good afternoon welcome to the June 17th uh subcommittee on climate sustainability and Workforce Workforce um we will rise to salute the flag I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the unit stand nation under God indivisible liberty and justice for all yet to get over the nerves of being up here um R roll call of the members of the subcommittee councelor greo SAA here here councelor McKenna here here councel noeli is absent councelor sylvestri is absent and chairman Haro here here Quorum is present there's one motion on this evening's agenda motion presented by councilors Haro and Gino SAA that the city council ordered to a public Hearing in ordinance further amending the revised ordinances of the city of Rivier establishing a program to divert waste from landfills and incinerators to offset waste disposal costs councelor gorino SAA thank you councelor Mr chairman okay so we put this Motion in together I'm really thrilled to be honest with you um the oldest trash incinerator in the country not only creates harmful emissions but it's an also dangerous Ash that winds up in the unline dash jump in a very fragile ecosystem this is part of Romy Marsh anyone who cares about our environment will vote Yes anyone who cares about the health of its resident especially in the point of pines and Riverside will vote Yes in the long run it will save the city millions and millions of dollars Community composting can help alleviate the amount of trash that gets sent to win one major benefit of composting for me is that is what is added to the soil it's an effective way to deal with flooding as it filters through the soil and holds more water as a councilwoman representing Ward five this would be essential as we are surrounded by the coast and homeowners are at risk due to coastal flooding in climate change thank you thank you councelor MC thank you um I think this is great ordinance um I am uh we have every other city is doing it why we why not us so um um I really I'm I'm definitely in favor of this thank you thank you anyone wishing to speak all right name and address for the record thank you Paul agenzio 245 Reservoir Avenue uh councelor from Ward 4 uh Mr chairman members um working for the DPW for all these years uh I think anything that will divert waste out of the waste system the waste stream is an excellent idea and I applaud you for this uh motion um we definitely need to to start thinking outside the box and come up with Solutions uh to our trash recycling uh we had a little discussion about this at the um ways and means committee meeting the budget about diverting mattresses out of the way stream because it's cost so much um R is fortunate uh R does not have pay as you throw uh trash fees uh we're very lenient uh we try to support the residents uh as much as we can but it is getting extremely expensive so I applaud this and and in full support thank you thank you anyone else wishing to speak Council Kelly name and welcome um I think this is great I am in support of it but I looking over the ordinance I just have a couple of questions um the 30% of all waste from Trad traditional waste disposal mechanisms can potentially save the city millions of dollars in traditional waste disposal are we basing this on specific data from other cities and if so do we know which ones um thank you that's a great question and we have some experts in the crowd so great do you have more questions I do okay do you want to one question at a time or what do we want to do here for our experts sure so come on hi everyone here come name and address of the record hi everyone Cindy lupy I'm the National Field director for clean water action and I live just over the line in winth so I'm excited to be here tonight the um figure around 30% of our overall waste coming from food scraps and Organics uh is a Statewide figure um so you know could vary slightly from Riv but um all the communities that the state as a whole uh about 30% of the waste that is currently going to uh trash burners and to uh landfills is organic food scraps so we're saying an average of 30% um great thank you because I I gather there'll be more questions we'll need your help maybe thank you for that answer I appreciate that um so do and I'm wondering if we basically have some kind of an approximation of how many people we think May en role in this program um in terms of you know so we could get kind of an idea on percentages of what we think the participation rate would be sure thank you um I don't know if someone from the crowd has some information on that around that councelor Kelly I can say that um we we don't have an approximation per se but we can say that once we get to a critical mass of enrollment uh the prices do reduce significantly uh some the you know the ordinance um as written will allow the mayor the leeway to kind of have those conversations with vendors to do the work and kind of tell us what the best price is etc etc uh to determine uh exactly what the best Sprint vendor will be and okay so so then this will be a revolving fund that's how this will this that's the mechanism that this will so in part at least $225,000 of this program will be Divergent from the mitigation funds from our current waste program which we just authorized okay um and this is going to be a completely opt-in program correct correct yeah so this is 100% optional uh this is not an added tax or no one is paying extra out of this unless they want to enroll okay and um just in terms of the process this will be a curbside pickup correct this will be a week uh as um or as written in the ordinance or in the potential ordinance it would be a weekly curbside pickup correct okay and so will the containers be offered the containers will be so currently curbside pickup programs of this kind the vendor will provide the container sometimes they'll even provide a container within for your in for inside your home or for your home a smaller container for like immediate food scraps and uh this will be a weekly curbside pickup and I understand that there will be a builtin um reduction in rate or fee for senior citizens correct yeah there's a light uh there was there's a light a sliding scale which again will also um which has some some stipulations but will'll also be at the um at the pleasure of the mayor uh for folks who are in a fixed income or who are uh senior citizens correct okay and it does the ordinance does list that there will be a department in charge of implementing the composting program so do we is that going to be absorbed into one of the Departments that we already have or is that going to be a newly created Department um I think whatever the mayor feels free to do okay and then we're also looking for demographics and of enrollment I can understand if we're offering a senior citizen discount that we would want that demographic but what is is there reasoning behind um additional demographic information I think we want to make sure that we're tracking this program fully um first who we're serving you know e we track like we do with any City many city services we track uh racial gender social and economic data uh for the purposes of being able to expand the program or reduce the program um