11/18/2014 Parks and Recreation Commission Regular Meeting Adopted 01/20/2015CITY OF GILROY
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR
PARKS AND RECREATION COMMISSION MEETING
6:00 P.M.
Tuesday, November 18, 2014
CALL ORDER
The regular meeting of the Parks and Recreation Commission was called to order by Chair
Lehman at 6:00 p.m.
SECRETARY'S REPORT
Commissioners present: Robert Enriquez, Julie Garcia, Brittany Lehman, Moe McHenry (6:05
p.m.), Ermelindo Puente and Rebecca Scheel.
Commissioner Excused: Terrie Berry.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Motion made by Vice Chair Garcia to approve the minutes of October 21, 2014. Motion
was seconded by Commissioner Puente.
Motion passed unanimously (6 -0 -1, Commissioner Berry was absent).
APPROVAL OF AGENDA
Motion made by Commissioner Scheel to approve the agenda for November 18, 2014, with
stated change of order. Motion was seconded by Commissioner Puente.
Motion passed unanimously (6-0-1, Commissioner Berry was absent).
INTRODUCTIONS
Maria De Leon introduced City of Gilroy Police Captain Kurt Svardal.
AWARDS/RECOGNITIONS
Chair Lehman was presented a bouquet of flowers and a gift card from the Parks & Recreation
Commissioners and City stall for the pending birth of her baby boy. Best wishes were extended
to Brittany and her husband Jeff!
PUBLIC COMMENT
None.
OLD BUSINESS
A. Recap Re: The Great Garlic FUNdraiser 51K — October 25, 2014
Judy Mireles- Janisch reported in Commissioner Berry's absence. This year's event had
205 registered participants and $600 in donations. Expenses totaled $2,058.42 and
1,766.58 was netted for the Youth Scholarship Fund. A very successful event! H t
Ms. Mireles- Janisch thanked the Commission for their assistance with the event. She
reported that staff had a wrap -up meeting and it was determined that next year:
rosters are needed for check in of participants and to call names when people get
to the finish line
Have the costume judging before the event starts
Chair Lehman, on behalf of the Commission, thanked staff for a job well done.
NEW BUSINESS
A. Discussion Re: Gilroy Police Department and Gilroy Parks Coverage — Captain
Kurt Svardal
Captain Kurt Svardal addressed the Commission and reported the following:
Alcohol in the Park Ordinance approved by City Council for a three (3) year
extension on November 17th. There was a drop in calls with disturbances at the
Parks due to alcohol since the Ordinance was originally passed. Only 9 citations
were given out this past year.
Questions by the Commission dealt with:
Christmas Hill Park Amphitheatre —after 10 :00 p.m. people show up in cars and
start illegal activity —drinking, drugs, etc. Could there bean increase in the
number of patrols at the park to help deter this?
Captain Svardal explained that service calls must be answered first. It is a
challenge for "free time for officers to patrol. And due to staffing shortages,
patrols of the park don't always get done on a frequent basis. He informed the
Commissioner that two (2) dual- purpose motorcycles will be in service within the
next 6 months. This will help in patrolling this particular area because now, the
patrol cars can be seen way before they reach the area and by the time the police
get there, the parties are gone.
Are there scheduled patrols through the different parks? In my experience police
officers in parks is when they are being reactive (a call has come in) rather than
proactive (regular patrolling)?
No, there are no scheduled patrol times to go through the parks because service
calls have to be taken first. The Police Department call does not allow for that.
Have you ever tried using a joint use Park Ranger with the Police Department and
the Gilroy Unified School District?
No. Maria De Leon reminded everyone that in 2008 a Park Ranger was in the
budget to be brought on board but with the economic downfall it did not happen.
David Stubchaer stated that he has $50,000 for a Park Security Patrol — he is
working on a Request for Proposal for recruitment. This should help fill the gap.
On average how many times a week is the park patrolled?
Captain Svardal didn't feel he could give a valid answer to the question.
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How was the survey about "free time" conducted?
A consultant came in, reviewed all the time logged, service calls, etc. for each
employee and then came up with the numbers.
Does the County Sheriff's Department ever get called in to assist the Gilroy
Police Department?
