2026-10-09 - Springfield-Greene County Park Board

00:01.11] All right. We'll call our meeting to order.

00:04.53] Please call the roll.

00:06.39] William Winkel.

00:07.02] Here.

00:08.07] John Timberg.

00:08.94] Here.

00:09.33] Cody Donastasio.

00:10.41] Here.

00:11.04] Philip Hersel. Mark McDade. Dale Moore.

00:14.85] Here.

00:15.42] Diana Parker.

00:16.26] Here.

00:16.74] Royce Redding.

00:19.50] All right. Thank you. All right. Reading approval of the minutes.

00:24.51] Anybody have anything they want to add or good with where the minutes are?

00:29.46] I'm looking at you specifically, Mr. Timberg.

00:34.80] I have one quick typo on page two, Killian Sports Complex with an

00:40.74] A instead of an O. But other than that, I think they're ready to go, and I'll move

00:46.47] that they be approved with that correction.

00:48.90] All right. Thank you, sir.

00:51.15] Second?

00:52.05] Second.

00:52.83] All right. All in favor?

00:54.21] I.

00:55.02] Any opposed? Okay, perfect. Let's see.

01:02.22] Report of the officers. I have a lot to say. I'm just kidding.

01:06.63] I won't do that to you guys.

01:09.66] None on unfinished business, so let's keep moving down to new business.

01:14.82] Springfield Spokes BMX presentation.

01:16.65] Sure.

01:17.04] We got a presentation. We got a couple guests this morning.

01:19.83] I'd like to introduce Ben Lohmeier.

01:21.84] Hey, guys.

01:22.11] Current chair, president.

01:24.03] I wish I was that cool.

01:26.79] I have been voluntold because this is a non-for-profit, volunteer-run deal.

01:31.05] But I'm the sponsorship and any donations and sponsorships, that's my

01:36.96] role. All the really smart people that I volunteer with are busy today, so- ...

01:42.78] you get me. But I did bring along a trusted sidekick.

01:46.02] This is Tobias Hollins who's been at the track, second generation.

01:49.89] His dad was a pro at all things two wheels, and he is our current pro hosting

01:55.77] clinics and helping everybody from a five-year-old little boy of mine to me in

02:02.40] my 50, 60s.

02:05.40] But yeah, this is us. We're Spokes. So, anybody here know how to ride a bicycle?

02:10.71] Actually, let's do this. Who doesn't know how to ride a bicycle? Hands up.

02:14.49] All right. Now, food for thought. Have you guys ever thought of the plywood, the

02:18.09] cinder blocks, or dirt jump? Can we do it?

02:20.31] Mm-hmm.

02:20.52] Any heads?

02:21.33] Yeah.

02:21.63] All right. So, a neighbor of mine a long time ago said, "I'm going to go race some

02:25.47] bikes." And I thought, "Okay, great. I'm faster than you.

02:27.51] I got this." And approaching it, I realized someone took the time in Springfield to

02:31.68] build this amazing track. Big jumps, rollers, starting gate. It was awesome.

02:35.94] I started there in 2000, raced to '05, and then took 20 years off, had kids.

02:40.23] Now I'm back. It's super fun. If you guys have never had a chance to get out to

02:44.55] Spokes, I'd highly recommend it. But that's what it is.

02:47.73] It's an Olympic sport these days, but it started off as the Airport Speedway, or

02:52.47] Airport Raceway out there by the airport.

02:54.69] So not sure if anybody is familiar with that, that you have cars and motorcycles

02:58.65] that race.

03:00.93] They added a bike track later. It was mid-'70s, but it wasn't a sanctioned sport

03:04.77] until '77. So we've been going for 50 years. We'd like to do 50 more.

03:08.91] That's the goal. Let's see here. Left-hand click, boom.

03:13.92] Volunteer-run, so you get people like me trying to talk to people like you.

03:18.81] Happy to do it. Qualified? Probably not.

03:22.26] Probably shouldn't be in front of the room with a PowerPoint clicker in front of my

03:25.62] hand. But we're a 501 [c] [3] . We are non-for-profit.

03:29.58] We are 100% volunteer operated, five decades.

03:33.06] We've hosted multiple events in the race sector, but we also cross over.

03:36.36] We do different events like the Crit Race, and we have an open track part of Ewing

03:39.99] Park. So it's along the Greenway Trail inside of Ewing Park, and it can be hosted

03:45.90] for a multitude of different things, whether it's a birthday party or a specialty

03:50.85] event.

03:54.12] Big thing about BMX racing, because not a ton of people are as familiar with BMX

03:58.44] racing as maybe I am.

04:01.53] You have a lot of other big sports. This one's growing.

04:03.99] Became an Olympic event in '08. Since then, it's more than doubled in size, so

04:08.70] there's a ton of use and activity in it now.

04:10.62] But it's a sanctioned sport, head-to-head bicycle race, purpose-built track, jumps,

04:14.28] rollers, bank turns, all ages. So you have strider bikes and balance bikes that do

04:19.77] not require pedals. They get to race. They're in. You're absolutely in.

04:24.21] Five and under, adorable. Big helmets, very large wheels, tiny humans.

04:29.85] It's cute. My son's this year's state champ, so best five-year-old in Missouri this

04:34.80] year.

04:37.08] Now, I went too far. Got excited. There we go.

04:42.75] But USA BMX is the sanctioning body of it. It was the American Bicycle Association.

04:47.58] They've ended up rebranding. They merged with the National Bicycle League years and

04:52.17] years ago. So now when we think of BMX racing, it's all governed by USA BMX.

04:57.63] They provide the insurance on the track. They provide the waivers.

05:00.27] They provide everything. Because Spokes has got a fence with a gate that's locked

05:05.34] 24/7, 365, we are completely insured and covered for whatever happens at that track

05:10.74] because of USA BMX.

05:14.58] Last year, we did really well. It was bigger than the year before.

05:18.72] But me and a couple of other really hardcore parents that love the sport a lot and

05:22.83] want the track to be as good as others, after traveling around for the first time

05:28.02] to St. Peters in Missouri and Raytown in Missouri, and then we

05:33.42] have those other tracks. We realized I'd never gone outside of

05:39.33] Springfield to race BMX as a kid. It was only bringing my kids to another track

05:43.62] before I got to see another facility.

05:45.72] When I did, I realized that there are some tracks that are really nice in Missouri,

05:51.93] and then you have Spokes that needs a little bit of work.

05:54.51] So between the volunteer hours and the dedication, we were able to scrounge up 30

05:59.70] grand this last year to get a new concrete turn.

06:02.49] Every BMX track will have three turns. They're all paved or concrete now.

06:07.62] Our third turn wasn't. So with enough spills and crashes because of just a lack of

06:12.18] traction and a lot of speed, we got that done.

06:15.27] But we've also seen a lot of rider growth.

06:18.09] Highly involved board,

06:20.64] it's a generational sport, so parents eventually, or kids become parents, and then

06:24.93] their kids come back out. So this guy, case in point, has been doing this, started

06:29.52] at six.

06:30.12] Yep.

06:31.47] His dad was a pro, so that's kind of a cheat code. I can't offer that to my kids.

06:35.58] Yeah.

06:36.36] But after all those years of riding, he's deployment, Japan, all this stuff, he's

06:42.15] back and he's still doing it. It's not only great exercise, but it's good for you.

06:47.13] It's good for the community, and he's helping everybody there.

06:49.38] And there's always been someone like that, and it's at every track.

06:52.65] There's 300 of them across the US, and it's just a special place to be.

06:57.66] But we've increased our state rider count for actual people attending the state

07:02.07] race from last year to this year, 13%. We had a big jump at the national race.

07:06.57] So there's the Show-Me National, comes to the Wilson Logistics Arena every year.

07:12.48] I don't know if you guys have ever been to that.

07:14.34] It's free to attend all these things, all BMX racing.

07:16.92] But yeah, huge jump, almost a 30% increase in rider count this year.

07:21.51] And then 17 more events this year over last year, and that's with having to cancel

07:25.80] a handful of them because of heat. It was very hot, if you guys know this.

07:33.30] The plan is to utilize not only what we have, but also what's coming, thanks to the

07:38.61] Hatch Foundation and others. You have pump tracks. We've got one coming.

07:43.02] Couldn't be more excited about that. It is different than a BMX race track.

07:48.15] So BMX race track, the most important distinguishing factor is there's eight people

07:52.29] at once, one starting gate, one finish line. You all go.