depending on the need okay I I don't I don't really see the um connection there as to why that would be necessary so that would be I don't know I don't I don't think that would be necessary um and then my last question just for my own edification purposes and doing some more research with this would this be a company like black Earth compost is that one of the vendors that it would be some you know could be providing Services you know the ordinance uh essentially asks the mayor to do an RFP and RFQ process and whoever it may be it may be okay correct all right thank you appreciate thank you councelor call hello Mr chair uh name and address for the record at Terell 70 SCH Street Ria Mass um do we have an opinion from the Board of Health about this because we're talking about food sources and rats and raccoon like raccoons can open they have thumbs they can open containers really easily and you know we just came out of one pandemic and rats act as a reservoir for other diseases I would just feel comfortable getting their opinion and then in terms of containers I'd like to recommend the containers be made out of metal because um rats can chew right through the plastic and they if you have guinea pigs the same thing they they have to shopen their teeth all the time they go right through plastic so maybe we could get metal containers other than that I think it's a great idea thank you thank you name and address for the record Anthony pale 51 Arcadia Street Mr chairman members of the committee I'm curious if the city could pick up the tab so if the city is going to save on its trash disposal the people that are paying for composting they don't really see any savings but let's say I don't do it I might see savings and I don't even use it you do you know what I'm saying so you're going to be charging residents or residents will have to pay to get rid of their composting I don't see how that's I almost feel like it's unfair I feel like the city should look at making it a part of their trash removal program if the if the city wants to make an effort to lower its cost if in fact this would lower the cost I I'm not an expert on that I don't know what the trucking cost is to haul that stuff out of here and to take it where it needs to go but if it's going to lower the cost of rubbish removal why should people have to pay for it thanks thank you Mr chair if I may yes in the motion it actually states that we would be looking for Grants and whatever the mayor could find that could help us pay for it so it may it may well be that the city would be picking up the tab for it so it this is just the early stages thank you thank you Council green so why name and address for the uh Letta lentra 30 John Avenue in Rivier uh I want to thank uh councelor sa Gino and of course youan for the proposal for the composting um I live in the Riverside and am directly impacted by the wind waste incinerator there was actually a present presentation done in sagus last week uh where a gentleman from mte came in uh regarding a potential air quality monitor being installed in sagus and they discovered With the Wind uh direction that the PO of pines and Riverside neighborhoods are the most impacted area from that incinerator so anything that we can do to reduce the amount of um trash that goes there and and you know the figure is 30% that can be taken out of the waist stream and composted that's so very important this incinerator being the oldest incinerator in the country there are currently changes to EPA regulations going on right now that oversee incinerators and potentially that incinerator is going to have to close if they can't meet the new standards so anything that we can do to divert this type composting material really needs to be looked at and I appreciate you forward thinking folks who are trying to do that for the city of rier thank you so much thank you name and address for the record hi everyone uh Cindy lupy uh field director for clean water action um and I live just over the the Border in winre and I'm here speaking about behalf of our R me Riv members so we are thrilled that Rivier is considering uh expanding a a food scrap diversion and composting program uh this is one of the uh often Overlook sources of global warming pollution that is very significant in the state um uh food scraps create methane emissions and landfills and methane is 80 times more potent a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide so it's actually a very significant problem to tackle and really give rever all kinds of praise for considering this in part because like wi th uh Rivier is a Coastal Community and the more that we can do to reduce emissions over the long run that the more resilient as a community will we'll all be um a few things about what other communities have experienced moving forward with these kinds of programs S I know there's always a a really smart instinct to look into the feasibility and costs of these kind of programs and one of the first communities that moved forward uh with a compost program that that featured curbside pickup was Manchester um Manchester has experienced reduced Solid Waste costs because tipping fees for regular trash pickup are more expensive than they found the composting pickup to be so um that's trending in the right direction and is is good news for all of us uh the other thing that they have found is that there have not been significant public health or um or ER rodent issues in part because the uh containers for compost are very similar to the containers for typical garbage and it's really just the difference between putting the food scrap in one container versus the other that are very similar in makeup so there isn't an increased burden for communities which again is uh good news for all of us um also want to flag that this is an excellent time for communities to be looking at into these programs because the EPA has just launched a grant program to assist communities particularly um low-income and bipo communities with uh startup fees and transitional costs for getting these programs going uh so there there will be federal funds that that can help offset local costs and uh this is also a commitment that the state of Massachusetts has made overall by the middle of the century to get to 100% zero Waste in Massachusetts which means that we need to be keeping all food scrap out of incinerators and landfills on our way to to me meeting that mid-century goal so this is a great program we're really excited that communities of across the state are looking into it and particularly given how close we are to the wind inator and sagus it's a really beautiful statement that river is making that they want to help solve waste problems and reduce en environmental health burdens so a lot of support and appreciation for your leadership and we hope that every community in Massachusetts who isn't already composting follows your lead thank you permission to speak from the chair um cie can I just grab you for a second sorry thank you and really appreciate the work of um that you do at clean water action and all the members that you serve here in the city of river um you know I think it's refreshing to see the organizing work and the