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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2017-09-18; Parks & Recreation Commission; ; 0917-2 Department Report Meeting Date: Sept. 18, 2017 To: Parks & Recreation Commission From: Chris Hazeltine, Parks & Recreation Director Staff Contact: Mike Pacheco, Recreation Services Manager Kyle Lancaster, Parks Services Manager Subject: Parks & Recreation Department Report Recommended Action Receive a presentation from the Parks & Recreation staff. Executive Summary Mike Pacheco, Recreation Services Manager and Kyle Lancaster, Parks Services Manager will report on recently completed and upcoming Parks and Recreation activities, donations and grants, as well as other topics of local interest. Exhibits 1. Department Report PARKS & RECREATION DEPARTMENT REPORT September 18, 2017 GENERAL & RECREATION Labor Day Weekend Heat Wave Approximately 2,000 swimmers decided to beat the heat at Alga Norte Aquatics Center over Labor Day Weekend. The attendance was higher on Saturday during the record-breaking heat and then tapered off over the next two days once the weather became cooler and clouds and some rain moved in. Parks & Recreation Summer Programs Nearly 9,000 people participated in over 800 different camps, classes, and events that were offered this summer. Most of these programs reached the maximum course enrollment and there were numerous programs that had a waiting list. One of the secrets to another successful summer can be contributed to having a high customer retention rate, since there were only twelve new customers that signed up for a new account since the spring. Dinner & a Movie Fundraiser The Parks & Recreation and Library & Cultural Arts Departments and the Friends of Carrillo Ranch, Inc. hosted Dinner & a Movie Fundraiser at Leo Carrillo Ranch Historic Park on August 18. Guests enjoyed a Mexican Fiesta, complete with dinner, live music, a silent auction, and an episode of the Cisco Kid on the big screen. Thanks to the event’s title sponsor, Personal Touch Dining, and the silent auction items provided by the Friends and local donors, the event raised more than $16,000 to allow nearly 1,300 Carlsbad 4th grade students to participate in the award-winning California History & Art Program at the Ranch completely free of charge. In addition, funds raised will provide bussing grants for Title I (low income) schools to ensure that all classrooms have the opportunity to participate. Carlsbad Saves Bees Last summer, the Parks & Recreation Department received numerous complaints about honey bee stings and bees foraging in and around trash cans near the pool and playground at Alga Norte Community Park. This summer, the department worked with a bee keeper to implement non-lethal, pesticide-free strategies to significantly reduce the number of foraging bees in public use areas. Staff installed screening at the food and beverage service windows, placed trash receptacles with “bee- proof” lids throughout the facility, and constructed several bee-friendly watering stations in the nearby landscape. The stations provide safe forage for the bees away from the public without them accidentally drowning in the pool. A special thank you to Adam Lord, Jason Christman, Robbie Klein, Rodney Nishimoto, Tim Selke, and Travis Kitrick for their assistance in implementing this conservation program. Challenged Athlete Visits Carlsbad The Parks & Recreation Department hosted a challenged athlete and 2020 Special Olympian, Mackenzie Johnson, for a weeklong visit and program tour in August. Recreation Supervisor, Steve Herrera, partnered with NBA Hall of Famer, Bill Walton, and the Challenged Athlete Foundation, to arrange an opportunity for Mackenzie to participate in, and interact with, golf camp participants, kayak the Agua Hedionda Lagoon, shoot arrows at archery camp, swim at Alga Norte Community Park, and play basketball. Mackenzie shared his inspiring story of perseverance and achievement with camp participants throughout the week. This fall, Mackenzie will attend Auburn University, where he will be a member of the wheelchair basketball team. Carlsbad Music Festival The Parks & Recreation Department permitted the three-day Carlsbad Music Festival, a celebration of “adventurous music by the beach.” The festival took place from August 25 to August 27 and featured more than 60 performances including free outdoor concerts, ticketed events, a beer garden, food trucks and artisan market. The festival was supported in part by a City of Carlsbad Community Arts Grant. Snores & S’mores Family Campout Snores & S’mores was a huge success this year with 430 attendees. Families pitched their tents on the baseball field and then gathered in the park for Sing themed activities that included video