07:56.70] Pump track, you have transponders you put on a bike. You have timers.

08:00.93] One person goes at a time, so there's no need for a large gate.

08:04.05] There's just one person going at the same time.

08:07.14] But what we want to do is we need to acknowledge the elephant in the room, why

08:12.63] we're here. We have a big ask, and we're looking for help.

08:15.90] So although we've been able to raise a ton of funding, we got the 30 grand paid for

08:20.73] on the third turn this year. That was accomplished all and finished in February.

08:25.62] We have a starting gate that I used when I raced, and it had been there for a

08:30.72] decade prior to me starting. It's the same starting gate.

08:35.34] Between patches and panels and all sorts of other issues that we've run into,

08:41.55] it's become more of a safety hazard and a liability than anything else.

08:45.51] Inconsistency at start, it's tough.

08:48.00] So we want to make sure that we get this thing done right. So it needs to be fair.

08:52.53] Okay, I'm doing great. Don't worry about that. Sorry, guys. So it needs to be fair.

08:57.42] It needs to have the ability to withhold the weight of eight either little kids or

09:01.77] full size adults on that gate at all times, and if there's even a little bit of a

09:05.88] risk. It's the first thing that people see whenever they get to the track.

09:10.20] When you pull in, it doesn't matter how old you are, it can be intimidating just to

09:13.56] see the track and how big the jumps look and all that.

09:16.92] The first time a parent with their little kid gets up onto the starting gate.

09:20.76] Right now, it's a big metal thing that's been welded and cobbled, but it works.

09:25.56] To an extent it works. It serves its purpose, but it's not very inviting.

09:29.28] It's a little bit intimidating. We want to lower the barrier to entry and reduce

09:32.88] the intimidation factor. A new starting gate would do that.

09:35.94] So,

09:38.31] to save on the investment we've made and move forward, we've done all we can.

09:43.68] Again, I've touched base on this. This is all based on the community.

09:47.19] So with the support of everybody around, we've made

09:51.87] great moves in the right direction.

09:58.32] With over 30 years though on that gate, I think it's time to call that gate done.

10:02.10] So it's been around since '93.

10:05.43] The amount of maintenance that's required has been unbelievable these last few

10:09.09] years, and it's every week we're doing something to the starting gate just to get

10:13.11] everything going. So what we're after

10:16.89] is going to show

10:19.68] where we're at. So the Hatch Foundation, shout-out.

10:23.67] We were able to do a donation match with them. They gave us a $5,000 match.

10:27.93] We were able to match that and verify all that, so that's in the works and very

10:31.95] excited about that.

10:34.32] Local businesses from the Mirable Capital, Maryville Powersports, Delong Plumbing,

10:38.52] and then the regular functioning profits from the track itself.

10:42.21] We've generated 18,000.

10:45.03] We need five. We need five and we can order the gate.

10:48.00] It'll be paid for, there'll be no debt to anybody and anything.

10:51.12] And once that gate is installed, another 15 to 30 years of use with replaceable

10:56.64] parts. A much quieter, safer, more inviting mechanism that's built to last.

11:02.28] So with the $5,000, 100% of the purchase is assembled.

11:06.96] It'd be here and ready to rip.

11:09.81] So what we'd be able to do, we're going to order that bad boy.

11:13.32] Our season runs from March to November.

11:16.02] In the off-season, we will be able to complete that build.

11:19.20] So we're coming up to the end of the year. Now's a great time to get it ordered.

11:22.83] We'll have everything up and running by the time spring rolls around, we're ready

11:25.98] to go.

11:29.58] That is all I have. Do you guys have any questions?

11:34.08] It's my understanding that the current gate is inoperable at this time.

11:37.92] It should be considered that way, yeah.

11:42.90] Yeah, it should be. We have typically

11:48.18] three events per day. Or three events per week.

11:52.47] So we have a practice on Monday, a race on Sunday, practice Monday, race Thursday.

11:58.11] We've had to eliminate Sunday just to reduce fatigue on the gate.

12:01.59] We've had to not allow gate drops on Monday.

12:04.80] So that's what we're doing is we've just basically

12:07.86] covered it. It's now just being rolled over for practice purposes.

12:12.00] And any clinics that we do on a Tuesday, so for the hardcore kids, there are four

12:16.53] events a week, and right now we don't use the gate.

12:20.34] So we're able to use the rest of the track to keep the track time as we have our

12:23.46] Super Bowl coming up called Grands in Oklahoma. That'll be Thanksgiving week.

12:27.57] You'll have 3,000 racers and all of their families in Tulsa.

12:32.61] And yeah, we need the practice and the time. So this year's a little different.

12:36.63] Hopefully, next year we can actually keep everybody practicing, getting gate ready

12:41.61] up until the Super Bowl, if you will.

12:44.82] Just like any race, the start spot is almost like crucial point of any sprint you

12:49.35] think of, like track running or any other short term sprint like that.

12:54.60] It's not having

12:57.81] that opportunity to have a good starting system isn't as much hindering our kids as

13:03.06] much as they're having to work that much harder to compete in the state level or

13:08.28] let alone the national level, right?

13:09.75] So having this gives me the opportunity to share the knowledge I have to the

13:15.66] kids so they can succeed in the sport is a big thing, for sure.

13:21.09] This is probably the most involved board I've dealt with, the volunteer board for

13:24.75] Spokes. I've been at the track again almost my whole life, right?

13:29.82] So

13:31.68] I haven't seen a group of parents this involved.

13:34.50] I got back from Japan in October of last year.

13:37.41] I had a year deployment with the Marines. And I came back to this board of parents.

13:42.45] A lot of new faces, a lot of guys that I grew up with weren't really there anymore.

13:45.96] But these have been the most involved parents with the sport that I've seen, right?

13:51.18] So I've been through times of the track where we're just trying to get by or we're

13:55.62] coming out of a hard season or whatever, but these parents are really trying to

13:59.85] progress the track. They're not just trying to have it as is and they want it to be

14:04.38] better for their kids and for the other kids that are out there riding.

14:07.56] And so they have the best opportunity and the best time they can while racing BMX.

14:14.94] Probably a really big corner of my life has been BMX.

14:18.45] It's kept me on a very straight path throughout high school, throughout middle

14:22.50] school. It's kept me devoted to BMX so I don't have time to get into

14:28.47] anything that wouldn't be as progressive for my life, right?

14:32.07] So I think it's a great opportunity for any kid.

14:35.25] I love how the progression works, so you can start it whenever you want.

14:39.84] One of the guys I deployed with, he moved up to Springfield in October, and he's

14:45.54] just started racing BMX, but because we have the great progression that we do, he

14:49.98] doesn't have to race someone like me that's been doing it for almost 20 years.

14:53.34] He can start out as a beginner and race just beginners, right?

14:56.43] So he can progress with those riders and he doesn't feel like he's helpless

15:01.47] starting out as just a beginner rider with expert riders, right?

15:05.58] That's a good point.

15:06.69] Yeah. So having that progression is really nice of anyone getting into it.

15:13.08] A racer up in Iowa, she started racing when she was 30.

15:17.58] She's over 70 years old now and she still races BMX.

15:20.79] Miss Kitty.

15:21.54] Yep. So she's a big talking point to any track.

15:27.24] She started with her kids when she was in her 30s.

15:29.28] Her kids stopped racing, but she never did because she loved the sport and she,

15:32.52] again, she races on the national level still.

15:35.64] She'll be at the Show-Me National.

15:36.78] If you want to see an 80-year-old woman get on a bike and race-

15:39.87] Mm-hmm

15:40.44] ... go to the, yeah, see you in January at the Wilson's Logistic Arena.

15:46.02] So our track is

15:48.93] mostly gravel, and then you have concrete turns.

15:52.68] Yep.

15:52.71] How does that line up with other tracks in the region similar to ours?

15:56.94] Yeah. So with our track, because it's been built with a modest budget and community

16:01.02] input and the population of this here versus a St.

16:04.35] Louis or a Kansas City or Tulsa's headquarters,

16:09.24] it's dirt covered in crushed limestone or chat.

16:12.45] That helps prevent erosion so when it does rain, it's not going to be as

16:15.87] devastating as it would be if it was just all dirt.

16:18.60] So that helps us as track operators and volunteers to not have to do quite as much

16:23.16] maintenance on the track. And other tracks have what they refer to as a slurry, or

16:29.28] it's a clay, a dirt, and a clay base that's been glued to where it's dirt, but it

16:35.01] feels almost like concrete. When it rains and pours, you can take a leaf blower and

16:40.29] blow the water off the track and race. It's dry.

