HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee - 08/11/2021 (2) ' CitCit`' of Corpus Christi 1201 Leopard Street
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Meeting Minutes
Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee
Wednesday,August 11,2021 5:30 PM City Hall Basement
1201 Leopard St,Corpus Christi,TX 78401
Regular Meeting
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A. Call To Order
Meeting called to order by Chair Alissa Mejia at 5:30 pm.
B. Roll Call
C. Public Comment
No public comment provided.
D. Approval of Minutes and Action on Absences
Approval of minutes for the 7/14/21 Parks & Recreation Advisory Committee
Regular Meeting
A motion was made by Board Member Howard L. Schauer, seconded by Vice Chair
Twila Stevens, that the Minutes be approved and Hannah Husby be excused for her
absence during the 7/14/21 PRAC meeting. The motion carried by a unanimous vote.
E. Police Department Report
Capt. Ed Shannon - Police Department Report
Lt. Kody Harrison provided Police Department Report in lieu of Capt. Ed Shannon.
Increase in complaints for parks along North Beach regarding vagrants continuing to
camp on the beach, litter on the beach, and an increase in marijuana smoking at certain
times. Increased hours of frequent patrols in response. Also increased presence of
enduro motorcycle units and bicycle units. Also informed night crew officers to help deter
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overnight camping on the beach. Have had significant help from Parks department at
Water's Edge Park to help pick up abandoned belongings. However, the abandoned
items are being thrown in the dumpster at the American Bank Center and the vagrants
are going there to search the dumpsters and get those items back. Looking into getting
help from Solid Waste to transport those items to the land fill as a solution. Going to
perform another shopping cart pickup around the City. At Water's Edge Park, the
showers are still being used as a full shower by vagrants. Would like to lower the showers
to knee height to still provide the ability to wash sand off of people without providing an
amenity that will be misused by the vagrant population.
F. Educational Topic
Darren Gurley, Gulf Beaches and Natural Resources Superintendent - Beach
Flag System
Darren Gurley, Gulf Beaches and Natural Resources Superintendent provided
presentation on general information for the Beach Flag System.
G. Unfinished Business for Discussion and Possible Action
H. New Business for Discussion and Possible Action
Reappointment of Members
Liaison Jacob Warren briefly explained that the reappointment of members for PRAC will
occur during August 31, 2021.
Removal of updates for Flour Bluff Advisory Committee
Briefly discussed removal of updates for Flour Bluff Advisory Committee.
Updates will no longer be provided for future meetings.
TC Ayers Pool Mitigation
Assistant Director Kevin Johnson presented issues surrounding TC Ayers Pool.
TC Ayers Pool has a multitude of issues due to location and faulty equipment. Significant
events include: aggressive algae formed in the pool requiring heavy chemical treatment
and closure, equipment failure resulting in closure which cost $712,000 to repair, and two
weeks after repairs the pool experienced equipment failure again resulting in closure. TC
Ayers Pool currently requires a full rebuild which would cost $2.5 million.
The new Harbor Bridge construction had to go through the middle of TC Ayers Park
resulting in the loss of 5.2 acres from the park. The remaining 3.5 acres still houses TC
Ayers Pool which is now directly adjacent to the new Harbor Bridge overpass. Debris
could fly off which could potentially cause severe or fatal injuries in those attending TC
Ayers Pool.
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Staff recommends demolishing the pool and is requesting PRAC approval.
Twila Stevens: For people in that community still using TC Ayers Pool, where is the
nearest pool that they would be able to use instead? Can other pools accommodate the
people who were using TC Ayers Pool?
Darren Gurley: Closest pool would be HEB Pool on Ayers. The next closest would be
Greenwood Pool. Both pools will be able to accommodate the influx of new attendees.
Florence East: Can we get insurance for that pool since it's a high risk liability?
Kevin Johnson: I'll check into it.
Darren Gurley: All of our pools have insurance, but I don't if it will cover debris falling from
the bridge onto attendees.
Florence East: I support closing the TC Ayers Pool.
Alissa Mejia: When you begin looking at demolishing the TC Ayers Pool and rebuilding a
replacement pool eslewhere, is it possible that it will be rebuilt at the Bill Witt facility? Or
would it be a completely different site?
