DATE: September 19, TO: Marion Mayor & Council

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1 DATE: September 19, 2017 TO: Marion Mayor & Council Park Board Activity Replacement Tractor: The department s New Holland tractor was involved in a roll-over accident in August. Insurance has totaled the tractor and will pay replacement cost. A bid from Kromminga Motors for a similar New Holland tractor was submitted and approved by the board in the amount of $81,500. Pool Water Line Leaks: Staff updated the board on the pool water line leak status, which has been causing a 4,000 gallon per day loss of water. Public Services and outside sources are assisting by televising the lines to pinpoint the leak location. Department Report Waldo s Rock Park: Final punch list items are being completed. Light poles are on backorder; Trey Electric plans to install them the first week of October. Plans are to have a park dedication ceremony the second week in October. Lowe Park Development: MSA has started the design phase of the project. The Park Foundation is planning a $150,000 fundraiser to support the inclusive playground project. MISD/City Tennis Court Project: Construction of the tennis courts is complete and a ribbon cutting and dedication ceremony was held on August 22. The courts are now open for school and public use. Two of the five courts were lined for pickleball play and a group of pickleball enthusiasts who were on hand for the dedication put the new courts to good use right away. General Parks Maintenance: Fall herbicide applications have started on managed turf grass areas. Rework of the roof systems on the dugouts at Lowe Park is underway, with the park staff replacing water damaged roofing materials. Flower beds throughout the system were weeded in August, and plants have been separated and moved to the roundabout at Alburnett Road. All aggregate trails were graded and washout areas repaired. Football fields were mowed and lined for fall play. Playground equipment painting was also completed during August. Damaged Tractor: The department s New Holland tractor was rolled on its side on August 14 at Lowe Park while stacking lime piles. No one was injured as a result of the incident, but the tractor has been deemed a total loss. The department is currently working with our insurance provider and Kromminga Motors in 1 P a g e

2 Monticello to get a replacement tractor in place before the winter snow removal season. The Public Services Department has graciously loaned a tractor from their fleet to complete right of way and prairie grass mowing. Forestry Projects: Staff built no parking signs to be used in the ROW while completing trimming maintenance. A Black Hills Spruce at the Alburnett Road roundabout and two memorial trees were replaced because they died after being planted last fall. Low limbs continue to be addressed which are affecting street and sidewalk clearance and visibility for traffic and signage. The city park tree inventory was updated to reflect 2016 winter work and planting projects. Preparation for fall plantings is beginning which includes notification letters, tree order confirmations, utility locate requests, and marking planting locations. Trees for Kids Grant: The Trees for Kids Grant application was submitted for the September 1 deadline, and will fund a planting along 10 th Street, north of 29 th Avenue near Linn-Mar High School Prairie Grass: Prairie mowing continues once a month. Many annuals are in bloom and a few basal rosettes and first year s growth of grasses can be found. Contracted Tree Work: Breeden Tree Service work orders are up to date and complete with a few work orders which have not been invoiced. Breeden helped to remove a large storm damaged maple tree in Thomas Park. Staff Training: City Arborist Cimprich completed training and testing for Tree Risk Assessment Qualification (TRAQ); results will be available late September. Citizen Requests Tree Issues: There were 13 citizen requests in August regarding right-of-way trees, and three calls about private trees. Oak Shade Cemetery: There were three burials and six spaces sold last month. Each month, Friends of Oak Shade Cemetery hold a meeting and have a scheduled Saturday work day. Their September newsletter is attached. Citizen Requests Tall Grass/Weeds: Eight citizen calls were received about tall grass in August. Four of those property owners were mailed certified notices and the department mowed seven properties for non-compliance or for being a habitual violator. Youth Recreation Programs: PeeWee Flag Football (photos above) wrapped up on September 7. Kids in grades K-1 st learned with three camp-style practices followed by a five game season. 2 P a g e

