February 17, 2021 | All Minutes
Rosendale Recreation Commission Meeting Minutes Feruary 17, 2021
Present: Commissioners Fre Atlast, Kristina Carr. Frank Klepeis, Kieran Liggan-Casey, Reta Sorge; Recreation Clerk Dorene Whitaker; Town Board Liason Ernest Klepeis.
Excused: Commissioner Lisa Jerkowski.
Absent: Commissioner Dave Hattenbrun.
The meeting was held via Zoom and was called to order at 7:18 pm.
OLD BUSINESS:
1.Approval of Old Meting Minutes: F. Atlast moved to approve the meeting minutes from January 20,2021. Seconded by R. Sorge.All in favor.
2.Generator: D. Whitaker reported that installation of the generator for the pool house was begun, but has now been delayed by winter weather until April or May.
3.Proposal for improved Broadband at Rec Center: D. Whitaker reports that she met with Supervisor Walsh who does not believe that approval from NYS Parks is required as this is not a commercial proposal. She asked that the Youth Center and Rec Center draw up a proposal to set aside a section of the Pavilion for Library use. The Commission has tasked D. Whitaker with this job, and she will present at next month’s meeting. In addition, K. Carr is meeting with the Librarian and the e-rate consultant tomorrow.
NEW BUSINESS:
1.Pool Summer 2021: D. Whitaker reports that she has arranged a site visit for an estimate on pool repair from the contractor who recently renovated the Kingston YMCA pool. She has had difficulty finding other contractors willing to visit, but has one more call out. She also reports that the Ulster County Health Department has informed her that they will approve opening of our pool this summer, but with a reduced capacity of 75-100 people at any time. Our former functional capacity was about 350. Supervisor Walsh has approved the hiring of the former pool manager Ashley to work with Dorene on the numbers to see if and how this would be feasible. The Commission discussed many issues including on-line pre-scheduling of assigned time slots and/or payment, equitable staggered access with time for cleaning, and the need for adult staff for crowd management. It is unclear how the Swim Team and the Brookside school will fit in this year.
2.Rec Center Drive-through events: D. Whitaker reports that she has received several requests for use of the Rec Center parking lot for drive-through events (birthday parties and baby shower). Ulster Corps had a well-organized and successful event for MLK Day last month, which could serve as a model for future events. K. Carr proposed that the Commission approve this use, with the following stipulations: Liability insurance must be provided by applicant, there would be a 2-hour time limit, the fee would be $50, and all current Covid-19 regulations must be adhered to. The first applicant must submit a site plan to the Town Board for approval, and if all goes well, these would no longer be required. Seconded by R. Sorge, all in favor.
3.Red Cross Blood Drive for May: D. Whitaker reported that the Red Cross has requested use of the Rec Center building for a blood drive on May 28 from noon to 9 pm. She added that the group left the building spotless after December’s event. There were no objections.
4.Community Garden: F. Atlast reported that the community garden in Tillson has thrived with all 14 plots in use, and there is a need for more space. She proposes investigation of use of the Town’s riverside Creeklocks Road property near the salt shed. This would give access to village residents who may not have transportation to a more distant site and would be in keeping with the goals of “Finding Rosendale”. D. Whitaker pointed out that much of the property is used by other towns’ highway departments as part of county-wide shared services and suggested a walking tour with the Highway superintendent to evaluate the space. Soil testing was also discussed. The Commission encouraged the community garden group to look into this further but felt there was not enough information at present to make a specific proposal.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:40 pm. The next meeting will be March 24 at 7:15 pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Kristina Carr, Chair