16:43.56] With ours, it is dirt with chat, so when it does rain considerably, it may just be

16:47.94] holding too much water. So long-term, I know track surface is a big goal of ours.

16:53.19] I know that's in that one, three, five-year plan that's in the next three years.

16:58.02] Two more starting this year. Yeah, we would love to have the track surface redone.

17:03.36] The first two turns were put into concrete years and years ago and could probably

17:07.56] use redone the right way because I think they just go-

17:10.14] Those were fully volunteer-based both those corners were.

17:13.32] We didn't

17:15.30] have the money to hire anyone. We had the money to get the resources and then us as

17:20.40] volunteers went out and laid the rebar for it and then it's shotcrete corners, like

17:24.84] a pool surface.

17:26.07] If you see turn three versus turn one and two, you will see that turn three was

17:30.00] done very well with legitimate equipment and professionals that know how to do it

17:34.83] that volunteered their time or donated their expertise and materials.

17:39.72] So yeah, track surface currently versus the future.

17:43.02] Are all tracks laid out this way? Is this a standard configuration for racing or is

17:46.65] it different?

17:46.71] Great question. So it's really fun.

17:48.81] So there's always going to be a starting hill and a finish line, three turns in

17:52.41] between it, but whether the first turn is a left or a right, that's up to the

17:55.56] track. So ours has a big turn one goes left and then a big dog leg behind it for

18:00.39] turn three. Other tracks go right, left, right. It's really up to you.

18:05.40] The big difference is going to be on each straightaway.

18:07.92] So you have four straightaways. All the obstacles are up to the track designer, and

18:13.20] because they are normally made of dirt it gives the track operators and volunteers

18:17.70] a chance to switch those up from year to year.

18:20.07] So most tracks will keep a track layout for maybe a handful of years with a little

18:24.12] bit of change here and there. But yeah.

18:26.43] Start and finish is the same, standard.

18:27.78] Three turns, start and finish. Yep. So it'll snake either way.

18:31.35] Nice.

18:31.44] Yep, and then they're all about 1,000 to 1,200 feet.

18:34.98] Cool.

18:38.30] Yeah.

20:24.68] Thanks,

24:50.45] guys.

25:50.27] Good

25:58.76] morning.

27:45.65] Oh, hey.

27:46.40] Sorry

27:48.41] for

27:51.41] One correction. We've got a BMC instead of a BMX on the-

27:56.66] Oh, thanks for that

27:57.89] ... response. Did you get it, David?

28:01.07] Yeah.

28:01.25] You're good.

28:01.73] Well, I was going to say, anyway.

28:03.17] Mm-hmm.

28:03.95] It's totally not--

28:05.15] That's a random icon.

28:08.15] Yeah.

28:08.33] It's a people item.

28:13.58] I was trying to recall, what does BMX stand for?

28:16.52] Bicycle motocross.

28:17.84] Bicycle motocross. Yeah, that's what I was looking.

28:20.57] Get all your acronyms straight today.

28:23.09] You look at some photos from circa 1970s BMX, it was quite literally

28:29.09] bicycle motocross. We're talking good old boys on bicycles, tire as the track

28:34.88] outline. They're putting their feet down on the ground to get...

28:38.39] It's like five guys in a corner just basically punching each other.

28:42.23] It has evolved greatly, it has now become-

28:44.73] It sounds like a great reason to have this agreement shed some liability.

28:49.37] Thank you for that.

28:50.36] Looking for a motion at this time.

28:53.93] Yeah. All right, who's got the motion? Let's do this.

28:56.24] I make a motion that the board approve the attached resolution and authorize

28:59.93] entering into a license agreement with Springfield's Folks BMX Raceway

29:03.75] Incorporated.

29:05.03] Second.

29:05.09] I'll second it.

29:06.65] Okay.

29:07.07] Take your pick. All right, all in favor?

29:10.37] Aye.

29:10.64] Aye.

29:11.33] Any opposed?

29:12.36] Aye.

29:14.42] Okay, motion carries. Keep rolling.

29:21.71] Thank you very much.

29:23.27] All right.

29:25.46] Next on the agenda, we have approval of another agreement with Ozark Mountain Ridge

29:29.21] Runners, for our 2026 Turkey Trot.

29:32.75] Jill's making her way up to the-

29:34.23] Okay

29:34.49] ... microphone to introduce this agreement.

29:38.75] We've had a longstanding agreement with the Ozark Mountain Ridge Runners, it's a

29:42.80] mouthful. And they help us out with the Turkey Trot on an annual basis, and Jill's

29:48.41] going to walk us through what that relationship looks like.

29:52.37] So basically, I've got another one of those acronyms back again this morning.

29:54.83] OMRR is what we affectionately call them, but we have been working with them since

29:58.28] the beginning of the race. They do several things that are critical in support to

30:01.92] make that race happen.

30:04.55] They provide us a lot of free race support.

30:06.36] What that looks like is they certify that race course with us or for us with USA

30:10.43] Track and Field, so any runners that want to participate, their times can be

30:13.76] counted as official. Some of them might need that to get into other races in

30:17.25] certain categories. So that's one of the things they do for us.

30:20.66] They also provide us with staff that will come out, volunteer staff that will come

30:26.21] out in advance of the race. They'll pick up the biomarker flags, and they actually

30:29.36] place those around the course for us in advance of the race.

30:32.97] They mark the official start and finish line so that when Ultramax, our timing

30:36.23] company, rolls into town, they know exactly where they need to put their timing

30:40.40] pads to make everything official.

30:43.43] They provide us with volunteer staff in the packet pickup at various points along

30:48.35] the way. But where they are really the most critical, I think, for us, is that they

30:52.67] provide us with course marshals. So as our race has grown through the years and the

30:57.14] way that

30:59.93] keeping race courses secure has changed with events that have happened in other

31:04.40] races, we require a huge number. It's 28 people just to course marshal.

31:10.13] So those people have to get trained. They have to be placed at various...

31:14.21] I think we have 12 or 13 different checkpoints around the course that SPD lays out,

31:19.01] where they tell us what kind of barricades, how many people, et cetera.

31:22.58] So they train those folks, they provide those folks.

31:26.66] I'm not sure that we can come up with that many more volunteers and staff, if I'm

31:29.84] being honest. If we didn't have them, additionally, the cost of that just for race

31:33.62] day is about $5,000 if we had to pay for that for our staff, because you're looking

31:37.28] at holiday pay and training. So the agreement that we've had with them, and it

31:41.15] hasn't changed in years, every time we go to ask to renew, the price hasn't really

31:46.64] changed. It's 50 cents per racer, so we can build that into our race cost.

31:51.62] So last year, we had a little over 6,500 racers.

31:56.09] We paid them out $32.53 for a $5,000 value, just for race day alone.

32:01.73] So we are asking to have permission to renew that agreement again this year.

32:06.98] Great.

32:07.37] Happy to answer any questions if you have them.

32:10.73] Anybody have any questions?

32:12.71] Thank you.

32:13.28] All right. I'll look for a motion.

32:16.43] Well, Mr. Chairman, I would make a motion that the board approve the attached

32:19.82] resolution and authorize entering into an agreement with the Ozark Mountain Ridge

32:23.87] Runners, OMRR-

32:25.94] Okay

32:26.48] ... related to the Turkey Trot event and payment for related services.

32:30.29] All right. Thank you, sir. Second?

32:32.57] I'll second.

32:33.38] All right. All in favor?

32:36.56] Aye.

32:37.82] Aye.

32:38.81] Any opposed? All right. Motion passes. Keep on rolling.

32:44.33] I'm going to wear you guys out today.

32:46.58] Next item, approval of a resolution to accept a donation totaling $517,500 to

32:52.49] fund the improvements to McDaniel Park.

32:55.40] Before Ron starts, I want to say that I'm really proud of the group that went out

33:00.56] and found a lot more money to make sure we could get this thing to the finish line.

33:06.92] So yeah, I think this has been awesome. Thanks for your help on that, Billy.

33:11.69] And, yeah. Go ahead.

33:13.25] Thanks, Cody. Yeah. I echo what you just said.

33:16.31] I've really never seen anything like it in that short period of time to raise that

33:20.54] type of funding. It really comes on the heels of a couple organizations,

33:25.34] Trailspring being one of them, and the Hatch Foundation being the other, that

33:29.84] really led the charge in

33:33.59] raising these funds.