Kevin Johnson: Apologies for the misunderstanding. We are not looking to rebuild the TC
Ayers Pool. This project would be only to demolish the pool as it poses a hazard. We
currently have to drain the pool after every heavy rain in to prevent a possible drowning if
someone were to trespass and fall in the pool.
Howard Schauer: Is this addressed anywhere in the new Parks Master Plan?
Kevin Johnson: No, it is addressed in the Harbor Mitigation Plan. There are some
renderings of what the design will look like. The rendering shows it becoming a
landscape park.
Howard Schauer: I'm concerned about this becoming a park if there are only 15-20
homes in the area. Would it be best if the funds were used elsewhere and the City
divested itself of the TC Ayers Park?
Kevin Johnson: The park is really more aesthetic in design while still being usable.
Lisa Oliver: It will also be one of the areas serving as a foothold of the bridge. The bridge
will have a pedestrian and bike way from North Beach to this area which would allow
people to park their car and traverse the bridge by foot or bicycle. It will definitely be used
by many in the community.
Darren Gurley: This park is also part of the Harbor Bridge Mitigation agreement and
TxDOT will be building this park with its contractors.
Kevin Johnson: Correct, and we will be maintaining it after it is built.
Florence East: Do we need to email Council to let them know we support closing the TC
Ayers Pool?
Kevin Johnson: Thank you Flo, but we will let Council know.
Alissa Mejia: I agree that we should close that facility, but there are a couple of points I
would like to bring up. TC Ayers was a black history leader and educator in Corpus
Christi. We don't have many monuments named after black historical figures, and I would
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hate to see that be lost. I would like to see the TC Ayers name used on a different facility,
but not reused on a throwaway park.
Kevin Johnson: I agree, we should uphold the TC Ayers name.
Lisa Oliver: It will still be referenced as TC Ayers Park. Where the Washington school
was is another area that is used as a historical plaza.
Kevin Johnson: We will look into instating a sign or monument for TC Ayers.
Alissa Mejia: There are still no pools between HEB and West Guth, so the west side
doesn't have a pool. Maybe the park in the older central city area could have a pool
installed. But I won't argue to keep the TC Ayers pool. It makes sense to decommission
it.
A motion was made by Howard L. Schauer, seconded by Florence East, that the TC
Ayers Pool be closed while looking at avenues and possibilities to maintain the history
and support TC Ayers community involvement. The motion carried by a vote of 7-1 with
Lawrence Heatley being opposed.
*Post Discussion*
Kevin Johnson: Why were you opposed Lawrence? I would like to help.
Lawrence Heatley: It is a pool that I think is important for that community, and I don't want
that community to be underrepresented, misplaced, or forced to travel long distances.
Many of them would need to travel via public transportation. I would like for them to have
an avenue to access that type of amenity readily.
Kevin Johnson: How would you feel about a splash pad or interactive fountain at that
location?
Lawrence Heatley: An alternative placed at that location for the community would be great
instead of a complete displacement.
Kevin Johnson: I will look into a splash pad or interactive fountain in the future.
Jacob Dryden: I agree with Alissa and Lawrence. I think it's important that we don't
abandon that community from a water feature standpoint. I think we should look into
having some water feature for that community.
Kevin Johnson: I agree, and I will definitely look into that either during the building process
or in the future.
Alissa Mejia: We had a report on this a couple of years ago, and there were a lot of
efforts to reopen the TC Ayers Pool. Staff at the time had said that it was pointless
because it wasn't a popular pool and they were blown away by how popular it was in the
short time that it was functional again.
Kevin Johnson: There were more families in that area at the time compared to now. But I
definitely agree with installing an alternate water feature.
Twila Stevens: Are there any statistics showing where the majority of that community
relocated and if we could put something in that area to serve that community that was
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displaced by the new Harbor Bridge?
Kevin Johnson: I will look into, but I am not privy to that information currently.
Amy McCoy: I hope our Master Plan has something that can address this issue. I agree
that the current pool needs to go. That location now being a hazard due to potential
debris isn't going to change though, so I would like to see something in the Master Plan to
address that whole area. And there are many residences south of 1-37 that would benefit
from a water feature.
