CITY PARKS, RECREATION & CONSERVATION COMMISSION
Meeting held Tuesday, September 3, 2019
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, June 4, 2019 at 5:00 in Jamestown New York.
Those present representing the Commission were:
Commissioner John Bauer
Commissioner Russ Diethrick
Commissioner Cindy DiNapoli
Commissioner Kim Ecklund
Commissioner Tamu Graham-Reinhardt
Commissioner Chris Prinzi
Commissioner Bob Whitney
Commissioner Jennifer Williams
Others Present:
Julia Ciesla-Hanley, Recreation Coordinator
John Williams, Parks Manager
Dan Stone, Arborist
Absent:
Commissioner Dave Anderson
Commissioner Dave Reinhardt
Commissioner Aubrey Russell
Commissioner James Ventura
The meeting was called to order by Cindy DiNapoli.
Approval of Minutes of Previous Meeting.
A motion was made by Commissioner Ecklund and seconded by Commissioner Graham-Reinhardt to approve the minutes of the June 4, 2019 meeting. Carried.
Opportunity for Persons to Address Commission.
None.
Reports of Committees and Projects.
Report from the Riverfront Management Council/Riverwalk: Julia said Phase 1 of the illumination project has started. The silo on the Board of Public Utilities has been lit up first with plans to light up the Washington Street Bridge and North Main Street Bridge as future phases.
Restabilization Project: Dan Stone said rip rap work was done last year and they will be doing more plantings to help with erosion. They will be getting rid of poison ivy and dealing with drainage issues. The Riverwalk path will remain the same with maybe more porous pavers. We’re waiting to hear when the county can get in to do work. He’s hoping we can get started with the plantings in the Spring. Dan said people will still have access to the river’s edge for fishing. They’re also looking at habitat areas for turtles and shade options for fish. He said it’s a very detailed project.
Labor Day Fest recap: Julia said this year’s fest was postponed from Sunday to Monday due to the weather forecast. Fireworks would have been wiped out if we had tried to keep the festival on Sunday. John Williams said crews had to dry up the park twice on Monday morning due to showers. We only lost the Southern Tier Wrestling show in terms of events and activities. She said all went well and the initial review of receipts show more people parked than last year. Julia said there was a good turn out for the new bands on main stage
Playground Program: Julia said despite the Jamestown School District’s addition of the LEAP program aimed at elementary students, we only had 26 fewer children than in 2018. She said minimum wage is scheduled to go up at least one more time, and given that a couple sites had very low attendance we’ll be looking at whether to reduce the program by a site next year.
Bandshell: Julia said there were 9 performances at the bandshell this summer including JHS Concert Band, Pearl City Jazz, Chautauqua Theatre Company’s (CTC) Midsummer Night’s Dream, and 6 concerts by Municipal Band. The last concert that honored Rick Lundquist’s 25th anniversary one of the best attended with over 300-350 attendees.
CTC/Riverwalk: Julia said the CTC’s performance of “Midsummer Night’s Dream” at Panzarella Island had a great turn out. The theatre company wants to come back next year but looking at only doing 1 performance at Allen Park, which will be on a Thursday so as not to interfere with one of the weeks the Municipal Band usually performs.
Allen Park/Fenton: Chris Prinzi said the Fenton History Center did two walking tours through Allen Park this summer. She said there were about 20 to 25 people each time.
Chadakoin Park Renaming: Julia read the background about Isabelle Jackson and Vivian & Lula Taylor to the PRC in regards to renaming Chadakoin Park after those individuals. Kim Ecklund said City Council goes on the recommendation of the Parks Commission. Russ Diethrick said he was blessed to have been around when Chadakoin Park was being built and those three people were the go-to for development of that facility. He said the park was named “Chadakoin” after the river but this is a marvelous time to rename it so there will be generations of people who can know who these people are. Russ asked there had been any negative feedback regarding the renaming. No one had heard anything. Kim said there was discussion over having plaques or signage removed.
Commissioner Russ Diethrick made a motion to rename Chadakoin Park as “Jackson Taylor Park.” Commissioner John Bauer seconded the motion. Approved unanimously.
Splash Pad: John Williams said a group that included Mayor Teresi, Acting Parks Director Jeff Lehman, Recreation Coordinator Julia Ciesla-Hanley, and Executive Assistant Matt Hanley went to Dunkirk to tour their Splash Pad they had put in last year. John said the city plans to apply for a Consolidated Funding Application grant in 2020. John said the Dunkirk pad is nice and has been busy. He said we’re looking at costs now and will need to do a study of which location will be best to place it in Jamestown. John estimates the cost to build a splash pad will be over $200,000. He spoke with the Allen Park Women’s Club about the idea. Russ Diethrick asked if the Dunkirk park is supervised. John said it’s not and there isn’t a fence all the way around but there is a snack bar nearby. Russ asked about insurance implications. John said we’re still researching that and he’s talked to Parkitects about some ideas. He said there will be maintenance issues with taking care of the park once it’s built but it would be a good project. John said Dunkirk’s splash pad doesn’t have water running continually. You have to push a button that starts it up on a timer. Russ asked where the splash pad would be located in Jamestown. Kim Ecklund said there will be 3 to 4 sites looked at.
Veterans Park: Julia thought there was going to be a presentation to the Commission but as that person was not in attendance, we’ll move on. Kim Ecklund said she saw the preliminary plans for the continued upgrades to Veterans Park. John Williams said the gazebo that will be constructed will have a picnic table and benches. A dead tree had to come down, so that’s where the gazebo will be located. There will be new parking put in and Dan Stone will be putting in new shrubs. John said the stamped brick will be cleaned up as well. Kim said the project is being funded through the monies obtained by former State Senator Cathy Young. Dan Stone said the area where the gazebo and parking is going in is located closer to the apartment building on Logan. There will be a grading change in the park which brings that side of the park up to grade with the circle. Dan said what was planted in 2014 is now considered invasive, so that has been removed and will be replanted with blue juniper shrubbery, which is deer resistant. Dan said he’s replacing dead crab apple trees with 12 new ones. He doesn’t have any other big tree removals planned in that park. He said with the shrubbery coming out, it will be bare there for awhile. Foundation work will be done this season with planting in the Spring. Russ asked how the local residents’ response has been. Dan said they’ve been pretty positive about it so far. He said the Hunt Road Apartment residents have been active in making a donation to the Urban Forestry fund. He said they were initially concerned about the parking lot going in but since it’s only going to be 5 to 6 spots, they were okay. Dan said the park is a nice hallowed ground area. Russ asked if City Council had received any feedback about the park. Kim said she hasn’t heard anything negative. Russ asked if the gazebo would be like other pavilions in the park system. John said it will be very small with no electric, so not like the other pavilions. Russ asked if the Veterans Group is active with the project. John, Kim, and Julia said they are as far as they knew.
Good of the Order:
Russ Diethrick said the Labor Day Festival was a marvelous event. Tamu Graham-Reinhardt added that people told her the fireworks were awesome. John Bauer said kudos to the Parks Crew for their hard work.
Adjournment
The next meeting is Tuesday, October 1, 2019 at 5:00 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Julia Ciesla-Hanley