hundreds and thousands of people that you serve not just in rier but throughout the Commonwealth in the in the country um you mentioned something about D and being able to provide some transitional costs and other startup costs for uh composting programs there was a question presented earlier relative to uh being able to track demographic data on this program um relative to this uh ordinance uh do you think that for in order for the city to be be able to app apply for these grants that data would be important to maintain in the ordinance I would imagine yes most of the uh EPA grants that we've been looking at for a variety of um programs require some uh basic demographic information and usually they score uh the information provided it it can be part of what information strengthens the grant proposal so it uh communities that do provide that that information are usually better positioned to ultimately get the federal grants thank you anyone else wishing to speak okay baring hearing none um sorry one sec uh the chair asked for bran to speak again oh sorry uh name and address for the record Robert H 161 Fenley street I was just wondering in regards to seniors I know um the city's been pretty good about this in the past uh will there be some kind of informational program for people willing to learn or people that are interested but don't know too much about it maybe something online maybe like a half hour ad or a program that they could watch and kind of learn about exactly what compost thing is thank you thank you um yeah so the ordinance uh and I can't remember exactly where in the ordinance but it actually allocates some funds some resources to some Outreach uh for the educational purposes of this program uh within that of course our senior citizens um or our our folks in the Elder Community uh agent Community um Mr chairman yes able to speak please um councilor has um we could put it on R TV um they have uh the Water I they have it's always constantly running but they have all this information and news on uh the uh rier channel so we could put it on there too I think and just educate the people I we could go in schools and educate the kids so bring Flyers home to their parents I mean there's so many ways we could do this great thank you thank you councilor h okay any motions on the [Music] floor councel Guin no s thank you Mr chair um I'd like to add language I'd like to put in a motion to add language that asks the mayor to have D and um what's the other one um EPA yeah EPA um look for Grants app yeah to apply for Grants through them on the floor to direct the federal funding right what section are you amending hold on to Zer is it the revolving yeah do it out of the Revol in account so directing the mayor to apply for DP and EPA transitional and uh operational grants I'm sorry one more time D and EPA and EPA Y transision and operational composting Grant transition operational composing yeah the counselor will get you some better language if it's helpful once we you so the amendment uh presented by councelor Greeno SAA that section 810.02 program design shall be amended by inserting a new subsection e that the mayor be directed to apply for D and EPA transitional and operational composting grants is it okay yes thank you on that on that motion roll call on the on the amendment councilor Gino SAA yes yes councel McKenna yes yes council noeli is absent councelor sylvestri is absent and chairman Haro yes yes the amendment has been approved um recommendation to report out for a public hearing all right so move right great and then a journ that's it all right no further business no further business this means a journ thank you e e e e e e e e e e e good evening welcome to the June 17th Parks and Recreation subcommittee meeting I'd like to begin the meeting by proudly saluting our flag IED to the flag the United States of America to the for stands one nation indivisible liy and justice for all rooll Club the members of the subcommittee councelor Gino SAA here here councelor H here here councel Haro here here councelor McKenna here here and uh chairwoman Kelly here here corm is presid madam clerk I believe we have one item on the agenda for this evening yes this is a motion presented by councilors Haro and Areno that the city council ordered to a public hearing the following ordinance for the purpose of increasing safety by expanding recreational opportunities for young people an ordinance further amending chapter 257 Parks and Recreation Department at the revised ordinances of the city of rier any subcommittee meeting uh members wishing to speak Madame chairwoman thank you uh for putting this on the agenda uh we are looking uh counselors AR janio and I uh are do are looking to um make our city more accessible to our uh parents and uh young people uh we know and we applaud the work of the Parks and Recreation Department as it stands but as we continue to grow we want to be able to Pro continue to provide the department the tools uh and the public the um information needed to be able to fully enjoy our Parks our Fields um and our open space so uh with that you know approve it and let's go just kidding thank you Council Haro any other counselors wishing to speak permission to speak from the chair thank you um I do have a few questions um so the ordinance does mention um a director I'm wondering if this director is already a paid position that we have yeah this is uh as it so in the definitions which we now include in the ordinance per this motion um the director position means the director of parks and of the Parks and Recreation Department of the city of Riv who shall have the general supervision of the department who I believe our current director is Michael HOSA who's here with us today um and so in the definition section you'll find on many of those uh so the director is currently our current director does not change that job title thank you and one more question the light schedule I noticed that that will be changing will that be more um costly or or more cost effective for the city that's a that's a great question and I think that um you know that'll I'm sure that there will be an added cost to the light fees but I think then you know uh later on in the conversation we can ask that those lights be equipped with solar panels so that they're uh self-sufficient which would also come at a cost initially okay thank you um and the the live calendar would there be is there a designated person already that would be um responsible for updating that um The Madam this uh ordinance gives the director quite a bit of latitude as to relates to who does which part right and I think that uh a testament to and a recognition of the good work that the chair the director has been doing for as many years as he's been serving our community um that he as the parks and wreck professional can decide who the best person on his staff might be for that okay thank you and um section 060 the um seven members that will be appointed by the mayor I'm not quite sure um designating you know one male one female one youth I I think maybe we would want an opinion by attorney capes as to if we can do that or not and what his opinion of that would be in terms of