DRAFT MINUTES
Salem Parks and Recreation Commission
Minutes of Meeting
Date and Time: Tuesday, August 16, 2011, 6:45 p.m.
Meeting Location: 5 Broad St.
Members Present: Acting Chair Bob Callahan, James Shea, Chris Burke, Amy Everitt
Members Absent: Chair Leslie Tuttle
Others Present: Doug Bollen, Director, Salem Parks, Recreation and Community Services
Recorder: Stacy Kilb
Meeting Called to Order
The meeting is called to order by Acting Chairman Callahan at 6:55pm.
Approval of July minutes
A motion to accept minutes of the July 19 meeting is made by Burke, seconded by Shea, and passes unanimously.
Visitors
Steve Cecil, Erik Bednarek – Winter Island Master Plan presentation
Acting Chair Callahan makes it abundantly clear that this is a presentation only. It is part of the Master Plan contract to give it, and the Cecil Group will give the entire presentation at once. This is not give-and-take, or a question-and-answer session. The Parks and Recreation Commission will ask questions, and then may recognize comments from the audience (not questions) on the presentation in general, though not on any particular aspect of the Plan.
Mr. Cecil outlines the situation of the park – historic buildings and facilities have deteriorated but there has never been a coherent future vision. He says improvements should happen over time, and we must consider where the money comes from. He describes people they’ve worked with and their qualifications.
Other firms that worked on this project include Bioengineering Group, PAL, FXM Associates, and Susan St Pierre. He clarifies that each project must go through its own process of approval, and the Plan is for guidance on how to move forward.
He outlines the steps of the master plan, including site analysis, programming, lists of what may and must occur, criteria for choice, goals for the future, a vision for the future, review of draft plan alternative, and submission of a draft master plan.
Site context is reviewed. Mr. Cecil describes the history and evolution of Winter Island. The natural environment of the island was removed. There were no trees or vegetation in 1940 when it was a Coast Guard base. There used to be a filled moat with a connecting bridge to the old fort. He then outlines current conditions. The major use that generates parking is the boat ramp and waterside facilities, which were built with state funds. There are different demands on the park.
Historic elements include:
Ft. Pickering
Administration building
Radio receiving building
Support buildings
Hangar
Lighthouse
There is a long list of goals for the future. The general idea is that the future of the park should be fundamentally as a municipal park that visitors from elsewhere feel welcome at. It should be about and for people of Salem but also welcome others.
The park must accommodate the following facets outlined in the plan:
Parking
Bathhouse facilities
Space for events
Boat launch accommodation
Environmentally sensitive approach
Enhance historic buildings
Provide adequate sitting/viewing areas
Make an organized park setting
Safe park environment
Financially sustainable
Provide year round interest
Year round management
Provide education
Enhance connection to water
Flexible open space
Phased approach
Mr. Bednarek presents the vision for the future. He describes the process and ideas generated. There are two schemes ultimately produced. He outlines the comparison. Elements included: parking, amphitheater, allowance or prohibition of RV’s. The overall master plan is reviewed too. They want to maintain the same amount of parking at present but redistribute it. People like to park along the waterfront; some spaces will be left but some will be moved to where they would need to walk through the park to get to it. They are also restoring Ft. Pickering (stabilizing) and restoring the moat to be able to see where fort is.
Main elements of the Master Plan are:
Restoration and reuse of hangar
Use and restoration of the old garage
Addition of an amphitheater to accommodate 200-300 people; Rebel Shakespeare now has small groups, so this would continue – WI is not the place for large events
Relocate the tot lot next to rehabilitated restrooms by Waikiki Beach
Phase out RV usage in the park and provide for tent camping. RV camping does not serve many Salem residents, whereas tent camping does.
Possible wind turbine
Other aspects:
Gateway sign
Interpretive program
Fort restoration
Grass parking
Visitor drop-off
Enhanced shoreline edge
Shuttle system from downtown, encouraging cyclists and walkers, not flooding with more cars
Formal tree allée,
Amphitheater
Performance stage
Relocated tot lot
Pedestrian plaza/storage
Trees today are valuable, even if they were not there historically.
Also:
Bio-infiltration of storm water/treatment – use old moat
Rain garden
Enhanced edge
Community gardens
Defined tent sites
Early actions to be completed in phases:
Create buffer between RV’s and the rest of the park
Create a more welcoming entryway
Provide upgrades to restrooms
Move tot lot
Relocate/redistribute parking – cars and boat
Dock/landing area improvements - room for kayaks
Renovate garage building
Create more green by the water, open the moat
Long term:
Focused effort to remove vegetation from alls of fort, stabilize
Interpretive signage
Stabilize hangar and barracks, then provide for long term use. Cecil Group is recommending that the City shore them up – cover the roof of the barracks, replace plywood if we want to keep it.