33:34.85] And Medical Mile Partners.

33:36.11] And Medical Mile Partners.

33:39.14] I'm not going to go into the plans or the details of McDaniel Park.

33:43.76] I think the board is well aware of the plans and what we're trying to do there.

33:48.92] This all started about two years ago, and

33:52.73] I'm hoping this may be one of the final hurdles that we have to jump over to get

33:56.97] this project to the finish line. So just to remind you, bids were open for

34:03.53] phase one and two of this project on July 15th.

34:07.43] Phase one and two include the site work for the pump track, which will be donated

34:12.08] by Trailspring, as well as the construction of the gorgeous

34:17.48] pavilion that's going to go in there.

34:21.00] The low bid received exceeded what we had funded or budgeted by just under

34:26.87] $700,000, $699,562. Since that time, we've been

34:32.66] working with partners to raise additional funds to close that funding gap, and to

34:36.92] date, we've received written pledges totaling

34:41.96] $517,500. In addition to that, I'll be presenting a council

34:47.90] bill on Monday night for an additional $50,000 of Zone Four minor neighborhood

34:53.75] improvement funds. That's being sponsored by Council Member Adiabasi.

35:00.47] So that leaves a shortfall right now not to exceed

35:05.06] $132,062. There is the potential for additional donations still to

35:10.91] come in on this project.

35:16.34] And there might be the potential, once we issue the contract, for there to

35:21.08] potentially be some cost savings throughout the construction of the project as

35:26.12] well. So that $132,000 number may, and very well could be

35:31.76] reduced.

35:34.94] But I want the board to be aware that the total risk, I guess, at this point, or

35:39.14] the total outlay to make this thing go forward right now, out of the parks budget,

35:44.78] would be $132,000, which we can fund

35:50.99] through our current budget cycle. So we need a decision.

35:55.28] The bids were good for 90 days. So I think that leads us up to next week to make a

35:59.81] decision on this. So we need to potentially-- The reason the resolution was put

36:05.48] together was to accept the donations and give us the confidence to move forward

36:09.59] with accepting the bid. So with that being said, I think I'd be happy to answer any

36:15.56] questions, but certainly recommend approving the resolution in front of you.

36:23.42] Any questions?

36:24.71] So if this is approved, we will proceed with accepting the bid?

36:28.19] Yeah.

36:29.69] I have a couple questions. So one, thank you to all the different folk who stepped

36:35.45] up to provide half a million dollars of funding. It's remarkable.

36:40.91] So I guess first, I want to make sure that we, as a board, do something to

36:45.74] recognize that. Send them a thank you note at the very least.

36:49.79] But maybe at the site, I don't know if there's a plaque or something where we

36:54.11] recognize various donors and

36:57.29] be able to honor them in that way. So that the-

37:01.22] One item. And then secondly, with this resolution, if you have additional donations

37:05.84] coming in, will we have an additional resolution in the future for whatever those

37:09.17] future donations would be?

37:10.43] Yes.

37:10.49] Okay.

37:10.73] That's a yes.

37:12.11] Okay. So those are my questions.

37:14.66] Okay. Donor recognition is something that's still in the works, but we fully expect

37:19.82] also to have a groundbreaking ceremony, which we recognize those donors, as well as

37:23.81] a grand opening ceremony once the project's completed next summer.

37:31.85] Any other questions?

37:35.03] All right. Motion?

37:38.06] I make a motion that the board accept the seven donations for the McDaniel Park

37:41.81] improvements and authorize entering into donation agreement letters for receipt of

37:46.28] same, as described in the resolution presented today.

37:50.36] I second that. All right. All in favor?

37:53.87] Aye.

37:54.38] Aye.

37:55.88] Aye.

37:56.63] Anybody not want to take $517,000? We're not going to listen to you anyway.

38:02.36] Right. Motion carries.

38:05.24] Perfect. All right. Next item, Park Master Plan update.

38:11.54] Take it away, Jeff.

38:12.59] All right. Good morning, everybody. As always, appreciate your time this morning.

38:16.49] Just wanted to provide a quick update where we're at with our master plan.

38:20.06] Just some quick background information.

38:22.40] This project is being funded through $500,000 that was recommended for approval by

38:27.71] the Community Advisory Board and then approved by City Council.

38:31.88] So we were able to move forward with this.

38:34.31] Consultant selection was quite a process.

38:36.59] We actually received 13

38:39.35] statements of qualifications. We narrowed that down to three and then held

38:42.44] interviews, and the winning firm was Planning Design Studio.

38:45.68] So we've since entered into a contract with them to do this work, and we are smack

38:50.57] dab in the heart of phase one. This total project is going to be five different

38:54.65] phases, but phase one has four main key bullet points to it.

38:59.09] The first one is to review prior planning and community input.

39:02.84] Second one is to benchmark system performance and recreational demand.

39:07.25] The third one is to conduct comprehensive park inventories, and our consultant has

39:11.09] been on the ground already performing this work.

39:14.60] And the last one is to document site constraints, infrastructure, and maintenance

39:18.56] needs. So they've already compiled a lot of information.

39:23.42] We had our staff put together surveys kind of noting all of our maintenance

39:28.16] deficiencies at these five sites.

39:29.93] And those five sites are Bass Night, Grant Beach, Nathaniel Green Post Memorial,

39:34.40] Sequoyah, and Silver Springs Parks.

39:37.28] So again, our staff has provided comprehensive surveys to the planning group.

39:41.93] They've also been in touch with the City of Springfield to get all of the GIS data

39:45.38] that they need and City Utilities of Springfield to get all the utility data for

39:49.31] these sites. So they've pretty much accumulated all the data they need.

39:54.17] They're working through the public input portion right now.

39:58.49] Phase one will be delivered to us on October 28th.

40:02.69] So as I said, we're kind of right in the middle of phase one out of five different

40:05.75] phases. They've also already attended two different community events.

40:11.36] They set up a booth at the Japanese Fall Festival on September 12th to gather

40:15.02] input, and they also set up a booth at the Garden Gala at Nathaniel Green Close

40:19.67] Memorial Park on September 24th to collect input.

40:23.90] They will also be at Art in the Park at Sequoyah Park tomorrow all day long.

40:28.73] They'll have a booth there to collect input for Sequoyah Park as well.

40:32.54] So some of the events and dates that I wanted to kind of let you all be aware of is

40:37.10] we're going to have a staff open house next Thursday, October 15th.

40:42.53] That will be from 10:00 AM to 12:00 at O'Reilly-Teff Gymnasium.

40:46.91] That's a drop-in open house for all of our staff, but we're also inviting all of

40:50.54] the Park Board members to drop in and share any input that you might want to.

40:55.55] It'll give you a chance to meet the planning design team, it's a great team out of

40:59.00] St. Louis, and just kind of share any thoughts you guys might have.

41:02.57] If you can't make it, don't worry, there's going to be plenty of other

41:05.30] opportunities. The consultant's also set up a website for us.

41:09.32] So as part of this website, we'll have surveys and ways for people to submit

41:13.34] information on this website directly.

41:15.71] So if you can't make it to any of the open houses or in-person events, there's a

41:19.28] good way to do it on the website.

41:22.70] October 14th, 15th, next week, we'll also be hosting several work sessions with

41:26.51] Park Board staff to gather input as far as maintenance, recreation, planning,

41:31.61] events, anything and everything.

41:33.83] So that way, we're just going to bombard them with all the information we can and

41:36.59] let them sort through it. And then finally, I just wanted to kind of let everybody

41:41.21] be aware that November 18th is when we're going to have a grand

41:46.97] public open house, and that'll be from 4:00 to 7:00 that night at O'Reilly-Teff

41:51.77] Gymnasium. The entire city will be invited to come and provide input on these five

41:56.18] parks as well. So that's going to be the big community event that we're hosting to

42:00.92] kind of solicit in-person feedback.

42:02.69] So once again, if you can't make that or people can't make it, there will be other

42:05.48] ways, surveys and online avenues for them to submit information.

42:10.70] We'll be advertising all of these events through social media.

42:13.79] Jenny's department is doing a fantastic job of starting to get the word out, and

42:17.42] we'll continue to do so. So we're excited.

42:20.54] We're excited with the work that's already been done.

