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HomeMy WebLinkAboutApproved Minutes - 7/28/2003City of Boulder Parks and Recreation Advisory Board Minutes July 28, 2003 City Council Chambers 1777 Broadway 6 p.m. The followang are the manuter of the July 28, 2003 City of Boulder Parks and Recreatton Advtsory Board meetang (PRAB) A pern2anent set of these minutes and a tape recordang (maantaaned for a period nf 6 years) are retaanecl in Central Records (Celephone • 303-441-3043). Board Present: Susan Osborne, Vice Chair, Thomas Sanford, Suzanne O'Neill, Pam Hoge, Stu Stuller Board Absent: Charles Manlove, Chair; Ed von Bleichert Staff Present: Jan Gcden, Jairue Sabbach, Kate Bernhardt, Bob Peck, Christme Andersen, Georgia Jackson, Julya Bridgewater I. APPROVAL OF AGENDA The agenda was approved as submrtted II. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION Pubhc Partic~pation was opened Ehzabeth Lichtenstein, 1170 Jay Street, Boulder 80302, spoke higl~ly of Boulder Ice and its mission to promote family ice skahng. She also spoke about how Boulder Ice is focusmg all aspects of its design on sustamabilriy Valerie Walls, 2375 Jasper Court, Boulder 80306, expressed support for the proposed Tenms Center at Valmont Crty Park. She spoke of the tremendous need for the Tennis Center as there currently is no famlity for wheelcha~r tenms camps, tournamenCs or state championsh~p competitions Gale Howard, 4281 Vinca Court, Boulder 80304, tenms coach for Boulder H~gh School, spoke about the lack of facihties for youth tennis He expressed support for the proposed Tenrus Center at Valmont City Park Armando Gingras, 2375 Jasper Court, Boulder 80304, Board Membei of the Boulder Tenms Association, spoke of the need for a facilrty that can host tournaments and league play Gary Yost, 10391 Galatia Ct, Longmont 80503, spoke about the benefits of tennis as a l~fetime sporC that can be played by people of all ages. He expressed support foi ihe proposed Tenms Center at Valmont City Park. Steve Vorhaus, 3627 Wildrose Place, LongmonC 80503, said he is the owner of Rocky Mountam Racquet Specialists, the only tenms store in the Boulder aiea. Vorhaus said he and h~s staff repeatedly are asked if there is an mdoor tenn~s facilrty and whether Yhere are publtc tenn~s facilities m Boulder Lois Hayes, 117 Genesee Court, Boulder 80303, spoke on the proposal to place 30,000 cubic yards of landfill on the Hogan property wh~ch is ~ust south of the East Boulder CommuntCy Center (EBCC) Because of the high water table, the swimmmg pool (at EBCC) was hmrted Co a depth of 8 feet when it was mstalled. Hayes expressed concern about whether the proposed landfill might impact the swimmmg pool and urged staff to have a hydrology engineer look into the matter Marian Furst, 988 Sycamore Avenue, Boulder 80303, assistant coach of the Umversity of Colorado Speed Skatmg Club, spoke abouY lhe benefits of speed skatmg Furst said iC is a great family activity for skaters of all ages She spoke of the difficiilties m findmg ice time for Chis activiCy and expressed support for Boulder Ice at Valmont City Park Public ParUcipation was closed III. CONSENT AGENDA The mmutes of June 23, 2003 were approved as submrtted. IV. MATTERS FROM THE DEPARTMENT Geden mtroduced Tracy Altergott, Recreation Supervisor from Grand Junclion, Colorado Geden and AltergotL are mvolved m the Colorado Parks and Recreat~on Assoc~ation mentormg program and have been warkmg together over the past year. Geden said Altergott was m attendance this evening because of her mterest m learning how Co woik with Boards and Commissions Osborne welcomed Altergott on behalf of the Board. Board members had no questions or comments on any of the items under Matters from the Department. Mmuter PRAB Meermg 07/28/2003 - Pagc 2 V. MATTERS FROM BOARD MEMBERS Sanford spoke about the S~lver Leeds certification far energy efficiency that the North Boulder Recreation Center (NBRC) received The Colorado Renewable Energy Society recently recognized the NBRC with an award for iCs energy efficiency. Sanford said NBRC was expanded from 30,000 square feet to over 60,000 square feet yet the larger buildmg uses the same amount of energy as the smaller buildmg used. O'Neill applauded the Newlands neighborhood for fillmg planters that would not otherwise be filled because of budget cuts Hoge asked ~f staff had gotten m touch wrth Debra Keammerer, restoration ecologisl. Geden replted in the affirmative and said a meeCang hctd fieen scheduled for when Lakey returns ~rom vacatzon Geden saad there would be an update under Matters from tha Department Ln the August