1995-09-13
QUEENS BURY RECREATION COMMISSION
MINUTES OF MEETING
SEPTEMBER 13, 1995
Minutes of the regular meeting of the Recreation Commission of the
Town of Queensbury held Wednesday, September 13, 1995, at the
Queensbury Town Office Building, Queensbury, New York. Chairman
Simmonds called the meeting to order at 7:06 p.m.
PRESENT:
Commissioners Auer, Carusone, LaBombard, Maine,
Schachner and Simmonds
ALSO
PRESENT:
Director Hansen
ABSENT:
Commissioner Hersh (ex)
VISITORS:
Mrs. Jeanne Lowe
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Commissioner Maine made the motion to approve the minutes of the
August 9, 1995 meeting. Commissioner Schachner seconded the motion
and after polling all commissioners, the motion was unanimously
approved.
COMMUNICATIONS AND REMARKS FROM VISITORS
Chairman Simmonds introduced and welcomed Mrs. Jeanne Lowe who was
present to discuss the situation with respect to shade for patrons
who use the Gurney Lane pool facility. Mrs. Lowe relayed that she
and her family were relatively new to the area and that at other
pool facilities which they had frequented in the past (Ohio and New
York City) there was considerably more shade as well as furnishings
for patrons. She mentioned that she talked with the Director and
that the Department's efforts to resolve the situation (picnic
tables with umbrellas), though appreciated were in her opinion,
inadequate. She explained that her husband was a physician and as
such was concerned about prolonged exposure to the sun and how this
would effect pool patrons, especially pregnant women, seniors and
those observing their children during swim lessons. Her
suggestions included "a crank out awning" or pergola as a means of
providing shade for more than just a few patrons. Mrs. Lowe then
produced a letter from Mrs. Linda S. Auffredou which she read aloud
(see attached). The letter restated and reiterated Mrs. Lowe's
concerns, especially with regard to the need for more shade at the
facility.
The Commission questioned Mrs. Lowe regarding her suggestions and
the Director explained some of the physical shortcomings which
might present obstacles with respect to erecting a shade structure
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in close proximity to the pool facility. He mentioned that
creating additional shade in the form of some type of structure was
not the problem. However, situating that structure close enough,
so that parents, or other non-swimmers could view those in the
water was the difficulty. A permanent structure of any size on the
deck area, or in the grass areas immediately adjacent to the pool
area was a concern. Due to the size and shape of the deck area
(small), as well as it being a high traffic area, erecting a
permanent or semi-permanent structure would seem to be less than
desirable from a safety standpoint. Likewise, the terrain contour
of the grass areas adjacent to the deck (swale with underground
drains) was not a flat enough surface for this type of structure.
Constructing a structure in the "upper area" was certainly
practical and would provide the necessary shade needed. However,
because of the distance involved, viewing the pool area would be
less than ideal and probably not suitable for patrons.
The Commission discussed the matter further and it was the
consensus that the situation could definitely be remedied before
the 1996 pool season got underway. There was additional discussion
relative to covering the concession area, other pool furnishings
and Mrs. Lowe assured the Commission that the Gurney Lane pool was
a "magnificent facility with fabulous swimming lessons." She also
stated she was not in any way "criticizing the pool" but only
addressing a situation which needed to be rectified. In addition,
she agreed to assist the Commission/Department in terms of funds as
well as organizing a group of volunteers to do the work, if that
became necessary.
The Commission thanked Mrs. Lowe for her input and assured her that
over the winter the Department would investigate further and im-
prove the conditions before next season.
The Commission briefly reviewed the items of correspondence which
were included in the monthly packet and there was discussion on the
Department's soccer program and the 9/5/95 letter from the
Adirondack Youth Soccer Club. The Director explained that it was
his decision to move approximately one third of the soccer program
participants (grades 1 and 2), to the Ridge/Jenkinsville Park
facility to alleviate team roster problems, (number per team),
traffic congestion/volume and facility overcrowding (field short-
age). The R/J facility was not being used to its full potential
and, therefore, creating soccer fields in the softball outfields
for a 6-8 week period in the fall helped to lessen the dependency
on the Queensbury School facilities. In addition, it showed ex-
cellent utilization of the Town's facilities, especially in the
"off season". The decision had to be made prior to the start of
the program in early summer and though there were some negative
comments, overall, the reaction has been generally positive. Once
the program ends in October, the Department will re-evaluate the
situation and results and plan accordingly for the 1996 season. A
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in close proximity to the pool facility. He mentioned that
additional shade in the form of some type of structure was not the
problem. However, situating that structure close enough, so that
parents, or other non-swimmers could view those in the water was
the difficulty. A permanent structure of any size on the deck
area, or in the grass areas immediately adjacent to the pool area
was a concern. Due to the size and shape of the deck area (small),
as well as it being a high traffic area, erecting a permanent or
semi-permanent structure would seem to be less than desirable from
a safety standpoint. Likewise, the terrain contour of the grass
areas adjacent to the deck (swale with underground drains) was not
a flat enough surface for this type of structure. Constructing a
structure in the "upper area" was certainly practical and would
provide the necessary shade needed. However, because of the
distance involved, viewing the pool area would be less than ideal
and probably not suitable for patrons.