how we comprise the members Madam chair you know this is an amendment to the current ordinance this particular section here I believe these things are already in our in our ordinance um the clerk might be able to help me out with the citation on on what it says exactly as it relates to the commission I just believe that our commission hasn't been too active of late uh and we're actually um just trying to revamp this particular portion I actually have a copy of the ordinance as it stands and I don't see that language in there um well then I I will stand corrected if that is um that is the case but does yeah it looks like definitely have for further consideration at least two such members shall be women one shall be yeah it looks like it it it speaks to that issue but it is changed um so I would just like to make sure that those changes are okay um and then also in the next section 0.070 it looks like we're um reflecting a June 1 2024 date so that doesn't make sense right now because we've already passed the June 1 deadline so we might want to change that date yeah I mean I think that you know this is all pending approval right okay and then in the um 0.090 section it does The Heading does mention fees but there are no fees reflected in the section yes so are we planning to add a fees schedule further down the line I think that's what we're asking the director to kind of tell us right and to make public is what is the fee schedule so that the public knows exactly what to expect when they go to rent a field uh you know and that there isn't any variances in not that there I'm not suggesting there has been but I think so the public is fully prepared with all the information they need when they go to apply to make our Parks and Rec as accessible as we can uh let there be a fee schedule um that is publicly posted that we know about that we may adjust as the city council if the need be or the director May adjust depending on the departmental needs okay so there would be no need for that fee schedule to be reflected in the ordinance it would not be because it would be a regulatory matter not a statutory matter okay and then my last question um section 2.57 .08 labor force it looks like that section is included in the original ordinance and is not being deleted in the new um as a new ordinance change and it does speak to labor force and it does mention um a labor force to consist of such personnel as may be appointed by the mayor and provided for by the city council um I'm not sure what personnel if if these are already existing Personnel positions or if they're going to be newly created if there's cost and salaries involved and probably that language should be amended to say and approved by the city council I'm not quite sure why it would say and provided for by the city council Madam chairwoman so you know this this particular ordinance is on that point this is um you know this is certainly something we can change if we so wish but the ordinance has written as mute on that particular section and happen to discuss further as to how to best make it fit should should that section be deleted then I mean I don't have any strong passions about it I I would ask the mayor maybe or uh Mr mosa who's here with us to give us an opinion on that particular section or maybe the clerk I don't know if anyone with the subject matter expertise has the section that where you see chairwoman Kelly where you see prior revision section 2- 102.1 at the bottom of that ordinance in the original language that means it's very very old we're talking either from the 1956 Edition or 1973 edition of the city ordinances okay well I I think we should amend possibly amend that to have that section deleted if if it is unnecessary if everyone is in agreement with theary Madam chair sorry so to be clear we're adding a section to uh this ordinance that deletes this particular language is that right actually the ordinance that you submitted has a section 070 and then a section 090 it does not speak to section 0080 so it it I would assume then that you your intent was that it remain in full force and effect however if it if it should be deleted then maybe we should delete it is what I'm saying yeah I mean I think the way that this ordinance is written is uh to speak on the things that we're trying to amend not to the things that we're not trying to amend not saying I you know I don't have strong passs about that particular section if if we if the if the will of the subcommittee is that we need to add that into this ordinance to strike that language then sure and considering the fact that this is such an old ordinance and going back to my previous um point about the um demographics that are listed here in terms of the makeup of the members um I I I would would feel more comfortable if we get an opinion from attorney Capi on exactly how that should be reflected councilor renzio thank you madam uh chairwoman and thank you members um I sponsored this motion along with uh uh councilor Haram Mio uh the par commission is something that has existed for years in fact I was a member of that uh commission for quite a few years uh but prior Mayors never really uh filled it with enough members to have a viable meeting uh so we seek to rec restructure that group uh create a diverse group of residents uh a strictly Advisory Group uh that would sit with the director Mr HOSA and have public input on programs on policy and make it a a healthier uh exchange and have input from the public the uh Council on Elder Affairs has much the same commission uh there's a group of seniors that meet with the director they give their opinion on programs and policies that they like to see in effect and it just makes for a better input from the public uh it's advisory only and uh it takes Noth Authority away from the current director in fact most cities and towns have a viable uh committee PX commission uh we are probably in the minority uh especially a city of our size that doesn't have such a committee again diverse group of people I we could certainly ask for an opinion from U Mr capy if some of the things in there aren't quite correct uh I know the old ordinance did speak to males and females spoke to having somebody um represent the youth and represent organized Sports uh so I I think that just makes a a a healthier situation now as far as uh public field use uh these are public fields that the everybody every taxpayer has the right to uh enjoy the parks department does an excellent job right now of giving out permits uh um collecting fees renting out to different groups and a lot of money is collected that goes directly back into the department and it funds A lot of the things that we enjoy right now and I wouldn't want that Disturbed in any in any way uh but a calendar as uh Council harino suggests and I suggest uh would just give the public a chance to go online have some dates that they can they know they can go use a basketball court a soccer field the baseball field um it's public everyone's supposed to be enjoying it and I think that would go a long way um for the general public one of the complaints that I received over April school vacation um a father and his son and a few other uh kids from