Consent Calendar Item 4e
STAFF REPORT
City Council Consent Calendar Agenda Item
DATE: April 18, 2022
TO: Honorable Mayor and Council Members
FROM: Cameron Mull, Director of Parks & Recreation
THROUGH: Merritt Perry, City Manager
SUBJECT: Parks & Recreation Monthly Report for March 2022 STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
Receive report as an informational item.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:
Director’s Report
The regularly scheduled Rohner Community Recreation and Park District (RCRPD) monthly meeting was held on 3/2, which included discussion of a Benefit Assessment process with contracted consultants LACO & Associates. A subcommittee was formed to identify alternatives to previous aquatic facility designs to potentially reduce the annual per parcel tax for all parcels within the RCRPD boundary during the Benefit Assessment process in order to increase voting success yet still meet the publics desired pool features.
Counsilman-Hunsaker, who performed a feasibility study for RCRPD in 2019, will be contacted by the subcommittee for potential further services in relation to these reductions in construction and operation & maintenance costs of the future aquatic facility. Planning is underway for the first Kids Bike Rodeo on Saturday, May 14th at Newburg Park from 10am-1pm. Parks & Recreation will be partnering with multiple organizations to make the even a success.
The 2
nd annual Pastels in the Park event will be held on Saturday, June 11th from 10am12pm. The event will again be sponsored by First 5 Humboldt with a donation of $1,000 to purchase 50 pastel kits and prize baskets for the most artistic plots. The 2022 plan is to increase participation (from 24 in 2021) and also potentially add live music, a kids art & play zone, and other mediums of artist (i.e. en plein air art).
Parks & Facility Maintenance
The rodeo food booth griddle and hood was cleaned, degreased and a fire extinguisher added for safety
Wooden bench repairs were completed at multiple locations at Newburg Park Graffiti was removed in various locations throughout Rohner Park Both Bartow Field dugouts in Rohner Park were cleaned out of debris and graffiti then covered with chains and locks to prevent further damage and messes Multiple picnic table repairs were completed for the large picnic area at Rohner Park Consent Calendar Item 4e
Various minor maintenance items were repaired at the River Lodge Folding chair repairs were completed at the Monday Club by adding foot caps where necessary to protect the wood floors
Stone blocks were repaired at the River Lodge fire pit area due to damage Council chambers were prepped for in-person meetings, which included: getting all of the blinds to operate, dust the area top to bottom, sanitizing all surfaces and mics, apply lemon oil to all wood/podium areas, vacuuming carpets, buffing the floors The Monday Club’s FBID office walls were repaired and repainted The Monday Club received a new floor resurfacing, which included 4 coats on the main floor, 3 coats on entrance floor and 2 coats in the FBID office. Most supplies were donated by Auto Xpo
Repairs were completed on broken hand rails in the Pavilion bleachers Infield work was completed on multiple Little League and Fast Pitch fields in both Rohner and Newburg Parks in preparation for the season
Broken “stay on the trail” signs in the Rohner forest were repaired Extensive litter cleanup was completed in the rodeo grounds and pistol club areas String trimming under all bleachers in Rohner Park was completed, as well as along all outfield fences at Newburg Park
Red rock/ infield infill was added for the creation of a new practice field at Newburg Park’s “back 40” for girls softball season
All burned out lights and ballasts were replaced in the Pavilion Fixed 2 vents in pavilion
Weed pulling and landscape maintenance was performed along 23 Depot Museum windows that were cracked due to an earthquake were replaced by Eureka Glass
Depot Museum
March’s visitation total at the Fortuna Depot Museum was 192 people, including a school tour of 21 people from Mattole Elementary School (one of our first school tours since the beginning of the COVID era). Recent years’ March visitation totals were: 2021: 76, 2020: 98, 2019: 207, 2018:
217, 2017: 186, 2016: 167, 2015: 301, 2014: 234, 2013: 240, 2012: 193. In March 2022 we welcomed California visitors from Arcata, Berkeley, Blue Lake, Castro Valley, Eureka, Ferndale, Fortuna, Granite Bay, Hydesville, Loleta, Los Gatos, McKinleyville, Petrolia, Rio Dell, Sacramento, Santa Rosa, Shelter Cove and Woodland. We also welcomed out-of-state visitors from New Hampshire, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon and Washington, as well as visitors from Vienna, Austria. The Native Sons of the Golden West exhibit in the front room of the museum remained on display until late March, when it was replaced by an exhibit installed by Fortuna’s Reichling Parlor #97 of the Native Daughters of the Golden West, commemorating the parlor’s 125th anniversary.
