2018-05-10 TOWN OF BERLIN
Parks and Recreation Commission
230 Kensington Road • Berlin, CT 06037
Thursday, May 10, 2018
7:00 p.m.
Berlin Community Center
ATTENDANCE:
Commissioners Present: Don Dellaquila—Co-Chair, Peter DeFazio, Steve Hinchliffe, Rob
Sylvester
Commissioners Absent: Donna Bovee—Co-Chair, Anthony DeFranco
Staff Present:
Jen Ochoa, Director of Community, Recreation and Park Services
Debbie Dennis, Superintendent of Recreation
Steve Wood, Foreman Public Grounds
The meeting was called to order by Co-Chair Dellaquila at 7:00 p.m.
1. Audience of Citizens
Leah Carbonell, 312 Lamentation Drive— Spanish American Cultural Club would like to host
its annual picnic at the Timberlin Pavilion. They've hosted this event before, it will be
"BYOB," so adults will be responsible for their own beverages. If permission to consume
alcohol is granted, will obtain Tulip Insurance. Attendees will be primarily adults, but any
child or grandchild will be the responsibility of the accompanying adult.
Dinesh Patel, 66 Deerfield Drive—Asked for permission for"BYOB"alcohol consumption at
the annual 4th of July picnic. The picnic is scheduled for 10 a. — 8 pm, and there will be a few
designated adults to monitor the alcoholic beverages.
2. Approval of Minutes:
April 12, 2018
Commissioner DeFazio moved to approve the April 12, 2018 meeting minutes, which was
seconded by Commissioner Sylvester. The motion passed unanimously.
3. Consent Agenda
a. Request by Gabe Cofrancesco to do his Eagle Scout Project at Berlin High School West
Soccer Field. The project would include filling divots and dips with topsoil and seed and
laying sod on top of impressions. He will provide all the supplies and will work closely
with the Parks and Grounds Department.
Commissioner Hinchliffe moved to approve item a, which was seconded by
Commissioner Sylvester. The motion passed unanimously.
1
b. Request acceptance of a$400 donation from the Berlin Lions Club on behalf of the Berlin
Dolphins SwimTeam.
c. Request acceptance of a $500 donation from Cambridge Specialty for the Parks and
Recreation Youth Fishing Derbies.
d. Request acceptance of a$25 donation from Paula and Richard Carlson, a $150 donation
from Sherwood Anderson& Sharon Finn, a$100 donation from Mary&Michael
Nardelli, a$100 donation from James A. Manafort,Jr. and a $100 donation from Albert
Souza for the field improvement fund for Baretta Baseball Field on Highland Avenue.
Funds will be deposited into an existing Baretta Field Improvement Fund.
Commissioner DeFazio moved to accept items b, c and d, which was seconded by Co-
Chair Dellauqilla. The motion passed unanimously.
e. Request approval for the Berlin Dolphins Swim Team Booster Club to sell food and
beverages at Berlin Dolphin Swim Team home meets at Percival Pool in 2018.
Commissioner Hinchliffe moved to approve item e, which was seconded by
Commissioner Sylvester. The motion passed unanimously.
f. Request approval for Metro Swim Shop to sell swimsuits, caps, goggles, bungee cords,
etc. on June 26 from 6:00PM—7:15PM at Percival Pool to participants on the Berlin
Dolphin Swim Team, and to waive the vendor fee of$200.
Commissioner DeFazio moved to approve item f, which was seconded by Co-Chair
Dellaquila. Ms. Dennis stated Metro Swim comes to Percival, measures everyone for the
correct size, sends the uniform suits directly to everybody's home and offer a discount
from list price. The motion passed unanimously.
g. Request approval for the Class of 2019 to sell food, beverages and merchandise at Berlin
High School events during the 2018-2019 school year.
h. Request approval for the Berlin High School Boosters Club to sell food, beverages and
merchandise at Berlin High School events during the 2018-2019 school year.
