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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06/04/2014IRWINDALE CITY COUNCIL CHAMBER 5050 N. IRWINDALE AVENUE IRWINDALE, CALIFORNIA 91706 JUNE 4, 2014 WEDNESDAY 6:00 P.M. The Irwindale PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION met in regular session at the above time and place. ROLL CALL: SPONTANEOUS COMMUNICATIONS CONSENT CALENDAR Present: Commissioners Veronica S. Barbosa Lara, Marguerite S. Lopez, Belen Zepeda; Vice Chair Paula Fraijo; Chair Dan Diaz Also present: Anthony Miranda, Chief of Police; Rene Sapien, Police Sergeant; Dan Grijalva, Recreation Manager; Edgar Rojas, Mining Program Manager; and Armando Hegdahl, Records Technician There were no speakers. MOTION A motion was made by Vice Chair Fraijo, seconded by Commissioner Lopez, to approve the Consent Calendar. The motion was unanimously approved ITEM NO. 1A MINUTES MINUTES The following minutes were approved as presented: 1) Regular meeting held May 7, 2014. RECREATION MANAGER UPDATE RECREATION Recreation Manager Grijalva presented the following update: MANAGER GRIJALVA 1) The Mother/Tot Tea activities were held on May 10, with 10 students, parents, and grandparents participating. The event was well received. 2) The Mother's Day trip to the Dodger/Giant game was sold out. 3) A Movie Night event was held at Northview High School on May 16. This provided the city an opportunity to inform the children of the many programs that the Recreation Department offers. 4) The Cheer Team had its final cheer competition on May 17 and placed first. 5) The Tiny Tot graduation will be held tomorrow at 6:30 p.m. 6) The pool will open on May 13tH PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION MINUTES JUNE 4, 2014 REGULAR MEETING PAGE 2 COMMISSIONER ITEMS VICE CHAIR FRAIJO Responding to a question by Vice Chair Fraijo, Recreation Manager Grijalva indicated that the Cheer Team will resume activities in August. Vice Chair Fraijo suggested that staff look into promoting children that are going into transitional kindergarten. She then asked whether the swimming pool is being maintained by an outside agency, to which Recreation Manager Grijalva responded by saying that it will begin in July. COMMISSIONER Commissioner Barbosa asked about the lifeguard positions, to which BARBOSA Recreation Manager Grijalva indicated that two lifeguards were hired, though applications will continue to be received in case the department is short-handed. Commissioner Barbosa also asked whether the two lifeguards are residents, to which Recreation Manager Grijalva indicated that they are not; however, they are both certified and one is WSI certified. VICE CHAIR FRAIJO Vice Chair Fraijo highly suggested hiring and training residents for the lifeguard positions, to which Recreation Manager Grijalva responded by noting the high costs of training. COMMISSIONER Commissioner Lopez suggested checking with the Santa Fe Dam to LOPEZ see if the city can hire some of their graduates from their lifeguard programs. RECREATION Recreation Manager Grijalva stated that provided on classes can be MANAGER GRIJALVA provided to residents. COMMISSIONER Commissioner Barbosa asked about the booth and food BARBOSA arrangements for the 4th of July activities, to which Recreation Manager Grijalva indicated that there are five booths: EI Buen Pastor has two, Sister City has one, and Our Lady of Guadalupe has one. The booths are all fire retardant booths and have air conditioning. Commissioner Barbosa also asked about the program for the Concert in the Park series, to which Recreation Manager Grijalva stated that the program has been finalized and can be found on the city website. VICE CHAIR FRAIJO Vice Chair Fraijo spoke very highly of the teachers that participated in the Tiny Tot program. She thanked them for another great year. PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION MINUTES JUNE 4, 2014 REGULAR MEETING PAGE 3 NEW BUSINESS ITEM NO. 3A VERBAL REPORT REGARDING PARK PATROL VERBALREPORT REGARDING PARK PATROL CHIEF MIRANDA Chief Miranda advised that, based on his conversations with staff and in anticipation of the large crowds for the 4th of July Fireworks Show, the Police Department will have all personnel reporting in for the event. He noted the parking issues that arose last year and advised that staff has mailed out an informational flier to all residents with suggestions to alleviate parking problems. He also stated that some streets will be temporarily closed during the event to ensure safety. VICE CHAIR FRAIJO Vice Chair Fraijo noted that the Parks and Recreation Commission has previously requested police patrol in the park when the pool closes at night and during concerts in the park, to which Sergeant Sapien advised that one officer has been scheduled to patrol the park during the concerts. He added that extra patrols can be implemented during night time swim sessions. He then spoke on the Police Department's