Rec & Park Advisory Board Meeting
Originally Published: February 8, 2024
Basketball Jerseys, Turf Fields, Childcare Center
The Rec & Park Advisory Board met on February 1st, and a number of pointed questions were asked though not all were answered. Clarification of meeting minutes versus meeting notes was asked for by board member Donald DeGraves. Christina Bishop, County staff liaison, explained she takes the official meeting minutes which are later posted online. Meanwhile, DeGraves as board Secretary, may take additional meeting notes to be distributed among the board members. These meeting notes will only be available to the public if a board member supplies them, and will not be posted in the official online documents. Meeting minutes recorded by Bishop, it was noted during discussion, are typically very brief.
Moving on, Board Member Jeff Kennedy questioned Director Arthur Shepherd about basketball uniforms. Kennedy’s driving motive, it seemed, was to have Shepherd comment on a potential timeline for ordering the entire basketball league new, reversible jerseys. Shepherd said costs for a jersey purchase are being evaluated, but indicated the Board would have no role in that process. “We’ll handle the order process,” he stated. There is a current contract now with a vendor to supply team t-shirts, but Shepherd said when that ends any company can register with the County to receive bid requests. Kennedy pressed the timeline question, to which Shepherd assured that the reason for not purchasing jerseys wouldn’t be because they didn’t have enough time to deliver before the start of the season.
Chair Veronica Johnson asked about the new childcare facility. Located in the green space between Leonard Hall Recreation Center and Leonard Hall Drive, the childcare center will be approximately 3200SF, with two playgrounds, and a building capacity of 73. Shepherd said this was an initiative of the Commissioners, to open a facility for employee childcare. At a cost of $1.5M, Shepherd explained all operating costs will come from the enterprise fund, which is revenue from fees and charges. The childcare director, Shepherd said, would be paid for from the general fund, or money provided by the County Commissioners. Rates are estimated at $310/wk for infants/toddlers, and $252.75/wk for all other children. Half a position was included in this year’s budget to hire someone in January 2025 to oversee the opening process, with project completion targeting June 2025.
RJ Bean, President of St. Mary’s Little League, advocated to the Board for the inclusion of turf field funding for Dorsey and Baggett Parks in the Department’s budget. Four fields were suggested for full turf conversion to promote better “durability, playability, and accessibility” for all, creating “more opportunities for play” and lowering maintenance costs. Additionally, a field overlay feature can be included which would allow other sports to use the fields as well. Board Member DeGraves confirmed with Director Shepherd that turf fields could extend seasons. DeGraves asked about game cancellations due to weather, with Bean explaining about 1500 games were canceled due to rain. Saturated ground can take a long time to dry.
David Mcdonough, another Board Member, cited data showing baseball participation rates are down nationally, and asked Bean if these fields would be primarily used for baseball thus making them unavailable for use by other sports. Bean refuted the points, saying baseball participation locally has been growing. Field scheduling is managed by Rec & Parks, Bean said, making them the arbiter of fair use between sports. When McDonough said baseball ranks fourth out of the top four sports by participation, Bean said participation is driven by those running an organization. Dedicated volunteers and coaches help players deal with frustration and failure in baseball, which can be a more difficult sport according to Bean. Board Member DeGraves motioned to create an ad-hoc committee to study the pros and cons of installing turf fields. The motion passed, with Jeff Kennedy chairing the committee, and Degraves and fellow Board Member Mike Watson also joining.