Commissioner Sylvester moved to accept items g and h, which was seconded by
Commissioner DeFazio. The motion passed unanimously.
i. Request by Vincent Carbonell, Spanish-America Cultural Club for permission to consume
alcoholic beverages (BYOB beer and wine) at Timberlin Park Pavilion for the annual
Spanish-American Cultural Club Picnic Saturday, June 9, 2018 from 10:30AM —6:00PM.
This annual summer picnic has 50-70 guests ranging from 40-80 year olds. TULIP
insurance will be obtained if alcohol permit is granted. Food will be served sit down style
with no entertainment.
2
Commissioner Sylvester moved to approve item i, which was seconded by Commissioner
Dellaquila. The motion passed unanimously.
j. Request by Dinesh Patel for permission to consume alcoholic beverages (BYOB beer and
wine) at Timberlin Park Pavilion for Annual Patel Family Day Picnic (Ektamandal) on
Wednesday, July 4, 2018 from 10:00AM—8:00PM. (Rain date, July 8, 2018) There will
be about 100 guests of all ages. TULIP insurance has been obtained. There will be a fee of
$10 per person to go towards food and supplies. Food will be served buffet style with
music and games as the entertainment.
Commissioner Hinchliffe moved to approve item j, which was seconded by
Commissioner DeFazio. The motion passed unanimously.
k. Request by TCop Foundation to hold their annual 3 on 3 basketball tournament on
Saturday, August 11, 2018 with a rain date of August 12 at the Berlin High School
Outdoor Basketball Courts. The event will run from 9:00AM—4:00PM. Requesting to
charge registration fees and sell food, beverages and merchandise for the estimated
number of attendees of 150 people.
Commissioner DeFazio moved to approve item k, which was seconded by Commissioner
Sylvester. Ms. Ochoa explained that any money raised reimburses the foundation for its
expenses, and then goes into the foundation fund. The $350 full-day fee was waived in
2017. Mr. Wood stated that last year the turnout was manageable. The motion passed
unanimously.
4. Parks & Grounds
a. Monthly Report (see attached)
• Plowed snow(Spring Nor'Easter storm)
• Heavy rain/ flood clean up
• Lined and painted fields
• Spring clean ups
• Got Baretta field ready for dedication
• Spread 200 tons of infield mix throughout town fields
Commissioner Sylvester commented that Baretta field looked great, and Grounds did a
very nice job on it.
Commissioner DeFazio thanked Mr. Wood for sending 4 guys over to Timberlin for a day
in April to help with wind/rainstorm clean up. It was greatly appreciated.
b. Silver Lake update (see attached)— Soil samples were collected on 5/4/18. Once results
are obtained, further studies will be performed and a conceptual plan will be prepared.
c. Berlin High School Track Update—The contract with Cape& Island has been signed.
Work is scheduled to begin the 3rd week of June, 2018.
3
d. Scalise Field Update— it is still in the proposed budget being contemplated by Town
Council. Will update at next meeting.
e. Field Presentation—Ms. Ochoa explained that she and Mr. Wood are working on a
presentation showing Commissioners the condition of the Town's fields. The fields are
suffering from overuse and, in some cases, abuse. Ms. Ochoa wondered if the rental cost
for non-local groups should be raised to help cover the cost of maintaining/repairing.
The Commission discussed that Berlin's rental fees are lower than surrounding
communities, and even a dramatic increase may not cover the related wear and tear. The
group then discussed the idea of prohibiting non-local use, as many other municipalities
do.
The Commission also discussed damage to fields from local organizations. Recently, the
Berlin Men's soccer played on a very wet field and damaged it significantly. Also, a
Berlin Little League parent drove onto a field(where vehicles aren't permitted) and then
complained about the field condition. The Commissioners feel that the organizations
should understand how much work goes into caring for the fields (by a small 9-person
team of employees) and work with the Town to keep the fields in good condition. The
possibility of closing fields on the weekend based on weather and/or field conditions was
discussed.
Some residents complained about the condition of Willard Field, which was substantially
flooded during the recent heavy rainstorms. (Photo attached).
