CITY PARKS, RECREATION & CONSERVATION COMMISSION
Meeting held Tuesday, January 7, 2020
PROCEEDINGS BY AUTHORITY
State of New York, City of Jamestown
The regular meeting of the Parks, Recreation and Conservation Commission of the City of Jamestown, New York, was held on Tuesday, January 7, 2020 at 5:00 in Jamestown New York.
Those present representing the Commission were:
Commissioner John Bauer
Commissioner Cindy DiNapoli
Commissioner Kim Ecklund
Commissioner Vickye James
Commissioner Chris Prinzi
Commissioner Jennifer Williams
Commissioner Bob Whitney
Others Present:
Julia Ciesla-Hanley, Recreation Coordinator
John Williams, Parks Manager
Adam Irgang, Citizen
Absent:
Commissioner Dave Anderson
Commissioner Dave Reinhardt
Commissioner Aubrey Russell
Commissioner James Ventura
The meeting was called to order by Julia Ciesla-Hanley.
Election of Officers
Chairman: Commissioner Bauer motioned to nominate Commissioner DiNapoli as Chairman. Commissioner Whitney seconded the motion. Carried.
Vice-Chairman: Commissioner DiNapoli motioned to nominate Commissioner Bauer as Vice-Chairman. Commissioner Whitney seconded the motion. Carried
Secretary: Commissioner Whitney motioned to nominate Commissioner Prinzi as Secretary. Commissioner Bauer seconded. Carried.
Approval of Minutes of Previous Meeting.
A motion was made by Commissioner Bauer and seconded by Commissioner Ecklund to approve the minutes of the November 5, 2019 meeting. Carried.
Opportunity for Persons to Address Commission.
None
Reports of Committees and Projects.
Report from the Riverfront Management Council/Riverwalk: Julia said the bank restabilization project was ongoing this fall with more rip rap being installed along the shore and around Panzarella Park. There will be plantings going in this Spring including trees and shrubs. John Williams said there will be boxes installed to help slow down water that runs off from Jones Hill, which will hopefully help slow erosion of the riverbanks.
Kiosks: Julia said new City Historian Ashley Senske worked on a historic interpretation signage project utilizing the kiosks on the Riverwalk. The 6 kiosks will feature historic photographs and interpretive language.
Splash Pad Update: John Williams said with Allen Park being chosen as the spot for a proposed splash pad, the next step is to raise the funding. He estimates it will cost over $200,000 to construct so we’ll be working to find grant funding. Kim Ecklund thanked the Allen Park Women’s Club for their interest in being involved with this project. Chris Prinzi asked what the exact location was being proposed at Allen Park. John said it would be east of the restrooms where West Virginia Boulevard and Hughes Street meet. He said it’ll be easy to extend existing utilities to that location and it’s also highly visible.
Historic Marker Book Digitization: Julia said the former Historic Marker book, in its print form, hadn’t been updated and reprinted since before 2009. City Historian Ashley Senske took on the project of digitizing the book as well as adding the historic markers that had been dedicated since the last printing so that anyone would view, download, or even download and print the historic marker book from the city website. We’ll be able to more easily update the online version so that it remains current. Julia said one thing that still needs to be done is an online map of where all the markers are located. There had been a paper version done that was given out with book sales, so that’s a start. She said it might be a good project for a tech savvy boy scout or girl scout working toward their eagle or gold awards. Julia added the city still has a number of the old historic marker books left and she has to figure out how to deal with them. She said they might look at selling them for a dollar at the Labor Day Fest or elsewhere since the initial information is still all good and they’re just missing the last 10-plus years of markers. Vickye James asked how the historic marker gets chosen. Julia said there is a citizen historic marker committee that researches possible marker ideas, comes up with the location, and the language for the marker. She knows under former city historian Dolores Thompson that they did do a series of markers that concentrated on Jamestown’s industrial past. Julia said anyone interested in submitting ideas or learning more could contact Ashley Senske as she heads up that committee now in her new role.
Skate Park Grant Update: Julia said the year wrap-up report for fundraising for the skate park should be submitted to the Tony Hawk Foundation (THF) this week. The Chautauqua Region Community Foundation granted $10,000 to the project before the end of the year to be used toward the match for the $250,000 grant from THF. The city will receive the full match between grants and fundraising as well as money approved from the Urban Development Action Grant (UDAG) program. We’ll continue to raise funds to lessen the amount of money the city uses from the UDAG. Julia said the next step is to work with contacts at THF to put together the Request For Proposal (RFP) for the design and construction of the park. Once that process happens, there will be community meetings so skateboarders and others can give input on what they want to see at the skatepark. The goal is to have the skatepark constructed by end of October so the poured concrete has time to cure before the weather turns.
Lillian Dickson Park: John Williams said we will be replacing the part of the playground we had to take out at Lillian Dickson Park. Cindy DiNapoli asked how old the old structure was. John said it was around 25 to 30 years old. It was a wood structure, similar to the one that was taken out at Jackson-Taylor Park a year and a half ago due to deterioration. The new playground for 5-12 year old children will be different from other playground sites. John said he tries to do something a little different at each park. It will have handicap-accessible features including a visually-impaired piece. The structure will be sited along the Falconer Street side of the park with swing sets being moved to that side of the park as well. John said Saturday, June 13th will be the community build day. Cindy asked how older the newer section is. John said it’s 5 years old. He said the colors of the new structure will match the other structure that’s still there. He said there’s not much disparity in equipment maintenance and that the playground structures we’ve put up from Parkitects have held up really well.
Christmas Tree Pick-Up: John said the tree pick up started Monday and with the nice weather it has been going fast. He thinks most of the trees put out at this time will be picked up by next week with crews picking up stragglers in the coming weeks. John said there’s only one hundred trees or so that they’ve picked up, which continues to be down from years past. He does have a man from Kane, Pennsylvania who might pick up the discarded trees to use in a fishery for fish habitat.
Misc.: Bob Whitney asked about the ground condition of Bergman Park in the northwest corner by Orr and Baker Streets. John Williams said the ground is soft there. Bob said he thought that would be a good location for a dog park. John said the idea of a dog park is good and he’d like to see one but the upkeep is a concern, as with all our facilities. He said he’s at a point that without more staff it’s hard to add new facilities within our park system.
Chris Prinzi said the new pavilion at Veterans Park looks great. John W. said benches will be installed in the Spring.
Good of the Order:
Adjournment
The next meeting is Tuesday, February 4, 2020 at 5:00 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Julia Ciesla-Hanley