42:22.10] We know there's a lot more to go, but we're kind of at the tip of the iceberg right

42:26.63] now, but we'll get there. So the final, we're looking at trying to get all these

42:31.70] plans approved in April or May of next year, get them before you all for final

42:36.77] approval and City Council. So with that, I'm happy to answer any questions.

42:40.46] I know I kind of threw a lot of dates and info at you, but we're excited.

42:44.39] More to come, for sure.

42:45.65] Jeff, I have a question for you. With the group that's doing the work, are they

42:50.06] doing anything inside any of the parks specifically to meet with the neighbors

42:54.41] around the park to make sure that they're gathering that input specifically?

42:58.28] Absolutely. So I'm glad you asked that.

43:00.14] We've also been setting up a list of what we call stakeholders, and so those will

43:04.07] be the neighborhood groups that live around those parks.

43:06.44] It'll be all the community organizations that hold events in these parks, and we

43:11.87] will be meeting face-to-face with smaller focus groups of those people in November

43:16.13] as well, that same week that we're doing the open house that week of the November

43:18.95] 18th.

43:19.97] Okay.

43:20.51] I think we've got at least a dozen focus groups set up for all these different

43:23.48] sites. So yeah, our main goal was to cast as wide of a net as we could, get as much

43:28.25] input, and really let people get-- We want their voice heard.

43:33.14] Sure. Yeah, I'm just thinking if they don't make it to the events where the tents

43:35.93] are set up, we want to make sure that we hear from them.

43:37.97] Absolutely.

43:38.81] Yeah. Thank you.

43:42.62] All right, any other questions for Jeff? Thank you, sir.

43:45.83] Thank you.

43:48.14] All right, next up, strategic planning objectives, key results, quarterly update.

43:53.90] Yeah. As requested by the board, staff will continue to deliver quarterly updates

43:59.45] on the annual objectives and key results.

44:02.00] Since the time of the Park Board and staff retreats that we did, we

44:07.97] formed task forces within our department to

44:13.64] tackle some of these objectives. And so what I'd like to do today is to

44:19.22] introduce each of our task force leaders, and to come up and tell you about

44:25.01] the finalized key results that we have come up with, and just some of the

44:31.01] work that each task force has been doing so far, and the work that we'll be doing

44:36.53] ahead. So with that being said, again, the four objectives are, number one,

44:42.56] gain clarity on how the parks budget can consistently dedicate 20% of the overall

44:48.35] budget to capital needs. Number two, gain clarity regarding core services to more

44:53.33] easily determine what does and does not fit for the organization.

44:57.92] The third objective is to have a better understanding of the parks brand and

45:01.31] identity, and the fourth one is to develop a pilot program to improve safety at

45:05.96] certain parks. So we'll start with that objective one, which Jerry is

45:11.87] the leader for that task force.

45:14.96] Good morning, ladies and gentlemen.

45:16.85] So with our group, we have met, very proud of our group.

45:21.56] We have come up with some really good ideas, some plans going forward that I just

45:26.51] want to quickly summarize the final key result objectives here that we're looking

45:32.03] at working on over the next several months.

45:34.79] Item one, grow and increase private donation support, including grants by 10%

45:42.23] on a year-over-year basis over the next five years based on recent past percentage

45:48.02] growth and trends. Talking to the members of this group, we feel this is a

45:53.45] reasonable approach, and we're already working together the data and

45:59.12] what research, what opportunities we have to grow our sponsorship, grant,

46:04.61] donations, and other support. Secondly, identify opportunities to reallocate

46:10.13] non-core service funding to capital projects upon the assessment and determination

46:16.13] provided by strategic planning group objectives that Ms.

46:20.75] Jill has as she oversees. And then estimate and allocate the savings from the

46:26.51] defined non-core service programs activity.

46:29.75] So this will be a longer-range planning goal.

46:33.40] Number three, hire a consultant to perform a comprehensive asset condition

46:38.44] assessment prior to the end of the '26, '27 fiscal year, and

46:44.32] utilize the results from the assessment to launch an integrated asset management

46:49.24] support platform within six months of completion of the asset assessment.

46:54.76] So good progress there. We have the data and information over to our city

46:59.95] purchasing department, through Chris of our staff.

47:02.86] Gannon, he's done a great job working with Ron and Matt and others to get this over

47:08.77] to purchasing, so that we can get, soon, this out to bid

47:14.62] and accepted and get to work on this. So we're excited about this.

47:18.22] This is a key component, of course, and proud to report that progress.

47:23.14] Finally, develop two models to achieve the objective over a three-year, five-year,

47:28.90] and 10-year funding plan. One model would represent new funding, and

47:34.81] one model with no new funding. And so we're working as a group right now, putting

47:39.58] together

47:41.92] a spreadsheet summary of a plan over really a one up to

47:47.89] 10-year program, or look-see, if you will, over the next several years on with new

47:53.77] funding, without new funding. How can we capture within, as Ron mentioned, we can

47:58.78] grow our budget to where we get 20% to capital and major

48:04.63] repairs and infrastructure, which is so critical.

48:06.82] So, I think we're making good progress as a group.

48:10.09] We're going to stay after and then look forward to our next report with some

48:15.19] updated good news.

48:17.32] Awesome.

48:17.71] So happy to address any questions you might have.

48:19.84] Thanks, Drew.

48:20.86] No, I think this is definitely charting in the right direction from everything that

48:24.34] we talked about and discussed in strategic planning session, so excited to see what

48:27.91] comes of it.

48:28.66] Thank you.

48:30.79] Very good. And then Jill.

48:35.20] And you can certainly follow along with, everyone has their scorecard out and can

48:39.07] follow along with the objectives and key results, but Jill's going to talk about

48:42.43] core services.

48:43.18] Yeah. So we also have a cross-functional task force that's made up of folks from

48:48.28] all throughout the different divisions of our department.

48:51.40] We've met a few times already and are making some progress.

48:54.01] The

48:55.96] key results and objectives that we're going to be pursuing for that task force to

49:00.85] gain clarity on our services is to grow and increase of-- Oh, dang it.

49:08.11] Wrong sheet again. All right. I'm on the correct sheet now. My apologies.

49:12.85] We're going to utilize existing community feedback and cost recovery pyramid to

49:16.03] categorize all of our existing inventory of programs and services.

49:19.42] We're going to develop a lifecycle program model that's going to help us to

49:22.39] evaluate where we are, if we need to continue what we're doing, if we need to

49:26.47] modify, or if we need to look at discontinuing a program or service.

49:29.32] And then we also want to develop a business plan model that's going to help us

49:33.07] before we launch anything new, whether that's a program or facility or service.

49:36.10] So that would help us kind of have a guidepost as we enter anything new.

49:39.76] So that's what we're looking for.

49:43.84] Awesome. Thank you, Jill. Jenny.

49:53.71] Working with these maps.

49:57.40] Good morning. I'm here to talk to you about having a comprehensive, data-driven

50:03.46] understanding of the parks' brand and identity.

50:07.81] We have a group of 11 folks who are

50:13.66] currently active in promoting their own programs and facilities and events.

50:17.86] So people that are doing what my team does on sort of a smaller level for their own

50:22.66] facility and program.

50:25.36] And so here are our objectives. The first one, update logos on all facility

50:31.06] doors and implement park identification sign plan.

50:34.60] The first half of that is basically decals that are on doors.

50:37.27] There's a lot of outdated decals on doors that it's time to scrape those off and

50:42.04] replace.

50:43.87] So that one's pretty easy to visualize.

50:46.12] The second half of that is implement the new park identification sign plan.

50:49.66] That's the sign plan that you all reviewed this spring, for those big

50:57.07] signs that are out by the road.

50:59.89] That'll be a slower-moving target because the signs are expensive to build and

51:05.74] install, but

51:08.29] we're moving forward on that. Second one is develop a logo use policy, procedure,

51:13.39] and training program.

51:15.88] That sounds like it just applies to logos, but really what that is, is providing

51:20.65] some really quality training to-- or developing a policy and providing training to

51:26.20] our staff on how to

51:29.32] create flyers and social media graphics that work

51:34.45] for the message that they're trying to deliver.

51:36.70] And we have some tools in place for that, and we're already looking at some

51:39.79] training programs,

51:42.46] for Canva, which is a program that we use

51:47.59] to do that. Number three is add Reach players to key facilities and ensure they are

51:52.33] consistently promoting the park brand.