the neighborhood went behind St Mary's to griswell fields and uh they were going to bat some balls around and all the fields were padlocked so we're essentially locking out uh people from using public open space so I think that's one of the things that the commission could work on create some policies uh create some suggestions uh I know being with the uh DPW for all these years uh it is very challenging to keep our parks and playgrounds in good in good order uh somebody goes through it with a dirt bike uh irresponsible dog owners uh have their dogs run on the air don't pick up after him the baseball team um takes the field and there's dog droppings I understand that but the answer can't be lock out the public so I I think these uh suggestions in the in the in the motion I think will go a long way in in helping out with these situations I agree it's a very old ordin that's probably from the 50s you can see the way it's worded but I think these changes are what we should focus on um I think most ordinances in the city could use a a going over uh and bring them up to date uh so uh if you could I'd like to see this go to a public hearing and thank you for your consideration thank you madam chair I Council has thank you madam chair so when I worked at the senior center we did have as councelor agenzio touched on this we did have a senior senior board um a senior councel and we met once a month with them it was probably a group of about 11 to I think it was 11 sometimes less um based on attendance but they would go over events at the senior center they if they thought the party was too much last month and they weren't happy with the food and they would give their opinions based on certain events we had and I don't think a commission is a bad idea um I would say the senior Council had a number of female members and I believe only two male numbers and they didn't put that as a requirement before that they needed a certain amount of males and females that's just kind of how it shook out but um I'm not sure how if we could do that like um someone had said before if but it wouldn't hurt to get a group of like-minded residents um that are involved maybe that could um give an opin opinion on what they would like to see and maybe in this you know in the city for future programming and the rec does a great job currently um I know my wife and I take our son and daughter to more or less every wreck event um this past week we went to chalk it up and the rec does a great job including all the kids and there's always room for to add certain programs and I think that's something that could definitely be looked at with the addition of a board I will say in regards to a calendar when I worked at the school department I did have access to the I believe it was easy facility so you could see the lineup of events that the wreck had scheduled throughout schools and Fields my only concern with putting the calendar out to the public is if we say the whel and Fields open or the stadium or the turf is open from 4 to 8 on Thursday night you might have a soccer coach with 10 to 15 kids say all right let's go here the fields open when you may have had a family of five or you know two families getting together saying the field is open let's go down to the field and play catch kick the ball around run around the field they get there and a coach is there with 15 kids and they're out numbered and they're not going to kick the team out obviously because of the numbers but um that's the only main concern I have with putting the calendar out there I don't think it would hurt to let people know what fields are open or if we had designated times um but that is my lone concern with that thank you Council McKenna thank you Mr chairman um back in the day when Bob McCarr was uh in uh Parks and Recreation and I was like 21 years old and we um played softball we had to go up to Parx and Recreation and he had a calendar and we had to um if we wanted a fields we have we had to go up and reserve it and it was wonderful you know um I understand uh What uh council aass is saying but you know uh if the field is open if the field is big enough then it's R for maybe a soccer soccer team and a family of five uh I just think that um if the field is open we shouldn't be giving we shouldn't be handing out asking for fees um and allowing people to just go in there and and uh uh you know just do what they have to do so uh but um before online uh the calendar was at The Parks and Recreation and we had to go in there and and uh you know make sure that the field was open so uh either way um I I think it's a great great idea the calendar thank you councelor thank you um Madam chairwoman yeah so um just want to touch base about some points from uh section two of the ordinance not of the chapter of sorry of the motion not of the chapter but section two uh ask the director in conversation with the commission to uh to outline a policy that prioritizes rever residents and nonprofit organizations um for the useage of the fields um and you know I think the beauty about the commission I know that there's been some concern about like how often they meet etc etc I think the beauty of the commission is the motion mandates that the commission meet to set forth these regulations and best practices which I'm sure the um the department is already implementing uh but just set forth them make them public and then they don't have to meet ever again unless the direct unless the director makes a you know wants to make an amendment right and so um you know of course they should and they could meet and they could make recommendations to the to the to the director but uh this really allows the professionals at the parks and recck Department to to run a a shop that doesn't have a great deal of interference from uh a commission while still having very important Community voice um and so you know just to address some of those concerns and then um yeah and then just a concern about the free play of course we ask that in the regulations that we're asking the commission to promulgate uh or the commission and the director to promate um that we prioritize free play and folks from the city right um so yeah thank you councelor Ginos thank you thank you madam chair I um like counselor has and councelor McKenna touched upon I agree with that live calendar because with the live calendar it allows us to be transparent and inclusive and I remember years ago when you did have to sign in if you needed to use the park and it brings me back and this this would be a great way to be inclusive and then when you're speaking about um having that commission I love the way it is lined up over here because you're being inclusive with everybody you're you're not giving six women like um councelor H was talking about which they have an entire board on the the senior board that that are all women and only two men right now you're you're giving everybody an opportunity it's an equal opportunity for everyone to be involved and I agree with having a youth person and and I think this is the best route to go and so I would not touch this I would leave it exactly the way it is is thank you thank you madam chair councilor house thank you madam chair