packeC. Hoge asked if slaff was familiar with the landfill project near the Eaet Boulder Recreation Center Geden replied an the negatave She added that staff wall look anto Che maCter and have someone attend the meeting Thursday evenang Bernhardt said slaff only knew that a landfill was bemg proposed on that property to prepare it for development She stated thaC staff will look mto the mattei and be in attendance at the meetmg Geden saad there would be an update on the matter in next month'r packet Stuller commended sCaff for the dramatic recovery of turf on Yhe soccer fields at Pleasant V ~ew. Osborne asked if staff could be updated on plans for restormg Central Park and tbe Municipal Buildmg grounds once Broadway consti uchon is completed She asked ir there were opportunilies there to do some drought conservmg landscape Geden c~sked if three or more Board members wantecl staff to look into the matter and four out of five Board members expressed anterest Geden said she would descuss the matter w~th Hawthorne and Board members could expect an update an the next pucket Osborne said she has heard from citizens about the condrtion of Eben G Fine Park - no turf, the closed reslroom facility and overflowmg garbage. Geden said the restroom buald~ng as ltsted on the Boulder Valley Comprehensive plan as a potentaal histor~c sate. Geden added th~zt the sewer line needs to be completely redone af that bu~ldareg as goang to be a restroom, wh~ch would necessztate daggeng ento the foundataon of the bueldeng That would trcgger ADA complaance repaars that could then change the antegrcty of the bu~lding or alter atfrom hastarac perspect~ve. Geclen saad staff was considerang doang a cultural resources anventory of the stte to apply for a State of Colorado Cultural Hzstorac Grant an the fall Geden said thete are portable toilets at Eben G Fine Park and rt was her understandmg that it wasn't clear where they are locaCed. Geden added that before the weekend there Mmutes PRAB Meeung 07/28/2003 - Page 3 will be signs put on the restroom buildmg to mdicate where the portable toilets are located. Geden said bear-pioof trash cans are needed at Eben G. Fme Patk but the cans have a smaller capamty lhan regular trash eans As a result, the trash cans in the park caimot handle all of the trash that is generated. Geden said more bear-proof trash cans have been ordered and should ariive m about s~x weeks. She added that she would forward to the Board Che e-mails sent to the City Manager about Eben G Fme Park Oshorne said Ehen G Fane as so heavaly used and suggested that at rreight he moved (through the Master Plan process) to the haghest praoraty for upgrad~ng or renovataon Sanford said a citizen called him to say that since park properhes are not mowed as often the citizen is fmdmg more rattlesnakes on his property. Sanford said he referred the citizen to Doug Hawthorne, Parks Supermtendent Sanfard mquired about the park mowmg schedule Peck repl~ed that sCaff still mows once a week if there is a need for ~t VI. ITEMS FOR ACTION Tl~ere were no Items for Aclion VII. ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION/INFORMATION A. Boulder IceBoulder Tennis update Bernliardt mtroduced Ashley Ortiz and Robert Clarke of Boulder Ice and Jim Swiggart of Boulder Tenms Boulder Ice Orliz and Clarke provided Boaid members wilh a biicf update on the progress Boulder Ice has made over the past year Board Uueshons and Comments • Hoge said Boulder Ice will probably be the fiist buildmg m Valmont City Park and therefore the exCerior design might ~mpact the feel of the whole park She asked how approval of the exterior design of buildings would be handled Bernhnrdt sacd staff would lake to see what Boulder Ice comes up with and then react to that rather than superimpose a hypotherical rrtandate that everything has to be a certaan way Hoge 4aid the Board pieviously expressed a desire to see buildmgs at Valmont that fit the environment and have a natural feel about Cbem • Sanford said he would hate to impose standards as Boulder Ice has been very mnovativc and he is excited to see what they will come up with Sanford satd many of the goals thaC Boulder Ice is reachmg for such as the Gold Leeds standard are energy and low environmenYal ~mpacY sYandards. He is confident they will design a building that will fit the environment Mi~mtes PRAB Mectmg 07/28/2003-Page 4 O'Neill suggested Boulder Ice get m touch with foundations Chat like to fund research for energy conservation. Ortaz and Clarke saad they thought that was a good adea. Stuller mquired about a timehne for capital funding. Ortez replaed