The Parks and Recreation Committee met on 07/10/2023. It was a brief meeting lasting only approximately 7 1/2 minutes.
They took up two action items. One was a request to approve proposed revised stormwater utility agreements for ponds at Reid Golf Course and Memorial Park. The city was increasing the fees paid to the city by the utility for the use of the ponds. The second was a request to approve the final design of the Sexual Assault Survivors Memorial to be placed in Ellen Kort Peace Park. Both of these items were approved unanimously.
Finally, the committee received an update on Reid Gold Course’s revenue and users. As of the end of June revenue was up $120,000 as compared to the same time last year..
I’ve prepared a complete transcript of the meeting for download:
Item 23-0809: Adopt the Proposed Revised Reid Golf Course and Appleton Memorial Park Stormwater Utility Agreements for Stormwater Ponds – This item was approved unanimously with no discussion, questions, or comment from the committee. Director of Parks, Recreation, and Facilities Dean Gazza did note that the fees were looked at every year, but they had not been updated for some time.
Item 23-0811: Request Approval of the Final Design – Sexual Assault Survivors Monument Placed Within Ellen Kort Peace Park – This item was approved unanimously with slightly more discussion than the previous item.
Alderperson Alex Schultz (District 9) asked how the location of the memorial had been selected and how its location would affect the design of the park.
Director Gazza explained that the site of the memorial would be on the city owned side of the park right next to the WE Energies side, because the city didn’t have control over the WE Energies side of the park. It would be near the trail that went along the river so that a path could be installed from the trail to the monument that would be ADA access. The monument would be able to be adopted into the overall park design in a way that would allow the original park concept to remain in place.
Alderperson Schultz was pleased with the effort Chelsea Bongert, the president of the Sexual Assault Survivors Monument Corp, had put into fundraising to make this vision a reality. Director Gazza mentioned that fundraising went down to the level of elementary students and that there had been a lot of community support including from Myron Construction and other businesses which had donated labor and materials.
Alderperson Schultz was pleased with the final design and thought that it felt more integral to the park’s design as compared to the initial concept drawing which he described as “Mousoleum-esque”.
Information Item 23-0810: Reid Golf Course-June, 2023 Participation, Revenue and Expense Report – Director Gazza reported that they were almost $120,000 ahead of last year. The weather had been helpful, but he noted that when it got too hot that sometimes had a similar depressing effect of participation rates as rainy weather.
Nevertheless, turnout continued to be good and that allowed Reid to put more money into the account for long-term expenses and capital improvements . They were also working on paying off long-term debt and were only 3 years away from paying off a loan that had been taken out for some improvements 20-30 years ago.
View full meeting details and video here: https://cityofappleton.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=1111614&GUID=0424A37C-E891-4EB0-B23A-C6AF592D6951
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