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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSigned Minutes - Special Meeting - 9/06/2000DO NOT REMOVE - PRAB File Matenal City of Boulder ',.,, Parks and Recreation Advisory Board ~,, Special Meeting September 6, 2000 North Boulder Recreation Center, Yoga Room 3170 Broadway 6:00 p.m. The followtng are t minu~s~tY~3eptember 6, 2000 City of Boulder Parks and Recreation Advisory Board esuin. t1 pern~anent set of these minutes and a tape recordtng (mainta~ned for a period of 6 years) are retained irz Central Records (telephone • 441-3043). Board Present: Will Meyer, Chau; Gwen Dooley, Vice Chazr; Susan Osbome, Dave Wming, Charles Manlove, and Edwazd von Ble~chert Board Absent: Pam Hoge Staff Present: Chns Dropmski, Ken Ramsey, Sazah DeSouza, Doug Hawthorne, Lmda Kotowski, Georgia Jackson, A1 Quiller, Maureen Spitzer, Tom Kramer, Matt Hickey, Steve Whipple, Julya Bndgewater, Kate Bernhazdt, Summer ~,.~, Kennedy, Andy Fernandez, Maura Holden `~ I. ITEMS FOR ACTION A. Public hearing and consideration of approval of the schematic design for the North Boulder Recreation Center renovation Presenters: Chris Dropinski, Director of Parks and Recreation; Linda Kotowski, Recmation Superintendent; Ken Ramsey, Parks Planning and Construction Superintendent; Alan Quiller, Recreation Administrator; Maureen Spitzer, Landscape Designer Kotowski brought the boazd up to date on the proposed North Boulder Recreatron Center renovation by providmg background and tustory of the process. Spitzer stated that the concept plan was approved by the PRAB in January, 2000 addmg that a number of issues were razsed by the Boazd at that ume. T'he issues of energy conservaaon, encouraging the use of alternate modes of transportaUOn to mimtmze the amount of pazlung on sIIe, and considerauon of the use of solaz energy have been addressed m the memo or report. Quiller highhghted the three azeas of change from the approved concept plan: the f~"~ _... lap pool reducuon to S lanes with a ramp area, the addrhon of a drop shde and a ~""' sauna mstead of a steam room. ~ Hamill gave the Boazd an overview of the concept plan. The public heanng was opened. Jeff Bennett, 3015 10'~ Street, Boulder 80304, recommended going back to 61anes m the lap pool but tlunks that 8 lanes would alleviate the overcrowdmg and lane crunch. Joan Laubacher, 1027 Pine Street #3, Boulder 80302, a Masters swim coach, asked the Board to consider adding a 6'" lane to the lap pool. She feels that youth would gain much more from a compehuve swim program than from gomg down a shde Juhe Redenbaugh-Pured, 4579 Beachcomber Ct, Boulder 80301, an employee of the Center for People with Disabilit~es, affirmed that there should be a ramp m the lap pool to provide access for people of all abiliaes. Wesley Hobson, 1380 Kalmia Avenue, Boulder 80304, a professional triathlete, stated that of the 43 countnes he has visited, only 2 have pools measured m yazds and most have 50-meter pools. He stated that it would be mce to have a 50-meter ~ pool m Boulder - providmg an extra meter and a half to prevent overlapping. Jane Scott, 750 Ut~ca Avenue, Boulder 80304, shazed concerns that she heazs on a dazly basis from swimmers: adequate space for different abihry levels, proper ventilauon, acous[tcs and water temperature Joe Launn, 788 Zamia Court, Boulder 80304, a begmner master swimmer, expressed support for a 6`" lane m the lap pool. He also spoke for a woman who had left the meeting but wanted the Boazd to know that she is not able to swim at EBCC because of the poor ventilation. She would not be able to use the renovated pool at NBRC unless care is taken to ensure adequate vent~lation John Gratz, 1015 Vivian Circle, Boulder 80303, beheves that a 6`" lane is an important feature. He also cited the safety factor to correct the lane overcrowdmg. Kevm Edwazds, 1420 Moss Rock Place, Boulder 80304, stated that the lap pool dces need extra lanes - 6 lanes micumum but beheves that 8 lanes would do more to alleviate overcrowding. Marshall Lee, 3218 47'~ Street, Boulder 80301, satd that it is important for youth to have act~vity and added that the lap pools provide opportumry for compet~Uve ~ PRAB Spec~al Meenng 9/6/00 - Page 2 ,~ youth swimmmg. He added that it doesn't make sense to reduce the number of ,,,,~ lap lanes when under capacity for lanes at present. ~ Bill Deoreo, 3030 15w Street, Boulder 80304, stated that the lap pool should be expanded to the south to include 8lanes by reducmg the size of the leisure pool. Spealung on behalf of the Old North Boulder Neighborhood Associauon, Deoreo asked the Boazd to consider making the Community Gazden a permanent faciliry (incorporated as part of the North Boulder Recreation Center) through a pubhc pnvate partnerslup. Meyer asked Deoreo about captunng groundwater. Deoreo responded that mfiltration can be used mstead of trymg to capture water, route and dischazge the water mto a stream. Encouraging mfiltratron mto the gtoundwater and pnvate irrigation wells would lessen the peak demand for city water. Boruue Sundance, 170 Forsythe, Nederland 80466, a patron of the NBRC, expressed concerns over the relceation of the platform tennis courts on the NBRC site. She asked the Boazd to consider movmg the courts to either the East or South recreat~on centers. The pubhc heanng was closed. Boazd comments and quesuons: Meyer asked if staff would hke to address any of the issues rused. ~ Kotowski responded that the water temperature of the pools has not yet been determmed, addmg that it will be a matter of balancmg programtmng needs. Dooley asked what would be the unplications of mcreasing the lap pool to 8 lanes. Hamill responded by showing the Board a rough sketch which showed the adduton of 3 lanes to the noRh. The cost of the additional 1800 square feet would be approx~mately $400,000 -.$420,000. The loss of park:ng spaces and the increase in buildtng size would mean that addihonal parking spaces would be needed. He felt that by maximizing the allowable amount of sma[L car spaces to 60 percent of the parking spaces ~t might be possible to provide the required number of parking spaces. Wimng asked if the lanes could be added to the south. Hamill responded that:n order to do that, rhe extsnng wall would need to be demolished, addzng funher to the cost. Ong~nally, the existing wall was to be retained tn order to keep costs down. Meyer asked Quiller to address the size and demand for the leisure pool. Quiller responded that surveys and public meetings have shown the leuure pool to be an extremely popular area. ~.., PRAB Special Mcenng 9/6/00 - Page 3 .~..- Quiller addressed the issue of au quality and stated that wmdows and doors m the ~"^ hot tub azea will be able to be opened to bnng m fresh air ~ Meyer asked about water treatment systems and what has been done to improve air qualiry. Hamill responded that a slipstream ozone system along with fresh atr wtll necessitate uscng [ess chlonne and will improve the air quakty. He would not recommend adding windows on the west side because of a concern for sun angle which produces glare on the pool surface, prevent~ng kfeguards from seeing the boaom of the poo[. Meyer asked if there was Board support for an 81ane pool. Dooley, von Bleichert, Wmmg and Meyer rused their hands. Ramsey stated that addi6onal lanes could impact orher azeas (locker room size, mechazucal room size and equipment, etc.) and suggested that staff look at issues of impact and bnng the informahon back to the Boazd. Osborne asked staff to look at 8, 7 and 6 lanes and the impacts of each design. Manlove and Osbome expressed support for the ramp. Meyer stated that there is general Boazd support for 6-S lanes with visitor space as alternauves. ~ Meyer mquire~i about the usage of platform tenms courts. Quzller responded that the current usage of platform tennis couns ~s covered by the exisnng 2 couns If there is future demand for additional couns Quiller feels they shou[d a[so be located at the NBRC. Dropmslu reIIUnded the Boazd that budgedng is tight with a 6-yeaz CIP, adding that changes w~ll mean tradeoffs elsewhere