51:54.97] A Reach player, that should be capitalized, is

51:58.87] a monitor-like-- They're not usually this big, but we have one in the downstairs

52:03.79] lobby, and they're in the lobbies of several, but not all of our

52:09.94] facilities that are staffed and have a front desk.

52:12.58] We want to expand that because we like the results that we have in the areas that

52:17.80] we do have those. So basically, that's a hardware issue of adding more Reach

52:23.05] players and getting more licenses.

52:26.05] It's not just a TV, but it's a license to have the programs.

52:30.67] We are currently using those to cross-promote events

52:35.53] that are parkwide interests, like special events, like Turkey Trot.

52:40.69] We're also using those to promote in-center

52:46.60] specific information like schedules and classes and upcoming events for

52:52.57] the location that those are in.

52:55.75] Quick question-

52:56.50] Yes

52:56.74] ... on the Reach monitors. So they're in park facilities.

53:00.67] Yeah.

53:01.09] I wonder if it'd be possible to have them in other facilities.

53:04.39] I'm thinking like at City Hall or in the police station or other places,

53:10.09] grocery stores, where we'd be reaching out to people who are not already in a park

53:14.92] facility.

53:16.33] For the city facilities that you asked about, the Bush Building, I believe they

53:20.92] have one, and we have been providing some content for those.

53:25.45] Don't know about the police department or other locations, but we are in contact

53:29.62] with the Bush Building on that. I don't know how we would accomplish that for

53:33.73] private businesses. That's a conversation that we haven't even had.

53:37.93] So I don't know if that would work or if there's a way that we could-

53:40.30] It would be like advertising.

53:41.47] Exactly.

53:42.34] Don, that was going to be my question, just to the heart of how do we get the

53:45.67] message out to people that aren't in our ecosystem.

53:49.57] Maybe CBB lobby.

53:50.74] CBB.

53:52.63] Yeah.

53:52.93] Maybe reach out to CBB, see if they would know.

53:56.47] Leo, you writing all this down?

54:03.01] You ready to move on?

54:03.94] Yep. For sure.

54:04.75] Okay. Number four is update ACTIVE and foreUP landing pages.

54:08.92] ACTIVE, as you probably know, I hope you know, is our

54:13.66] program registration and our point-of-sale system.

54:16.45] So if you are registering to

54:19.63] be a part of a SPARK program, you go through ACTIVE.

54:22.03] It's intermeshed in our website, but you're actually leaving our website to go to

54:28.45] ACTIVE. The branding on ACTIVE could be better, and we think that we could improve

54:33.04] that. foreUP is similar. That is our golf software.

54:36.52] So if you're registering or if you're booking a tee time, you're on the foreUP

54:40.03] page. Both of those pages could just be dressed up a little bit.

54:44.89] So that's sort of an easy one. It's relatively easy.

54:48.49] And then the last one is to develop and implement a method of tracking brand

54:52.69] awareness. That's probably the hardest one on here.

54:56.53] But we believe that that's going to look like developing surveys and just asking

55:00.82] people and asking people.

55:03.88] I'd take any questions on any of these.

55:05.65] Cool.

55:06.10] Yeah.

55:08.23] All right. Thanks, Jenny. Appreciate it.

55:09.73] Good job.

55:12.04] And last but not least, we have Jolene, who's going to talk-- We've deputized him

55:16.75] to take the lead on-

55:18.19] Yeah

55:18.55] ... safety and security.

55:19.54] I'm here. So I'm here on behalf of the Perception of Safety team this morning.

55:25.93] It's our goal to better understand how guests feel safe or comfortable within

55:31.30] parks. So we got three OKRs currently going on to reach

55:37.12] that. First one is develop a task force and measure security features of selected

55:41.83] sites. So we have a cross-sectional task force put together between admin,

55:47.68] park rangers, park operations, and special events, committed to focusing on

55:54.19] gathering data and information from patrons and guests and figure out some-

55:59.41] What makes them comfortable, what we currently have that makes them uncomfortable,

56:02.65] and so forth. We have selected four different sites, Grant Beach, Fast Night,

56:07.60] Meader, and Lafayette Park, as well as the Fieldhouse Sports Center.

56:12.04] That'll give us a way to figure out not only what physical conditions we have

56:17.86] issues with, but also operational needs to help people feel safe.

56:22.96] And then the next one would be to explore the feasibility of a neighborhood-based

56:27.22] park watch program to partners with neighborhood associations near select parks.

56:31.33] So we've already had some of our special event staff go out and meet with

56:34.72] neighborhood associations and see what they have issues with concerning those

56:39.49] parks. And then the last one is gather data on public perception of safety at key

56:45.13] sites. And you guys may have seen them, but we have some surveys out there already

56:49.63] where we are collecting data.

56:52.51] So

56:54.04] that's where we're at.

56:56.08] So the parks you selected, Grant Beach, Meader, Fast Night, Fieldhouse, and-

56:59.92] Lafayette

57:00.40] ... Lafayette.

57:04.75] Any other questions? Okay.

57:08.35] This establishes-

57:09.64] One second. Hold on one second, David.

57:11.74] Yep. Go ahead, Phil.

57:11.77] Oh, sorry for the delay. I was going to say, I think this is a question for

57:15.31] everyone. So, on all the OKRs, it looks like all that are listed is we're not

57:20.47] necessarily making progress towards a result yet, but all of you mentioned work in

57:25.18] progress you're making toward a result.

57:27.28] So I was curious, it sounds like just what I'm hearing, a lot of things are on

57:30.37] track, nothing's off track. We just haven't made the OKRs to the full point we want

57:34.87] to yet. Is that an accurate-

57:36.88] Yeah, I'm glad you asked, and that's what I was going to touch base on.

57:39.04] Phil-

57:39.40] Okay

57:39.85] ... this is our baseline right now, right? So we went through our retreats.

57:43.75] We formed these task forces. They've started work, but this is really our baseline.

57:48.82] So in three months when we do our next quarterly update in January, you'll see

57:54.34] progress on these items, and continual progress after that.

57:59.35] So yes, this is our baseline. I'm very excited about it.

58:02.68] This is a different approach than what we took last year where really it was just

58:06.34] our admin team that really focused on this and pushed that information throughout

58:11.41] the department. Now we got representation at all levels, across divisions

58:17.44] within our department. And it's really cool to see the work that everyone's doing

58:21.40] and the buy-in on these objectives.

58:23.50] So I'm really excited about what we're doing, not only just the objectives and the

58:27.67] key results that we've established, but how we're working together to accomplish

58:31.09] these things.

58:32.47] Yeah.

58:32.95] Remind us what the duration of the term is for the OKRs. It starts and ends when?

58:38.26] It's not truly well-defined, Don. I would say a year plus.

58:43.54] Last year,

58:46.63] this is tied in also to other evaluations that we're doing, but that was done on an

58:51.61] annual basis. I would say what we're striving for is completion, and it could be 12

58:57.04] to 18 months.

59:00.55] June to June, or January, December, or when we put-

59:05.59] I would say July to July.

59:08.29] Okay.

59:08.53] July 1.

59:09.58] Yeah. Thank you.

59:11.13] I have a question for you on the safety surveys.

59:13.18] How are you guys distributing those?

59:15.37] So they've been out at parks with QR codes where they could go out and scan it with

59:19.78] their phone.

59:20.53] Okay.

59:20.83] We've been out at Kids Night Out with some iPads where we've actually engaged with

59:26.68] guests there.

59:27.46] Yeah.

59:27.67] Collected some data.

59:29.14] Yeah. Okay.

59:30.07] Neighborhood meetings.

59:30.94] Yeah. No, I think QR codes are great. You're there. You see something.

59:34.78] Mm-hmm.

59:35.02] You're perceiving whether you're safe or not at that moment.

59:37.54] Correct.

59:37.75] I think that's a great time to do that. That's awesome.

59:40.42] Okay, cool.

59:41.74] You guys have any other questions?

59:43.51] I have one real quick question for Jerry.

59:45.94] Circling back to item three,

59:51.16] hire a consultant to perform a comprehensive asset condition.

59:56.20] Does that take into account what we already know about our deferred maintenance?

60:00.46] When you talk about asset condition assessments, does that-

60:04.30] Oh, that's a great question

60:04.75] ... how is that different than deferred maintenance?

60:07.12] Yeah. So we're going to feed, that will handle or that will be a key component is

60:10.93] deferred maintenance. Getting that vendor, that company on board, using their

60:15.76] expertise to help guide and direct us and prioritize where our buildings,

60:20.95] equipment, other infrastructure needs to be addressed.

