McHenry Times

City of Harvard Park Board met May 23.

Here are the minutes provided by the board:

Chairman Jay Schulz called the meeting to order at 6:00 pm. Committee members present: Alderman John Lavallee, Alderwoman Rosa Luna, Scott Logan and Pep Saucedo. Committee members Alderman Raul Meza and Bryce Bannwolf were absent. Also present were Mayor Kelly and Supt. Ryan Knop.

Public Comment

No Comments

Approval of Minutes

A motion was made by Scott Logan, seconded by Alderwoman Luna to approve the Park Board Minutes of April 18, 2022, as presented. All ayes. Motion carried.

Project Update/Status

• Summer projects for the year are on track to be completed by the end of the year.

• Supt. Knop’s main priority for the last month is getting the pool running. The pool should be filled Thursday and the pumps ready to be fired up on Friday. The pool opening date is June 6th. Lifeguard training for the new pool employees will be in July. Supt. Knop intends to pursue lifeguard certification/lifeguard instructor training so guards can be trained in house.

• The new mower has been delivered to AHW (old Buck Brothers); however, they are waiting on a propane conversion kit which is not scheduled to be delivered until December. Supt. Knop will discuss any other possible options with AHW to see if the mower can be run on gas until the conversion kit is available without violating the warranty.

• Gazebos will be moved this summer; just waiting on getting the concrete poured.

Park Land Discussion

Milky Way Park

Chairman Schulz would like to skip the discussion on Milky Way Park until Bryce or another member of the Milk Day Board is in attendance to be part of the discussion. It was suggested that a member of the Milk Day Board be invited to attend the next meeting.

Dog Park

Supt. Knop’s recommended that the dog park be located on the northwest side of Milky Way Park. The area is underutilized by any organization and is pretty much green space that the City maintains. The area is easily accessible with adequate parking, water and bathrooms. The Board discussed charging an annual fee to use the park to help with costs and ongoing maintenance. Owners would also be required to show proof of rabies vaccination. Upon registration, owners would get a gate key and dog tag. Ryan will put together a total budget by the July meeting that would include ongoing operating costs. Ryan suggested conducting a feasibility study to find out how many people would use the park and what they would be willing to pay. The Parks Foundation is willing to cover a portion of the cost with the project to be completed in FY23/24. A motion was made by Scott Logan, seconded by Pep Saucedo to put the dog park in the northwest side of Milky Way Park. All Ayes. Motion carried.

Vandalism Report

Nothing to report.

Mayor’s Report

No additional report.

Supt. Knop’s Report

• Report as submitted.

• Supt. Knop had a conversation with Kevin at Harvard Nursery; the pool landscaping should be done this week.

• Topsoil for the StoryWalk was delivered earlier in the year.

• The pool island was planted on Thursday with mulch being spread; “natural habitat” signs will be installed.

• There was discussion about the status of closing the connection between the pool and the library.

Parks Foundation Report

Scott gave an update on the RWB Food Truck Feastival which will be held on Saturday, July 2, 2022, at Milky Way Park. The Foundation is looking for volunteers in the beer tent and for parking. There will be a golf outing on August 31st.

New Business

Pep brought up previous discussion on the status of putting automatic locks on the washrooms at Northfield. The washrooms are currently open 24/7 and cleaned/inspected every couple of days. There was also discussion of making it a family bathroom and installing a camera.

Chairman Schulz reached out to Dr. Tafoya about the garden at Lions Park. Dr. Tafoya was going to connect Jay with their ag person and sent an email to them. Chairman Schulz hasn’t received a response yet from the email and will follow up with Dr. Tafoya once school is closed. Mayor Kelly suggested putting out an appeal to the community.

Alderman Lavallee inquired about the Central School playground equipment which has been removed. Supt. Knop looked at the equipment which wasn’t in real good shape. Most likely, the equipment was scrapped.

At 6:57 pm, a motion was made by Scott Logan, seconded by Pep Saucedo to adjourn the meeting. All ayes. Motion carried.

https://www.cityofharvard.org/sites/default/files/fileattachments/parks_and_recreation_board/meeting/14602/minutesparkboard2022-05-23.pdf