Greenfield Parks & Recreation Committee
October 21, 2008
APPROVED Minutes
Committee Members Present: Conrad Dumas, Lisa Hall, Rhonda Cilley, Lee LeBlanc, Maryanne Grant, Neal Brown, David Buchanan, Lori Weeks, Dawn Costa-Gallo
Also present: Molly Anfuso, Board of Selectmen: Jarvis Adams, Aaron Kullgren, Karen Day
Absent: Melissa Champagne, Dorene Adams
Chairman Dumas called the meeting to order at 6:00 pm
1. Minutes
Decision to treat them as draft minutes posted on the town web site in order for committee members to review them for approval
October 7, 2008 minutes were addressed: Conrad recommends that each committee member review a hard copy presented; members initial indicating approval
2. New Member
Dawn DeCosta-Gallo introduced
3. Committee Member Dorene Adams
Dorene expressed in an email her regret that she could not attend Tuesday meetings due to time conflicts with other obligations; she indicated that although she was sincerely interested in the issues before the Parks and Recreation she felt she had to step down
Conrad suggested that the committee review its meeting times considering all members’ needs and decline Dorene’s offer; opting to encourage her to contribute to the committee when she could
4. Available Job Descriptions for Greenfield Parks & Recreation Director
The committee is comparing three job description models:
a. the current Town of Greenfield’s official job description updated in 2000, which includes the following:
· Job Summary
· Supervision Received and Exercised
· Examples of Essential Duties
· Knowledge, Skills, Abilities and Qualifications Required
· Sensory and Physical Requirements
b. 2007 Benefits and Wage Committee’s draft revision of the town’s 2000 job description, which articulates the same topics listed
c. Molly’s detailed list of duties, tasks, responsibilities, and events actually conducted under her tenure
Conrad recommends that members compare the three descriptions for similarities and asks for suggestions on how to proceed
5. Discussion on Determining Appropriate Duties of the P&R Director
-Lori suggested that members start evaluating the various duties and prioritize most essential tasks
-Maryanne points out that the Benefits & Wage Committee took the present job description and spent hours revising it – why re-create the wheel if articulating the position has already been done?
-Lisa suggests that the members go through the descriptions and separate Parks from Recreation
-David asks who does the job if we decide current aspects are not appropriately the Director’s job?
-Maryanne states that if the Director had an assistant, then the committee might include more abilities required – we can’t just count on someone else to tend to something that we may decide the Director doesn’t do
-Conrad states that the way Molly spends her time is imperative in identifying the Director’s task
-Maryanne: the committee may find that maintenance tasks take too many hours out of the week and therefore recommend accordingly
-Rhonda: step one is still that the committee defines what is currently being done – have we accomplished that ?– so let’s each look at it and make individual suggestion to the Committee at large and start making decisions
-Neal: you’ve got generalities vs. specifics – the 2007 draft is a solid model to either build upon or down-size – so let’s use it as a springboard to identify generalities first and then narrow in on specifics
-Maryanne asks why is the 2007 recommendation still a draft?
-Jarvis Adams states that the committee was disbanded before final approval
-Maryann asks was Molly part of the 2007 process – did the Benefits & Wage Committee meet with her at least to get her input?
-Conrad assures that the Benefit & Wage Committee did a lot of work in order to present a sound recommendation
-many agree the 2007 recommendation is a good job description
-Conrad adds that the 2007 draft includes both the programs and facilities aspects of the Director’s job because it is imbedded in the role
-Lori suggests maybe dividing duties according to programs vs. facilities rather than Parks and Rec in attempt to better address the because of the nebulous overlap – we need to entertain Lee’s suggestion to divide parks and recreation into separate categories
6. Review of Molly’s List of Actual Duties/Events Conducted
-Conrad questions how many times a year Oak Park is rented
-Molly responds anywhere between 10 to 20 times per year
-Maryanne asks about Molly’s role in the Benefits & Wage Committee’s process in drafting a revised job description
-Molly says she filled out their survey
-Conrad reiterates: did they ever interview you?
-Molly answers: No
-Neal asks Molly’s opinion – does the 2007 draft revision look good to you?