I. Committee Liaison Reports
Twila Stevens, Liaison - Island Strategic Action Committee
Liaison Twila Stevens presented the Island Strategic Action Committee report.
There were a couple of items from ISAC. I told them about the signage that will be placed
in Packery Channel Park as per what Lisa Oliver had mentioned at the last meeting. The
chairperson said that a lot of that park belongs to Nueces County rather than the City, and
he wondered what the City would be doing and in which areas. I told him I would provide
more information as I received it. Dante Gonzalez was on the call and provided more
details about the situation. Dante also told the committee about the No Wake Zone being
extended by ordinance and had a brief discussion on signage and enforcement.
Committee expressed concerns over waves lapping the sea wall in front of the island
house condominiums south of Mike Ellis Park. Beach has eroded severely which might
be undermining the sea wall. This would pose a larger threat if a hurricane hits Corpus
Christi. Chairperson mentioned he saw Parks moving sand north of there and brought up
the idea of having some of that sand brought to the south end of the sea wall. Some sand
from dredging of the Packery Channel will be used for the sea wall as well, but that won't
happen until restoration of Packery Channel is complete. Chairperson also requested
update from Beach Operations on Gulf Beaches.
Howard Schauer, Liaison -Watershore & Beach Advisory Committee
Liaison Howard Schauer presented the Watershore & Beach Advisory Committee
report.
The Watershore & Beach Advisory Committee did not meet quorum and was unable to
meet for the second month in a row.
J. Director/Assistant Director Reports
Howard Schauer: Water Beach Advisory Committee did not meet quorum and has not
met for the second month in a row.
Kevin Johnson, Assistant Director- Operations & Maintenance
Assistant Director Kevin Johnson presented the Operations & Maintenance report.
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West Guth Skate Park - Part of Bond 2020; will cover a large area. We already put a new
playground structure in West Guth park and we're going to install an additional unit for
smaller kids with a pour-in-place pathway. Also going to replace the swing set that's
currently there with pour-in-place. Also going to replace the other existing paths, add a
shade structure, and a bar-b-que pits. Rough design of the park improvements and new
skate park.
Howard Schauer: This is part of the 2020 Bond funds?
Kevin Johnson: Yes, that's correct.
Howard Schauer: Are there any extra costs? Was this part of the Master Plan? Or was
this an afterthought?
Kevin Johnson: This did not have a Master Plan associated with it. I noticed that this was
part of the 2020 Bond and no actions were taken on it, so I presented this to Engineering
and they asked me where we would want to pull funds from to spend on this project. The
estimated costs are $1.72 million. The interpretation of the 2020 Bond is that they wanted
to emphasize this being a regional playground, installing an above ground
pre-manufactured skate park, and other amenities.
Jacob Dryden: In the designs, are you contemplating another parking lot on the side of
the throughway? That parking lot is used a lot for parking and food trucks.
Kevin Johnson: In the future we're going to take that parking lot and extend it all the way
through to the street. This should create roughly 40 more spaces.
New Playgrounds & Shade Structures - Still in the works with Engineering, but we're
looking at the park structures in districts 1, 2, 4, and 5 on the 14 new playgrounds and
shade structures. They're currently doing a study of the soil as part of the replacing and
rebuilding efforts.
Dimmit Pier Parking Lot - Preparations are almost complete and construction will begin
in about 1 month. Checked with Engineering and made sure that we will have a pathway
to the new Dimmit Pier. It won't be blocked off completely while we are working on the
parking lot and other amenities.
North Beach Restroom Facility -Well on its way.
Cole Park Pier- Grand opening coming soon.
Hannah Husby: When is the grand opening for Cole Park Pier?
Lisa Oliver: In the latter part of October.
Lisa Oliver, Interim Assistant Director- Master Plan Update /Summer
Programming & Special Events
Interim Assistant Director Lisa Oliver presented the Master Plan Update and Summer
Programming & Special Events report.
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Aqua Chairs -Aqua chairs are available at no cost. Only need to contact the Beach office
to coordinate delivery of aqua chairs.