that approxtmately two years cs the wtndow of opporCUnety to ratse capital fundang She added that they want to waet untal they have all of Yhe resources, people and a full plan prtor to begannang the capatal fund raasing Sanford said he hoped Boulder Ice is keeping record of rrulestones m order to create a ioad map for olher faciliC~es to follow. Osborne thanked Clarke and Ort~z and mvited Chem to return to update the Board ontheu progress Tenn~s Center Swiggart provided the Board with an overview of piogress that has been made on the Tenms Center over Che past year Board Comments and Ouestions • Hoge asked if the mdoor facihty could be taken down l~ke the one at the Harvest House. Swaggart replaed zn the reegatave sayeng the proposed structure wcll be made of inetal frames wath canvas sCretched on at • Hoge asked if Swiggart knew what was happenmg with CU's tenms courts. Swaggart replied that the Kittredge courts would be demolished and twelve new courts have been butlt on the s~uth campus Unfortunately there wtll not be any laghCs or water aC the new facalaty • Hoge asked if CU was interesCed m partnermg with the proposed Tennis CenCei at Valmont CiCy Park Swiggart saad he was told to make his proposal a stand-nlone proposal w~thout involvang CU. He adde~l he would be willartg to go to CU as a potent~al partner to fund two more indoor tennis courts, hut only af the caty was amenable to the idea. Geden said she agreed with Sw~ggart that before anythmg is finalized it would be w~se to see ~f there are any mterested partners. Sweggart said he has lu~d preleminary dtscusscons w~th Boulder Valley School Dastrtct. • Stuller asked what affect existmg tennis courts would have on the proposed Tenms Center. Swiggart replaed that a tenn~s center• creates tennas interest and at will make Boulder a regaonal terenis center Swiggart added that there would be exponenteally more tenrcas played an Boulder • Stuller asked how often tournaments would be held and how many people would come to Boulder for lournamenYS Swiggart replaed that tournaments would brang in mare than three to five hundred people from all over the country for each event Osbotne asked if there would be fees for usmg each court Swaggart replaed an Che affirmatave and said et was no different thart golf where you pay to play Swaggart added that there is no charge for pocket courts as they have no amenataes, no servcces and no ~nstructaon Mmutes PRAB Meetmg 07/28/2003 -Page 5 Osboine thanked Swiggart for his presentation. Swiggart then expressed appreciataon for staff's sup~ort and helpfulreess. He also thanked Boulder Tennas fls,soccation for all of their help. B. Valmont City Park land exchangeBoulder Transit Village Geden asked the Board to listen to the presentation, ask questions, discuss the options and grve their comments on Yhe mformation provided Geden said slaff will piepare a Weekly Information Packet (WIP) for Council, providmg Chem wrth an overview of torught's meeting and the overall direcuon provided by the Board. Staff will regroup and meet with the C~ly Manager to discuss the issue and receivc more direchon Geden mtroduced Micki Kaplan, Pro~ecl Manager for the Boulder Transit Village, and Doug Newcomb, Property Agent fiom Real Estate Services, Co the Board Chr~stme Andersen, Deputy City Manager for Env~romnental Affairs, was also presenl to provide any mformation from the City Manager's perspective. BernhardC gave a brief overview of the maCerials contamed m the packet Board Comments and Oueshons• • Sanford asked whether Pollard had seen all of the options m lhe packct Geden replied that Pollard has~ust seen Optaon 1 buC has expressed arcterest an the stx acres at Valmont Caty Park Staff has been charged by the City Manager to explore all ophons and determane next steps Hoge said she read m the newspaper thaC property wesY of Goose Creek was offered to Pollard who then countered far six acres east of Goose Creek Hoge wanted to know what Pollard found unacceptable wrth the properly west of Goose Creek. Newcomb satd an general Pollard feels they currently have arc A+ sate and the sate proposed hy the caty Pollard feels to be a D grade sate Newcomb added that Pollard considers the sete they requested an the park, east of the creek, a C grade sate Newcornb saad Pollarcl would lake to have the saCe east of the creek because it has more traffic goang by on Pearl ancl there would be some traffic in and out of the park on Aarport Road Newcomb satd there are some spemfic reasons that Pollard does noC like thc mty's proposed s~Ce They mclude the large power line that runs across much of the