Ms. Ochoa and Mr. Wood will present the field condition report to the Commission in
June, and heads of each local athletic organization will likely be invited to a future
meeting to see and hear the presentation. We need to stress to local organizations that
they must respect the rules in order to use the fields.
5. Parks and Recreation
a. Monthly Report(see attached)—Ms. Dennis informed the Commission that equipment
(tables, chairs, bicycles) was cut from the updated proposed budget, as well as part-time
staff(Recreation Program Coordinator and Community Center Worker). Ms. Dennis
appealed to Town Manager Healy to reinstate the Community Center Worker position, as
it was safety-related and only represented $10K. With the elevator operational, there will
be increased foot traffic, and there is often only one person on duty in the Community
Center in the evenings. Unfortunately, he declined.
b. Field Policy Update—Bounce Houses —Corporation Council recommended that P&R
prohibit bounce houses from Town properties. That update has been made to the Field
Policy.
c. Pistol Creek Update—3 years ago, a matching-funds grant was obtained for$150K. The
two bids that were recently received were for$263K and $428K. The original scope of
work was to repave some damaged trails, widen some trails, add new trails and pave a
handicapped parking area on the trail-side of the street. Currently, all parking is on the
4
clubhouse side of the street. The scope of work may be pared down to fit within the
budget, and the Commission discussed the "order of priority" of the various components.
Mr. Wood stated that someone identified the stairs at Centurelli Field as potential hazards,
as they have no handrails. The Town Manager and Risk Manager agree, and feel that the
liability outweighs the use. The stairs have been removed, and a fence is up to deter
people from the area. In the future, signage will be posted that the parking area is
reserved for coaches and people with limited mobility only.
d. Elevator update—Project is complete, elevator is operational.
6. Adjournment
Commissioner Sylvester moved to adjourn at 7:40 p.m., which was seconded by
Commissioner DeFazio. The motion passed unanimously.
Submitted by,
Dana Borges
RECEIVED FOR RECORD
BERLIN TOWN CLERK
2018Mar 14 AN 9: 39
kat52c)-142412.
5 BERLIN.CT.
Parks & Grounds Monthly Report
• Snow and Ice removal from several storms
• Cleaned up tree damage from two late season Nor'easters
• Put up windscreens BHS, McGee and Zipadelli
• Laid out and painted athletic lines throughout town
• Track
• Baseball/ Softball
• Soccer
• Lacrosse
• Spring cleanup on town properties
• Assist Facilities in getting Baretta field ready for the dedication
ceremony
• Put 200 tons of infield mix on various fields throughout town.
6
SILVER LAKE UPDATE
HRP PLAN
5/4 Site Visit and Fieldwork/Soil Sample Collection
5/18 Soils Analysis and Lab Results Received
6/1 Draft Report to Town for Review
6/1 —6/15 Town Comment/Review Period
6/22 Final Report to Town
7
Parks & Recreation May monthly report
1. Sent out paperwork for summer staff, new and returning.
2. Contacted Hunter's Ambulance to set up first aid and cpr classes for the summer fun
program staff.
3. Entered new staff and emailed all staff about blood borne pathogens program through
CIRMA.
4. Opening and closing p.o.'s for the end of the fiscal year and going through supplies to
order what is necessary to start the pools and summer programs.
5. Coordinate room set ups with custodians including Kensington Garden Club, 2 Tax
Collector's groups and Town of Berlin Cyber Security Training.
6. Fishing derbies were held, nice turn out for both days.
7. Finalized summer brochure, updated forms, set up information in RecTrac, completed
updating brochure and got information, including all forms, on the Town website.
8. Held a Saturday registration for the Summer Fun program.
8
Willard field
t�
_ -~-.,,, ,14,,,,,,00,'
r k z4
•
:� _ k ,�{'6s r : E.,.1,yon . i . eijit —77....-T,--.,:if:::- 2
x111 a ( 1
ri Pt� Ilk
rr,
Hrg
9