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02/05/2003BEAUTIFICATION COMMITTEE MEETING CITY OF CLEARWATER February 5, 2003 Present: Elizabeth France Chair Sandy Curry Vice Chair Sally Foote Committee Member Rebecca Avrin Committee Member Dagmar Ortiz Committee Member Allan Dadetto Committee Member Brooks Hammac Committee Member Also Present: Kevin Dunbar Parks and Recreation Director Leroy Chin Park, Planning & Project Manager Bobbie Downs Staff Assistant #1 Call to Order – The Chair called the meeting to order at 8:15 a.m. at Municipal Services Building Parks & Recreation Conference Room. To provide continuity for research, items are in agenda order although not necessarily discussed in that order. #2 Approval of Minutes of January 8, 2003 - It was moved and duly seconded to approve the minutes as submitted to members. The motion carried unanimously. #3 Correspondence – None. Ms. Foote pointed out an article in the St. Petersburg Times regarding Bayview Park. Mr. Chin reminded members that City acquisition of Bayview Park as passive park space was an earlier project of the Beautification Committee. #4 Old Business a) Status of Capital Improvement Projects – Mr. Chin said the Crest Lake Dog Park opening Feb. 1 was a great success and well-received by the public. He said further improvements to the Park under the master plan include trails, new lighting system and irrigation system. Members continued discussion regarding the role of the Beautification Committee within City structure and whether the Committee should serve under another department. They stressed they did not feel they fulfilled the purpose of the Committee as stated in City Ordinance. Mr. Chin said committee input has been useful in providing feedback to him as well as in obtaining grants for capital projects. He said City Commissioners do stay in touch with Committee involvement through reading minutes of meetings. Members expressed concern over apparent lack of coordination between some City departments in major projects. They compared, for example, the appearances of the North Greenwood Recreation and Aquatic Complex with the North Greenwood Library. The recreation/aquatic complex is well-landscaped, multi-colored, bright and inviting, while the library is painted a single color and has sparse landscaping. The two buildings do not blend together. Members asked if some colors of the recreation center could be added to the Library to give the appearance of continuity. Mr. Dunbar said the recreation/aquatic complex, library, and scenic corridor were parts of one project, and that the library did not have funds to landscape extensively. Members pointed out that adding color should not be too expensive. Members expressed concern that if the committee left Parks and Recreation, members would lose involvement with parks and recreation projects. Mr. Hammac recalled his background as an engineer and the frustration of being too early then too late to become involved in projects. He said he looked for the "magic moment" when opportunity allowed him to provide input. Ms. Ortez said the committee would only be effective if it had authority set by ordinance. b) Beautification Award Criteria – Postponed. #5 New Business Mr. Dunbar spoke to members about determining their role within the City. Since the common thread is the Planning Department, he suggested approaching that department with an idea of providing information on various major development projects at committee meetings. He will ask Ms. Cyndi Tarapani if a member of her staff could bring 4 or 5 projects to be reviewed the last 45 minutes of a meeting. Members would be supplied with names and addresses of projects in advance of meetings so they could visit project sites. Ms. Curry said the mission statement should be redefined to match actual duties. Members will provide suggestions for redefining at the next meeting. She suggested an orientation be held for members twice a year. Ms. Avrin suggested meeting with Planning before suggesting modifications to the ordinance. #6 Adjournment – The meeting adjourned at 10 a.m. After adjournment, Ms. Tarapani spoke to remaining members. Those attending were Ms. France, Ms. Curry, Ms. Foote, Mr. Dadetto, and Mr. Hammac. Members ask Ms. Tarapani if they could have input in City projects early in the planning process. Ms. Tarapani said the meetings would be public hearings and would have to be advertised. She said she would contact the City Attorney regarding distinction between staff and boards and would speak further with Mr. Dunbar regarding a role for the Committee in the planning process. The next meeting will be March 5 at the Parks and Recreation Department conference room. Speaker will be Ms. Margo Walbolt, Recreation Program Coordinator, who will discuss the City of Clearwater Cultural Plan.