so councelor SAA brings up a great Point um the reason that I brought up the senior board and the number of females as opposed to number of males on the senior Council was that the senior the senior center is more I don't want to say it's not there are more a lot more female members with this with the commission the way it's being Bas in the the motion here um it would be more reflective of the community as a whole everybody goes to the wreck events young kids teenagers there are students that work at the wreck um families go um a lot of people have history with the wreck department Joanne McKenna brought up Ace mccarrick um I worked at the wreck as a young kid Ace and John po were my first bosses along with Helen Papa but I do remember people walking into the office to find out if it field was was optional you know a field was open and if they could get in there and nobody wants to see the um the kids and families on the fields and in the gyms probably more than me but along with my fellow counselors but as I am I'm trying to work out weekend work out but anytime we can get our residents on the fields and in the gym I I think that's a good thing thank you thank you um any further comments from subcommittee Members CH uh are we after we have someone else to speak from the public uh is that when we'll offer up motions or amendments okay sounds good thank you I was going to go to members of the public next members of the public how are you uh Michael H host a 37 ailia place I'm the director of Parks and Recreation um I've just been sitting listening and um it seems like there could have been some maybe um questions directed towards me or questions for uh some of the motions that have been put in but I did want to touch upon the public calendar for a little bit um so I've been tasked with a you know $7 million you know Harry delar ruso stadium that we built um $5 million that we spent on uh Griswald Park okay so those are two facilities that we want to keep and maintain for a long period of time in our city that we we can't keep building things without protecting them um coun Areno brought up a great Point um and I know he's seen it a lot in his career um when we leave those facilities unlocked um dog owners are not very responsible um everybody says they're responsible dog owner they're not um we've come down there our bases have been ripped out um um our plugs have been ripped out holes dug um they dogs really do you know a disservice to our facility ities we have kids on there every single night so I would argue that the community is using those facilities and they're using them in organized sport okay um and that's the reason that those places are lock during the day um and in response to the person who couldn't go down and use St Mary's literally a 5 minute walk away would have been SBA where we don't lock up so we have plenty facilities we have plenty of open space throughout our community that people can organically play so the live calendar really only is an effect for Harry deluso maybe Griswald park or um the other lit field that we have at Ry Marsh Academy those turf fields every other facility that we have and I say facility but every other open space has very very few rentals other than maybe a team here or a team there um I would argue that you could go to Fred Frederick's Park in Beachmont and play anything that you want any day anytime until it gets dark out I would argue that at Paul rer school I would argue that at Gibson Park um Susan B Anthony's got a little bit of activity there just because of what it is so um there is a reason that we do not have a live calendar um not to keep anything away from the community um but it we have thought about this and we've it's not something that this is not new to us um but we just felt like there would be so many people to show up and maybe not pay take their team down there um I can tell you that if we had a soccer organization and they have two or 300 kids in their soccer organization and they saw an open time slot they would be there maybe combined with another organization so we're not talking about 10 or 15 people bringing down kids we could be talking about whole organizations so that's why we don't keep a live calendar and that's why everything goes runs through me um I think you heard councelor house talk about our facility easy facility um Paul Areno has had access to it until till January um so it's not like it I mean it it's public for us but easy facility allows us to um communicate with DPW allows us to communicate with communicate with the custodians on how we rent fields and who is in and out of there um our as the light schedule you guys make a good point um Harry deluso does have lights on their basketball courts we keep them open until 9:00 on most nights um those basketball courts are put into a uh residential area it takes us a long time at night to ask those kids to leave so from a permitted standpoint for me it's a lot easier when things are permitted and they've come through me um because we have coaches down there they protect the facility they protect our assets we get people on and off that way organically at the stadium um becomes a little bit of a mess for us uh because we have no one controlling no parents down there um and then like even from a basketball court standpoint getting back to that point is that once we get them out of the facility they literally walk around come back up Forwood have trespass onto I wish I knew her name but they go down her driveway because it's a shorter fence to hop back into the stadium so we have people trespassing and then of course they are on that Court until sometimes all hours of the night so we've had many complaints from that neighborhood so we try to shut it down at a reasonable hour people don't want lights blaring in their thing so usually you know 9 or 10:00 is when we wrap things up so I don't know if that helped clarify some of the questions that that we have but um I would make a point that I am desperately trying to maintain our most expensive assets while still having free play at all these other places thank you um so could I ask you a question is it of course so then is it your opinion that a live calendar is not in is not the best use it's it's you'd rather not I have as the Director of the department I like as a director of Department we have studied this um and I just think for our community that it just doesn't work we don't have we're we're not we don't have a lot of Green Space where we have to as much as possible um so I think a live calendar does not allow us to control it the way we want to control it okay you know currently we have the stadium rumy Marsh Academy as our two turf fields that are lit every night at 6 o'clock there's 200 kids on those fields right now so okay and then one other question that I have this ordinance would change um the lighting schedule no earlier Public Safety official shut the lights at at all of the outdoor space facilities in the sitting barrowing a special permit no earlier than 900 p.m. Monday through Thursday evenings and 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday evenings is that statement agreeable to you or no yeah you're you're