03.10.2022 Parks & Rec MinutesTOWN OF
SPED.
1. Call to Order / Roll Call.
MINUTES
Regular Meeting of the
Prosper Parks and Recreation Board
Prosper Town Hall, Council Chambers
250 W. First Street, Prosper, Texas
Thursday, March 10, 2022
6:00 pm.
The meeting was called to order by John Metcalf, Chair at 6:00 PM
Board Members Present:
Chair, John Metcalf
Secretary, Matt Cely
Cameron Reeves
Matt Furay
Ty Bledsoe
Board Members Absent:
Vice -Chair, Gina Kern
Valerie Little
Staff Members Present:
Dan Baker, Director of Parks and Recreation
Matt Furr, Parks Superintendent
Paul Naughton, Parks Planning Manager
Trevor Helton, Recreation Supervisor
Patty Kendzie, Marketing Coordinator
Kaylynn Stone, Administrative Assistant
2. Consider and act upon approval of the minutes from the February 10, 2022, Parks and
Recreation Board meeting.
Motion to Approve by Bledsoe. Second by Furay. Approved 5-0.
3. Comments by the Public.
There were no comments by the public.
4. Discuss and consider a recommendation regarding a memorial for Dudley Raymond.
Naughton said this subject was discussed prior to Baker's arrival. Town Council was informed
after this prior discussion and has been discussing recommendations as well. After tonight, The
Parks and Recreation Board's recommendations will be brought to the Town Council meeting
on March 29 for further discussion. Prior recommendations included a service award, and
naming a park, whether it be First and Coit Community Park or a facility at the park. Staff
recommendations included an annual service award titled: The Dudley Raymond Service
Award, with nominations coming from the youth sports leagues and being awarded annually.
Baker requested the Board's recommendations, which will be forwarded to Town Council.
Additional suggestions are dedicating a tree in a park, for example, Lakewood Preserve, or a in
a demonstration garden; or naming a facility or playground, or archway within a park; and
"Dudley Raymond Playground" at First and Coit Community Park, as Raymond was an
advocate of inclusive playgrounds.
Bledsoe said the mission should be to tell Raymond's story and share his impact on residents,
Page 1 of 4
the community, and other communities. He suggested bringing three to four recommendations
to the Town Council.
The general consensus of the Board was to recognize Raymond with the naming of a park in his
honor.
5. Receive staff updates regarding current activities, special events, and personnel.
• Recreation Update:
Helton said the weather was great for the Fishing Derby. There were more than 600 in
attendance and 232 fish were caught. Helton thanked PondMedics, Title Sponsor. He extended
a special thank you to Reeves and Furay for volunteering their time at the event. Helton also
thanked the Prosper High School Bass Fishing Team for helping with the event. Helton said
approximately 2,200 fish were released into the pond prior to the event by the Texas Parks and
Wildlife Department (TPWD). Reeves suggested TPWD and the Prosper High School Bass
Fishing Team host a demonstration or class after the Derby to share information on fishing and
techniques.
To follow up, Helton said Town Council voted unanimously to amend the Tournament
Ordinance Fees at their March 8 meeting.
• Park Development Update:
Naughton said 911 trail markers have been placed at Whitley Place (6) and Windsong (5). This
is a pilot project. Recently, a resident used the 911 marker to let EMS know their location and
they were able to quickly find and help them. Naughton thanked Parviz Shakeri, Park Planner,
for his work with GIS and Fire Department staff to coordinate access routes to these challenging
locations. The department was awarded 1.2 million dollars of TXDOT funding for this project.
The Ribbon Cutting Ceremony at Hays Park is coming up on March 24.
• Director's Update:
Baker said he presented the new Discover Downtown Series of events to Town Council at their
March 8 meeting. Town Council asked Parks and Recreation to produce events to help
residents gain familiarity with downtown Prosper businesses. More than $20,000 was funded
through the Council and the Economic Development Corporation added $25,000.