3 Youth Flag Football began practicing August 21 and games start September 9 at Lowe Park. There are eight teams of 2 nd /3 rd graders and three teams of 4 th /5 th graders; with a total of 121 kids participating in the program which runs through mid-october. Lil Tykes Basketball began on September 6 at the Thomas Park Basketball Courts. This instructional basketball program introduces kids to the basics and fundamentals of basketball. The 3 and 4 year old group has 25 kids participating, and the 5 and 6 year old group has 18 kids participating. Night of Magic and Hypnosis: Magician Gayle Becwar (photo on left) and Hypnotist Doug T (photo on right with about 50 people on stage being hypnotized) entertained an estimated crowd of 700 people on August 5. This program is sponsored by the Marion Hotel/Motel Grant Program. Moonlit Movie: The final Moonlit Movie of the summer took place on August 18 just before the start of school. Disney s live action, Beauty and the Beast was the feature presentation. There were a variety of kids activities before the movie, including an appearance by Princess Belle and Cinderella, balloon art from Papa Balloon, magic by magician Tim Stolba, lawn games, and giant bubbles. Vendors on site included Woolf s Lunchbox, Kona Ice, Irie Treats, and Shriners Popcorn. This program was sponsored by the Marion Hotel/Motel Grant program. Sunrise Yoga: Sunrise Yoga wrapped up another successful and well attended summer series on August 26. An average of nearly 60 to 80 people attended on a weekly basis. Monarch Tagging: The joint Monarch tagging program was held at Lowe Park on August 31 with 12 people in attendance. A Linn County Conservation Education Specialist explained the process and purpose of Monarch Tagging and participants tagged their own real Monarchs before leaving. Swimming Pool: Marion Pool season comes to a close. The pool officially closed on Monday, September 4. A full pool report will be available at the October Park Board meeting. With the closing of the pool we have started investigating a noticeable daily water loss. Currently water lines are being televised for possible leakage. A repair plan will be developed once the leak has been located. It is estimated the August pool vandalism cost close to $4,300 with the replacement of 538,000 gallons of water, chemicals and labor. This estimate does account for lost revenue. A few upgrades will take place at the pool over the next month including a new acid room door, painting the deck light poles and painting all three pools. 3 P a g e

4 Arts Council: Disappearing Culture by J Aaron Alderman art trail sculpture was installed on August 10. (Photo at right with Amphitheater and A&E building in the distance.) Picnic on the Prairie on August 19 featured The Brown, Faurot & Maas Quintet (with Natalie Brown, Carlis Faurot, Mike Maas, John O Connell, and Bennie Saltau) at the Klopfenstein Amphitheater. A crowd of 250 people attended the event funded by the Marion Hotel/Motel Grant program. A Plein Air Workshop was be held August 19 before the evening concert with Gordon Kellenberger as the instructor. There were 13 people participating in this workshop. The art exhibit at The Gallery from August 26 to October 28 features works from Lori Kidd Studio and the Creative Artists group. Coffeehouse Nights will be returning October 6 and will be held monthly through April, excluding in January. Performers have been lined up for the first three events with Jonny Lipford kicking things off. The Prairie Revival by Reinaldo Correa art trail sculpture is coming along nicely. (Photo at right.) Installation is slated for this fall. Activity Report from Master Gardeners Lowe Park Greenhouse report by Phil Pfister: Preparation for the growing season at the Lowe Park Greenhouse is underway. On August 16, eight Master Gardeners worked on cleaning and sanitizing an amazing number of pots. We have one more session planned to complete the container cleaning part of the prep. On August 28, ten Master Gardeners emptied the greenhouse of everything which wasn t tied down, vacuumed, washed and sanitized the entire greenhouse and everything associated with the growing operation. In the evening, about different Master Gardeners returned and put everything back away. There is still some maintenance to be complete in the next several weeks, but then everything should be ready for the growing season. Twenty-four people attended the Family Gardening for Food and Fun evening at Lowe Park, on August 15. Linn County Master Gardener Lelia Garner led the discussion on Planning the Fall Garden, which included planting times for fall crops, growing tips and techniques, and tours of the hoop house and cold frame. The final session for this year is a Perennial Plant Tour of the Lowe Park Demonstration Garden. This event will be September 19, starting at 6:30 p.m. 4 P a g e

