Town of Hampden
Regular Meeting of
Parks & Recreation Commission
7:00PM at the Hampden Town Hall
April 10, 2003
Approved: May 8, 2003
The meeting was called to order at 7:02 P.M. Board members in attendance were Jim Morris, Glennice Flynn, Chris MacDonald, and Tom Crogan. Others present were Jay Fenlason, John Flynn, Jim Smith and Sue Gorman.
OLD BUSINESS:
Bills: Bills were reviewed and approved.
Minutes: There were no minutes recorded for the March 27, 2003 meeting
Pool Committee: Jim Smith was present to express concerns that the Board of Selectmen were excluded at the recent meeting held at the pool and of a story that appeared in the Hampden/Wilbraham Times. Jim Morris reassured him that this was a last minute meeting and that it was just simply an oversight. Jim Smith felt that the meeting laws should be followed and in a situation like this, verbally notify Kelly O’Shea. In regards to the story, the reporter happened to overhear a conversation and reported information in his article. Chris MacDonald felt that a non board member informed the reporter of the meeting, which he felt, should not have been done. John Flynn clarified that he was speaking to the reporter on another matter and casually mentioned the meeting. The reporter decided that he would attempt to show up. There was a lack of communication all the way around which will be avoided in the future. Jim Smith left the meeting at 7:21 P.M.
Glennice reported Gary Weiner and Tom Couture met at the pool and she is waiting on their reports. The status of the pool and what the options would be will be presented at the next Park and Rec meeting on May 1, 2003. Also to be presented at the next meting will be the meeting times and commitment of the committee. Tom Crogan made a motion to accept the pool committee and information to be presented seconded by Chris MacDonald, all in favor and so voted.
Summer Activities Program: Letters were sent out to all of the staff from last year to see who is returning. Interviews will be set up soon. Jay is to call Tom McGlaughlin to have him put a water spigot out by the ball field. $5.00 will be deducted off the initial registration if received in the Park and Rec Office by May 31, 2003. Chris made a motion to accept the $5.00 off the registration; Tom seconded all in favor and so voted.
Field Prep Work: Prospect Lawncare is ready to begin fertilizer applications on the field. It was recommended to do 5 applications this year to get the fields into good shape. Chris felt the field would need sod in the fall when the watering system is complete. Jay is to order the Rain Bird system.
Movie Night: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets will be held on April 12th. This movie will be held at GM to accommodate the larger crowd.
NEW BUSINESS:
The Great Clambake: The committee for the Clambake would like Park and Rec to run games. Jay is meeting with Anne McGregor to get more information on what they are in need of.
Soccer Fees: Chris feels it is necessary to raise the soccer fees. This is mandatory for Pioneer Valley for the spring of 2004. Jay agrees that this is necessary because uniforms will soon be needed. The current fees are 40.00 and 47.00. The new fee would be $50.00. Chris made a motion to raise the fee this fall, Glennice seconded, all in favor and so voted.
Sports: There was a letter sent from Rick Willis on gym concerns at GM. Suggestions were made on how to settle concerns in the future. The board will respond to Rick and invite him to the next meeting.
Evaluations: Clarification was made on sport evaluations. Parents are able to come in to view their Childs ranking only. These are private and they should not have access to all the rankings. It was suggested that evaluations be posted without rankings as to which team alphabetically.
E-mails: Chris was excluded on a recent e-mail. Jim said he was told from the past not to e-mail Chris. A suggestion was made to send all e-mails through Jay in the future.
MISC:
-Keys: A list was given to the police as to who has access to keys for the gyms.
-Soccer: New soccer shirts need to be ordered.
-Pool: Jay is to send a letter to the Selectmen to notify them that the pool needs to be drained.
-Jay is to take vacation June 23-June 27. This was approved.
-Advisory may request additional 5%. The Park and Rec has already given 5%
-Chris presented the board with a coach’s evaluation form that he felt would be necessary to use in the future.
-Chris expressed concern with John not being an elected board member but still taking it upon himself to be involved. He does many good things and has great ideas but Chris feels he is relied on to do many things that should be done in the office. A suggestion was made to invite John to the next meeting to discuss what is appropriate.
The next meeting will be May 1, 2003 at 7:00 P.M. (there will be no meeting on April 24, 2003 due to conflicts in attendance with school vacation week)
The meeting was adjourned at 8:58 P.M.
Minutes submitted by Sue Gorman