Wind turbine
Preliminary costs
Early steps will cost $2 million, initial long term $800K, long term $8 million, for a total of $11-12 million.
There follows a review of case studies.
Mr. Cecil says that we should model FOWI (Friends of Winter Island) on other friends groups. He then shows the twin sister hangar in Miami and describes its use. Ours is a small hangar in the scale of things, so is more workable than if it were an actual airport hangar.
Funding opportunities are reviewed.
CPA, Chapter 91, Trustees of Reservations, local and state organizations, Dept. of Planning and Community Development and the Mass Historic Commission are listed as options. A Mass Preservation Project grant fund program, Mass Cultural Fund, Preserve America, save a
America’s Treasures and collaboration with the National Park Service are suggested. A study has already been proposed for the last option.
Action strategies:
Structural assessments to determine long term use
Develop partnerships with local organizations
Seek funding with local and state organizations
Implement park management guidelines
Create an effective marketing program
Note that no other government will take over Winter Island and run it – stewardship is key, and involvement of the Friends group is important.
Chair Callahan says the Master Plan is a plan of IDEAS, and nothing is cut in stone. The Commission comments:
Callahan opines that the plan is comprehensive with many ideas and will provide much fodder for discussion. Burke has a copy and will read through it. Callahan will not take questions from audience but will take comments.
The Master Plan is not yet online; final edits are underway. Mr. Cecil wanted to check into how FOWI can move ahead.
Other comments include:
· Breaking up the parking spaces and handicap access – the audience would like to see that taken into account.
· Pat Gozemba wonders about the hangar in Miami – can the finances of that park’s situation be posted?
· Don Nadeau is an avid cyclist, and would like bike access to be kept in focus, and feels that multi-use trails are important. He also wants to see auto sprawl minimized – can they stack parking? Renegotiate agreements with state? He is impressed that BioEngineering Group was employed. Also regarding the historical aspects – he is happy about that, and wants to see same thing done with gunnery placements, and is also happy about the inclusion of the marketing aspect, and wants City to help get people there by trolley. There is already a band shell on the Neck at The Willows, so may not be necessary at WI, but the more arts the better, so it is OK to
put it here. He also comments that the Plummer Home has lots of open space and wonders if it has right of first refusal or a conservation restriction. Perhaps it has public access and pathways could be expanded there.
· Gavin McAuliffe comments that renovation plans for the barracks and hangar did not mention doing so in a sustainable way. He would like to see the final product, as well as the renovation process, be sustainable and energy-wise.
· Teasie Riley Goggin wants to see winter sports use included in the Plan.
· Devin Corsikowski is concerned about splitting up parking, since people want to leave their cars and view nature, and is also worried that increased traffic while looking for parking may decrease enjoyment. He thinks the study should be printed, bound and available at the public library.
· Scott Hayward wants to hear more about the lighthouse, and wants to accentuate winter use also. He likes the sight lines, but is also concerned about sporadic parking destabilizing the concept of enjoying and moving through the park.
· Carol Edstrom approves of the plan, and hopes the area for overflow boat trailers will be green paving. She also wants to see an area off the back of the bathhouse to have lockers for rental. People sometimes have to drive because they have a lot of stuff, not due to distance or any other reason, and it would decrease car usage. Chair Callahan comments that is a good short term project.
· Ed Moriarty thinks it is disingenuous to phase out RVs but get money out of them in the meantime. He feels that people from out of town have the right to use the facility, and can experience it only because of their RV’s. This is snobbery, and RV usage should be as integral as that of campers and boaters.
· Doug Sabin agrees with most of the plan, but disagrees with concept of wind turbine. He feels its footprint will wipe out recreational activities on the hill. Musical groups play during events, and people sit on the hill where the wind turbine will be. It is a park and should be for citizens of Salem, so the turbine has no place. We won’t solve energy problems by erecting one wind turbine. He would like to see people respect the structures, and approves of restoring them, but wants to see some mention of preservation of the island as much as possible, keeping the 1930’s Coast Guard buildings looking like they did then. They will become more historically
valuable over time.
· Roger Leger says that in the past year Salem was named Home of the National Guard, and that legislation will be passed so we get that recognition, if that happens it will open us up to federal funding
· Dick Roseanne was the last coastguardsman before the Island reverted to City of Salem. Many people think the island’s history begins and ends with Coastguard. However, the property was used in colonial times to build the ships that achieved our freedom in Revolutionary War, yet no one has mentioned this. It was the Bish Farm previously. Gatherings of colonial troops happened here, and should also be involved. History goes back to the late 1600’s and early1700’s, so we should acknowledge that it goes further back than the Coast Guard.
