HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council Committees - Parks and Human Services - 07/15/2010City of Kent
Parks and Human Services Committee Meeting
Minutes of July 15, 2010
Council Committee Present: Chair Debbie Ranniger and Dennis Higgins
Excused Absence: Councilmember Elizabeth Albertson
Debbie Ranniger called the meeting to order at 5:01 p.m.
1. Minutes of June 10, 2010 - Approve
Dennis Higgins moved to approve the minutes of June 10, 2010. The motion
passed 3-0 with Elizabeth Albertson’s concurrence.
2. 2010 Public Defense Services Agreement Amendment Number Four -
Authorize
On July 1, 2010, the City of Kent annexed the Panther Lake area adding
approximately 24,000 residents. The City of Kent is required by statute to
provide Indigent Counsel services for individuals unable to afford legal
representation when charged with a crime in Kent Municipal Court. Stewart,
Beall, MacNichols and Harmell, under an agreement with the City, represent
those individuals needing legal representation based on financial need. This
amendment will increase the payment to Stewart, Beall, MacNichols and
Harmell from $36,000 per month to $46,000 per month. The increase is
based on the increase in the city’s population and will be in effect for six
months. At the end of this period staff will do an analysis of the data to
determine the rate for 2011.
Dennis Higgins moved to recommend the Mayor sign Amendment Number
Four to the Public Defense Services Agreement. Debbie Ranniger seconded.
The motion passed 3-0 with Elizabeth Albertson’s concurrence.
3. King County Summer Work Training Grant Agreement - Authorize
Kent Parks Youth and Teen Division has had a long standing partnership with
the King County Summer Work Training Program. Due to the nature of this
summer project, the amount granted is much higher than in past years so
Parks and Human Services Committee and City Council approval is
necessary.
This summer project will employ 14 youth from Kent Meridian High School
who will work with youth/teen staff, a job coach, and a professional artist to
produce one large mural on the outside wall of Kent Meridian Pool, and four
to five small directional signs for the Kent Performing Arts Center. Project
costs for the job coach, professional artist, students, and all supplies is
$18,000 to be reimbursed to the Kent Parks and Recreation Department.
Dennis Higgins moved to recommend the Mayor sign the King County
Summer Work Training Grant and approve the expenditure of funds in the
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Youth/Teen Budget. Debbie Ranniger seconded. The motion passed 3-0 with
Elizabeth Albertson’s concurrence.
4. 2010 4Culture King County Performance Network Grant Agreement -
Authorize
4Culture awarded the Kent Arts Commission $6,270.00 in King County
Performance Network funding. The funding supported 2010 site specific
performances by Acorn Dance, Khambatta Dance Company, and an
installation by artist Mandy Greer. Acorn Dance’s performance and Mandy
Greer’s installation were featured at an Earth Day celebration at Mill Creek
Canyon Earthworks Park in April. Khambatta Dance performed an original
dance piece specifically for the dedication of our newest public art installation
– Elizabeth Connor’s “Sweet Suite for Downtown Kent” at Town Square Plaza
on June 5.
Dennis Higgins moved to recommend accepting the $6,270.00 grant from
4Culture to support 2010 site specific performances and approve the
expenditure of funds in the Kent Arts Commission budget. Debbie Ranniger
seconded. The motion passed 3-0 with Elizabeth Albertson’s concurrence.
5. Federal Way School District Easement Agreement for West Hill Park -
Authorize
The Federal Way School District would like a temporary construction
easement to access their construction site at Sunnycrest Elementary School
through the undeveloped West Hill Park site. Parks staff have been working
with the Federal Way School District on creating a cohesive design between
the park and the school with the idea of giving the site a “school in a park”
feel. This collaboration will maximize the amount of use the citizens around
the site will get out of the adjoining public spaces. Construction at
Sunnycrest is scheduled to begin this summer and will only temporarily affect
park land. This project will result in a safer trail to school for kids and
eventually blend seamlessly into the new West Hill Park.
Dennis Higgins asked about future plans for the park. Future plans for the
eastern portion of the park include an open field for Frisbee, a small picnic
shelter, and a small basketball court.
Dennis Higgins moved to recommend authorizing the Mayor to sign the
Construction Easement Agreement with the Federal Way School District to
grant temporary access at West Hill Park. Debbie Ranniger seconded. The
motion passed 3-0 with Elizabeth Albertson’s concurrence.
6. Second Quarter Reports - Informational
Jeff referenced the 21 contributors that donated cash and/or supplies to
Parks. Money and items donated of lesser value than $5,000 each are not
required to have Council approval. Donations for the second quarter of 2010
totaled over $16,000.00. Jeff extended a big thank you to the contributors
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who partner with us to provide our services. Since recording began two years
ago, an average of $100,000 is donated each year by local supporters.
7. Director’s Report
Jeff highlighted programs from this spring and summer, pointing out that we
offer a very diverse set of programs and services to a very diverse set of
residents, both in terms of age and culture. We take great pride in weaving
common threads throughout the programs that we offer; Community, Health
& Wellness and Enrichment. Our goal is to provide healthy and helpful
opportunities to enrich the lives of our customers, and offer ways to bring a
diverse community together.
Adaptive Recreation Move
The transition of Adaptive Recreation and Youth/Teen staff to Kent Commons
is complete. Many thanks to the Facilities staff for the renovation of Kent
Commons.
Adaptive Recreation Art
We had our spring summer art show. Forty-five of our artists displayed and
sold their artwork. 50% of our proceeds go to the artists and 50% goes back
into the programs.