participation in the Nixie program, which aids in pushing out information during emergencies to whoever has registered with the program. CHIEF MIRANDA Chief Miranda noted that the Nixie program is a free service provided by the county which can send brief text messages to those who have signed up. For example, the Police Department recently sent out information to inform them of local cooling stations during the recent heat wave. VICE CHAIR FRAIJO Vice Chair Fraijo reiterated the park patrol arrangements and spoke on the previous parking incidents from last year's fireworks show. CHIEF MIRANDA Chief Miranda stated that the department's main priority is its resident base and will deal with all incidents the best way it can. COMMISSIONER Commissioner Barbosa stated that some people have previously BARBOSA blocked the areas where emergency vehicles could gain access and said that the officers need to be aware of that. She also thanked the officers and the Police Explorers for all their hard work. CHIEF MIRANDA Chief Miranda explained that the Irwindale Police Department does not currently have an active Explorer program, but that staff is looking at bringing the program back. PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION MINUTES REGULAR MEETING JUNE 4, 2014 PAGE 4 ITEM NO. 3B VERBAL REPORT REGARDING THE COMMUNITY EMERGENCY VERBAL REPORT RESPONSE TEAM TRAINING REGARDING THE COMMUNITY EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAM TRAINING VICE CHAIR FRAIJO Vice Chair Fraijo suggested sending printed information to residents to inform them of what to do during emergencies. She stated that cell phone networks may not be available during major emergencies, to which Sergeant Sapien advised that it will be difficult to designate a specific location to which residents can go to during a major emergency since roads may be closed or can be dangerous. He stated, however, that the Los Angeles County Fire Department puts on 21 -hour training courses to prepare individuals on what they need to survive without the need to count on anybody. He said that, should enough people be interested in this class, he can help arrange for the class to be held. COMMISSIONER Commissioner Barbosa advised that the Toyota Speedway was at BARBOSA one time designated as an emergency shelter during catastrophic events, to which Sergeant Sapien responded by saying that the site was previously used as a Dispatch Center, but that it was not a long- term solution. He said that the best thing available would be to train residents on how to survive by attending the class he previously mentioned. CHIEF MIRANDA Chief Miranda stated that he has previously attended the training and that the program's main message is that people need to be ready during emergencies in case emergency personnel cannot reach them. RECREATION Recreation Manager Grijalva stated that fliers with more information MANAGER GRIJALVA on the program can be mailed to residents to pique their interest. COMMISSIONER Commissioner Barbosa expressed concern that Rite Aid can only BARBOSA renew prescription medicine five days before it's scheduled to be empty. She said this would make it difficult for people to be fully prepared for emergencies. She also said that it was gratifying to know that Police Department personnel went door to door to ensure everybody's safety during a recent loss of power. CHIEF MIRANDA Chief Miranda said that the emergency center at the Speedway was only meant as a temporary location for Police Department operations. Staff will be working on identifying a different location next year. PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION MINUTES REGULAR MEETING JUNE 4, 2014 PAGE 5 ITEM NO. 3C VERBAL REPORT REGARDING THE PARK -GAZEBO -PLAZA VERBAL REPORT IMPROVEMENT PROJECT REGARDING THE PARK -GAZEBO -PLAZA IMPROVEMENTPROJECT MINING PROGRAM Mining Program Manager Rojas discussed the matter. He indicated MANAGER ROJAS that the design portion of the project is complete and that it will go before the Council for consideration at an upcoming meeting. He noted that the plaza and picnic shelter will be worked on during the first phase of the project. The other items will be worked on also once funding becomes available. Staff will also be asking for Council approval to solicit bids for the work. VICE CHAIR FRAIJO Vice Chair Fraijo requested that staff emphasize to the Council that the Commission had many improvements to the park in mind, but that these were curtailed due to limited funding. MINING PROGRAM Mining Program Manager Rojas advised that the project as a whole MANAGER ROJAS will be presented to the Council and staff will emphasize all the input that was received by the Commission. He said that the exact amount of funding available for this project will be determined once the Library project is completed. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to conduct, the meeting was adjourned at 6:39 p.m. Armando Hegdahl, Records Technician