karaoke, obstacle escape, relay and carnival games, crafts, and face painting. Families dressed up in vintage Hollywood costumes and took home fun souvenir photos. The evening featured an outdoor movie, popcorn, s’mores, and a meteor shower. The event concluded with breakfast and a morning hike on the golf view trail. Staff Goes Above and Beyond On August 1, city staff member, Sara Kelly, helped stage a surprise wedding proposal at Leo Carrillo Ranch Historic Park. Sara first met the gentleman several days ago, when he was wandering the park searching for the perfect location to pop the question. Intrigued by the romance of it all, Sara went above and beyond to help him select the perfect backdrop, and arrange the various players. Everything went perfectly . . . the couple met at the Ranch for a picnic lunch, and afterwards took a short stroll to Deedie’s House. They were followed through the park at a distance by a photographer secretly capturing the occasion. Family and friends hid nearby while the man changed into a tuxedo jacket in the restroom. Once he was down on one knee with ring in hand, Sara motioned everyone together to reveal the surprise and celebrate the happy moment. Of course she said yes. With a beautiful park and customer service like that, how could you say no? Alga Norte Hosts Swim Competition On July 14, approximately 230 masters swimmers and 69 divers competed in the USA Masters swim meet at Alga Norte Community Park. Participants from throughout the southwest traveled to Carlsbad to compete in the long course and diving competition. A special thank you to public works staff, Joe Bjork, Glen Boodry, and Jim Cochand for assisting aquatics staff with the installation of two one meter diving boards and two three meter high diving boards. The work was completed just in time for 93 year old competitor “Dr. Dive” to take the plunge! Certified Park and Recreation Professionals Jeanette Gant, Kevin Granse, Brandon Hills, Mark Olson, Mike Pacheco, and Majka Penner are now Certified Park and Recreation Professionals (CPRP). The CPRP certification is the leading professional certification in the field. Attaining the CPRP designation shows they have achieved education and experience prerequisites and passed a rigorous national examination which is designed to assess the core knowledge of job-related tasks common to park and recreation professionals. Upcoming Events  Splash Bash: Saturday, September 23, 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Alga Norte Aquatics Center  Super Hero Obstacle Race: Sunday, October 1, 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. at Alga Norte Community Park  Pumpkin Plunge: Saturday, October 14, 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Alga Norte Aquatics Center  Día de los Muertos at Leo Carrillo Ranch: o Candle Lit Tours of the Hacienda – Saturday, October 28, 6:30, 7 p.m. and 7:30 o Open Adobe and Family Open Studios – Sunday, October 29, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. PARKS Pine Avenue Community Center and Gardens Project The improvements to Pine Avenue Park include a community center, and a passive plaza with both ornamental gardens and community gardens. In January, based on a recommendation from staff, the City Council awarded a construction contract to Barnhardt-Reese Construction. That bid was at the engineer’s estimate, and additional funding was appropriated by the City Council for construction contingencies. After an initial waiting period for SDGE’s approval of re-routing/re-connection of the electrical service to the pending community center, substantial construction of the project commenced in May. Since the Parks & Recreation Commission Meeting in May, significant progress has been made on both the community center site and the gardens site. At the community center site, the installation of all underground utilities has been completed, the forming and pouring of the building foundations/footings has been completed, and erection of the steel framing has been nearly completed. At the gardens site, the grading of the lot has been completed, installation of the underground drainage has been completed, erection of the northern and eastern perimeter walls has been completed, and the forming and pouring of various foundations/footings has been nearly completed. The project remains on schedule for a grand opening in the spring of 2018. Ocean Street Beach Access Improvements Project This project encompasses seven beach accesses along Ocean Street, specifically near the western terminus of each of the following streets: Oak Ave., Carlsbad Village Dr., Grand Ave., Christiansen Ave., Beech Ave., Cypress Ave. and Rue Des Chateaux. The conceptual designs incorporated elements of the downtown village streetscapes, and include enhanced