July 15, 2020 | All Minutes
Present: Commissioners Kristina Carr, Frank Klepeis, Kieran Liggan-Casey, Reta Sorge;
Recreation Clerk Dorene Whitaker; Town Board Liason Ernest Klepeis.
Excused: Commissioner Lisa Jerkowski
Absent: Commissioners Fre Atlast, Dave Hattenbrun.
The meeting was held via Zoom and was called to order at 7:18 pm.
OLD BUSINESS:
1.Old minutes: R. Sorge moved to approve the meeting minutes from June 17, 2020. Seconded by F. Klepeis. All in favor.
NEW BUSINESS:
1.Covid-19 Re-opening: E. Klepeis reports that New York State has now approved moderate contact recreation, including playgrounds, tennis, and throwing sports such as baseball with some restrictions. Basketball is considered high risk and is not yet allowed. The playground at the Municipal Center is already open.D. Whitaker reports that the Rec Center playground and Pavillion opening is delayed until August 1, due to painting of the Pavilion picnic tables. Once daily (Monday through Friday) cleaning of these areas will be done using a battery operated steam cleaner. The park will be unsupervised. Signage will be posted advising social distancing. The group discussed mask recommendations at length, and it was recommended that the signage include “Mask use required in accordance with New York State guidelines”.
2. Recreation Center Fencing: D. Whitaker reports that last week the Town Board approved funding for fencing replacement on the playground and the first base line of the ball field. It is hoped that additional funding will become available in spring 2021 to repair the remainder of the ball field, which is still usable. The fencing company is unavailable until October; therefore temporary orange fencing will be put up by the playground for safety. The tennis court fencing bordering the pool locker room entrance was removed last year to accommodate heavy equipment and has not been replaced. There is a possibility that it will no longer fit, and the Buildings and Grounds Department is short-staffed due to Covid and busy preparing Town Hall for re-opening. Additionally, heavy equipment may again be needed to repair the faulty renovations on the court if funding can be found. Therefore, temporary orange fencing was advised to allow for play, which is now allowed under state guidelines. D. Whitaker will bring this to the B&G team.
3. Street Festival Event: K. Liggan-Casey presented a very preliminary concept from the Street Festival Committee for a small concert in the Rec Center parking lot, no more than 2 hours in length, with reservation required for cars and live streaming of the event on the Internet, for September 5 (Saturday of Labor Day weekend). Capacity in the lot is for 100 cars, but state Covid guidelines require half that number if people leave their cars. The Commmission recognized that plans are not firm and this is not a formal application. Discussed were the need for liability insurance, non-profit status of the Street Festival if donations were requested or
admission charged, and the need for Town Board approval. Given the narrow timeline, K.Carr moved that the Recreation Commission give preliminary approval, pending confirmation of nonprofit status and approval by the Town Board. R. Sorge seconded the motion. All in favor, K. Liggan-Casey abstaining.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:10 pm. The next meeting will be Wednesday, August 19, at 7:15pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Kristina Carr, Chair