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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2014-09-09 - Parks and Rec Advisory Council Meeting Minutes MINUTES OF THE VILLAGE OF RYE BROOK PARKS AND RECREATION ADVISORY COUNCIL 938 KING STREET RYE BROOK,New York 10573 September 9, 2014 Convene Meeting: Parks and Recreation Superintendent Robert Bertolacci called the meeting to order at 8:45pm. The following Members of the Parks & Recreation Advisory Council were present: Advisory Council Members: Chairman Jamie Schutzer, Adam Berman, Frank Carbone, Christopher Dutra, Traci Erenfryd, Brian Funtleyder, Steve Ketchabaw, Scott Tillison, Adam Zahl Absent Parks & Recreation Advisory Council Members: Recreation Department Members: Robert Bertolacci, Parks and Recreation Superintendent Carmella Swick, Sr. Office Assistant I. Minutes: a. Approve July 8, 2014 Minutes: Superintendent Robert Bertolacci asked for a motion to accept the July 8, 2014 Minutes. Committee Member Berman made the motion to accept the July 8, 2014 Minutes and Committee Member Tillison seconded the motion. The July 8, 2014 Minutes were approved and accepted. Committee Members Berman, Dutra, Ketchabaw, and Zahl abstained from voting on the July 8, 2014 Minutes. Superintendent Bertolacci asked for a motion to accept the August 5, 2014 Notes. Committee Member Zahl made the motion to accept the August 5, 2014 Notes and Committee Member Funtleyder seconded the motion. The August 5, 2014 Notes were approved and accepted. Committee Members Berman, Carbone, Dutra, Erenfryd, Ketchabaw and Tillison abstained from voting. II. Public View Points: Chairman Schutzer said the portable mound on the old field at Pine Ridge Park is fantastic. They put some dirt under the mound and leveled it out. The mound was used on Sunday's game and it was a totally different experience. You're not pitching out of a hole. The mound will stay at the old field through the season and we will build a mound during the winter and that will be permanent. The portable mound will go then to Pine Ridge Park New field. Chairman Schutzer said there are bees on the new field at Pine Ridge Park. They are digging and going under the bases. Committee Member Dutra said these bees hunt for cicada and brings them to the female bee in the ground and she just reproduces. Committee Member Erenfryd asked if Rye Brook Recreation could run a soccer program that would give the kids that are cut from Rye Brook Travel Soccer a chance to play soccer. 1168377.1 It would be nice to give everyone an opportunity to play soccer. Committee Member Tillison said anyone can put a team in the WIS League. You don't have to be affiliated with a town. Rye Brook Travel Soccer is positioning their program as an elite soccer organization. Committee Member Tillison asked if we can get together with Rye and combine forces. Superintendent Bertolacci asked if we want to compete with Rye Travel Soccer. They are our biggest field renter that we have. The big question is do we want to take rent space away from them. Committee Member Funtleyder said we can't have a rec soccer program because just like baseball we don't have enough kids to make 4 teams or more. Superintendent Bertolacci said he would speak with Glen Christal regarding a soccer program before our next meeting. Chairman Schutzer asked Superintendent Bertolacci when you have multiple children from one family join recreation programs, do you consider giving a discount for the second or third child. Superintendent Bertolacci said we discount the second or third child for camp and not for programs. III. Superintendent Report: A. Summer Camp Wrap-Up: Superintendent Bertolacci said it was a good summer for our camp. The comments for the Arts and Craft program was good this year. Kyle's report said everything worked out good with Crawford Park; some of the trips were good and some not so good. I will report on Janice's survey from her camp at next month's meeting. Committee Member Tillison asked if we ever thought of going down one year for the Travel Camp. The kids are excited about all the trips that the travel camp takes. Superintendent Bertolacci said it's a pretty tough mix as it is with the 7th, 8th, 9th and some 10th graders. I think the 6 t graders are fine in the day camp as it exists right now. B. Fall Programs: Superintendent Bertolacci reported that registration was last night. Prior to last night we have 26 kids in one day of kinder-play and 16 in the other day. Our floor hockey program has 3 registered for 1St grade and I for kindergarten. It has all to do with the PTA opening their registrations in August which they never did before, and offering floor hockey. Superintendent Bertolacci said that this happens every year. Superintendent Bertolacci said PTA will be offering kindergarten and Ist grade basketball in the winter which is in direct competition with our program. Committee Member Tillison said he saw Open Gym Nights in the brochure book for Friday nights. Superintendent Bertolacci said we offered the program last year and no one came. Superintendent Bertolacci also found out that PTA is doing registrations through Community Pass which is piggy backing off our site. We have had numerous conversations with the school and we will continue to have these conversations and hopefully straighten out this before the winter programs. 1168377.1 C. Halloween in the Park: Superintendent Bertolacci said Halloween in the Park is scheduled for October 17th and 18th. We have a meeting with Frank who has the animatronics' that we rent for Halloween. There are no rain dates. We are trying to get the Council for the Arts involved. There will be two hayrides to go around the park and there will be a movie going on while the people wait in line for the hay ride. Signs will go up, advertisement in the paper and e-mail blasts will go out to the public. We will also get the kids like last year from SUNY Purchase. D. Pine Ridge Park Wall/Basketball Court: Superintendent Bertolacci reported the wall at Pine Ridge Park is completed. The wall was painted green today. Before it was painted the wall was covered with a tarp for two weeks because of the graffiti. Superintendent Bertolacci said the BOT accepted the proposal for the basketball courts at Pine Ridge Park. Blacktopping will be done throughout the Village so the basketball courts will get done in about 3 weeks which may or may not be too late to color coat it. So over the winter the