Osborne responded that ihe opporturaty to do a renovat:on comes only once m 20 years and is worth ~t even ~f it means deferring a park improvement. Board members expressed agreement with Osborne. Manlove stated that use of solaz for hot water purposes should be explored if Council is wilhng to help with the incremental cost. Dooley stated that Hoge (absent) called and asked rhat solaz energy be considered as much as possible The Boazd expressed a desire to see wtuch trees aze bemg considered for removal and asked to do ttus as part of the September 25, 2000 tour Spitzer remmded the Boazd that they aze under a ught ume frame and construchon ts scheduled to begm m May. Meyer responded that the Board understands and ~ PRAB Speciat Meeung 9/6/00 • Page 4 ~~.- asks staff to work as dil~gently as possible, hop~ng that repercusstons are ~ m:nimued. ~ Kotowski explazned the reasons for the May construcuon start date and asked if there was some way that the Boazd would allow staff to move ahead if all of the impacts of 81anes could be uoned out. Meyer responded that there are a number of cons~derations and the Board's decuion wtll depend on staf}'feedback on September 25, 2000. Meyer stated that the mformat~on requested by the Board could be provided as la[e as the Fnday before the September 25, 2000 meet~ng to allow staff adequate t~me to prepaze the matenals. Osbome sazd she would l~ke to see something interpret~ve mcluded at the NBRC about Frednck Law Olmstead, Jr., for lus contnbut~on to Pazks and Recreat~on. Meyer concurred. On a motron by Wmmg, seconded by Dooley, the Pazks and Recreauon Advisory Boazd voted unanimously (6-0 with one member absent) to contutue tlus item to the next boazd meeting II ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION/INFORMATION w B. Valmont City Park/Public Private Partnership (,r, Presenters: Diana Royce Smith and Teresa Grills, City Liaisons Smith showed the board an updated site review conceptual plan and expluned ihe matenals contamed in the board packet. Gnlls reviewed the Partners status report (updated hst) and explazned that wivle they have not solicited, they have been contacted by Boulder Ice, Boulder Valley School Dismct and a few other groups. Boazd Comments and Ouestions: Osbome stated that informauon m[he matenals is unclear as to when the Boazd gets mvolved in the proposal process. She is conthcted about selLng off part of the pazk so someone can make a profit. She would hke it to be like Waslungton Pazk m Denver or Kensmgton Pazk m London, not a Six Flags Theme Pazk over Valmont. Dropenslu responded that the land ~s not betng sold off and that pro,/ects are screened very early in zhe process to see if they ft the park's missron and goals. If not, they wi[l be elim~nated. Osbome stated that the mission and goals aze very general and she doesn't see how they can be used to determme what is appropnate and what isn't. She ~,,, PRAB Spec~al Meenng 9/6/00 - Page 5 ~..~ expressed concem about how much t~me and effort potenual partners will put mto ,,,..~, a proposal before the matter comes to the Boazd. ...- Dooley concurred and stated that she envisioned the pazk as 60% open, addmg that the last survey showed Boulder to be "park poor" and not "facihry poor". She would like to see the pazk as a place to wtuch people could escape. Smith stated that small things will be easy decisions and staff will pre-screen and filter the rest before bnngmg them to the Boazd. Gnlls added that anyttung quesuonable would be brought before the Management Team. Manlove stated that if the City were to finance all development on the site it would take unt~l the 22°" century. He added that it became punfully obvious that if the pazk were to be developed, money would have to be brought m from potential partners. He also expressed discomfort wrth the process of pre- screemng von Bleichert expressed concem that money offered from a potenhal partner will guazantee that somettung will be built. He further is concemed that prauie dogs have been determined as not appropnate for the Valmont City Pazk