Mr. Cecil is also interested in the history, and though much has been published but more must be done; he agrees that the buildings are a visible sign of one era, but that the history goes back much further with native Americans, etc. No other communities have such a resource.
· Fern Gordon comments that she is glad that Mr. Roseanne spoke, as she did not know about Salem history, and is impressed with it and thinks we can use the history of WI in good ways. It would be nice to have another national park, to make people more aware of Salem in addition to the witch trials.
· Barbara Warren, of Salem Sound Coastwatch, is on the Master Plan committee, and says that the buildings that we take pride in and want to protect are in bad shape. In planning, we try to set a goal/timeframe. E.g. in 5 years, if we don’t have the money, we have to tear it down. There was a 1987 plan for WI that spent 800K but did not save the Barracks or the Hangar, and now they are deteriorating. We MUST come up with funds to make restoration happen.
· Kevin Harvey thanks the Cecil Group & Co. He says that WI Park is just that, a park, and agrees with Teasie that winters at WI Park are not isolated or quiet, they are vibrant and active, so he would also like to see this addressed in plan. He suggests ideas as to additional winter activities. People walk the coastline, all of it. He suggests re: saving barracks and hangar. That this must be a priority and should produce some income for the City; this has always been a suggestion. Structures and their history must be retained.
· Matt Richard comments on the layout in the plans and wonders about the hangar plans – he would like to see ideas for renovation and uses.
· Scott Hayward speaks again; he worked as a museum exhibit designer/fabricator, and supports the history, layers and lineage which are important, as the paleo-Indians also used the island. We should consider the lineage and history of the island and identify how those uses played out there, and how they can be spelled out in interpretation, or reconstruct some existing sites. It is a park, land, and environmental, but need to add another layer of history.
· Nelson Dionne, historian, states that FOWI has 1000 pages of Coast Guard materials in the Salem public library and Park Department.
· Don Nadeau comments on the igloos –these are the munitions areas.
Kim Flynn – Discussion and vote on a Rally at Willow
Her daughter was murdered by client, and the family wants to pass Stephanie’s Law. They want to rally at The Willows to garner support for this law. There will be 100 people on Sat. August 27th at 1pm; a small rally, where they will pass out pins. The application has not yet been filed, but the park is available that day.
Burke motions to approve and is seconded by Everitt; Bollen asks if security is necessary. They are willing to pay for it. Chair Callahan says they should have an officer, commenting that it’s new and different, so we don’t know how it will be, and it is only for 4 hours so cost will not be much.
All are in favor.
Stan Swartz, Dan Ricciarelli– discussion plans for Splaine Park
Not present.
Applications for rentals
National Guard – Discussion and vote on use of Common
Will be conducting a ceremony on Sept. 10th, and the Common is available. A motion to approve is made by Shea, seconded Everitt, and all approve. There is NO charge, and this is a new event.
Finance Report
Golf-Witch House-Meters-Winter Island – review revenue monthly reports
Witch House
FY 2012 has begun, we are down a couple of thousand after the previous year, but it is still early, and we are still on target.
WI
The Island made $32K in its 1st month, which is down from last year but still OK.
Meters
Meters are up 15% for July, but another August deposit is going in so we don’t know firm figures yet. Last September was a big year. Heritage Days are going on.
Golf
The course also had a good month, up $6K and doing well
Superintendent’s Report
Recreation – working on Fall/Brochure, wrapping up summer programs and special events
They are trying to meet deadlines for the brochure, and 8 pages of ads have already sold out. Programs for fall will be lined up next week, though programs still get added after that. The 3rd week in September they hope to wrap up. Now they are wrapping up summer programs, and the pool is to close Aug. 25-26 depending on when their employees return to college.
3 on 3 tournament, Derby st Mile, Youth track meet, Lip Synch contest, Movies on Common
The 3 on 3 was successful.
For the Derby St. Mile on Fri night there are 350 runners signed up, though they are expecting closer to500. At 7PM on Friday they leave from the Parking Lot down Derby St. near the NPS house, with a family run at 7:15.
Youth Track meet – this was cancelled for last night due to rain, and has been rescheduled for Aug. 29th at Bertram Field.
Heritage Day, Movies on the Common are going well Sunblocked was shown last week and the lead actress came. Mark of the Dog Rose is upcoming.
Parks & Facility
Donation to new Center- update on donation to New Life Community Center
$160K was donated from a woman who left it in her will from the sale of her house. Bollen heard about this 8-9 months ago, but had to wait for sale of the house. She also left money to other Salem organizations. Bollen describes her situation. Bill Woolley is investigating. There is no family to acknowledge. Councilor McCarthy asks if we can name something after her, in her honor, and we probably will.