60:24.40] We'll feed them data, and then they will come back, that company will, and help

60:30.19] us plan our future budgets to address a lot of our infrastructure and repair needs.

60:36.13] So as we look at the pool study that we just had done, that's kind of what that

60:40.00] already is with the pool study?

60:41.35] Yeah. Very similar, yes.

60:42.61] Okay.

60:42.85] Yeah. Great question.

60:43.69] Yeah, I could add on that. It's doing exactly what we did with the pool study, or

60:47.74] similar to that. Maybe not the level of detail that the pool study went into.

60:52.12] Okay.

60:52.18] But, we don't have great data on our deferred maintenance-

60:56.74] Yeah

60:56.74] ... or what our future capital requirements would be for replacement or outlay, so

61:02.50] this would formalize that and give us better data.

61:05.50] Yeah. I love consultants. Essentially what their job is, is to tell you what time

61:08.83] it is with your own watch.

61:13.69] So I just want to make sure that... Yeah, that's good.

61:15.88] Okay.

61:16.03] That's helpful. Thank you.

61:17.08] Thank you.

61:18.37] Awesome. Any other questions for the group?

61:21.76] All right, we'll keep rolling. Superintendent Parks Business Operations Report and

61:26.41] comments.

61:26.95] You guys are going to get tired of seeing me up here, I promise.

61:29.11] Hi, Jerry.

61:30.01] Good morning again.

61:30.64] Welcome back.

61:31.27] Thank you. So, this report starts our providing

61:37.06] projections of revenues and expenditures for all of our funds.

61:40.96] And so this has been, I think, a key thing that we've started over the past couple

61:45.34] of years to update the board where we're trending, and then we use that as a

61:49.45] baseline about as we go over the next several months. Are we meeting those trends?

61:53.89] Are there any surprises? We can get that in front of the board.

61:56.92] So one huge area, and this is a positive thing, it was a

62:02.62] surprise,

62:04.93] the September sales tax. So September sales tax is

62:10.78] our first sales tax revenue item in this new fiscal year.

62:17.38] Our sales tax reporting goes September through August.

62:20.68] So I just want to have you folks keep that in mind.

62:23.38] So that sales tax amount was up significantly.

62:26.95] It was up $262,000 over September of

62:32.50] 2025. So I talked to Jeff Scott at the county.

62:34.93] I said, "Okay, am I looking at the right numbers?" Yes. This surprised him.

62:41.20] We thought, okay, is there, like the stock market, in the next month, are we going

62:44.89] to get a correction? No, we did not. This is also positive news.

62:48.88] There was no correction. The October sales tax revenue, for the 0106 sales

62:54.58] tax came in at, I just got it, 47,257, up around

63:00.64] 4% over October. So I'm not ruling out corrections down the road.

63:06.28] I don't know if there's a-- Jeff really didn't have a

63:10.60] explanation as far as why, but we're not concerned about that right now.

63:13.96] We'll enjoy the sales tax increase. Maybe it's a lot of spending over the summer.

63:18.58] There's some inflationary impact to that.

63:21.94] But that has helped contribute to our projected sales tax for this fiscal year, at

63:27.73] 17,054,636. That's

63:32.41] 752,797 over budget, which is in conjunction or in

63:38.44] tandem with the Dan Kennedy Family Center.

63:42.22] That building was built in 2012. The debt was issued, ended here in 2027.

63:48.46] Last payment made by the county was with the October sales tax coming in.

63:54.82] So we're projected 752,797 over budget.

63:59.32] That number will change, of course, as we go along.

64:01.72] But that contributes significantly, of course, to our projected revenues.

64:05.71] Projected revenues in our park operating funds,

64:09.46] 38,555,845, and our projected expenditures,

64:14.68] 38,544,368, leaves projected net income of

64:19.96] 11,477. Some key things I want to make the board aware of

64:25.96] in the projected expenditures, if you down to the bottom, and some of this part

64:29.65] plays into Dale's comments and questions about infrastructure repairs, equipment.

64:36.07] The last paragraph alone shows you why this asset management system, that vendor,

64:42.43] who we need to come in and help us with, project these key items over a 5, 10, 15,

64:48.22] 20 year period at our buildings that need replacement or are going to be replaced.

64:53.08] That's going to help us better their long range budget planning and forecasting,

64:58.54] which I'm excited about. Also, in projected expenditures, and we're

65:04.42] not there yet on what we know we're going to be out of pocket from the April

65:09.46] 2026 hailstorm that occurred one year almost to the day to the April

65:14.89] 2025 windstorm. We're still looking and assessing repairs.

65:19.03] Numerous buildings at the zoo are going to have to have repairs to replace roofs.

65:23.38] The other big-ticket item, two other items, Doling Family Center, full roof

65:27.91] replacement. We're still evaluating that cost.

65:31.36] And at Rutledge-Wilson Farm Park, around 80,000 for a large

65:37.33] section of the fence to be replaced.

65:39.64] But what I wanted to get in our projected expenditures so we can plan and prepare

65:44.95] and use as an analysis. On that second page, I've noted

65:50.71] that our parks portion right now is estimated at

65:54.97] 380,683 for roof and building repairs at Dickinson Park Zoo, and then

66:00.61] 219,042 for the other parks I mentioned.

66:05.08] We're still talking to FEMA folks this week and our city insurance, and we just

66:09.97] received word yesterday, Ron, about a month, so around what, Jackson, four to six

66:15.31] weeks out they told us. So I'll update the board next month, as far as what

66:21.25] these out-of-pocket expenditures could be.

66:23.62] We're hoping to get from FEMA, CEMA, 85%

66:29.08] coverage on our repairs, and replacement after insurance.

66:34.90] So it's a moving number, but I wanted to get those in there so the board is

66:40.27] aware this is what we're thinking right now.

66:42.76] It could change, but I didn't want to leave that out, so I didn't want to overstate

66:47.20] our numbers. Park development and expenditures.

66:50.72] Also, I want to make sure we get in there and show that that's included in that

66:55.13] park development equipment. We have a couple of large equipment items as budgeted

67:00.41] off our FY26 budget plan for capital

67:05.82] equipment replacement on the five-year lease.

67:08.12] We had a Zamboni machine for the Ice Park, and we had

67:14.09] a much needed

67:16.88] compressed generator over at the Ice Park as well.

67:19.76] So that's going to flow into this year.

67:22.38] Golf fund numbers, and it sounds high, and it is.

67:27.32] The golf rounds, so July through September 30, the rounds down

67:32.99] 6,118. Two things to keep in mind. We all know in this room, just

67:38.60] unbelievably hot weather. It's even going to be, they said now, mid-90s next week.

67:43.04] So we have hot weather we've contended with that's reduced our rounds.

67:47.88] But we also had unusually high rounds last year, this time sort of comparative with

67:52.46] that. Hopefully, we'll get some cooler weather.

67:56.63] And so what we're projecting for, though, is still

68:00.14] 6,873,288 in projected revenues in the golf fund,

68:06.20] and in projected expenditures, 6,907,536.

68:11.45] Two items in the golf fund, and this is proper accounting within how the city does

68:15.92] their annual comprehensive financial report.

68:19.37] I've included depreciation expense in our proposed projected expenditures.

68:24.59] That's proper accounting within a golf enterprise fund. We do not budget for that.

68:29.96] The city does not do the budgeting for the depreciation.

68:33.71] But that will hit, and that's in our projected expenditures.

68:37.43] And then also, what's reflected as revenue is the proceeds coming in off our

68:42.62] equipment. So we're showing all the capital purchases from the equipment.

68:47.27] We're showing that as expenditures.

68:49.41] We're likewise showing those proceeds coming in as well.

68:52.46] But the golf fund, still overall in very good shape, and

68:58.55] I think we're starting to see some good trends as we go into October.

69:02.57] Last item is our capital projects fund, which we had covered with some incredible

69:09.03] donations. It was approved earlier by the park board.

69:12.29] I just want to make a summary there on the last page, key projected expenditures in

69:17.04] the capital projects fund. As Ron noted, right now, McDaniel Park improvements,

69:22.73] 3,289,192. And out of this fund, we have set aside if

69:28.64] needed, as Ron had mentioned, for park board support, up to the

69:33.26] 132,062 pending things as we go along.

69:38.87] And then also, I noted the other items, the Meadow Park pickleball improvements,

69:44.06] 100,000, through support of that project.