sile, the fact that lhe proposed site is not at the corner of a s~gnalized m~ersect~on, the shape of the proposed srte ~s long and narrow and not conducive to sellmg cars, Eco Cycle is behmd the propoaed pioperty and concern about unknown future uses d~rectly norCh of the proposed site. Hoge asked if staff countered with a more square shape with less power lmee wesC of Goose Creek Newcomb responded in the affirmatave saad he thought staff dad even better than that Staff countered wath no specific configurat~on and asked Pollard what he needs so staff could come up ,somethang acceptable to Pollard on the city Yards sate Sanford said lhat it was a shame Mmutes P2AB Meehng 07/28/2003 - Page 6 Pollard did noC l~ke Option 1 because thaY conhguration gives Pollard a lot of display and fronlage along Pearl Street • O'Neill asked if staff, a$er learnmg of Pollai d's preferences, went back and looked at alternative sites for the Transit Village. Kaplan replied that .rtaff went through an extensave sate selectaon process and looked at a variety of sttes for the Transat Vtllage It has to be located on a raalroad track because the Transat Village pro~ect as aveclusave of future comrr~uter raal, future bus rapid transat and well aecommodate a signafacant amount of affordable houseng as well as retaal. A large sate es needed for~ust the basac parameters and hecause of the track configurataon staff ts lamated to lookang around the track area Pollard Motors locatton was determened to be the number one sate. • O'Neill asked if there was a number two site that would accommodate the ciiteria for the Transrt Village Kaplan repliect that the other sates have multrple property ownership and the track confi~urataon as on a curve whach would make at difficult to accommodate future raal at that locat~on. As a result the Pollard sate ts deeme~l t~ be the most suatable for the Transat Village • Osborne said the ciCy ~s in a strange place m terms of negoUation if only the Pollard site will work and Counc~l does not want to do a condemnation. That seems to place the city m a difficult srtuation Osborne said five Council members have contacted her and expressed support for giving Pollard six acres m Valmont City Park (VCP). Osborne asked who would ever have beheved that a park site would be considered ae a locahon for a car dealership • Hoge asked if the Sutherland property had been constdered Hoge suggested movmg Pollard to Sutherland and movmg Sutherland to the cIIy Yards Kaplan saad that would make the process more complicated arzd could possibly leatl to multiple condemnataons. • Andersen said Council did approve condemnation action for th~s acqu~srtion and that was predicated on the analysis that showed the Pollard site as Che one srie that would work for Che Transrt Village One of the tests that make iY poss~ble to move forward w~th condemnalion is the fact that there are no vtable alternative srtes lhat satisfy the public need for the criCena lhat weie esCabl~shed Por the Transrt Village When looktng al alternattve locat~ons for the Pollards as part of the negohation piocess, other sites were ident~fied Chal were not considered acceptable by Pollard. Pollard wanted lhe Yards srte which triggered a masCer plan of Che Public Works Yards siCe The oppor~unity for commercial use of the frontage along Pearl Parkway was created, primar~ly to accommodaCe Pollard's mCerest Andersen said the city is now trymg, m good faith m the negot~ation process, to look at Pollard's response and offer an assessment of what it means m the array of public needs and mterests • Geden mformed the Board that when Pollard expressed mitial interest m the Yards site it triggered a master plan of the Yai ds srte. She stated that at that pomt m Cime staff was direcCed that Valmont Crty Park (VCP) was not an Mmutefi PRAB Meenng 07/28/2003 - Page 7 opCion. It was very cleariy stated that VCP was not an option when Pollard responded ro the ciCy's proposal by saymg the Yards site was unacceptable Pollard then expressed mteresC m the 6-acre site m VCP. • Stuller asked about the evolution of Pollard's mterest m the Yards stte and how it is that now the Yards site won't work for them Newcomb said that Pollard dad notfind any of the nine saCes proposed by caty staff to be acceptable and at that meeting Pollard anquared ahout the Yards sate next to Gebhart Motors Whale staff was lookavcg to accommodate Pollard at the Yurds it's possible they came across a concept plan showing Aarport Road going through park property on the east side of the creek Newcomb said he belteves when Pollard found there was potentzal on the