Master Plan Amenities - HALFF Associates provided mid-point briefing to Council this
week and demonstrated mapping tools and virtual town hall. This will be a great way to
provide feedback on the Parks system and what you, and other residents, would like to
see as part of Master Plan.
Sherrill Veterans Memorial Park Shade Structure - Project has been delayed due to
materials shortage. Work began August 9, 2021. Concrete tree will begin construction
next week. Committee for Veterans Affairs have relocated events to Ben Garza Gym until
work is complete.
Curbside Distribution - Family Fun Kits being distributed for all ages at Broadmoor
Senior Center for the Beat The Heat program.
Howard Schauer: What is the period of performance of the Sherrill shade structure? Due
to the delays, will there be a contract extension?
Lisa Oliver: I believe so. The initial project was scheduled for 3-4 months. We will get an
update on that extension from Engineering.
Jacob Dryden: Is that aqua chair advertised on the website?
Lisa Oliver: Yes, it is on the website along with a video.
Alissa Mejia: I feel like PRAC has been out of the loop on the Master Plan. Will we have
any further interaction while it's still in the planning phase with a small group or planning
team?
Lisa Oliver: No, not to my knowledge. I will check with the consultant on that. Before it's
presented to Council, it will be presented to PRAC and you can share your feedback in
the meantime via the survey, interactive mapping tool, and virtual town hall.
Dante Gonzalez, Interim Director - Follow-up Items
Interim Director Dante Gonzalez was unable to attend the 8/11/21 PRAC meeting.
K. PRAC Member Questions/ Discussion
Howard Schauer: Some parks that have new play structures still have the old slides,
swings, etc. What plans are there to remove those?
Kevin Johnson: The method Parks & Recreation uses is to install the new playground and
then work around that and begin replacing units. Funding will come from Parks and
Recreation instead of a bond for these projects. As an example: The red shade structure
that was recently installed at the HEB splash pad will be a focal shade structure for our
other parks. We will be replacing all outdated shade structures with that new design used
for the HEB splash pad. We also have about 6 swing sets in stock that we will be
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installing soon.
Twila Stevens: Is it similar to the one used at Aquarius Park?
Kevin Johnson: No, it's different. This one is painted aluminum to prevent rust, a cover,
four stilts, and a concrete block in the center for a picnic table. The next shade structure
will be installed at Salinas Park.
Alissa Mejia: I think that's a great idea. I've noticed that people will use those shade
structures for birthday parties which helps them avoid booking a place and spending a lot
of money.
Kevin Johnson: Also, the rubber used for the seats of swing sets are inspected weekly
and changed out if needed.
Howard Schauer: So wherever new equipment is installed, the old equipment will still be
maintained there? Will the old equipment be removed and replaced?
Kevin Johnson: The old equipment will be removed and replaced.
Howard Schauer: So when the new equipment is installed, what is the plan to remove the
old equipment after? I was by a park the other day with an old metal slide that had been
sitting in the hot sun. If anyone tried using that slide they would definitely be burned by it.
Kevin Johnson: That unit will be removed and a swing set will be placed there instead.
Twila Stevens: Can I please have an update on Douden Park? Who is responsible for the
upkeep there?
Kevin Johnson: Adopt-A-Park is responsible for the maintenance. I'm still looking into
who is responsible for the equipment. Also, that playground should be replaced before
February 2022.
Alissa Mejia: Regarding TC Ayers, can we have a future agenda item to discuss how to
keep his name somewhere prominent and what to do going forward?
Lisa Oliver: It will be an item on the next meeting.
Kevin Johnson: Also FYI, that project may not start until next year.
L. Identify Items to be placed on September 8, 2021 agenda
M. Adjournment
A motion was made by Howard L. Schauer, seconded by Amy McCoy, that the meeting
be adjourned. The motion carried by a unanimous vote.
Meeting adjourned at 6:50pm.
This meeting may be held via videoconference call pursuant to Texas
Government Code § 551.127. If this meeting is held via videoconference call or
other remote method of meeting, then a member of this governmental body
presiding over this meeting will be physically present at the location of this
meeting unless this meeting is held pursuant to Texas Government Code §
551.125 due to an emergency or other public necessity pursuant to Texas
Government Code § 551.045.
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