street crossings, improved disabled accessibility, new stairs and paving, handrails, seating areas, trash/recycling receptacles, lighting, and landscaping. Staff received acceptance of the revised conceptual designs by the applicable commissions, culminating in the issuance of a Carlsbad Coastal Development Permit in Aug. 2016. Subsequently, a Request for Qualifications process ensued to obtain a design firm for preparation of the construction documents. In Nov. 2016, the City Council awarded a contract to KTUA, the best value determined design firm for these services. After the award of contract, KTUA met with staff on multiple occasions, and submitted progressive sets of the construction documents. On Aug. 22, 2017, the City Council approved that set of construction documents, and authorized the advertisement of the project for bids. On Aug. 31, 2017, the project was advertised for bids, and on Sept. 11, 2017, a pre-bid meeting was held. On Oct. 3, 2017, the bids are due; staff will subsequently review them for responsiveness. Aviara Community Park – Ph. II and Poinsettia Community Park – Ph. III Construction Projects The Aviara Community Park – Ph. II Construction Project and the Poinsettia Community Park –Ph. III Construction Project were designed together and intended to be bid as one unit. The design of the Poinsettia Community Park – Ph. III Construction Project includes a dog park. During the bidding process, multiple residents, and representatives of home owners’ associations, requested that the dog park not be constructed in the master planned location of Poinsettia Community Park. The predominant reason for these requests was the desire to leave that location, referred to as “the grassy bowl,” as an unstructured play area. While staff was designing and bidding the Aviara Community Park – Ph. II and Poinsettia Community Park – Ph. III Construction Projects, staff was also conducting a feasibility study for a master planned multigenerational recreation center at Poinsettia Community Park. A multigenerational recreation center was ultimately found to be not feasible as envisioned at this community park. As a result, the segment of Poinsettia Community Park that was master planned for a multigenerational recreation center can now be considered and studied for other potential uses. On Aug. 1, 2017, the findings of this feasibility study were accepted by the Parks & Recreation Commission and the Senior Commission. On Aug. 22, 2017, the findings of this feasibility study were also accepted by the City Council. On Sept. 12, 2017, based on the findings of this feasibility study, and in response to the recent requests received from the public, the City Council approved staff’s recommendation to revise the Poinsettia Community Park – Ph. III Construction Project plans and specifications remove the dog park from the “grassy bowl” location. Staff will next seek public input on the concept of relocating the dog park to the segment of Poinsettia Community Park initially envisioned for a multigenerational recreation center. In conjunction with staff’s recommendation to revise the Poinsettia Community Park – Ph. III Construction Project plans and specifications to remove the dog park, the City Council also approved staff’s recommendation to reject all bids received for the Aviara Community Park – Ph. II and Poinsettia Park – Ph. III Construction Projects. The revisions to the Poinsettia Community Park – Ph. III Construction Project plans and specifications will require approximately three months to complete. At that time, the plans and specifications for both projects will be brought back to the City Council for approval, and authorization to bid. Upcoming Event - National Public Lands Day Event at Lake Calavera Preserve – Sept. 30 National Public Lands Day is the nation’s largest, single-day volunteer effort aimed at educating the public about the environment and natural resources to improve public lands for outdoor recreation. The City of Carlsbad will celebrate National Public Lands Day with a trails refurbishment event. The event will take place at the Lake Calavera Preserve on Saturday, Sept. 30, 2017, from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. Volunteer work will include erosion repair and control, weed abatement, vegetation trimming and trash clean up. City staff will be on hand to provide information on the city’s trail system, and to assist with the day’s work activities. National Public Lands Day is sponsored by the National Environmental Education Foundation, which was chartered by Congress in 1990 to advance environmental knowledge. The national volunteer day began in 1994 with just three sites and 700 volunteers, and last year approximately 200,000 volunteers worked at 2,600 sites in every state.