The Commission discussed the matter further and it was the
consensus that the situation could definitely be remedied before
the 1996 pool season got underway. There was additional discussion
relative to covering the concession area, other pool furnishings
and Mrs. Lowe assured the Commission that the Gurney Lane pool was
a "magnificent facility with fabulous swimming lessons." She also
stated she was not in any way "criticizing the pool" but only
addressing a situation which needed to be rectified. In addition,
she agreed to assist the Commission/Department in terms of funds as
well as organizing a group of volunteers to do the work, if that
became necessary.
The Commission thanked Mrs. Lowe for her input and assured her that
over the winter the Department would investigate further and im-
prove the conditions before next season.
The Commission briefly reviewed the items of correspondence which
were included in the monthly packet and there was discussion on the
Department's soccer program and the 9/5/95 letter from the
Adirondack Youth Soccer Club. The Director explained that it was
his decision to move aþproximately one third of the soccer program
participants (grades 1 and 2), to the Ridge/Jenkinsville Park
facility to alleviate team roster problems, (number per team),
traffic congestion/volume and facility overcrowding (field short-
age). The R/J facility was not being used to its full potential
and, therefore, creating soccer fields in the softball outfields
for a 6-8 week period in the fall helped to lessen the dependency
on the Queensbury School facilities. In addition, it showed ex-
cellent utilization of the Town's facilities, especially in the
"off season". The decision had to be made prior to the start of
the program in early summer and though there were some negative
comments, overall, the reaction has been generally positive. Once
the program ends in October, the Department will re-evaluate the
situation and results and plan accordingly for the 1996 season. A
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number of commissioners pointed out that an internal traffic
problem (excessive speed) still existed within the school area and
it was suggested that the Director mention the situation to school
personnel.
The Commission also reviewed and discussed the 8/8/95 letter
(Hudson River Park) from the Fredericks to the Town Supervisor.
Here again, the Director was instructed to contact these
individuals for their input regarding the park's development.
The Supervisor's memo (North Queensbury Recreation) was also
discussed and the Director will contact appropriate fire company
personnel as a first step in developing a park facility adjacent to
the firehouse in the North Queensbury area. This would be similar
to what was accomplished in terms of park development on the South
Queensbury Firehouse grounds. The Director will contact the fire
company's president/officers and report back as soon as possible.
HUDSON RIVER PARK
The Director advised the Commission that even though the contract/
park development budget had not been finalized and signed by the
parties involved, nonetheless, the clock was "still ticking" and,
therefore, the Commission/Department should begin the preliminary
phases of the Hudson River Park project. As such, the Director
suggested that architectural/engineering firms be contacted in
order to obtain proposals regarding the park's development. The
initial application included a project map/layout and this cer-
tainly needed to be verified and/or altered based on someone' s
professional expertise, i.e. landscape architect, and engineer.
The initial locations for the park facilities were done "in-house"
and will probably need to be redrawn according to scale and in a
specific area within the site which is best suited to those types
of facilities. In short, the Town now needs to hire professional
assistance in planning the actual development of this park. The
Commission agreed that the project needed to move forward. The
Director was instructed to make contact with an area landscape
architect/engineer in order to determine if the park pro- ject can
proceed as originally outlined in the application or if changes due
to terrain, vegetation, ground water, etc. will be nec- cessary.
The Commission suggested that the Director contact J. Miller who
had drawn plans for the expansion of both Gurney Lane and the park
at Ridge/Jenkinsville. The Director will attempt to have Mr.
Miller corne to the next meeting to advise the Commission
in this regard.
MEETING DATE/DAY CHANGE
The Chairman advised the Commission with respect to a conflict and
her attendance at future Wednesday night meetings. After dis-
cussion it was decided that the monthly meetings of the Queensbury
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Recreation Commission would be changed to the second Tuesday of the
month. It was agreed that this change would begin with the October
10th meeting and the Director will notify the Post Star, all Town
Board members and all other interested parties.
Commissioner Auer mentioned that he thought the Commission was
somewhat remiss, in that the group had never finalized the in-
ternal guidelines/policies for Commission members. The document
had been initially drafted by Commissioner Schachner and never
adopted by the Commission. The Director was instructed to research
and send the draft document to all Commission members for their re-
view and discussion at the next meeting.
FUTURE PARK DEVELOPMENT
A number of commissioners inquired regarding the status of the park
project priority list which was developed by the Commission some-
time ago. The Director explained that the list which included ex-
pansion of facilities at both Gurney Lane and R/J Park as well as
improvements to West End Park, the Glen Lake Canoe Access site, the
Hiland Park area and Hovey Pond had been put "on hold" since 1991.
There was considerable discussion on the need for other park and
recreation facilities throughout the Town, both expansion and new
development and the Director was instructed to resurrect the "old
list" and drawings for discussion at the next meeting. Mr.
Rahill's letter outlining his proposal for the development of the
Hudson River Park was also mentioned and it too will be included as
correspondence in next month's packet.
MONTHLY DEPARTMENT REPORT
The Director presented a verbal report on program/activities and
explained how Commissioner Auer has provided his expertise in
helping to computerize the Department's registration/accountability
system. It was pointed out that he has spent much time and effort
and the Department should be on line and fully operational by next
spring.
There being no further business, the Commission meeting was ad-
journed at 8:42 p.m. The next meeting will be held on October 10,
1995, beginning at 7:00 p.m., in the Supervisor's conference room
(#37), at the Queensbury Town Office Building.
rc.
prepared by Harry R. Hansen