other sade of the creek, Pollard dec~ded that was thear preferred location. • Osboine said if Airport Road is so important to Pollard she wondered if the site plan could be changed and the road moved to the west to develop an mtersection thal would work for the car dealership and also serve as an entrance to the park Sanford said he had the same adeu and had drawn at on the map Osborne said she wondered if there was something that could be done to the siCe plan to make it work for both Pollaid and the park. • Andersen welcomed any suggestions like Osborne's that staff can look aC or refine. Prior to any recommendaYion that the PRAB would offer to Council, Andersen expected to come back to the PRAB for a public hearmg and recommendation • Sanford said ~f Option 1~s not acceptable to Pollard, any of the olher opCions would mean elimmation of the recreation center • Andersen sugge~sted movmg the access Co the park to the west side of the parkland on Pear] Parkway so thal the entrance for Pollard's development could still be on the Public Works site • Geden said the ~dea of movmg AuporC Road can be looked at bul staff would also have to identify the impacts they might have on the s~te • Tl~ere was discuss~on that Atrport Road was not intended to be a ma~or thoroughfare. Hoge stated that the PRAB prev~ously considered havmg Airport Road stop somewhere in the paik and not cut entirely through the park • Osborne said the term "ma~or park entry" was placed at the Pearl Street entrance becauae the facilitias that draw the most people would be located Chere The idea was to move that Craffic off Valmont People would primarily enter the park off Pearl Street for Yhe recreation center, ball fields or large events Osborne suggested Board members give their comments on this matter. • O'Neill satd she would have liked to have a representative from Pollard m attendance to answer questions She said she worried about the mCegrity of a master plan and all the money that has been expended to have it negot~ated away by creahng opCions rather than saymg ri is not bemg cons~dered, it is a park Mmutes PRAB MeeGng 07/28/2003 - Page 8 • Sanford said he understands the need for the Tiansit Center and Lhe need for mass transit At the same time, when you only have so much land and smce VCP is a~ewel in the middle of Boulder, Sanford beheves the only option that makes sense is Option 1. He added that he would alter Option 1 unt~l ri meets Pollard's needs Sanford said he would be willing to explore movmg Aiiport Road Co give Pollard a signalized mtersection but he wouldn't touch the land currenlly designated as a park. • Hoge said il is ludicrous to even have lhe park site as an option She added that if it was clearly sCated that the park site was noC on the table, then it should stay thaC way Hoge said if crty staff was slronger about Chat pomt Pollard might be more willmg to consider Ihe other site She said it was almost comical that the CiCy of Boulder would entertam the nolion of havmg a car dealership as the entryway mto the ma~or paik of this cily She added thaC the park ~s to be devcloped to promote alternaCive transpoitation and be environmenCally sensit~ve and then a car dealership is placed where you have to drive through it to get to Yhe park Hoge also said she does not support movmg the road to the west side because the corrtdor along the creek is for wildhfe • Stuller said the issue seemed to be late m commg to the Board as other decisions have already been made, leaving the PRAB with very few options. Stullei said he agrees with Hoge and the need to protecY the park He added that Option 1 is the besl and only opYion Geden said she hoped the Board understood that she mformed them the moment there was d~scussion about the park Geden said she wanted the Board to understand that she does not support thts proposal and that she brought ~t to them immediately Kaplan stated that Hawthorne has worked wilh TiansportaCion staff on this matler and he can attest to Che fact that all along Valmont City Park was not an option. • Osborne said PRAB membeis arc all prelty much m agieement. • Osborne said when she thmks of the next decade in Boulder and what the legacy will be, especially as build out is reached, three things will be important the Drive-m Theater srte, Che Transit V~llage and the developmenC of Valmont CiYy Park. Fach in their own way will conCr~bule to makmg the commumty of the fulure She sYated that rt is a terrible thmg to feel that one of those important land uses is being sacrificed. • Osborne said rt has been said to her that Yhe area under consideration is only