fine with that because you did mentioned um for the two of the three properties for two of the three assets Griswald Park in the stadium we have control by our phones so um the rumy marsh Academy turfield has to be powered on someone actually has to physically go down there and flick a switch so um but that's the way it's been running for a long period of time um we did have a grant earlier we had some money that we were going to upgrade the lights so that we could control all of the lights so you know based upon that schedule that we have out there but uh for the most part the DPW is the ones that are going down there and um turning that light on and off every night and they have access to the schedule so they know when the last rental is at 8:00 9:00 or 10:00 so the the 1000 p.m. specifically on Friday and Saturday evenings would not pose a problem to the neighborhood surrounding the stadium the stadium is built into a into a community a residential Community right so yes 10:00 would be the max that we would want to turn those lights off but we would start to have people exit at 9:30 just to make sure that we got people out of there thank you madam chair oun Council McKenna thank you thank you uh Mr hoso um so right now uh the stadium they shut off the lights at 9:00 am I right not 10 o00 it just depends on the rental okay so but do you keep the lights on at 10 o'clock at times yes if there's a rental like Tuesdays Tuesdays and Thursdays they're on until 10:00 because I know I know we have a rental there every and I know it's surround it's surrounded by a community so I mean if I lived across the street from the stadium and you know I was an early I went to bed early at 9:30 and I had that glare in my window I wouldn't like it um so I would just say if you're going to limit it to I think we should just limit it to um Tuesdays and and Thursdays you said that it's hard once if the lights is on the kids still stay but once the lights are off you know I mean it's hard for them to disperse uh and once once the light are off they start dispersed because you can't play basketball unless the street lights you know um at 10:00 at night so I just think we should just keep it the way it is and uh not change it I I understand that we're trying to give more to the community but if we we we're we might be given more to the community but we're also taking uh away from the community so I mean you know it's like what do we do so I would say it's working keep it the way it is I understand and listen I live in Beachmont that Frederick's Park is open all the time and people are playing on it I mean there was a big gig Sunday I don't know if you got a permit but I mean they were playing until 7 o'clock at night till they couldn't see anymore so you do I know you have fills open I think we should just keep it the way it is and protect our assets you're talking about a $7 million uh Paul rier Stadium or whatever it is now uh in uh gisell Park so you know $5 million at griswell is it $5 million at griswell something like that yeah so I mean let's protect our assets and keep it it's working keep it the way it is and I understand the make maker of the Motions just want to give to the community but what we we might be taking away from the community too by keeping the Lights On by the kids screaming and yelling I mean that's equality of life it's you know so and if it's working it's working so that's how that's what I feel thank you thank you I and and I just want one last comment I'm not trying to take away from from the motion um I think we do everything we can to make sure that kids are play right um it and we and there's nothing better than organic play okay nothing better than grabbing 12 of your friends and going down and playing stickball or block ball or whatever we used to play when we were kids right nobody wants that more than me um but I do have a job of protecting some of the assets that we have I think the maybe the next the better question is you know how do we get more lights in the city I mean I think you've seen me stand up here before and ask for other facilities to have um light so that we can help engage more more play and more activity in in the places that aren't Community Based so that that's what I would say if you have any other questions I'll be more than happy to answer or councelor H thank you madam chair I think councelor McKenna brought up a great Point um Mr henos will know I spent a ton of time down Griswald field with with uh my t-ball team the owls but um I believe what councelor McKenna said is very important we have to make sure to protect protect the spots like Griswald in the stadium and I also think it's a fine line too like councelor McKenna said we leave the lights on a little later it affects 15 to 20 neighbors their sleep's affected takes the takes everyone an hour later to get out of there on Fridays and Saturdays um you know it causes an issue in in in the neighboring in the houses um around that that field so it is a fine line like councelor McKenna said and that's that's a great point and that's one that we have to work to balance um maybe we have organic play at a designated field or we can put something out tell residence if you're interested in playing you want to run around this Field's always open no one's ever here you know I know there's a couple of fields like that like at SBA if there's no baseball or softball The Field's wide open I mean it's you could go there and liter literally play anything you wanted to play it's so big you could have four corners set up with four different sports going on you know so maybe it's something we look at we have a designated field for organic play you know thank you councilor her thank you madam chair um so I just have some questions because um Mr HOSA decided a or mentioned that there was a study done relative to uh calendars uh and Fields and you know I'd love to see the results of that study if you have them for like written down uh first and then second I guess um you know unless you're telling me Mr HOSA this is your professional experience but you haven't actually done a study it's uh one thing second I think that study after study United Nations uh universities throughout the country and I'm happy to put these on the record um have shown that the more our kids are playing on our courts the safer communities are and this ordinance does a uh and open to additional edits um makes an attempt at ensuring that there's Public Safety officials that are you know closing down the fields closing down the lights etc etc uh and it gives the department the director the commission a great deal of latitude to create the isues they feel are pertinent to solve the issue um so you know I I just we know the calendar would ensure that uh some folks are able to get in the field or not and I think I'm I'm asking that we use uh a little bit of imagination right maybe there's a pin a t a a pin pad that residents can use and they can sign up online and they say I'm going to go play with my friends on the court and then they get a pin and then the pin's activated and boom they get in for those two hours or whatever it is um but it gives again the Professionals in the field you Mr