Common fence –update on RFP for Salem Common Fence Study and Restoration Plan
The RFP went out 2 weeks ago to hire consultant to do study and inventory of Fence and prepare specifications.
McGrath Park update and fields use for youth soccer
The Council passed a $1.4 million bond, and has been authorized for first passage. The RFP went out for the 2nd passage and Proposals are coming back. These will lead to remediation and breaking ground to use the field in the spring. Alternate parks such as Palmer Cove will be used in the meantime.
Furlong Park – Update on work being done.
They are going to clean up and do what they can. Quirk will return to finish work in the fall, for a spring opening. This came up in the Councilor’s meeting. The timeline is to get our DPW there to clean up unsightly debris, and then the contractor will begin in September and wrap up later in the fall, to open in the spring. Shea asks about a delay; this was due to removal of contamination. Councilor McCarthy states that after the initial assessment was done, more contamination was found, leading to a level 2 assessment. During that remediation, asbestos was found. This lead to another asbestos abatement contract. Councilor McCarthy says that that is because we bonded McGrath Park, so there are no other avenues for grant funding as we caused the problem. Furlong Park had to identify grand funding to defray
costs, as it is historic. These hurdles generate reports and studies, leading to delay.
Playgrounds – update on Broad St playground build status
Three companies have submitted designs. We will move forward in the next few weeks, but this won’t be an RFP since it is under $20K. It will be built this fall – maybe as soon as October.
Dibiasi Park- update on dedication date –plan for September.
Bollen spoke to Mary O’Leary – she preferred to put off the dedication until September due to her surgery. It will probably be in mid-Sept. but is currently TBD. They are naming the ball field at the new Witchcraft Heights after him too. It should be in use next year.
Golf Managers position – update on status of position being advertised
This will be out this week. An RFP notice has been put out, and will be sent to Commissioners.
Winter Island Caretaker – update on position
Casey’s home been inspected by three departments. Only one person bid on it – the Fire, Buildings, and Health Departments all inspected it and will report, and we will then make a decision if he can meet codes or not.
Winter Island Grant – update on grant work and purchases
Work began on the façade of the hanger, with $35K spent so far. A new tractor and gator ATV vehicle was purchased. It is good for trash, beach cleaning, and bucket loading and plowing. There are more attachments coming. Burke asks if anything spent via the grant is on items mentioned in the Master Plan, but not yet. Can it be used for immediate smaller projects? They are doing maintenance basics, such as shoring up the hangar, at the moment.
Callahan motions to get lockers for near the bath house – there are places to lock bikes but nowhere for storage. Shea says it’s a good winter project. Burke says to look at what can be done, cheaply, to secure the buildings. Boards get put up, then ripped down, and people sleep in the old barracks building.
Lighthouse at Winter Island- update on going for RFP and ConCom
This issue must go before the Conservation Commission as it is in a Resource area.
Pool - Update on pool slide
The pool slide is not good and may be sent back. Bollen will meet with the mayor. They need a variance to install the slide, but the health agent is saying the state will not approve it. The state has pulled out all slides due to the Fall River situation. Mayor Driscoll wants to get it in this year. They need the variance because the slide will not go into water by 2”, but will have a drop. However, the variance will not happen this year, so either it must be returned or pushed through. Bollen is following through.
Old Business
New Business
Golf/discounts. The golf team did not get passes this year, so the coach asked if we could give players on the team a discount for the remainder of the season. He did not specify how much. Usually it costs$100 for a junior pass for year, prorated to take into account that we are most of the way through the season, or $30. Callahan says we would have to open up to any high school player, not just the team. This is an ongoing issue. Shea is unsure if it would work because too many people would do it.
Shea motions to offer players at SHS a discount pass for rest of the season for $30 and would like to resolve the issue for next year. They are training future golf players/customers. Callahan says they had a solution but did not follow through. Shea says the athletic director could not, and the principal said it would not work. Parks and Rec should interview kids for next year.
Bollen says that end of September they start their season. Callahan says the last week in August they start for free. Burke asks if this leads to them being disqualified if we give them a special benefit. Shea says that’s up to the coach. He just wants to have youth play golf. If the coach doesn’t want to that’s his choice. This would be for youth times of 7-3 M-F. He is not sure about timing on weekends.
Burke seconds the motion for $30 for the remainder of the season, for the junior pass for SHS golf team students, those who worked, with the approval of the golf coach and the athletic director, and all are in favor
Letter from Jim Treadwell, addressed to Ms. Tuttle, is to be placed on file, says Chair Callahan.
Adjournment Next Meeting September 20, 2011
A motion to adjourn is made by Everitt, seconded by Shea, and passes unanimously.
The meeting ends at 8:25PM
Respectfully submitted,
Stacy Kilb
Clerk, Salem Parks and Recreation Commission
2011 July
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