Studio 315
One of the most popular programs is Studio 315. This is a Friday evening
program that encourages social engagement. Each quarter approximately
125 participants attend. Hats off to Coordinator Lara Hosford and the
volunteers for their assistance with these programs.
Youth/Teen Day Camp
Teens are given the opportunity to experience camp and learn the
importance of responsibility. There were 182 campers and 27 counselors in
training.
Summer Day Camp
In partnership with USDA and the Kent School District, we had six summer
playground sites with free lunches. These six sites have had approximately
1,800 visitors to date. A new site was added the newly annexed Panther Lake
area, Chestnut Ridge Elementary.
Big Blue Bus
There have been 41 visits to date and 455 participants at the Big Blue sites.
This program focuses on apartments and taking our programs to the
community.
King County Summer Work Training Program
The dedication of the art mural is Tuesday, at Kent Meridian. The Art Mural
conceptual design is well underway. This is a great partnership with King
County.
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Athletics
Almost 3,000 participants, or 255 teams are involved in summer sports -
from Youth T-Ball, Toss ball, and Softball, to Adult Slo-pitch and Softball.
There have been 821 games played. Due to some rainy weather, 256 games
were rained out in Adult Slo-pitch. Our Park Operations crew and Recreation
staff worked very hard to get the games re-scheduled. Between June 12 and
today, we’ve hosted 12 tournaments at Russell Road and Service Club
Ballfields. We had 60 teams in June alone. We received a great letter from a
Tournament Director regarding their tournament at Russell Road, He also
made an excellent point in regard to the economic impacts of tournaments to
the City - That 476 hotel rooms were reserved, 73 cars were rented, and
numerous restaurants were used during the tournament weekend.
Chair Ranniger asked if Kent Station is aware of our tournament schedule.
Lori Hogan noted that our coordinator includes information on local hotels,
stores and restaurants in the tournament packets that go to each participant.
Debbie Ranniger suggested including discount cards to local stores and/or
restaurants in the tournament bag. Jeff will follow up.
Dance Recitals
The event culuminating our spring dance classes are two dance recitals. The
one this spring had 315 performers with 1,300 in the audience. Tammy Heldt
does a great job with our classes and putting the recitals together.
Lake Meridian
The lake is now open from 11:00 a.m. to 7:00p.m. every day until
September 6, with a great staff of fifteen lifeguards. There have been
approximately 4,500 visitors to the lake already this summer. On the 90+
degree day last week, over 2,500 people visited the lake.
Sweet Suite
The new metal art pieces along 2nd Avenue that were designed after Sweet
Gum tree pods have been a great addition to the downtown area.
Grants
Parks has experienced a great year for receiving grants. The Partners in
Preservation Grant will give us $70,000 for renovations at Earthworks Park.
The National Endowment of the Arts announced that we are the recipients of
a $25,000 grant. A total of 21 sites throughout the United States were
awarded funding. The project will enhance a bike loop through Earthworks
Park for viewing of landscape art.
Fourth of July Splash
Even with the rainy weather, approximately 10,000 visitors attended the
Fourth of July festivities at Lake Meridian throughout the day.
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Cornucopia Fun Run
The 5K Run/Walk is in its third year with 575 runners, and we continue to
see growth each year. Mark Hendrickson and the volunteers do a flawless job
of coordinating and managing the race, as well as the Fun Run at Christmas.
Concerts at Town Spare Plaza
We’ve experienced great success with our concerts so far this summer. Over
1,000 families attended the first Kid’s Concert last week with Tickle Tune
Typhoon. The popular Casper Babypants entertained 850 - 900 people at this
week’s Kid’s Concert. Nearly 1,000 people attended the first concert at Lake
Meridian last Thursday night.
Movies
Three movies are scheduled to play at Town Square Plaza beginning in
August: Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and Cars.
Off Leash Dog Park
Volunteers are transforming Morrill Meadows/East Hill Park into a great off
leash dog park. The next phase is fencing. A media spot was filmed with local
pets and owners to encourage support.
Volunteer Events
National Trails Day was at Clark Lake Park. Volunteers laid down another
340’ of trail.
There were 21 volunteers cleaning up West Fenwick, Morrill Meadows and
North Meridian Park after Fourth of July festivities. Thank you to the
volunteers for coming out to help at the “After the Fourth” clean up event.
The Cascade Land Conservancy (CLC) data has been completed. Analysis is
being collected and will be included in the document. The report
encompasses our global picture of stewarding and managing our urban forest
and open space throughout our park system. This will be a very useful
document for the department in the coming years. Draft copies will go to
Council in August for prior review to discussion at an upcoming Parks and
Human Services Committee meeting.
Riverbend
Mick Kelly’s Irish Pub is currently under renovation. A soft opening is
scheduled for late July.
A second quarter of bad weather at the golf course has created a drop in
revenue.
8. Added Item: Project U(th)
Project U(th), is a group of high school students dedicated to provide
services to the local teen population. Project U(th) is a non-profit start up
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business for teens, by teens. The group is looking at locations to open a
beverage business in downtown Kent. They are looking at the old JC Penney
building on Meeker and open to be in operation in October. The facility would
be a place for teens to hang out, post local activities of interest, and give
them the opportunity to earn an income, while learning a vocation. Profits
would pay for youth programs that include recreation, vocational training, job
sharing, and volunteer opportunities. They are on Facebook, with an average
growth of 50 people per week. The contact number is: 253-797-2846. The
meetings are held at the Kent Library or Barry Fretwell’s house. Council
asked the teens to keep them updated with their progress.
The meeting adjourned at 5:46p.m.
Submitted by Teri Petrole, Council Committee Secretary