basketball courts may have no color. To color coat them it has to be the right temperature. Committee Member Berman asked why the courts are done in the fall and not in the spring. Superintendent Bertolacci said we get a more favorable price for blacktopping in the fall. The basketball court will be shut down for about 3 weeks. The courts will be milled. They will be regraded so the drains in the middle will not be needed. Two tennis courts were resurfaced in August and the nets were put back up and will stay up until the end of November. IV. Baseball Sub-Committee Report—Scott Tillison: Committee Member Tillison said there is nothing to report at this time. Committee Member Carbone said after seeing many baseball fields over the summer, Pine Ridge and Garibaldi Park are the only parks that don't have a covered dugout or batting cage. I feel it is very important because our kids are getting baked in the hot sun. There are days when it rains and we can still play through it. When our pitchers warm up outside the field, balls can go all over the place and people can get hit with a baseball. It is more of a safety issue because these kids have to warm up. Committee Member Carbone asked if we can put this item on the table again. Superintendent Bertolacci said that would be a budgeted item. We start working on the new budget in January and the budget goes from June to June. Superintendent Bertolacci said the batting cage is all about location. People don't want to see more fencing. You need to minimize the visual effect of the batting cage in the park. V. Basketball Sub-Committee Report—Brian Funtleyder: Committee Member Funtleyder said we need to have a meeting with the coaches before the basketball season starts. There should be no chirping at the refs which means zero tolerance. Committee Member Dutra asked if we are going to have a screening of the refs that were reprimanded last year. 1168377.1 Chairman Schutzer said last year we talked about the quality of the refs. Superintendent Bertolacci said we are looking into refs as we speak. Committee Member Berman said you need to have coaches that know the rules and make the call. Superintendent Bertolacci said we have someone assign our refs. We don't interview the refs that are sent to us. Superintendent Bertolacci said he was trying to go through BOCES because BOCES assigns the Blind Brook High School refs. Committee Member Dutra said we get our football refs through the Westchester Referee Association. You tell them what you need and they send the refs. Committee Member Dutra said there was a lot of chirping from the parents, coaches and more chirping from the players. At no time any kid participating should be saying anything to the ref at any time. Committee Member Ketchabaw said there should be zero tolerance. In hockey, if there is a parent talking, that parent is escorted out. Committee Member Dutra said if there is a coach that was in question last year with one or two incidents, he should not be able to coach kids. Committee Member Berman said it should all be spelled out in the grievance report when you get one strike, two strikes or three strikes; what happens to that player or parent etc. Everyone should be alerted going forward. Committee Member Zahl said any grievance brought to the grievance committee would only be a recommendation regarding that grievance to Superintendent Bertolacci. Committee Member Ketchabaw said in hockey if you get kicked out you are suspended for 3 games, if you get kicked out a second time you are suspended for 6 games and if you get kicked out a third time you are suspended for 3 years. There is zero tolerance. If a parent gets kicked out of a game they are suspended until there is a hearing which is 30 days later. They can't go to a game or a practice. Committee Member Ketchabaw said the game is stopped and the clock is ticking, each coach is told the game will not start up until that parent is escorted out. The coach has to write the parent's name on the score sheet and then there is a hearing. You have to tell the referees to stop the game until that person leaves. After that happens once or twice, you'll see there is no chirping after that. Committee Member Ketchabaw said there is a Code of Conduct that the parents have to sign. This code is out there for all activities. Committee Member Berman said if a player opens his mouth to a ref he/she should get a technical, the second time he/she is thrown out of the game. Then it's an automatic suspension for 3 games or whatever we do. It's more realistic from a refs standpoint to enforce that against the player. This may impact the players enough that maybe it may do some good. Superintendent Bertolacci said it would also jeopardize their chance of going to County Center if that player is suspended. VI. Grievance Sub-Committee Report—Adam Zahl: Committee Member Zahl said he would like to review the Code of conduct with the sub- committee on what is a grievance offense, who can file a grievance. Maybe there should be an e- mail sent out saying that when you signed up your child for any sport, there is a Code of Conduct that is in force when you sign your child up. 1168377.1 VII. Playground Sub-Committee Report—Traci Erenfryd: Superintendent Bertolacci said we are going to have a conference call in the next couple of weeks to get this committee on board. Superintendent Bertolacci said he spoke to one playground company and this company came to the sight and was shown what was there. I am waiting to hear from Miracle Recreation who installed the existing playground to come out and look at the site. We will then have two proposals. Committee Member Ketchabaw asked if that is a professional opinion to upgrade the equipment or is it more of a liability issue. Superintendent Bertolacci said it's a combination of everything. There is a$100,000 budgeted for the playground. Committee Member Erenfryd suggested that the money be used for a water spray park at Elm Hill Park or a different site. VIII. Old Business: There is no Old Business. IX. New Business: There is no New Business. X. Adjournment: Chairman Schutzer asked for a motion to adjourn the meeting. Committee Member Berman made the motion to adjourn the meeting and Committee Member Erenfryd seconded the motion. All approved and the meeting adjourned at 10:00pm. The next meeting of the Parks and Recreation Advisory Council will be held on October 7, 2014 at 8:00pm. Minutes prepared by Carmella Swick 1168377.1