2016-02-08 RAC Minutes
Minutes of the Recreation Advisory Committee held on February 8, 2016.
Members present: Christia Alou Manuel Hadad
John Ise Jonathan Meltz
Jacqueline O’Donnell Ken Whittaker
Members absent: Daniel Brady Kendra Borja
Also present: Jerry Estep, Recreation Director
Leslie Rackl, Executive Assistant
The meeting was called to order at 7:10 p.m.
Ms. Alou made a motion to approve the minutes of the January 4, 2016, meeting. Motion
seconded by Mr. Ise and unanimously approved.
Mr. Estep related that the basketball program is in full swing; Aftercare has 69 enrolled, Little
Cleats has 30 enrolled, Super Soccer Stars has 24 enrolled and football has 21 enrolled.
Baseball registration has begun. Mr. Estep said that Shipwreck Cove will open on weekends
beginning March 19. The deck is being resurfaced in house.
Discussion turned to the new recreation center. The architect will refigure the proposed design.
Mr. Benton has met with the MS Presbyterian Church. The church does not want to sell the
parking lot and will continue to allow recreation to utilize the lot for parking. The Village is
looking into a $14-15-million-dollar facility rather than a $20-million-dollar facility. The basketball
courts will be the equivalent of high school courts. The Council will make the final decision on
the amount of the bond. Each household would pay an additional $172 for a $15 million bond
and $242 for a $20 million bond. It was noted that underground parking would add an additional
$1.5 million to the cost. Mr. Hadad feels a traffic study is needed for the new center.
A suggestion was made to turn Memorial Park into a dog park and move the memorials to
Constitution Park. A suggestion was made to look into a grant to beautify Constitution Park.
Mr. Estep said that any public money/grant will allow nonresidents to participate for the same
fee as residents unless the city can prove a hardship and then nonresidents can be charged
more. Mr. Estep said that eliminating nonresidents would directly affect 1/3 of existing
programs. The aftercare program is resident only with the exception of four children who were
grandfathered into the program. Nonresidents are needed for new programs to get them off the
ground. It was noted that special needs children are not turned away unless they are a danger
to themselves or others.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:10 p.m.