Fortuna Transit
Passengers on the Fortuna Transit Bus totaled 652 trips during the month of March 2022. The lift was used for non-wheelchair riders 81 times and 60 times for wheelchair trips. The Fortuna Transit had 4 new riders during the month of March. The Eureka medical trips on Tuesdays have been going well averaging around 3-5 riders. We had to turn away 16 riders during the month of March due to being down a driver.
Consent Calendar Item 4e
Sports, Classes and Facility Rentals
Results Fit Camp continues holding classes in the Pavilion, the Rohner Rec Hall was used 15 times during the month of March. Adult recreation basketball league s is currently being played at Fortuna High School in both gyms Monday through Thursday evenings, with 18 total teams participating.
Skating Rink
The Fortuna Skating Rink operated Public Skate Friday & Saturday nights and Sunday afternoons in February. There was no Saturday Public Skate the first weekend of the month (Saturday March 5 th) as the facility was in use during the final weekend of the Hot Shots youth basketball program.
Over the course of the month the skating rink hosted 20 private parties with 534 attendees, and in addition to the 1,098 skaters that attended public skate, hosted an overall total of 1,632 skaters in the month of March (this being the highest attended month on record). We also hosted our first Adult Skate Night on Saturday, March 26th, in which 107 people attended. The plan to offer this session on the last Saturday of each month, moving forward.
Recreation Programs
The first weekend in March marked the end of our 2022 Hot Shots youth basketball season for youth in Kindergarten through 4th grade. With a record 42 teams, each with 7-9 children, both the Fireman’s Pavilion and the gym at Toddy Thomas Middle School were booked solid with games every Saturday. Our program utilizes parent & family volunteers to coach teams, and with games scheduled at both Toddy Thomas and the Fireman’s Pavilion from 8:30am – 7:30pm we logged 42 volunteer hours for our coaches as well as 9 hours for our volunteer referees, for a total of 51 volunteer hours.
Drop-in volleyball on Sunday evenings continued throughout March. Attendance ranged from 15 - 34 players per night. Our drop-in basketball program was put on pause mid-March as many of the attendees for our drop-in program signed up for our adult basketball league and were unable to attend drop-in, impacting our attendance significantly. When we were open the first two Thursdays of the month attendance was between 1-9 people. We plan to reopen drop-in basketball on Thursday, April 28th, after the adult league play has ended. Drop-in pickleball continues to play on Monday, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 9am-12pm.
March 2021 March 2022 YTD ~ July 2020 – June
2021
YTD ~ July 2021 – June
2022
# of passengers 687 652 7444 5955
Total Miles 2267 1947 22481 19321
Service Miles 2068 1829 20834 17588
Hours Worked 330 232.25 2608.75 2445
Service Hours
Worked 259 203.75 2220.25 2052.5
Consent Calendar Item 4e
The Recreation Department also spent much of March planning and preparing for our Spring Break Camp that takes place April 11th– 15th, for youth ages 5-12, with registration opening March 22nd.
Work on a new First 5 playgroup for children ages 0-5 and their caregivers continued through March. Supplies were ordered and began arriving by the end of the month. Planning and development of the program is ongoing, with a goal of opening in the next 1-2 months.
Planning and development on a Paint & Sip event in May began this month. Planning and development also began on a new Bike Rodeo event that will take place in May. Geared toward youth ages 5-12, the event will bring together community groups and cycling advocates for a youth & family focused event designed to teach fundamental bicycle safety & skills.
Community Service
The Parks & Recreation Department had 5 people signed up to perform Community Service, and workers completed 75.5 hours in the month of March. The Community Service Work Program is a big part of the parks’ success. The workers help with trash pickup and various basic maintenance projects in Rohner and Newburg Parks, the River Lodge, and other Parksmaintained spaces throughout the City. Since the program started in 1997, there have been 52,630 service hours completed in the throughout the City of Fortuna.
RECOMMENDED COUNCIL ACTION:
Receive Monthly Parks & Recreation Department Report. Consent Agenda Vote.