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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPark & Rec Commission 2018-09-20 Minutes1
PARKS AND RECREATION COMMISSION
APPROVED MINUTES
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
San Rafael Community Center – 618 B Street, San Rafael, CA
September 20, 2018 – 7:00 p.m.
CALL TO ORDER/
Chair Tom Obletz called the meeting to order at 7:05 p.m.
Pledge of Allegiance
Roll Call
Commissioners Present: Chair Tom Obletz, Vice Chair Mark Machado, Mark Bustillos,
Cicily Emerson, Jeff Jones, Nicholas Skewes-Cox
Commissioners Absent: Stacey Laumann, Kathryn Reisinger
Staff Present: Susan Andrade-Wax, Community Services Director; Becky Ordin,
Senior Administrative Assistant
AGENDA AMENDEMENTS
None
MINUTES
1. Approve regular meeting minutes of September 20, 2018
A motion was made by Commissioner Machado, seconded by Commissioner Jones, to
approve the minutes of the July 19, 2018 meeting as corrected. The motion was approved
unanimously.
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MEETING OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
2. Introductions/Awards/Recognitions/Presentations
A. Proclamation to Ralph G. Mihan
Ms. Andrade-Wax shared with the Commission that the City Council had drafted a
proclamation in honor of Ralph Mihan’s service to the Commission for his 38 years. Everyone
received a copy. As much as Ralph feels validated by all the recognition he was not able to
make any of the meetings. Mr. Mihan asked Ms. Andrade-Wax to share with the Commission
the proclamation that he received from the City Council.
Commissioner Nick Skewes-Cox introduced himself. He and his wife have lived in San Rafael
for about 4 ½ years. This is his first Civic engagement with the City being involved in the
Commission.
3. Public Comment from the audience regarding items not listed on the agenda
None
MATTERS BEFORE THE COMMISSION
4. Review of Conceptual Design for Tiscornia Marsh Restoration
Barbara Salzman introduced herself. Ms. Salzman is the President of Marin Audubon Society
and the project manager of Tiscornia Marsh Restoration as she has been the project manager
for many marsh restoration projects over the years. The property was donated to them in
2008. They are happy to be working with the City and are hoping for the Commission to
recommend to Council that they support an application for Measure AA funds.
Ms. Salzman introduced their engineer Dane Behrens from Environmental Science Associates
(ESA). Mr. Behrens also stated that his supervisor Ann Borgonovo, who unfortunately couldn’t
be at the meeting, also worked on the project.
Mr. Behrens presented the conceptual design for the Tiscornia Marsh Restoration project.
Commissioner Obletz asked if this project is like what they did in Hamilton where they brought
in fill to bridge the levee and restore the wetlands at Hamilton Air Force Base. Mr. Behrens
replied that yes, with Hamilton they used dredge material that they shipped from the Oakland
harbor where they formed habitat pockets and bridged the levee. With this project it’s easier ,
because they did a survey of the area, and the existing Pickleweed marsh is the same
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elevation as what is out a little further towards the bay. It is disconnected hydrologically, so it
would just be a matter of opening it up and connecting it to the rest. It’s a good opportunity to
restore the habitat while at the same time raise the level of protection to the soccer field. It’s a
patchwork of elevations all the way around, so what they would be looking at doing is making
the levee a uniformed height. This would provide a level of protection for the long-term sea
level rise.
Commissioner Obletz asked if we would be losing the path around the existing Marsh. Yes,
however it would be relocated.
Ms. Salzman noted that this is a preliminary, conceptual design. There are several steps that
still need to happen before the design becomes finalized. Currently it is still very early in the
process and things can still be changed.
Commissioner Jones asked if going eastward from Schoen Park, does the height of the levee
equal the height of the Spinnaker properties. Mr. Behrens replied yes. The levee around
Spinnaker is about 12’, and the high tides are around 6’. They are proposing for a 13’ levee
that would connect to the levee at Spinnaker point.
Commissioner Emerson asked for clarification from Mr. Behrens to break down the idea of
encroaching on Schoen Park. Mr. Behrens answered that essentially is that there will be some
overlap from the new levee into the park.
Ms. Andrade-Wax commented that staff has been working with this team since the beginning,
and one of the concerns was that the encroachment would impact the current footprint of the
playground. They had previously shared 4 options for the levee height and concluded that the
best thing for the community and the marsh area , was the option that they are currently
recommending. In addition, currently the City has funding set aside for the replacement if the
playground equipment at Schoen Park. The playground has had several pieces that have
been removed, since it was damaged and was unsafe. Staff discussed whether the
investment should be at this parcel or be utilized at the Pickleweed park to expand and
enhance it. In addition to these two projects, the City is also exploring the idea of adding
parking to the area.
