HomeMy WebLinkAbout2011-09-07 Park Board MinutesRIVERSIDE PARK BOARD MEETING
MINUTES
September 7, 2011
6:00 p.m.
Attending: Terri Dwyer, Norma Parrott, Debbie Leader, Tom Woodell, Julie Rule, Kathy Rose
Call to order: 6:15 pm by Julie Rule
Meeting Notes: Meeting minutes from July 6, 2011 were reviewed. Debbie Leader made a
motion to approve. Norma Parrott seconded. Motion passed.
E.H. Young Park Tom provided an update on the status of E.H. Young Park following the
flooding. Ninety -four trees have been lost, mostly redbuds and white oaks. Sycamore and
cypress trees were hardier. Extensive cleaning by Public Works is being done to remove the
38" of silt washed in by the river. Target is to have it ready to go by the upcoming
Household Hazardous Waste pickup that is scheduled in the park.
• Overall we agreed with Tom's plan for basic maintenance to get the park back into
useable condition which included removing dead trees /shrubs /perennials, cleaning silt
from walkways and the amphitheater, removing mulch at the playgrounds and reinstalling
with fresh mulch, reseeding grass areas, etc. Tom expected this to take a good portion of
the rest of the year.
• We will look at the park following the trees being removed and continue development of
the overall plan for E.H. Young. We will add trees back as needed based on the overall
plans. We will replace trees with ones that balance water resistance with good
maintenance.
2. Missouri Riverfront Trail Zone 1 — Tom indicated that this section of the trail is still under
water and is still closed. Zones 2 and 3 may reopen in the near future. Public Works will
work with the county to do any inspection of the bridge /trail to see what is needed.
Renner Brenner Park — Tom indicated that Riverfest will have some impact on the park
condition. Public works will inspect after Riverfest for more information. There will not be
time to reseed the park this fall given the clean up effort at E.H. Young. There was a
question about the lights at Renner Brenner. Some recalled a discussion of painting the lights
black. Others thought that it was not possible to paint them and that they were going to be
replaced. We will ask Meredith for an update on the plan.
A question was asked about the plan for bringing back signage at Renner Brenner Park. We
will ask Meredith for an update on the plan. An idea from the tourism board was to possibly
use signage throughout the city to identify historically significant areas (e.g. interurban
bridge, racetrack location, etc). The group generally liked the concept.
Tom mentioned that vandalism and graffiti continues to be a problem at Renner Brenner.
Restroom sinks, pipes and door closers are routinely damaged despite their industrialness.
He mentioned that there is still a significant amount of trash/graffiti at the skatepark. We
discussed that we had tried 3 avenues in the past which included (1) requests for increased
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police patrol, (2) better visual access from Vivion Road given the new entrance and (3)
installation of the camera system. None had really resulted in the desired reduction in issues.
We agreed to discuss again whether we need to look at a more teen - friendly posting of rules
and then enforcement through closing of the skatepark to have the desired effect.
4. Welcome Plaza — Tom mentioned that the moss had been cleaned off the Riverside sign
earlier in the day. There was some discussion as to the status of the Christmas tree- -
specifically whether it was ok for this year or had to be replaced. We will need to ask
Meredith for an update.
5. Miscellaneous Items
• Mayor Rose indicated that volunteer help was needed at Riverfest, specifically for the run
in the morning and in the Chamber of Commerce Tent.
• Mayor Rose discussed that she would be providing a list next month of all the Board
members and when their terms expire. Due to term limits that were recently reviewed,
Jim Frakes will be leaving the Board.
• Norma Parrott brought in pictures of some fitness stations printed in the Overland Park
newspaper that she thought might be an idea for adding to a park or trail.
Next Steps
• Ask Meredith to discuss plan for lights and signage at Renner Brenner.
• Ask Meredith for an update on the status of the Christmas tree at Welcome Plaza.
• Discuss next steps in development of overall plan for E.H. Young Park
• Future meeting topic of skateboard park rules /closure to reduce trash, graffiti and
vandalism at Renner Brenner.
A motion to adjourn was made by Terri Dwyer at 7:20 pm, seconded by Debbie Leader.
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