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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2002-01-28; Parks & Recreation Commission; 102-1; Commissioner's ReportSTAFF: PRICHARD I RECOMMENDED ACTION : U Accept and file. ITEM EXPLANATION : Attached is the Commissioner’s Report for January, 2002. PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION -AGENDA BILL 4 TITLE : AB# 102-1 INFO .- MTG. DATE: 1-28-02 COMMISSIONER’S REPORT n ACTION - EXHIBITS: 1. Commissioner’s Report - January 2002. I Recreation News Adult Sports Aquatics Ballfields Calavera Hills Daytrippers Enrichment Harding Center ,Holiday Wrapping 50th Anniversary Parks Poinsettia Park Preschool Senior Center stagecoach Park Stay 'n Play Teen Even rs youth Sports Winter Camp Park Development 3 3 5 2 I 5 I 4 I 6 6 6 4 4 5 5 2 5 2 HARDING CENTER BY GIAN LAURO The Harding Community Center was a busy location during the Holiday season. The Harding Auditorium is continually chosen as the place to entertain. We had numerous Santa Claus sightings this month, the most notable was during the Summit Steel casino style Holiday Bash. The Carlsbad Montessori School & Head Start Program also used the ample space to hold their annual holiday potluck meals. Our Kruger House Preschooler 'Program held their annual Holiday Singing performance for family and friends here as well. In other news, congratulations go out to all the Harding part-time Ball- field & Facility staff for completing training in CPR and the use of an Automatic External Defibrillator (AED). The Harding Center AED has been installed in correlation with completion of training. As always seems to be the case during this time of year, the ballfield crew traded in their shovels and rakes for paintbrushes and rollers. The crew spent the last week of December painting the Recreation Hall as well as touching up the Auditorium stage. Thanks again to Jamie Estrada, Manny Villalta Jr, Adam Bishop and Tim Shea for a job well done. Finally, we want to thank the Hard- ing Center facility staff for their assistance in working the Recreation Commis- sion Holiday Dinner. Jose Estrada, Ian Wright, and Gilbert Morales all did a great job setting up and cleaning the Senior Center. 50~~ ANNIVERSARY UPDATE BY JILL PRICHARD This year the City of Carlsbad is celebrating its 50th Anniversary. Part of the celebration includes a 50's theme parade to be held on Triathlon weekend. The parade will include classic cars, 50's themed floats and numerous Carlsbad resident and business sponsored entries. The parade is on Saturday, July 27th at 9:00AM with a tentative route planned along Carlsbad Blvd. between Tamarack and Pine Street. Our Recreation Department has been challenged with planning this great event. Other Celebration activities include a Legoland Celebration, a re-enactment of the original 1952 Council Meeting, a 50's Film Festival, Employee Family Picnic, TGIF 50's Concert, Historical Photo Exhibit, Artsplash, and "Celebrate Carlsbad" booths at various sporting events held in Carlsbad throughout the year. T-shirts, sweatshirts and polo shirts along with "Celebration" give aways will be available soon. DAYTRIPPERS BY DAVE MfLLlKAN In January 2002 excursions are scheduled to Pasadena's 113th Annual Tour- nament of Roses Parade, the musical "Aida" and the "Charlie Prose" show in Laughlin. A trip is planned to "The Fabulous Palm Springs Follies" in February. Page 2 I CALAVERA HILLS BY GAIL WATT' , December 2001 was another busy month at Calavera. We hosted numerous Christmas parties including one for a local Marine reserve unit. The resurfacing of the gymnasium and activity room wood floors has been completed. They have been restored to their original condition and look great! The Calavera staff has completed the CPR and AED training sessions. Later this month, the defibrillator will be installedh the gym office. Fliptime Gymnastics held their holiday performance show in the gymnasium. Participants in the program showed off all of the gymnastics skills that they learned over the course of the session for all the parents and spectators that came to watch them. After the show everyone enjoyed refreshments. Our Calavera featured group, that utilizes our facility for their monthly bridge games, is the Newcomers Welcome Wagon Club of Carlsbad. The Newcomers Club is organized exclusively to support charitable, educational and social causes in Carlsbad. They are a philanthropic club, but also a social dub. Donations to charitable organizations, service projects and causes that support our community are on high on their list as well as offering a variety of social activi- ties to the residents of Carlsbad They have monthly coffees, luncheons and many activities such as a book club, hiking, card groups, golf, tennis, a garden group, and a gourmet group, many of which make use of City of Carlsbad parks and facilities. YOUTH SPORTS BY LORI SWENt I Now that the Youth Sports staff and its participants have taken a two week hiatus, it's time to shout "Let's Play Ball!" once again! The Youth Basketball program will run uninterrupted through the first week in March. We will be conducting the High School Basketball league registration