5 Upcoming Master Gardeners Events: Swamp Fox at Lowe Park 4:30 Seed saving, 5:00 p.m. tomato, pepper and apple tasting. Lowe Park Greenhouse: September 9, 10:00 a.m. to noon. Make a cornhusk wreath workshop. Material fee - $ Advance registration required please call the Linn County Extension Office at (319) to register. October 14, 10:00 a.m. to noon. Forcing Bulbs workshop. Material fee - $ Advance registration required - please call the Linn County Extension Office at (319) to register. November 11, 10:00 a.m. to noon. Make a bow workshop. Material fee $ Advance registration required - please call the Linn County Extension Office at (319) to register. December 7, 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Make holiday arrangements workshop. Material fee $ Advance registration required - please call the Linn County Extension Office at (319) to register. SAFE ROOM & ARTS CENTER USAGE AUGUST Events with alcohol permits: 9 AV Equipment Rentals: 3 Some reservations use more than one room. Room Paid Free Safe Room 6 2 Amphitheater 0 7 Lobby/Gallery 0 1 Art Room 0 2 Sunburst 3 14 Hickory 8 3 White Oak 0 0 Red Oak 3 0 Red & White Oak 8 13 Entire Facility 0 3 Outdoor (Pond) / Greenhouse MONTHLY TOTAL MONTHLY TOTAL Activity Type Monthly Usage Number of Attendees Gallery Open / Arts Council Activities 4 350* Seniors Bingo /Dance / Cards Parks / Recreation 5 1,463 Master Gardeners P a g e

6 Yoga MEDCO School Election Forum Special Election Meetings / Work / School / Church Blood Drive 1 23 Family Gatherings / Showers 20 1,080 Rehearsal/Wedding/Reception MONTHLY TOTAL 71 4, MONTHLY TOTAL 71 3,824 Includes attendees to Night of Magic & Hypnotist and Movie Night. *Art Gallery visitors and Artist Reception attendees not reflected. PAVILION RESERVATIONS AUGUST Pavilion Free Paid TOTAL Attendance* English Thomas Park ,222 Begley #1 Thomas Park Begley #2 Thomas Park Hanna Park Depot - City Park Taube Park TOTALS , Totals ,165 *Does not include attendees to: National Night Thomas Park Marion Farmers Taube Park Uptown Getdown, Uptown Marion Depot 6 P a g e

7 MARION PARK BOARD MINUTES August 9, 2017, 4:00 P.M. Thomas Park Administration and Operations Facility ROLL CALL: ABSENT: STAFF: GUESTS: Chair Patty Wise, John McIntosh, Terry Speral Kyle Martin, Amy Hussel Mike Carolan, Karlene Hummel, Darcie Coberly Jay Moore, Jo Moore Minutes Moved by McIntosh and seconded by Speral to approve the July 12, 2017, regular Park Board minutes. All in favor, motion carried. Reports The July Financial Report was reviewed. Moved by Wise and seconded by Speral to approve the July Financial Report. All in favor, motion carried. The July Invoice Report was received and filed. Staff reviewed payments made to Cedar Valley Masonry ($3, for final masonry work at Waldo s Rock Park), Gopher ($1, for lacrosse kits), Iowa Arborists Association ($625 for tree risk assessment training), Iowa Parks & Recreation Association ($1, for discount tickets sold), and SiteOne Landscape Supply ($4,160 for Arborjet Tree-Age chemicals to treat Ash trees). Public Input Jay Moore thanked Chair Wise for attending the Friends of the Marion Parks Appreciation Luncheon in July. Water Booster Station at 29 th Avenue Future Park Carolan presented the preferred site layout for the Water Department s water booster station at the 29 th Avenue future park. This option allows a shared roadway for water department staff to have access to the booster station and park visitors to have access to the parking lot. McIntosh indicated the Water Board approved the $350,000 project at the last board meeting. REAP Grant Application for Lowe Park Development Carolan stated he has prepared a Resource Enhancement and Protection (REAP) grant application for the pavilion and restroom portion of the Lowe Park Development project. The maximum grant amount of $150,000 was requested; these two items are estimated at $375,000. The board supports submitting the REAP grant application for the Lowe Park Development restroom and pavilion in the amount of $150,000. Memorial Bench Program Discussion Carolan reviewed the memorial bench program. Currently there are no set guidelines and the department has seen an increase in the number of requests. Carolan indicated benches vary in price and type; wood $600, wrought iron $1,200, and granite $1,500. Staff requested direction and guidance from the board to establish consistency for future requests. The board discussed maintenance and upkeep of the different types of benches and plaque options. The board preferred a traditional park bench verses granite or wrought iron. Board Member Reappointments Board member terms will expire on December 31, 2017, for McIntosh, Martin, and Speral. McIntosh and Speral requested to be reappointed to the Park Board. Staff will contact Martin about his preference. 7 P a g e

