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West Goshen Township
Parks and Recreation Board Meeting
November 17 2004
Meeting Notes
Attending: Dan Dixon, Michael Pillagalli and Ed Smith
Township Representatives: Ken Lehr and Kent Wise
Meeting called to Order: 7:04 PM by Chairman Michael Pillagalli
The review and approval of the minutes submitted for the October 20, 2004 meeting was deferred until the January 19th 2005 Park and Recreation Board meeting since the minimum number of members (quorum) required for approval were not present at the November 17, 2004 meeting. After a review of the minutes submitted for the October 20, 2004 meeting, Kent Wise asked to update the minutes on page 1 within the "Parks" section revising the text to indicate that work on the new bleacher stands at Flagg Field is underway and indicate that at this time, one of the new stands at Flagg Field has been completed and work on the second is in process. Ken Lehr informed that the information for the November 17, 2004 meeting had to be submitted as "Meeting Notes" since a quorum was not present for that meeting and stated that the November meeting notes would not have to be approved by the members of the Park and Recreation Board.
The Financial Report dated October 31, 2004 was reviewed. Dan Dixon stated the report indicates 80% of the budget for Summer Recreation salaries had been utilized to date indicating there
is about $12,000 remaining in the Summer Recreation salary category.
Dan Dixon asked what would happen to those funds if they were not utilized by the end of the year. Ken Lehr informed that any surplus would revert back to the Township. Additionally, Ken Lehr stated that the fees collected for the 2004 Summer Recreation Program were under the estimate and indicated that the Township did not hire junior counselors as anticipated. There were no additional questions or comments pertaining to the Financial Report.
Parks:
Kent Wise reported that the crews are completing the final grass cuts and cleaning up leaves at the various Township parks. Kent Wise informed that the crews are in the process of constructing a topsoil bin at the back end of the Community Park. At this time the crews are building a tie wall to contain the topsoil and planting evergreen trees around the bin to hide the structure. Kent Wise reported that the carpet in front of the amphitheater stage area has been removed and informed this area has been excavated to provide a base for the pavers that will replace the carpet. Kent Wise indicated that work to install the base should begin tomorrow (November 18th)
informing that 9 skids of pavers would be required to finish off this 1,000 square foot area. Kent Wise reported that the Township hired an electrician to replace the pole mounted flag pole lights
at the Community Park with in-ground lighting.
Finally, Dan Dixon requested that a copy of the plans for the proposed new skatepark on the three acre parcel of land at the intersection of Pottstown Pike and Greenhill Road be distributed for review at the January Park and Recreation Board meeting.
Recreation:
Ken Lehr informed that the fees collected for the 2004 Summer Recreation Program covered 48.5% of actual cost and about 42% of the budgeted cost of the program. Ken Lehr stated that the difference between the actual and budgeted costs is due to a drop off in camp participation this year. Ken Lehr informed that the trend over the last five years is for 330 to 350 children to participant in the Summer Recreation Program. This total dropped off to 294 for the 2004 program. Ken Lehr stated that the goal of the Park and Recreation Board and the Board of Supervisors is to have the Summer Recreation Program fees cover 50% of the expenses. The members of the Park and Recreation Board indicated that it is time to look at the fee structure for the program. Ken Lehr reviewed a fee structure proposal that would increase the fees for families with 1 child from $120 to $130, increase the fees for families with 2 children from $220 to $250 and increase the fees for families with 3 children from $300 to $360 with a fee of $110 for each additional child. Additionally, there would be an across-the-board increase of $10 for all clinic fees. Ken Lehr reported that this revised fee structure based on the current enrollment trends would result in the Summer Recreation Program fees covering about 55% of the program expenses. Ken Lehr reported that current Township resident statistics for the Summer Recreation Program indicate that 61% of the families with children participating in the program have one child enrolled, 33% have two children enrolled and 6% have three or more children enrolled. Additionally, Ken Lehr stated that participation in the program by non-residents dropped from 64 to 18 since the last price increase. Ken Lehr informed that the Township would have a separate budget for the proposed Teen Summer Recreation Program. Michael Pillagalli suggested a $10 across the board increase that would result in families with 1 child paying $10 more, families with 2 children paying $20 more and families with 3 children paying $30 more to ensure the Summer Recreation Program fees cover 50% of the program expenses. Michael Pillagalli stated that even with the proposed fee increase, the cost of the Summer Recreation Program would be about $1 per child per hour to participate in the program.
Friends of the Park: Ken Lehr reporting for the Friends of West Goshen Parks informed that the next quarterly board meeting is scheduled for Thursday, January 6 at 7:00 PM.
Old Business: Ken Lehr reporting on Movie Nights informed that 400 people attended the October 23rd presentation of Spider-Man 2 and stated that due to the cold conditions, only about 250 people stayed through the entire presentation. Ken Lehr indicated that this was the final presentation for the 2004 season. Information on Movie Nights is listed below:
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