six acres. However, those six acres connect a developed communily park wrth a major open space corndor and are meant to be the ma~or park entry • Osborne said Valmont is different than the other two ~mportant land uses m that it does not meet the need for affordable housmg However, the recently completed Needs Assessmenl Survey showed tremendous commumty suppart for actrve iecreat~on and the sense of unmet needs ~n the community Mmutcv PRAT3 Mechng 07/28/2003 - Pagc 9 for active recreahon While it may not be CounciPs highesC priority righC now, rt is a very high prior~ty for the community • Osborne said she is concerned that there might bc an effort to quietly resolve Chis ~ssue at a staff leve] Her concern about that is that the master plan [for Valmont City Park] mvolved a lot of publ~c mput and that th~s fact was remforced to them when the Board proposed changes to the master plan Osborne said this was someChing that went lhrough a lot of public input and cannot be changed lightly. If Council wanls to consider this, it needs to have full pubhc exposure Osborne said at a mimmum Yhis issue should come back lo the PRAB with a public hearmg on lhe proposed change to the master plan She said she hopes the newspapei follows the ~seue and cxpressed hope thaY those who care about Valmont City Park w~ll become rts advocates Geden eaid she could not go before Council and say that this is a good idea foi Parke and Recreation. She also spoke on the importance of the Ywo compeCing cilywide goals Andeisen said staff's ~ob and the PRAB's role is to help define what the cho~ces look like for the public's mterest and thaC Council will ultimately have to make the decision One option is to exercise condemnation aulhority over Pollard because it is a pubhc purpose acquisirion that needs to go forward The city would then ofPer what it feels is a viable site for Pollard and also make payment for the difference in value of their currenC site and the value of the site offered Co lhem Andersen said it is difficulC to go forward wrth condemnation with a busmess that has been m the community for years It would be preferable to work rt out salisfactarily m a negotiated sess~on Osborne said if'there is no large recreaCion center at Pearl Street, the Board will have lo rethmk the srte plan and go back through some master plan process In thaC case access to the park may come strictly off of Valmont and there may not be need for a etophght at Airpoirt Road Bernhardt said the need for the road was determaned by the traps generated to the recreataon center as well as tr~ps to the sax ball faelds. She added thctt the desare to connect from Valmont to Pearl was very amportant from a Trar~rporCat~on DeparCment standpoant to keep the traffic flow through the park. Bernhardt said she suspects the Transportation Departrneret would stand behind thaC pranciple even af Fewer treps were generated. Andersen and Board members said that m any case the intersection would be very dtfferent and a stoplight might not be needed Bernhardt said she understood the Pollard ptoperty was eleven acres and withm the proposed Transit Village four acres are dedicated to tiansit wh~le seven acres are ded~cated to affordable housmg. Betnhardt said affordable housmg is an extremely important Counc~l goal and asked if it would be possible to keep Pollard at Yhat srte, in addition to Che transit center while reducmg the amount of housing thaC would be developed aY the sitc Other sitcs could be found to accommodate the displaced affordable housmg proposed at the site Hoge saacl Mmutcs PRAB Mcetmg 07/28/2003 -Page 10 she would be more anCerested in negotaatcng for spoCS for affordable h~using on the park than a car dealershap Kaplan said the project is called a Transit Oriented Development (TOD) and all components are dependent upon each other - fiiCure ra~l, bus turnaround, housmg and relail Kaplan said the pro~ect is a transit village which isn't just affordable housmg, it is half market raCe housing, mtegrated housmg and reta~l and the idea is that people will choose to leave their cars at home and hop on the bus, future rail or bus rapid transit. Kaplan explamed that Che transit village is a whole package. VIII. FUTURF,130ARD ITEMS AND TOURS Master Plan Study Session - 6 p m September 8, 2003 al the crty Yards Conference Room located at 5050 E Pearl Street IX. NEXT BOARD MEETING: August 25, 7A03 X. ADJOURN The meeting ad~ourned at 8:54 p m APPROVED BY PARKS AND RECREATION ADVISORY BOARD ~ Charles Manlove Board Cha~r Attest ~ - ~v.__ Georg~a~J ckson Recordtng Secretary Mmutes PRAB Meenng 07/28/2004 - Page 1 l