RECREATION ADVISORY BOARD
MINUTES
April 29, 2015
Pop Austin Recreation Center
12:00 noon
Members Present:
Willie Dickerson, Carl Brown, Mike Peacock, Andre Dye, Irene Pate,
Derrick Greene
Members Absent:
Tracy Belt, Bob, Johnson, Vanessa Jackson
City Staff Present:
James Worsley, Holli Browder, Tommy Groce, Shelley Stephens,
Millie Del Toro
Call to Order:
The meeting was called to order by Irene Pate at 12:13pm
Roll was taken.
The Board had a quorum at the meeting today and therefore the minutes of the previous
meetings were able to be approved. A motion was made by Carl Brown to approve and Mike
Peacock seconded the motion to approve all of the minutes
Director/Staff Update
James thanked Therapeutic Supervisor Melissa Crawford for hosting our meeting in her building this
month. Melissa gave an overview of upcoming programs and activities that Therapeutics was
currently involved in. Encouraged the board to come out and join their group anytime they have
activities or events going on.
Tommy Groce: (Park Services Division Manager): Tommy stated that his division is currently in
the middle of special events for spring and summer. He also stated that this coming weekend
he has a tournament in town at South Commons and was hopeful they could play and it
wouldn’t rain. He also said the leagues were behind in the schedules due to the rainy weather
we have had and that everyone was trying to catch up.
Shelley Stephens: (Community Schools Supervisor): Community Schools will be participating in
the Ledger-Enquirer’s Get-Fit Expo on May 2 at the Civic Center.
Millie Del-Toro: (Community Schools Supervisor): We are currently registering for summer
camps Tillis has 101 registered, Psalmond Road is full, 29th Street has 18 registered, and Shirley
Winston is closed. Summer camp will begin on Tuesday, May 26, 2015.
Holli Browder: (Assistant Director): Holli discussed the outdoor pools are currently under
renovation and coming along well. She explained that the department had concerns regarding
the pools and that a pool study had been done and now those areas were being addressed
thanks to funding approved by Council. New water features, pumps and leak repairs were being
address. Holli also talked about the Columbus Aquatic Center and that the transition was going
well with the department and that we had begun operating the facility on April 28.
James Worsley: (Director): James stated that the budget is a length process and that the
department would have roughly the same budget as last year. As a department we are focusing
on critical needs at this time and had asked to include 28 lawn mowers for $225,000 as well as
some repairs for the Riverwalk bathrooms for $66,400 and surveillance systems at the
recreation centers for $159,000. James also stated that there had been no capital improvement
funds since he has been the director of the department. July 1, 2016 will begin the new budget
year. James emphasized that we are telling our story that our department has a direct impact
on the quality of life for citizens that affects the economic impact to the city.
Updates from the Board:
Irene Pate: Reminder of the Spring Sale this weekend at Britt David Studios Friday 6pm-8pm
and Saturday 9am-3pm. Britt David also getting ready for the summer schedule to begin.
Mike Peacock: Mike is the VP at Northern Little League at Psalmond Road. They now have a
new scoreboard on the t-ball field w/scorers building to use for other programs such as softball.
The t-ball field is the second field closest to the recreation center that they are trying to get
lights and possibly bleachers on in the future.
Parking at Northern Little League: Mike stated that he had called the non-emergency CPD about
the parking. This was the second time he has called. This time he asked that an officer come out
and ride through the parking lot because he was concerned about the visibility of people
walking through the parking lot and getting hit by a car. Mike had to leave before the officer
arrived on scene however the league president Earnie was there and met with the officer. The
officer asked Earnie “what do you want me to do?” after he rode through the parking lot and
looked at the cars that were illegally parked. Earnie told him to write tickets to the people who
were illegally parked. The CPD officer told him he wasn’t writing people a ticket for that.
Andre Dye: Andre was unable to attend the last meeting. He recently witnessed the seniors
exercising at Shirley Winston Park and how awesome it was to see so many people involved at
that facility. He also thanked Tommy and his staff for the job they do of cutting the grass and he
understood how hard that could be sometimes with the weather and rain. He also stated that
Carver Park was being well used as he saw lots of people out in the park using the various
areas.
Derrick Greene: Derrick stated that the Easter Egg Hunt went well. He thanked the department
for the great job that was done by the department for the decorations, staffing, and wristbands
on kids. He said it was a great safe event and everyone had a great time.
Derrick is planning a Back to School event at Shirley Winston Park on July 19 and IHeartradio
will be giving out personal hygiene packages to children and they are partnering with
Amerigroup to provide chips and drinks as well as bounce house for the kids to enjoy.
Carl Brown: Did the department know about the kids sneaking in Golden Park? Tommy replied
yes and that we have been working with CPD on this.
Willie Dickerson: Nothing to report.
With no further discussion, a motion was made to adjourn the meeting by Carl Brown and
seconded by Mike Peacock.
Our next meeting will be May 27th at Gallops Senior Center.
Meeting 1:06 pm.
Holli Browder
Assistant Director