8 Other Items Rotary member Tom Barnes received support from the City Council to submit a grant for a Rotary Clock and the department was asked about a good location for its placement. The board identified City Park, or the new plaza area created with the future library as prime spots. Speral asked who would be responsible for its maintenance. Carolan stated that Barnes indicated the clock would be taken care of and it would not fall on the department. Staff Report Punch list items for Waldo s Rock Park are being completed. Trey Electric is under contract to install light poles and wiring the pavilion, this work is scheduled be completed by the end of August. Carolan is addressing safety concerns related to climbing on and entering the spilt area of the glacial erratic. The Marion Park and Recreation Foundation was set to meet in July but did not have a quorum. The meeting has been rescheduled for August 22. They will discuss fundraising for the Lowe Park playground. Meanwhile, staff and MSA have started preliminary design of the Lowe Park south end development project. The Lowe Park Sculpture Trail piece Disappearing Culture was installed at 8:00 this morning. The American Bison stands 7 ½ tall and is 11 long. Summer baseball tournaments have finished at both Starry and Lowe ball diamonds. Operations staff are amending the fields to improve playability and sustainability of the diamonds. The bricks along 7 th Avenue at City Square Park are being removed and reset to provide a smooth walking surface and eliminate trip hazards. The Dueling Pianos event at Lowe Park drew in around 4,000 people on July 15; the largest event crowd to date. All parking areas in the park were maxed out. The Hypnotist and Magician event at Lowe Park was well attended with a good crowd of 650. Summer camps including Track and Field, Backyard Lawn Games, Magic, Music, Art, and Lacrosse were all successful this year. In all, attendance was between 200 and 250 with some children participating in more than one camp. The pool manager and staff were commended for their quick response and professional manner in which they handled the two incidents at the pool in early August, causing the pool to be closed for the week. Hummel stated she is very proud of the pool staff stepping up while she was on vacation. Carolan remarked this was a great display of reaching higher during these incidents. The ribbon cutting for the joint tennis court project with Marion Independent School District will be August 22 at 4:30. Board Discussion Time Wise noted the restrooms in Thomas Park have no doors for privacy and asked about adding doors or curtains. McIntosh reported there was water on the floor of the men s restrooms in City Square Park. Speral asked if the City owns the airport will the Parks department have to maintain it; Carolan replied no. 8 P a g e