The City could utilize the funding that was set aside for the playground renovation and put it
towards expanding and enhancing the existing playground at Pickleweed Park. The City then
could utilize the remaining parcel to expand parking. There is funding that can be utilized to
add capacity and enhancement to the existing p layground at Pickleweed, the Canal area gets
additional parking, the Marsh is restored and provides protection to the community from a
storm event.
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Commissioner Obletz asked with respect to the new parking would it be publicly accessible or
controlled by the community center. Ms. Andrade-Wax stated that the parking area had not
been designed yet but might be accessed through the existing Community Center parking lot,
or parallel off-street parking.
Commissioner Jones asked if they will be getting neighborhood input for losing Schoen Park.
He stated that the Commission discussed it 2 years back, and they all voted to provide funding
to fix up the park because the community wanted it.
Ms. Salzman replied that they had 2 public meetings at the Albert J. Community Center that
were well attended. The first had a preliminary plan, and the second meeting had the plan that
was presented tonight and there was no comment from the public regarding the park.
Commissioner Emerson asked what the attendance was. Ms. Salzman replied that there were
about 50-60 attendees at each meeting. They had two translators, one in Vietnamese, and
one Spanish. The translators will continue to be part of the team for future community
meetings.
Ms. Andrade-Wax stated that this is conceptual design, and what they are looking for is for the
Commission to provide them with feedback, with the recommendation to forward the proposed
project to the City Council for their review and consideration. At this phase, the City Council
would not be “adopting” their project but would be requested to provide them with a letter of
support. If City Council agreed, then the Marin Audubon Society would seek additional funding
to finalize the design and pursue additional funding for construction.
Commissioner Machado asked when the project would start and how long would it take from
beginning to end. Ms. Salzman answered that it would take at least another 2 years. He also
asked what it would cost. Ms. Salzman said that it would cost approximately 1+ million dollars,
and that the funding they would be requesting is from Measure AA.
Commissioner Emerson said she supports the project, the path itself is very well used, and it is
a good draw for the neighborhood in terms of supporting physical activity. She wanted to know
if there has been a consideration for picnic tables rather than a parking l ot to draw people to
the path.
Ms. Andrade-Wax reminded the Commission that 2 years ago they voted for the to replace the
playground structure with a par course (exercise equipment). They are hoping that during the
grant application they would be requesting funds to enhance the path. The City then could use
their existing funding to enhance the existing playground at Pickleweed Park.
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Commissioner Obletz asked Ms. Andrade-Wax if she is looking for a recommendation from the
Commission with respect to moving this for review and consideration to the City Council .
Ms. Andrade-Wax replied that they were looking for feedback and their recommendation to
forward the project to the City Council for their review and consideration.
A motion was made by Commissioner Bustillos, seconded by Commissioner Machado.
AYES: Commissioners: Obletz, Machado, Bustillos, Skewes-Cox & Emerson
NOES: Commissioners: None
ABSENT: Commissioners: Laumann & Reisinger
The motion passed.
COMMISSION REPORTS
5. Other brief reports on any meetings, conferences, and/or seminars attended by
the Commission members.
None.
COMMISSION COMMENTS
Commissioner Obletz stated that Eric Holm is now on the General Plan 2040 Committee.
STAFF COMMENTS
Ms. Andrade-Wax let the commission know that a representative from the Parks Department
was unable to attend at the last moment. They have been working on creating a quarterly
update to provide a more thorough report that provides a summary of all their projects.
Ms. Andrade-Wax directed the attention to the schedule of events. Porchfest is coming up on
Sept. 23rd in the Gerstle Park Neighborhood. The Terra Linda Ceramics has a wonderful event
at Falkirk. Ms. Andrade-Wax attended the opening reception and commented that it is a
diverse and an amazing show.
Ms. Andrade-Wax let the Commission know that the upcoming General Plan public meetings
will be held at the San Rafael Community Center, the Albert J. Boro Community Center, and
another week night at the Terra Linda Community Center. They have worked closely with the
consultant to encourage the public to come out and participate.
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Commissioner Obletz mentioned that Coco will be playing in Spanish for the next “Movies in
the Park” event at the Albert J. Boro Community Center. Commissioner Emerson stated that
she attended the movie at the Terra Linda park, and it was well attended. She also stated that
she would like to see the movies in the parks be publicized through the schools to get the word
out.
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned 8:11 p.m.