The first event will be an outdoor "pop-up" movie on April 23, featuring a showing of Encanto in
the Town Hall parking lot. Staff received input from the Downtown Business Alliance regarding
producing the downtown events. Additional events in the series will be live music in June, a kids'
event in July, and a dog event in September.
Upcoming Calendar Items:
Hays Park Ribbon Cutting Ceremony, March 24 at 10:00 am.
Windmill Playground's 10th-anniversary celebration is on May 20.
The Council meeting has been moved from March 22 to March 29.
The Citizen's Academy will be hosted at the Parks Operation facility on Prosper Trail on March
31 from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm.
The Parks and Recreation Board on April 14 will be held at The 407 Rec Center.
Baker said the department received direction that the property formerly known as Sexton Park
Page 2 of 4
will be referred to First and Coit Community Park until an official name is approved. Reeves
suggested it would be good if a Parks and Recreation Board member was appointed to serve on
the alliances and committees as the park is developed. Metcalf asked for the topic to be placed
on a future Agenda.
• Park Operations Update:
Furr said improvements have been made at First and Coit Community Park that included
clearing a parking lot, realigning fencing, and building planter boxes and a mowed trail (roughly
2 miles) throughout the whole park where patrons can enjoy nature. Furr said the parking lot is
the best starting point for the trail. A Purple Martin house has been installed along the trail.
The sports fields are being maintained. Pigmentation has been added to the grass on fields 2, 3,
and 4. Metcalf asked if there were spot tests on certain fields. Furr said yes and the timing to
place the pigment is currently being considered.
On the rye fields, Parks crews lay grass and then apply darker organic dirt on top so the soil
heats up faster. Furr started that as the grass transitions it actually takes the pigment into the
leaf tissues and it stays. The grass will begin to grow when the soil is around sixty degrees.
Furr also said there are roughly 6 '/z acres planted for butterfly gardens. During year two of the
garden being planted in Whitley place, outside contractors came in and shredded the area.
They are now in year 3 of the garden being there and are seeing great results. In the Folsom
area, (Colt Pond to White River) the entire easement is lined with butterfly foliage. There are
also gardens at Cedar Grove Park on the west side and at Hays Park around the pavilion.
Also, pecan trees are being added to Pecan Grove Park. It is a slow process, yet progress is
being made. Parks Operations currently has two positions open. Maintenance has gone into
Frontier Park this year including new doors and new paint and the pavilions will be re -stained
this spring.
• Marketing Update:
Kendzie showed the analytics from digital communications in February, including Open Rates.
Cely and Metcalf said the rates look well above the industry standard. The Facebook page
reaches the most people and has 5,752 Followers since the page was created in 2018.
Subscribers to The Landscape and the Senior Scene increased by 25% in 2021.
She also commented on the success of the videos filmed by the Board members and thanked
Furay, Little, Metcalf, and their families for participating. The videos significantly increased
attention to the Mayor's Fitness Challenge.
A project also in the works is the application for the Prosper Christmas Festival Tier 1 Sponsors
(Platinum, Silver, and Gold levels).
Additional marketing efforts are being devoted to the Discover Downton Series, Windmill
Playground's 10th anniversary, Mayor's Coffee for Active Adults, and Summer Camps.
Metcalf stated that the more activities going on with Parks and Recreation, the more you will
continue to see the reach/likes/clicks rise. Metcalf said job well done and he is looking forward
to more increases and reach. He also suggested it might be nice to interview some of the
citizens that remember the park being built for the Windmill Playground's 10th anniversary.
Kendzie agreed.
Page 3 of 4
6. Request for future agenda items.
Metcalf requested adding the topic of representation in the Downtown Business Alliance, PYSC,
or any other organization where engagement will be beneficial.
7. Adjourn.
Motion to Approve by Cely. Second by Reeves. Approved 5-0.
Adjourned at 7:05 pm.
J `
John Metcalf, Chair
Page 4 of 4