Minutes 05-29-2014 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Dave Stancil agreed and said the simplest solution might be to see if the police substation lot can be freed up. Chair Jacobs said there has been discussion about the fact that building that driveway and parking lot would make it more of a County park instead of a neighborhood park, as it would give more access. He said there is a very active neighborhood association that may be able to keep an eye on the parking and report on the times when the parking lot is full. He said, as a short term solution, signage could be posted to note the overflow parking area at the police substation. Chair Jacobs said he is hearing that more data is needed. Efland-Cheeks Community Center Paul Laughton said information on this item is found in attachment C. He said there is a question of whether or not this center is sufficient for the community's needs. He noted the attachment of a brochure outlining the summer and fall programming. Chair Jacobs asked if there will be a placeholder in the CIP for any improvements. Paul Laughton said there are no placeholders at this point, but that could be done at the discretion of the Board. Chair Jacobs said the Board just approved two other community center upgrades. He said this Efland Community has been very involved in using the center, and he likes the idea of finding out what is needed. He would like to have some placeholder funding in years 6 - 10. Chair Jacobs said part of the problem is that people in the community want to have senior activities in that center, but the Department on Aging does not want to provide activities there and wants them instead to come to Hillsborough. He said this should be dealt with at the manager level. Michael Talbert asked how often the center is used now. Dave Stancil said it is used quite a bit, and it is reserved about one-third of the time. He said he can pull the usage data to get the specific information. Michael Talbert said upcoming transportation improvements would put a regional route that could tie into the senior center multiple times per day. He said this would make the senior center more accessible. He said this does not address the community needs, but it may provide a short term solution. Chair Jacobs said multiple departments may need to come out there and have a conversation with the community. Commissioner Gordon said it is important to see the whole picture of the role and function of the community center in order to have a principled answer. Dave Stancil said staff has come to that conclusion with the parks and recreation master plan. He said the goal is to define the purpose of these facilities. Commissioner Price said people have told her that they want the center to be open more often. Dave Stancil said this is a challenge and the groups out in that area have different opinions about when they would like the center to be open. He said a part time staff person can be moved back out there after the summer camps are over. Commissioner McKee said there is interest by one community organization in working with the County to increase hours of the center. Chair Jacobs said the Central Orange Senior Center is already talking about a needed expansion. He said this makes it even more important to have some of these other facilities available for more services. He suggested staff denote a commitment in the CIP to show that there is a commitment to visit this issue. Paul Laughton said this can be done prior to the June 10th work session, and this will affect debt financing in years 6-10. Commissioner Gordon said she would like to discuss it first. Paul Laughton said there will be no commitment yet, but options will be presented. Year 1 (FY 2014-15) Recommended Projects County Capital Projects