro, Rec. Committee Member, Mary Ann Kozlowski, Rec. Committee Member, Chris Campbell, Rec. Committee Member, Eric Hughes, Rec. Committee Member, Kate Kaminer, Rec. Committee Member, John Feudo, Recreation Administrator Guests: Lorraine Salter, Sharon Petersen, Dirk Petersen, Paul Feely, Alan Beaulieu, Chris Flanagan, Pete Coumounduros. M. Stolecki called the meeting to order at 7:05 PM. C. Campbell made a motion to accept the minutes from the Feb 8th Rec. Committee meeting. F. Driscoll seconded the motion. Motion passed in favor of accepting the minutes for January 11th by a vote of 7 - 0- 0. M. DiPietro entered at 7:10 PM. Administrator's Report Reminder Reading Town Day is June 18th J. Feudo mentioned the BOS would be discussing the Carry-in/Carry-out program at the March 15th meeting. Reading has researched other communities that have implemented similar programs. Most have seen moderate success however; many are connected with beaches and have patrol. J. Feudo said he would keep the committee posted as this topic continues to progress. J. Feudo announced that the Town hired Green International, a Landscape Design Firm, to bring the Birch Meadow Master plan to life. They would be plotting trees and beautify the plan. The BOS are expected to review the plan and adopt it some time in May. Public Hearing - Priority Pass for Reading Community Tennis Courts at Birch Meadow. M. Stolecki opened the public hearing. J. Feudo introduced the proposed as voted on by the Recreation Committee. The proposal is as follows: READING RECREATION COMMITTEE MINUTES March 8, 2011 Con't The premise of the "Seasonal pass" is to help bring some order to the peak-use time of the courts and to help defray the costs of the lights. The Reading Community Tennis Courts at Birch Meadow are amongst the best their kind in the state. Folks travel from all over to utilize this state-of-the art facility. The six courts are able to handle the excessive traffic during most parts of any day/time except Monday - Friday from 5:00 PM - 9:00 PM during late spring to early fall. Waiting time can be up to 3 hours to use a court. Though some research we are finding that some folks are not respecting the signage of rules regarding etiquette for length of play. There is currently no practical mechanism to combat this issue. Currently the lights for the tennis courts cost the Town approximately $5000 per year. This is paid for by the Rec. Revolving Fund. • Seasonal Pass would cover court use from June 1St - September 2nd (Monday - Friday Only) beginning at 5:00 PM - 9:00 PM. • Seasonal Pass is for Peak Hours in which lights are used for a portion of the time and there is very heavy traffic • Courts monitored by Senior Tax Workers for that stretch of time, players check in upon arrival • Pass would allow holders to bring up to 3 people with them to play • At any other time, besides the dates and times above, the courts are free to be used Proposed Pricing Structure: Resident; Seasonal Pass $10 Seasonal Family Pass $25 Non-Resident; Seasonal Pass $100 M. Kozlowski stated she received an email from resident Denise Wyer who could not be in attendance. Ms. Wyer felt that the courts should only be used by Town Residents. K. Kaminer stated she had received four emails from folks that could not be in attendance as well as the HS Boys Coach Bruce Appleby. Mr. Appleby was not in favor of the fees, nor was any of the folks that sent correspondence. However, overall many understood why the fees were needed. Sharon Peterson asked if giving Reading Residents priority could be considered and had question of how the sign-in program would work. She also stated that she was concerned with the number of permits or passes available to out of town residents. L. Salter stated she doesn't support paying to use a public facility. However, she did understand the issue of covering the costs of the lights. She recommended establishing a fee for out of town folks only for the first year and see how it goes. K. Kaminer stated she felt that a nominal fee was important for in-town pass to help substantiate that it is needed. The other benefit you are paying for is actually having an established time of play with is worth it. Alan Beaulieu stated he was in favor of the pass program. He stated that Reading built a field of dreams and people are coming. A nominal fee was more than fair. READING RECREATION COMMITTEE MINUTES March 8.2011 Con't F. Driscoll made a motion to close the public hearing. C. Campbell seconded the motion. The public hearing closed by a vote of 8 - 0 - 0. C. Campbell felt the pass plan was good as proposed and was in favor of it. K. Kaminer was in favor of the plan; however felt that it might make sense for the first year to limit the amount of non-resident passes to fifty. She stated she was comfortable with the $10 fee as an administrative fee for the time it takes the Town staff to tend to the program, create passes etc. M. Kozlowski stated the rules need to be clear at the courts. She was concerned if someone showed up to play at 4:30. She asked if they would be asked to move at SPM. J. Feudo stated that a policy and procedure will need to be developed, but that was more of an administrative task. M. Stolecki felt that the name "Seasonal Tennis Pass" was better than "Priority Pass". F. Driscoll made a motion to accept the proposal to institute a "Seasonal Pass" would June 1st - September 2"d (Monday - Friday Only) beginning at 5:00 PM - 9:00 PM with a Resident fee of $10 Family fee $25 and a Non-Resident fee of $100. Passes availability shall be unlimited for residents and limited to 50 for non-resident users. M. Kozlowski seconded the motion. Motion passes in favor of proposal by vote of 7 - 1- 0. Request for Sunday AM Use: Chris Flanagan (RYL) and Pete Coumounduros (RUSC) presented to the Recreation Committee their respective organization's need for more space in the spring time. P. Coumounduros stated he and C. Flanagan have been working with James Bonazoli and J. Feudo and a few others as a working group to find more ways to share and develop space. They had a concern for the weather as over 70 inches of snow fell in Reading this winter. He said they were seeking approval to use the stadium and turf 2 on Sunday mornings at L OAM for practice only. C. Campbell asked what dates they were looking for. C. Flanagan said basically for the spring season only, the first Sunday in April to Memorial Day weekend. K. Kaminer asked what will happen next year that will help the situation and not require the groups to be back before the recreation committee. P. Coumounduros stated the working group has been looking at options and trying to find ways to increase space. Those items include adding lights and working to improve existing areas. He said his hope is to not have to come back next year. C. Campbell made a motion to permit RUSC and RYL Turf 2 and Stadium field beginning at 10 AM for the dates of April 3rd - June 17th for use of practice for the 2011 Spring season to address the spring field issue at the discretion of the Recreation Administrator. F. Driscoll seconded the motion. Motion passed in favor of permitting RUSC and RYL Turf 2 and Stadium field beginning at 10 AM for the dates of April 3rd - June 17t for use of practice for the 2011 Spring season to address the spring field issue at the discretion of the Recreation Administrator by a vote of 8-0-0. READING RECREATION COMMITTEE MINUTES March 8, 2011 Con't Subcommittee Reports: N. Swain reported for RCASA. She stated they are looking at sustainability for the next five years. She mentioned a new program called COPS. A program, where the police assist liquor stores with checking ID's. They will also be applying for a grant. N. Swain made a motion to adjourn. E. Hughes seconded the motion. Motion passes in favor of adjournment 8-0-0. Meeting adjourned at 9:18 PM.