South Cook News

City of Palos Heights Recreation Committee met May 10.

Here are the minutes provided by the committee:

CALL TO ORDER

Chairman Key called the regular meeting of the Recreation Committee to order at 7:00 p.m. at the Palos Heights City Hall, 7607 W. College Drive. In attendance were Chairman Key, Alderman Bylut, Alderman Begley, Director of Parks and Recreation Matt Fairbanks, Director of Lake Katherine Gareth Blakesley, and recording secretary Tayler Swiedals.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

Chairman Key moved to approve the minutes of the April 12, 2022 meeting as written, seconded by Alderman Begley. On a voice note, the motion passed unanimously.

PUBLIC COMMENT

None.

LAKE KATHERINE REPORT

Director of Lake Katherine, Gareth Blakesley provided the Lake Katherine update:

∙ With the warmer weather, Lake Katherine staff have started mowing the trails along the bike trails and children’s forest.

∙ On Arbor Day, Lake Katherine held a tree planting with the Palos Heights Library and Parks and Recreation Department staff. Next year staff would like to expand the tree plantings to other locations around the City.

∙ There was an open house on Earth Day focusing on sustainability practices.

∙ Lake Katherine staff gave a presentation at the Nicor main offices on planting native seeds at home.

∙ A small footbridge was installed around the waterfall as part of the Nicor’s funding to tie in the new arbors.

∙ Two volunteer orientations were held with numbers doubling from last year.

∙ Lake Katherine held a native plant sale the Saturday before Mother’s Day.

∙ The University of Illinois master gardeners came out to plant the herd garden and are helping design the butterfly garden.

∙ Both high school and Trinity students had work days clearing brush.

∙ An open house for the Cal Sag Trailhead improvement was held at Lake Katherine last week.

∙ The Green Team meeting was held culminating in developing a “green notes” and the beginnings of a self-sustainability audit.

PARKS & RECREATION REPORT

Director of Parks and Recreation Matt Fairbanks, provided the Parks & Recreation update:

∙ Misty Meadows Update: Staff received a tentative timeline for the Misty Meadows playground. Due to the weather conditions, George’s Landscape could not start working last week as scheduled and will begin work this week. Director Fairbanks spoke with Kendall Coyne and Michael Schofield regarding verbiage for a few plaques to be installed at the playground. This information was sent to JSD to be reviewed to confirm this will work with the plaque company.

∙ Community Events Manager Update: Director Fairbanks worked with the City Administrator to prepare a job description for a community events management position. The positon will be responsible for coordinating various special events for the City, sponsorship, advertisement and any additional programming needs. Additionally, the position will coordinate, design, and execute various marketing materials for the City. This position was posted on May 5th on the City, Recreation Department, and the IPRA website. Alderman Begley suggested posting positions on LinkedIn. Staff has received one resume, and the timeline is to have the position filled by late June.

∙ Summer Programs/Pool Update: Staff has been busy getting the pool ready to open for the season. The pool has been drained and cleaned, and the process of refilling it will be ongoing for the next few weeks. New and returning lifeguards have been hired, and pool staff training will take place in the next few weeks. Opening day is set for Saturday, June 4th. This summer, the pool will celebrate its 50th anniversary, and staff has special activities and giveaways planned to commemorate the milestone birthday. Staff is finalizing preparations for summer camp by creating camp training workshops for the close to 45 staff that has been hired so far. The department has staffed for full capacity with the expectation of a busy camp season with COVID guidelines having eased. Staff is sending parent manuals via email this year and will host an in person meeting for parents in June.

∙ CAPRA Update: Staff submitted our self-assessment report through the NRPA/CAPRA portal and received confirmation of receipt on Tuesday, April 19th. Our review team will do a preview of the report and will follow back up with staff regarding any pending questions prior to our virtual visit in June. Director Fairbanks expressed his thanks to all staff members for their hard work and efforts put into this multi-year project. The Parks and Recreation Department is scheduled for a virtual visit the week of June 13th, and a decision on accreditation approval will be made in the fall.

NEW BUSINESS

∙ Request for motion to approve the 1st payment to George’s Landscape in the amount of $6,407.10 for work completed on the Misty Meadows Park Project.

Alderman Key motioned to approve the 1st payment to George’s Landscape in the amount of $6,407.10 for work completed on the Misty Meadows Park Project, seconded by Alderman Begley. On a voice note, the motion passed unanimously.—AGENDA

∙ Request for motion to approve Palos Baseball Organization’s request for extended use of lighting on the Pony Field and North Field on June 11, 2022 and June 17, 2022 until 11:00 p.m. and for possible rain dates of June 28-30, 2022 until 11:00 p.m. This is a yearly request from PBO.

Alderman Key motioned to approve Palos Baseball Organization’s request for extended use of lighting on the Pony Field and North field on June 11, 2022 and June 17, 2022 until 11:00 p.m. and for possible rain dates of June 28-30, 2022 until 11:00 p.m., seconded by Alderman Begley. On a voice note, the motion passed unanimously.

OLD BUSINESS

∙ Staff has submitted a first draft of the RAB proposal to the City Administrator with updates to the ordinances and bylaws currently in place to ensure consistency with other committees in the City. Once a proposal is approved, it will be reviewed by the Mayor and the Recreation Committee Chair. A meeting will then be scheduled with the Recreation Committee and the Recreation Advisory Board to ensure that everyone is on the same page regarding the goals for the committees and how we envision the benefits for the Department.

ADJOURNMENT

There being no further business, Chairman Key moved to adjourn the meeting, seconded by Alderman Begley. All in favor.

Meeting adjourned at 7:18 p.m.

https://palosheights.org/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Minutes/_05102022-671