on January 8th and 10th at Stagecoach and Calavera gymnasiums. All ptayers will go through an evaluation process just as our younger divisions did. All coaches must be 21 years of age or older and attend the NYSCA Coaches Training. Background checks will also be conducted. A minimum of 4 teams must be formed in order for the league to be successful. Let's hope for success! Winter's just begun and accommodations for our Summer Sports Camps are already being set. Letters were recently sent to prospective Contract Instructors and we are patiently waiting for their responses. Time is of the essence when it comes to securing the summer schedule and we look forward to the sunny season ahead! I The Park Development Division, is currently developing plans for Larwin Park to keep pace with park acreage requirements under the City's Growth Management Plan. Located on Carlsbad Village Drive just east of El Camino Real, the site is extremely difficult to develop due to severe topographic condi- tions, existence of large sections of protective sensitive habitat, large utility towers and overhead utility power lines. On the positive side, the site has dramatic views to the north and does contain approxi- mately 5 acres of unencumbered, developable land with which to develop a smaller, more passive park facility. Already on a portion of the site is our "Dog Park," the first of its kind in Carlsbad and a resounf' , ing success with both residents and canines alike. City staff has prepared concept plans for develop:- 'I ment of the park which include an extensive walking trail system, tot-lot, picnic benches, barbeques, and other generally "non-active" uses. A neighborhood meeting has been scheduled for Wednesday, Janu- ary 30, 2002 at the Activity Room at Calavera Hills Community Park. Construction is to begin in 2002. Recreation News Paee 3 iaDL4l.T SPORTS BY STEVE HERRERA The Adult Sports office is currently preparing for the Spring 2002 basketball, softball, and soccer season for the men’s, women’s, and coed leagues. Coordinating for the leagues consist of equipment inspec- tion, advertisement, staff recruitment, evaluating previous seasons, staff training, field evaluations, ordering of equipment, stocking all paperwork, and much more. The Spring 2002 season will begin during the last week of February 2002 with up to 100 softball teams, 36 basketball teams, and 18 soccer teams. We expect to turn away teams due to the overwhelming number of teams that register as we have received fifty calls from individuals inquiring information on Adult Sports. We placed calls to all team managers and inquired feedback from them to see what aspect of the program they enjoyed and why they participate. 90% of the teams that participated said they enjoyed gathering with co-workers, friends, family members, and that they had the opportunity to exercise and meet new people. AQUATICS BY DAVE GORSLINE The Aquatics section last month described a plan to develop a “home grown” hiring pool of American Red Cross Certified Water Safety Instructors. January has seen that plan, the “Aquatic Trainee Program”, get off to a highly successful start. Aquatics has hired seven “Aquatic Trainees” who, through a skills test and interview, not only proved to have excellent swimming and communication skills, but also convincingly demonstrated a passion for Aquatics and a strong desire to build a long term employment relationship with arlsbad Aquatics. Without exception, these part-time employees have literally grown up on the Carlsbad Swim Complex pool deck; taking swim lessons, enjoying recreation swim, honing skills in the North Coast Aquatics Swim Club, or swimming and playing water polo with Carlsbad High School teams. Their participation in the “Aquatic Trainee Program” and eventual consideration for employment as Carlsbad Swim Instructors will help us continue to provide the exciting Aquatic Programs that will lure future quality employment candidates. After years of spirited conjecture, Aquatics has finally put to rest the burning question of whether or not an eighteen-wheel tractor-trailer and a wide load crane would both fit in the parking lot. This was achieved on December 13fh when the chlorine scrubber was delivered and installed. The placement of the severat ton scrubber into its roofless cinder block home created quite a spectacle. The system will be online well before the end of the month. Swim Complex staff are hard at work educating rental groups to a change in the manner which facility use is booked and billed. Aquatics adopted the process well established by the rest of Recreation of requiring written use requests well in advance. This practice is coupled with requiring lane hour, lifeguard and utility fees up front and stipulating 10 days advanced warning for refunds due to cancellation. While change is never without its challenges, the effected organizations support steps aimed at increasing the efficient use of our highly sought after water. 