9 Wise shared some details of the upcoming Swamp Fox Festival event. Adjournment The meeting adjourned at 5:30 p.m. The next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, September 13, 2017, at 4 p.m. at the Thomas Park Administration and Operations Building. John McIntosh, Secretary MARION TREE BOARD MINUTES August 9, 2017, 7:00 A.M. Thomas Park Safe Room ROLL CALL: ABSENT: STAFF: GUESTS: Chair Scott Hansen, Marilyn Tormey, Rodney Bluml, Tom Ryan, Mollie Lorenz Sunshine McDonald, Mark Sanderson Mike Cimprich, Pat Carlson None Minutes Moved by Tormey and seconded by Lorenz to approve the July 12, 2017, Tree Board minutes. All in favor, motion carried. Financial Report The financial report was received and filed. Three memorial plaques were purchased from Letter Perfect, and a new memorial tree donation was received in honor of Don Bean. Cimprich briefly reviewed the Memorial Tree Program for Lorenz. The program was developed many years ago after a family requested a way to provide a memorial for their loved one. The cost of a tree is $ with an extra cost of $ to provide an engraved plaque. Forestry staff plants and maintains the tree. At this time trees are being planted at Lowe Park. Recently decorations were being added around tree bases. A letter was sent to individuals who have purchased memorial trees advising the only item allowed at the tree base is the provided memorial plaque. Information was added to the Memorial Tree application to explain this at the time of donation. Trees for Kids Grant Application Cimprich advised the initial plan for the Trees for Kids Grant application was to partner with the Marion School District to plant trees at the new Longfellow School. Due to the time commitments involved with the new school construction, the point of contact Ken Cook has not been available to prepare the application, which is due September 1. Cimprich is recommending submitting the grant application for $2,300 to continue planting trees along the west side of North 10 th Street near Linn-Mar High School and partner with the school. Last year, Linn-Mar Ag Science students assisted with the plantings. It was noted last year s trees were rather small. Cimprich indicated extra points are available for trees in root grown pots which tend to be smaller. Cimprich recommends purchasing from Fleming Landscape for this planting and the trees will be somewhat larger in 7-10 gallon pots. It is anticipated the trees will be planted in late September/early October. Some of the Tree Board members advised they would be available for the planting event. It was motioned by Tormey and seconded by Bluml to submit the Trees for Kids grant application for 9 P a g e

10 planting trees along North Tenth Street. All in favor, motion carried. Cimprich advised he will contact Marion schools and assist them in the future if they decide to submit a grant for tree plantings. Significant Ash Tree Criteria Implementation Cimprich reported the initial review of Ash trees in Marion provided the following information: There are 956 inventoried city Ash trees. Of that total, there are 191 trees in parks with the remaining 765 trees on right-of-way (ROW) property. Of the ROW trees, 355 of those trees were recorded in good condition through the tree inventory. Of those 355 trees, 152 were chosen to be evaluated to determine if they meet the criteria to be treated. This season 54 park trees received their second treatment. Trees are treated on an every other year schedule. The budget allowed for the treatment of 35 additional trees in the ROW. Cimprich advised after discussion with other cities on their practices, they do not have a set percentage of trees being treated. Staff will continue to evaluate the Ash trees throughout the city. There was positive feedback from citizens on the treatments as home owners are in favor of saving the trees in front of their houses. Future Planting Projects Cimprich requested Tree Board members compile a list of suggested or recommended locations for future tree plantings. The goal is to have a final list for the October meeting to consider for submission of future grant requests, such as the Alliant Branching Out grant, to fund these plantings. Some of the locations discussed were 29 th Avenue and 35 th Street. Board Member Reappointments Tormey and Lorenz advised they do want to be reappointed to the board. There are changes that need to be made to the current roster. It will be updated and ed to members. Other Action or Discussion Items Hansen advised there is a dead ROW tree at 701 Third Avenue. Hansen said he also talked to the property owner, Ms. Skogman, about her concern regarding detention basins. He relayed the property had to be accepted by the City before they would maintain the area. Staff Report Cimprich reported staff continues to water trees, the prairie grasses were mowed two times and two memorial trees were planted at Lowe Park. The Trees for Kids grant application is being completed. Tree trimming was done at Oak Park Circle to assist the Engineering Department with installation of sidewalks. Staff also assisted with tree limb removal as a result of storm damage. The bucket truck is scheduled for delivery in early September. The tree chipper had to go back in for minor repairs. Adjournment Moved by Tormey, and seconded by Lorenz, to adjourn the meeting. All in favor, motion carried. Meeting adjourned at 8:05 a.m. Next Meeting The next meeting will be held Wednesday, September 13, 2017, 7:00 a.m. at the Thomas Park Safe Room. Rodney Bluml, Secretary 10 P a g e