69:47.57] The Dickerson Park Zoo Bald Eagle Exhibit playground, 50,000.

69:52.55] And then Jeff, who's very familiar in updates with the Greenway Pedestrian Bridge

69:57.77] at Fulbright Springs, we have a budget of committed 83,409.

70:03.17] So I apologize for taking so long, but I wanted to hit on some key areas.

70:08.66] I feel like we're trending in the right direction.

70:11.72] One thing, too, I want to get there because I'm excited about this and relieved.

70:16.40] If you go to

70:19.22] in the end of your packet, we updated a document that I think, and

70:25.22] I wish would've been doing this a long time ago.

70:28.04] This is the 10-year revenues and expenditures report.

70:32.30] And so you look at the 10-year trends up there on the park operating funds, and I'm

70:38.09] excited to see what I'm looking at right now.

70:41.90] If you look at updated 10/1/2026, it says FY26 year

70:47.87] ending pending audit by the city's auditor.

70:50.78] We're looking at getting our operating cash out of the red, back into

70:56.45] black. And right now, it's sitting, I think it looks like

71:00.20] 1,597,000, pending final numbers.

71:04.58] But I'm excited about that, and that was so sorely needed.

71:11.00] And then you show our fund balance.

71:12.54] These numbers will change as we go through the year.

71:14.99] Again, final revenues and expenditures still subject to city audit, but we're

71:19.52] getting closer. Finally, I think Ron is going to, in his report, may go into more

71:24.80] detail. He asked me to update another really useful, I think really

71:30.75] nice report. Again, I wish would've been doing years ago.

71:34.10] So this is showing our cost recovery analysis that Ron had us implement as a team

71:38.54] this past year. He asked me to update it with right now what we're looking at on

71:42.74] revenues and expenditures. So our cost recovery percentage, and I think Ron noted

71:47.63] this in his report, it improved, and our cost recovery percentage was

71:52.43] 70.12% in FY25. Right now,

71:57.71] FY26 actuals,

72:00.71] it improved by 5% and went to 75%. So we're seeing some movement there.

72:07.31] The benefits of a lot of hard work, staff discipline with our expenditures and just

72:12.92] how we're budgeting, and

72:16.76] I'm excited where things are headed and frankly relieved.

72:20.90] So I want to get that, and again, sorry for taking so long, but a lot to cover.

72:26.25] Jerry, this is tremendous, and

72:29.09] getting from the parenthesis numbers on the spreadsheet to being in the black is

72:35.03] huge.

72:35.51] Yes.

72:35.78] And it reflects a tremendous amount of work on everyone's part.

72:40.13] And I know you and all the others on the team throughout the entire-

72:44.33] Thank you

72:45.44] ... organization have really been working hard.

72:47.39] So thanks, Ron, for your leadership, and thank you everybody for making it happen.

72:51.80] Thank you. It's tremendous.

72:52.94] Mm-hmm.

72:53.60] That was great.

72:54.35] Good deal.

72:54.83] I got a golf question. How do we define rounds?

72:59.15] Is that opportunities to have a single four-person golf round?

73:04.97] So it's per-- There's a nine-hole round or an 18-hole round, and so that

73:10.73] round total is both, either you have a foursome and a nine-hole round or an 18-hole

73:16.34] round. So it's taking into account all those.

73:19.91] Okay. So that includes four players.

73:22.19] Yeah.

73:22.43] That was individual rounds.

73:23.90] Individual rounds.

73:24.86] Individual rounds.

73:25.10] Not per players. Thank you, Matt, yes. It's rounds, so we're not adding players.

73:29.45] Got it. Okay.

73:30.20] I got you. Thank you.

73:31.37] Yep.

73:33.68] Jerry, I had a question on the 10-year revenues and expenditures report.

73:37.85] And I'm sure I've seen these numbers before, but thanks for putting them all

73:40.40] together like this. More of my questions.

73:43.10] From 2021 to 2022, total revenues jumped from, in '21, $26 million and

73:49.01] change, up to $38 million, and it's kind of sat in the 30s since.

73:53.33] Can you just give me a brief, what about our budget changed from those 2021 prior

73:58.70] years to 2022 into now to just adjust that revenue-

74:03.50] Oh

74:03.56] ... and it's reflected?

74:04.46] Oh, great question, Phil. So what happened in 2021, that was the heart of

74:10.49] the COVID era or pandemic, and there was a lot of programs, facilities

74:16.25] shut down for several days, some months, and so we had very low revenue come in.

74:22.16] There also was a hit to our sales tax revenue in 2021.

74:26.12] But also then what jumped up in 2022 was there was a lot of funding.

74:31.91] There was CARES Act funding, I think $1 million too roughly come in and some other

74:36.74] funding. But you had in 2022, all of our programs and our facilities and

74:42.74] operations come back online. That's why you had that big increase

74:48.80] from '21 to '22. And then when it went from '22 to '23, it went back down some

74:53.87] because you didn't have that emergency grant funding come in, if that makes sense.

74:59.48] That's most of it, yeah.

75:01.43] Yeah. That's helpful. Thanks.

75:03.05] You're welcome.

75:05.15] Thanks, everybody.

75:06.32] Thank you, Jerry.

75:07.16] Mm-hmm.

75:09.08] All right. Ron, it's your turn.

75:12.17] I'd just like to say, Jerry, that was a heck of a financial report.

75:14.81] Yeah.

75:17.63] Thank you for that.

75:18.38] All good information.

75:19.37] Mine will be much shorter than that.

75:20.69] Yeah.

75:22.01] I'd like to mention that there will be a garden celebration event held

75:27.62] tomorrow at Phelps Grove Park, beginning at 10:00 AM.

75:33.35] This event will be a short event that will celebrate the rejuvenated garden there,

75:39.32] the new gazebo that was donated. It will include a mayor's proclamation and the

75:45.02] unveiling of a new wood carving there at the garden as well.

75:48.59] So board members are encouraged to attend if you're available.

75:54.56] And if so, I'll see you tomorrow at 10:00.

75:57.95] Like Jeff mentioned, next

76:01.37] Thursday, October 15th, we're holding an open house as an initial

76:07.34] listening session that's open to staff, internal stakeholders, board members.

76:12.32] This is a come and go type event, so if you're available for 15 minutes to stop by,

76:16.91] meet the planners, maybe provide some input or do the different activities that

76:20.57] they have planned for that event, please stop by between 10:00 and 11:45, and that

76:25.91] will be at O'Reilly-Taft.

76:29.51] We have one staff member that's celebrating 15 years of service this month.

76:34.49] That's Kennen Ellison. He's the coordinator manager at the Northview Center,

76:41.36] so a big thank you to Kennen for his contributions to the parks department over the

76:45.44] last 15 years.

76:47.93] I'd like to recognize a guest that we have in the audience today.

76:51.53] Rayna is here, and Raya was here, from UHY accounting firm.

76:56.87] They have been hired by the city to do an audit of internal departments.

77:02.54] So they're here to observe our board meeting this morning. So welcome, Rayna.

77:06.44] If any board member wishes to talk to them after the meeting, feel free to stop by

77:09.80] and chat with Rayna.

77:12.98] And then last,

77:15.11] many of our staff members in this room were in Philadelphia last week at the

77:18.71] National Recreation and Park Association conference, and we came home with some

77:23.51] hardware.

77:24.38] Gloves.

77:25.13] Yeah, I don't have the white gloves, so I'm not sure what I'm doing to this glass

77:29.00] piece here. But we received this nice award for our CAPA

77:34.34] reaccreditation, and I guess this is a great time, I guess, for a round of applause

77:38.93] for everyone in this room and beyond and board members who made this happen.

77:46.43] So very nice piece.

77:49.28] So that's it, Mr. Chairman. That concludes my report.

77:52.19] All right. Well, you made up for Jerry's long report, but you know.

77:55.49] I try to be quick.

77:55.91] We always like to listen to the numbers guy.

77:57.86] So

77:59.27] okay.

78:01.25] So our next meeting's going to be Friday, November 13th at 8:30 right here.

78:07.25] And just put that on your calendar.

78:09.89] And I think that's it, unless anybody else has anything else.

78:14.79] All right. I'll seek a motion to adjourn.

78:17.72] Move to adjourn.

78:18.77] All right. Second?

78:20.90] Second.

78:21.14] All right. All in favor?

78:22.52] Aye.

78:24.08] Aye.

78:24.32] Aye.

78:24.54] All right. We're adjourned. Thank you