010 Page 4 Recreation News Holiday Wrapping! A special and heartfelt thank you to ail of the recreation staff who helped with the annual Parks and Recreation Commission Holiday Dinner. All of the 1 15 or so that attended will agree that the evening was more festive than ever. The reception, held on the Senior Center patio, was warm and glowing with beautiful red poinsettias and twinkling lights. We were even grateful for the chilly air because when Frosty the Snowman came to visit we were thankful that he was able to stay around for awhile! Congratulations to our Part Time Employee award winners: syndi Goldenson Programming Charles Balteria Facilities Peggy Harmer Administrative Cheryl Hogue Director's Award SENIOR CENTER BY LAURA BALL AND SHARON JEWELL The senior ladies from the Hawaiian Dance class took the audience on a trip to Hawaii December 12 as they, the graceful Auntie Pua's Halau, performed rhythmic Hawaiian dances. One number performed was so poignant it brought tears to many an eye. Aloha! The Goddess Workshop was attended by a color- ful group of senior women on December 13. Many relaxation methods were taught and an awareness of the creation of thoughts was explained. Most of the ladies came away satisfied, loosened up, and goddesses! A room full of patriotic veterans and interested citizens came on December 18 to hear former US. Navy serviceman Richard Calender discuss his years of serving in the Pacific Theater and his experiences in Iwo Jima, Saipan and other locations. It was a lively, talkative audience with numemus tales of wartime adventures. A gathering of war veterans may be repeated because of the intense interest. An afternoon of holiday harmony was presented December 19 by the Carlsbad Choraleers. The large crowd enjoyed the afternoon of yuletide classics and glorious harmonies. This annual tradition is looked forward to by many seniors! Women were treated to a discussion of the causes of and treatment strategies for incontinence. This December 20 seminar was presented by Board Certified Geriatric Clinical Specialist Judy Condi and was attended by many curious seniors. We experienced the famous Ecke Ranch for the annual Poinsettii display. The colors and the docent tour amazed all of us. We then traveled to Solana Beach for lunch at Victoria Station and a bit of holiday shopping at Cedros. We also saw the production of The Glory of Christmas at the Crystal Cathedral, the musical "Swing" at the Civic Center, had a holiday luncheon at L'Auberge in Del Mar and viewed the Christmas Harbor Light Cruise in Newport. A spectacular Holiday season . January promises to start the year 2002 off with a flurry of excitement: Seniors will be treated 'to the movie Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon on January IO; the mysteries and marvels of acupuncture will be addressed on January 15; a new Word Processing computer class has been added to the year-long schedule; a natural health practitioner will discuss the causes and possible natural solutions to osteoporosis on January 22; seniors will learn from an organization consultant the items needed to make sure their wishes are carried out on January 24; and on January 29 a local travel agent will discuss the top ten list of reasons for taking a cruise. STAGECOACH PARK BY DAVE MtLLlKAN Twelve groups braved the cold weather to have picnics at Stagecoach Park dur- ing this month. The Recreation Department's youth basketball leagues got off to a smooth start the beginning of the month. The gym will be closed the last week in December for the annual resurfacing of the wood floors. The basketball, leagues will have a better floor surface when they start up again in January. TI youth soccer leagues have finished their regular season play. A few soccer teams are participating in post-season tournaments. The recreation staff at Stagecoach Community Park would like to wish you a safe and enjoyable holiday season. I 8Y I This year winter camp ventured to four exciting field trips: Disneyland, Knott’s Berry Farm, the Iceoplex ice-skating rink and Edwards Cinema. The City’s camp was host to 50 kids this winter and all seemed to have a wonderful and memorable time. Our Winter Camp was made extra special as we had a spccial and wonderful child enrolled. kiis name was Jake an hc is an Autistic child who cannot communicate on his 1 own. The camp staff 1 worked hard with lake’s I therapists and included ~ him as an equal to all i the other children in the program. Although there were times when lakc needed to be apart from all the activity and othcr childrcn, the smiles on his face. his obvious love for o~~tdoor sports and positive comments frotn his mother and therapists, led us to believe that jake had a great time. The Stay n Play Program celebrated the end of its first session of the school year and the winter holidays with a giant party at Holiday Park. We hosted a party for an outstanding 249 participants on December 13th. The party was filled with activities, games, food and fun! Awards were given out to the top 15 HomeworWParticipation Point leaders. Amazingly, there was a tie for first place with one child from Buena vista and one from Jefferson. This seemed a fitting end to the friendly “homework point rivalry” between Jefferson and Buena vista Elementary Schools. We also rented a 120’ inflatable obstacle course, a “double shot” basketball game and an astro jump. The kids of the Stay n Play program all seemed to have a great time and many of them, and their parents, thanked the Recreation Department for putting so much time and care into the program. On December 20th we took a final trip to the Family Fun Center in Vista. This field trip was a reward to those kids who completed their homework and participated in activities daily. The trip required a minimum amount of points to attend, which most children thought would be impossible at the beginning of the year but were pleasantly surprised at their own efforts and achievements. 