-Molly responds that it is better simply because it is more detailed with examples; those examples do have to be flexible, however, based on current feelings and wants of the community
Committee members asks clarification questions of Molly’s list of duties
-Rhonda: are renters required to clean after an event?
-Molly: general superficial cleaning is required but I alone do thorough cleaning periodically – she adds that most rentals are from within the town and we need to address accountability
Lisa-do they pay a deposit to be held accountable?
-Molly: no; volunteers do not pay fees if their event involves town organization; however, if not part of the town budget then I can charge a fee
-Rhonda: in comparison to other town officials (i.e. Librarian, town officials) they do not clean appliances and bathrooms – so why is Molly doing it?
-Lisa questions the need for porta-potties at Oak Park; that expense should be compared with the expense required to maintain the Oak Park bathrooms open most of the day
-Dawn asks how many hours is “part-time” for the Director position?
-Molly answers 25 hours a week
-Lisa points out that people are unhappy with the maintenance tasks involved , which interfere with the Director’s ability to plan events like dances for the kids
-Conrad directs the committee to review the “Administrative” list to mark what each member thinks is not appropriate for Molly to do
-Lisa comments that committee help is needed to accomplish grant writing
-Molly agreed that it takes a number of people to adequately properly research and find available government funds
-Lori asks Molly how much time might go into all the duties related to soliciting and choosing a bid
-Molly breaks down the process involved in the last bidding process related to grounds, which consisted of approximately 7 hours just for that one bid – Molly adds that it is valuable to spend some time pursuing new companies when soliciting bidders in order to increase price competition
-discussion continues on Molly’s “Activities” page
-Some examples of activities conducted this year include: potlucks, dances, health topics, crafts on the beach; swim lessons; senior exercise programs
Aaron Kullgran offers that the “Activities” list is more Parks & Rec appropriate than the previous list (administrative duties)
More discussion on types of activities conducted and how to determine which are valuable and/or worth the time commitment
-Lori suggests that the committee recommend including the P&R Committee as a permanent part of advising the Director on what activities are suitable
Discussion continues on the Blueberry Jamboree as an example:
-Neal states that lots of hours went into planning the Blueberry Jamboree – the Givers came in to help -Molly’s time better spent on coordinating while other groups such as the Givers, the Fire Department, the Women’s Club, the PTO, put forth the man power = volunteerism is a critical element
-Lisa asks how much time Molly had to put into the Blueberry Jamboree and who decides whether this time commitment is warranted vs. all her other duties?
Many committee members comment about Molly’s role during the Blueberry Jamboree
-Lisa comments that feels that certain members of the committee get very defensive when she asks about what Molly has done. She feels that she is made to feel very uncomfortable by members’ reactions to her inquiries. She adds that she is not against Molly.
-Molly clarifies that approximately 40 hours of her time went toward the Blue Jamboree – but she didn’t get paid for the actual day – she didn’t clock in the additional hours on her time sheet
-Lisa asks who would/should approve that this is an adequate use of time?
-Conrad responds that it is the Director’s judgment to decide what activities warrant involvement
-Neal adds that it is currently in the job description that the Director evaluates potential activities and employs judgment
Molly suggests that it is important to determine when the Director is to make judgments vs. when the Board of Selectmen is to approve activities
7. Objectives for Next Meeting
-Conrad suggests that the committee members spend time going through the lists and job descriptions to identify what the Parks & Recreation Director should and should not be doing; consider ways to better specify the list of duties of the Director
-Lori comments that the committee should consider that a permanent Parks and Rec Committee be included in the job description with the goal of determining which activities and events to launch and coordinate
-Neal adds that the committee needs to aim to improve town community spirit
-Lee adds that there is a need to reach out to the town to get more involvement
-Maryann states that while many want many things done on a volunteer basis, the volunteers are often not available – let’s recognize what needs to be done and won’t be done without compensation
-Conrad reiterates that the committee members need to bring a core list of the Director’s appropriate duties
8. Upcoming MEETING DATES
Oct 28: 6-8pm
Nov 11: 6-8pm
Nov 18: 6-8pm
Dec 2: 6-8pm
Meeting adjourned at 7:30 pm
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