Yes, the departments help each other out regularly.
Are there homeless people living in Christmas Hill Park?
Yes, there have been a couple of camps, by the waterways. There are also various
encampments throughout Gilroy.
Chair Lehman and the Commissioners thanked Capt. Svardal for attending the meeting and
answering the Commission's questions. He stated that he was available any time when the Parks
Recreation Commission wished to speak with him and get questions answered.
PROGRAM UPDATES
Recreation (Recreation Supervisor Judy Mireles- Janisch): See attached report.
j The Parks & Recreation Commission agreed to again participate in Santa's Breakfast.
Commissioner McHenry will be the Head Chef in the preparation of breakfast with the assistance
of the other Commissioners.
Operations (David Stubchaer, Senior Engineer & Operations Manager): See attached
report. Mr. Stubchaer had some updates to his report:
A Mural at the end of 5th Street where it was reported that the sealant had dripped at the
bottom and looked terrible will be painted over by staff. Staff was given the paint by the
Gilroy Downtown Business Association who is responsible for the mural.. Hopefully,
after the drippings have been painted over it will look better.
Carriage Hills additions —The developer is working on the final punch list items for the
bridge. On November 11th the pedestrian trail was slurry sealed. All the work on the
bridge is expected to be finished the week of Thanksgiving. Nothing is final though
until the City accepts the easement.
Commissioner Puente stated that the bolt on the horse is not fixed. He looked
underneath the horse and the bolts are loose. The cover for the electrical box (which is
full of wires) and the box in the ground is crooked so the top cannot be put on it. The
whole thing has to be taken out of the ground and fixed. The grass on the northeast side
of the park is thick and wet due to being over - watered and the neighbors are
complaining. The stop sign at Dove and Carriage Hills is crooked
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COIVUWMFE REPORTS
Bicycle Pedestrian Commission
None.
Gang Task Force
Most of the meeting was spent finalizing plans for the Spaghetti Fundraiser on Friday, November
21 st at Sandy's Restaurant in Gilroy.
GPAC
Commissioner Scheel reported on the November 12th meeting. The meeting consisted of
speakers and information. The next meeting will be on January 14, 2015.
Library Commission
None.
Youth Commission
None.
COAE%IISSION PARK REPORTS & COMMENTS
Vice Chair Garcia — She was very impressed with City staff at the 5K event. It was very well
organized, a great turnout which had to be the result of great outreach on behalf of staff. Very
impressive.
Commissioner Scheel — Rainbow Park looks much better. The walkway between Culp and Mt.
Madonna School still has litter but the graffiti has been cleaned up. She will continue to call in.
Commissioner Puente —Butcher Park (across from the Corp Yard) is dirty, papers everywhere.
Why isn't it being picked up especially with it being right across the street from the Operations
offices?
Forest Street Park — basically pretty nice; could use another trash container.
San Ysidro Park — The grass is dying. The walkways should be slurry sealed - now is the best.
time.
Commissioner McHenry — Halloween Texas Hold `Em was a great event even if he didn't win.
As always, was very well organized. He stated that staff polled the attendees on how they would
feel if the registration was raised from $60 to $80 and Commissioner McHenry said everyone
was fine with it
Commissioner McHenry will be in touch with the Commissioners regarding Santa's Breakfast.
STAFF COMMENTS
Maria De Leon commended Chair Lehman on the great job she did as Chair of the Parks &
Recreation Commission this year. She also thanked Chair Lehman and Commissioner Enriquez
for their willingness to volunteer their time and talents for the last 4 years on the Commission.
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At the November 3rd City Council meeting, Councilman Peter Leroe -Munoz complimented the
Parks & Recreation Commission and City Staff for the wonderful Great Garlic 5K event. Both
he and his wife participated.
ADJOURNMENT
Chair Lehman adjourned the meeting. at 7:01 p.m.
FUTURE MEETING
The next regular meeting of the Parks and Recreation Commission will be held on Tuesday,
January 20, 2015 at 6:00 p.m. at City Council Chambers, 7351 Rosanna Street, Gilroy, CA
95020.
Sondra Banks, Administrative Secretary
Recreation Department
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