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Home My WebLink About05/15/2017 CDCMINUTES OF THE JOINT SPECIAL SESSION OF THE COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION MAY 15T1; 2017 The Joint Special Session of The Community Development Corporation of the City of The Colony, Texas, was called to order at 6:30 p.m. on the 15th day of May 2017, at City Hall, 6800 Main Street, The Colony, Texas, with the following roll call: Stephen Sohn President Present Pam Nelson - Staff Kathy Braby Vice President Present Eve Morgan - Staff Donna Cole Secretary Present Kathy Neal - Staff Don Beckel Treasurer Present Jackie Kopsa - Staff Lisa Leary '.Member Present Richard Boyer, Council Liaison Dan Mahle Member Present Allen Ilarris Member Absent City Council - Mayor McCourry Present Brian Wade Present Richard Boyer Present Joel Marks Present Perry Schragg Present David Terre Present Kirk Mikulec Absent And with six board members present a quorum was established and the following items were addressed: 1.0 ROUTINE ANNOUNCEMENTS, RECOGNITIONS Call to Order 1.1 Steve called the meeting to order for CDC at 6:3 Op. m. 1.2 Mayor McCourry called the meeting to order for City Council at 6:30p.m. [:2-.0 1 WORK SESSION 2.1 Council's goals and expectations for use of CDC Funds - The Mayor expressed his appreciation to the board for their support with EDC projects. His top goal for CDC funds continues to be projects at Stewart Creek Park. Councilman Schrag - expressed his thanks to the board for their support of EDC projects. He said to do all the projects on the list and do them under budget. Councilman Terre -his #1 priority is Stewart Creek Park. The park is the identity of the city and he's excited about the fishing pier. Councilman Wade - he expressed his thanks to the board for their support with a recent EDC project. He is in favor of working on projects at Stewart Creek Park and trail projects. Ile would like to see trail projects get done soon. Councilman Boyer the board has been responsive to changing their priorities when needed. It's good to have a joint session with City Council so the Council can be informed about projects before they are presented to them for funding. The Stewart Creek Park projects are being funded from the bake Parks budget. He appreciates the board's willingness to assist with EDC projects. Councilman Marks - his goal is to make The Colony better but did not have any comments about specific projects He appreciates the boards professionalism. 2.2 CDC's proposed Capital Improvement Projects (CIP) list for Fiscal Year 2017-2018 - Some of the projects on the list were discussed -- Kids Colony Splashpad - There has been a lot of discussion in the past about this project and concerns with building this during a drought or city imposed water restrictions. Pam said that research needs to be done on how to use the water -- by capturing it into the storm drain or using a filtered, recirculating system. The board can reduce the amount of money currently set aside for the project but proceed with the design. The Council said to - move forward with a design but to proceed with caution. North Colony Practice Fields - City Council has not made a decision regarding the location of a new City Hall building. The Council has been getting complaints about the condition of the practice fields. The Parks & Rec. Dept. has recently purchased a new piece of equipment that will help make improvements to the fields without hurting the turf, but the fencing and shade structures need to be repaired or replaced. A suggestion was made to the board for them to find other locations to add fields and to also do things to make other fields more enticing. Pam explained that the BB Chuen fields are not being used for adult softball so they can be transitioned into another use. The consensus of Council is to keep the fields safe and secure so money should be spent to make necessary repairs until a decision is made regarding the relocation of City hall. Installation of fencing at the Turner Soccer Fields - The addition of a slatted fence on the north end of the fields is needed to help with the parking problems residents are experiencing they have no place to park in front of their homes because of the soccer teams. Councilman Marks has been asked why there is no place on the soccer fields for players to sit. Pam said it's because the fields get reconfigured for games and tournaments. 2.3 Stewart Creek Park Master Plan priorities — Everyone was given a revised map of the park. The hospitalityfacility has been re -named "The Grand Event Pavilion". Pam has discussed the idea of the lookout tower with the Corp of Engineers (COE) and they are open to the idea with some modifications move it inward so it is not in the water and call it a wildlife viewing tower. Moving the tower inward on the land serves a purpose for the COE and it can become an iconic marker for the city. Council agreed to consider this option but suggested it also be presented to Mathews Southwest to see if they would consider a partnership with the city to get this amenity built. Pam informed the Council that the fishing pier project is currently going through the approval process with the COE. The location of the Grand Pavilion will require more parking and infrastructure; the Mayor said it will probably be a couple years before this project could begin. 2.4 Trail Master Plan priorities (Park Loop Trail, Cascades to Grandscape, etc.) Park Loop Trail — North Colony to Frisco city limit — Pam said that Frisco has contacted us to see what our plans are for connecting to their city limits. Council suggested to move this to 2019. Park Loop Trail — Taylor field to North Colony — The Taylor to BB Owen connection that goes from Squires to Vaden is currently in design and is getting ready to go out for bid. The section south of the Taylor ball field can't be done yet because a bridge is needed to cross the channel; the best way to cross the channel is being studied because of the erosion issues. Richard said that he has been getting a lot of questions from residents regarding this part of the trail. Pam explained that the board is 2-3 years behind on completing projects that have been funded because Eve doesn't have anyone helping her. She manages all the projects, reviews all the landscaping plans for new development, and DRC plans for the city. Pam has discussed, with the city manager, the possibility of getting someone that has park planning background and landscaping to help Eve; Steve added the board is willing to pay for this position. Hiring a third party to assist would cost more money, but even hiring one person now would have a great impact. The board is making this aware to Council so they understand why there is a delay in getting projects completed. The Mayor explained that the Council does not get involved with the hiring process and suggested this continue to be discussed with the city manager. Council suggested to move the North Colony to .South Colony connection to 2018 and continue with Taylor field to North Colony. There was discussion about building a sidewalk on Squires going south to Ragan; Pam said that could be added at a later time. Preliminary trail design — Cascades to Grand Scape — This probably won't happen for 3-4 years, but the board can proceed with the design. The Mayor said the city is getting more recognition for the trails. There is a hotel that has a bike loaner program in place. Steve explained a grant program being considered to help offset the cost for local businesses to install bike racks at their locations, but a lot of research still needs to be done; a suggestion was made to get help from the Chamber of Commerce. 3.0 ADJOURN 3.1 Community Development Corporation — the meeting was adjourned at 8:21p. m. 3.2 City Council — the meeting was adjourned at 8:21p.m. Kathy Neal, Recording ecretary Steve So n,re/ient