198 kids attended this rewarding afternoon of fun and games . TEEN EVENTS BY MARC SEASLEV The annual Snow Ball semi formal Teen Dance was held at Calavera Community Center on December 14th. Nearly 300 Junior High School students attended the final dance of the year. Congratulations to Natasha and Keith, our crowned Queen and King of this year‘s Snow Ball. The Recreation Department would like to thank the Carlsbad High School Girls Dance Team for operating the snack booth at the last two dances. The team raised over $2,000 selling pizza, soda and candy at our dances. The money raised will assist them with an upcoming competition in Las Vegas. We wish them good luck at their upcoming dance competition. With the recent turn of events and the frenetic pace of life, it is no surprise that according to a recent survey, Americans prefer to stay at home. On an average we spend 20 hours per week on leisure activities compared to 50 hours at work. Many men, women and children will be looking to the recreation department to fulfill those leisure yet purposeful hours. We often provide many activities for adults and young children but neglect the very important adolescent youth. To fulfill that need, one of our new classes being offered, “BODY BLAST”, is de- signed specially for girls 9-14 years of age. It includes physical fitness, mental fitness and nutrition. One of our goals in 2002 is to provide more programs for the adolescent and teens. Page 6 Recreation News BY ANNETTE SCHOL, Irrigation crews have installed new drip irrigation and added several new quick couple valves at La Costa Canyon Park in anticipation of the planting of up to 200 new trees at that location. They anticipate the planting to start in January. There are several groups interested in participating in the planting. Bids were accepted for the sidewalk repairs at Calavera and Poinsettia Parks. Work should begin the first part of January. The bid was also accepted for the installation of the fencing and backstop at Zone 5. This work should begin in early January as well. Our new concrete benches were delivered in December and placement has begun with a dedicated bench at Cannon Park. The new pads should be poured and placement completed by the end of January. One other bench is allocated for Cannon Park and the other four will be placed at Poinsettia Park. The bids for Chase Field snack bar/bathrooms were opened and are substantially over the budgeted amount (low bid $442,900). Staff is exploring alternatives at this time, and will be coming forward with a recommendation to address this issue. The State has required playground safety inspections and A.D.A. requirements have been reviewed and completed on all of the playgrounds throughout the city. Plans have been submitted for upgradys on eight of the playgrounds. These upgrades should go out to bid by the end of January. In addition to regular tree maintenance, staff has also been busy adding plant material to some of the medians, between the jetties on Carlsbad Blvd, Cannon Rd. and El Camino Real. The Holiday Season is gone for another year. The Parksnrees division will accepting living Christmas trees at our yard. The trees will be planted in a park or on a public Right-of -Way. Cut Christmas trees can be recycled at Poinsettia, Calavera, and Stagecoach parks, or at the trash transfer station near Palomar Airport Rd. across from the Public Works Maintenance and Operation Facility. Hope everyone had a great Christmas. The chlorine scrubber installation (traps any escaping chlorine gas) at the swim complex is nearing completion and will be finished in January. Work is also scheduled to begin on January 10 on the remodel/ADA upgrade of Heritage Hall at Magee Park. PRESCHOOL Our adventures in Preschool bring us to the Parent Toddler 1’s and 2’s Siblings class at the Scout House. This class is designed for parents who have more than one toddler ages 12-36 months! This fun-filled program is taught by Preschool Instructor, Laurie Haslam, who has been on the Kruger House staff since 1993. Her extensive background in infant and tod- dler development creates a wonderful educational experience for parents and a creative opportunity for toddlers to explore their world! It is important to note that Lori is a proud parent of flakes, snowmen, bells and more were the topics for the December session. Parents had discussions on Holiday Stress, Creating family traditions and teaching toddlers about respect. Join us next month as we travel to Kruger House Preschool’s Pre-kindergarten Class! - five children; she can definitely speak from experience! Snow-