sue and use, pazuculazly when the use has not yet be detemuned. He felt that development of the site must be mindfiil of the fact that the pazk is surrounded by, and in a natural comdor for, prauie dogs ~ Manlove stated that there aze significant annual costs for allowing pra~rie dogs to remain on the pazk site. He added that he dces not consider praine dogs to be urban wildhfe and does not feel they belong in the pazk as it is no longer a nauve place. Meyer asked the Boazd to allow the Ciry Liaisons to wrap up theu Pubhc Pnvate Partnerslup dtscussion before proceedmg to Bernhazdt's presentatron on prauze dogs at Valmont City Park Smith mformed the Boazd that the City Liusons were not involved m either the concept plan development or the public meeungs for ttus process She added that if the Boazd would hke to change any of that, then the City L,iazsons will muror that change to potential investors. Dropinski stated that staff will mclude this as a regulu item on monthly agendas. Prairie Dogs at Valmont Citv Park Bernhazdt had no presentat~on and asked the Boazd for any queshons they might have. She added that von Bleichen brought up a good point about the locat~on of ~r~w PRAB Spec~al Meeung 9/6/00 - Page 6 ~..~ prau-ie dogs azound the site and the need to deal wrth the issue. ~ Boazd Comments and Oueshons: ~.. Osbome sazd she does not want to isolate small colomes of prazne dogs and asked von Bleichert what could be done von Bleichert stated that he never envisioned an isolated, fenced prauze dog population. Removing every dog from pazk property will not alleviate the problem as praine dogs aze on properties ad~acent to the pazk site. He feels they need to be dealt with in one of two ways. The first would be to remove all praine dogs from the property and use fence and/or natural hazdscape as a bamer. The second option would be to allow some prazne dogs to remain and if so, it would make sense to use the southeast corner and the natural comdor. Then bamers could be constructed to limit theu access to the pazk. von Bleichert expressed concem that as part of the relocaaon process, praine dogs aze being quazanhned for no obvious reason and without scienhfic data. Further he is concemed that there is no tracking of the relceated prazrie dogs. None of the experts he has contacted could come up wrth a valid reason for detaimng prazne dogs at the chicken fazm for a month. He has been unable to get m touch with Susan Miller. von Bleichert asked if 5 to 10 acres is too much to set aside for praine dogs. ~ Manlove responded that it would be very expensive land on wluch to house prazne dogs and that the taxpayers were not awaze they were gomg to spend a million dollars to have a praine dog colony. Meyer stated that von Bleichert brought up some alternaave ideas. One is to keep praine dogs off the property altogether and prevent prazne dogs from uugraang back to pazk property. The other would be to accommodate praine dogs m a small azea In the future these optrons will be need to be discussed. In the meanume Meyer feels that rhe ammals need to be moved m a scienufically proven way with which the Boazd is comfortable. The Boazd needs some reassurance that what is bemg done is reasonably proven scientifically. He understands the frvstrauon of not being able to get m touch with the person responsible for prauie dog relocat~on. He would like staff to try to provide answers for these quesuons von Bleichert brought up the possibility of prov~ding a viewmg bench, platform and sign for viewmg the praine dog colony. Meyer suggested the possibihty of a jomt venture with utiliues to view the dogs on theu property The Boazd would hke for staff to get back with answers to the quesuons razsed. ~ PRAB Speaal Meeang 9I6/00 - Page 7 Meyer remmded the Boazd of the Greenleaf Pazk dedication on Saturday from 10 a m. to ,A^ 12 noon. ~... The meeting adjourned at 11 •37 p.m. APPROVED BY PARKS AND RECREATION ADVISORY BOARD• ~-~u"`" ` ~" -~ Will Meyer Boazd Chazr Attest: ~ Georgia J son ~ Recording Secretary ~"~ PRAB Speaal Mcenng 9/6/00 - Page 8 V