HOSA and your team all the latitude to create those regulations uh while ensuring that we have that balance around lights and we have that balance around who's using the fields when and where um and I think that's all we're asking for here but uh to with that with that said I I would like to motion um uh to make an amendment to section five of this this uh proposed ordinance uh so that it says um where it says subsection e here the director must present the regulations set forth under this chapter by no later than June 1st 2024 uh strike June 1st 2024 and replace it with um no later than uh three months from passage from enactment of this ordinance and then in the next sentence the commission must approve the regulation set forth by director no later than September 1st 2024 strike September 1st 2024 so that it says no later than uh 4 months after enactment uh after enactment of the regulations thank you madam chair I need the rest councilor aeno thank you for your Indulgence I think what's happening here tonight uh is a glaring reason why we could use a px commission where we all have thoughts we all have ideas um and a px commission could uh uh could discuss these things and come up with some solution the city council doesn't necessarily have to get in and discuss things like this a px commission would be well suited to discuss all these things that we brought up here tonight and I understand protecting the assets uh but this has always been a thing of mine protecting them from who protecting them from the taxpayers that built them as uh Mr HOSA said 7even million for the stadium five million for grisal Fields the taxpayers paid that so uh protecting them from who I you know I I understand that I understand it's a challenge believe me I know better than anyone how it is to maintain these fields um but I think that as councelor Haro said uh some creative thinking can be done and I think the PX commission would be that place for that creative thinking thank you thank you permission to speak from the chair thank you um um I just have one comment if we're not receiving any complaints right now from any residents regarding glaring lights or noise or anything like that I'm just hesitant to increase um the timing of the SLS because I think that it may cause some complaints to exist from res nearby residences so that's my only concern and again um about protecting our assets I may be wrong but I think um St Mary's did have an incident last July 4th with the park being used um when it should not have been being used so I'm not exactly sure how all of that took place but I'd like to see us try to prevent things like that from occurring because I know there was some disturbances um that the residents incurred that Fourth of July weekend so um at this time it is it the council's will to oh councelor Gina sooya thank you Madame chairwoman um I agree with what you're saying I kind of believe that this motion should be two motions not one it should be two separate motion I was just speaking with counselor Hass and I agree with you that the lights should not go on any later I think you're asking for trouble putting them on later not only with the residents the surrounding people that live there but also with what you're going to get in that Park a after hours if the games are all over and done with by say 10:00 there's no need for the lights to be on after that and I think we're we're talking about two separate issues uh the the commission is one thing and then the the light situation is another so how about me putting in a motion to separate it and make it two separate motions would that be okay okay um Madam syy Kirk does matter it doesn't matter it just seems like it's too much in one motion chapter 2 point this is how it's written currently in the ordinances so whether or not the you separate the ordinance out and have that as a separate section it doesn't it wouldn't make a difference because you're still working on the same ordinance Madam chair councelor has thank you madam chair so councelor so I brought up a great Point um I almost feel like the creation or the revitalization of the wreck commission should almost be its own motion it shouldn't be lumped in with the lights it just it seems like there's there's a lot to unpack here um I would like to see the creation of the rec commission put forth as its own motion separate from these other instances thank you madam clerk would we have your opinion on bifurcating this if the committee if that's the will of the committee to do that and just focus on the commission portion of it and you're essentially leaving one portion in and just creating a new ordinance just relative to the commission you could certainly do that permission to speak from the chair for for me that seems um I don't know messy I I I think it's cleaner if we keep everything together um but we can take a vote on that I suppose councilor Gino soya sorry madam chair when listening to the city clerk when she said earlier that the the motion the the ordinance was back in the 1950s it's quite Antiquated so therefore by pulling this out right now and separating it it would make it current could I just say one more last comment I councelor agenzio thank you thank you for your Indulgence uh this is going to be hopefully sent to a public hearing there's going to be a lot more discussion uh a public hearing more members of the public may want to come up to speak uh we can hear what they have to say uh after that it may go to uh a different committee it might go to legislative affairs because it's an ordinance change so there'll be a lot of other times when this can be discussed and ham it out um there is a lot to uh a lot to absorb here uh but I again I I think the P Commission would still be able to address all these different issues once established um in the format that was set forth uh in in the proposed ordinance thank you thank you we have a we have a few motions on the floor right Haro had a motion amending section five um he was striking June 1st 2024 and inserting in place thereof three months after the passage of this ordinance and further in that same section e striking September 1st 2024 and inserting in place there four months after the passage of the regulations all in favor all opposed to that Amendment the Commission Section you want to do section four and five as one ordinance and then sections one 2 3 and six as another ordinance yes U Madam clerk I just have some questions here CU section two uh talks about the regulations that the commission needs to promate and so I mean really to keep this together yeah I mean I'm looking at it to be fair sorry I want one of each person on there so it makes it fair so this is but I sorry oh we got to speak on the mic so I think um yeah so we're we're going to create a second ordinance that includes most of this except the definitions which I think are just operatively nice to have uh and then so I I mean if we need to have further discussion maybe we can motion to a table or whatever it is but committe decide to committee and I can certainly work whoever draer language as you guys are discussing now I'd like to make a motion yes to keep it in committee please counc McKenna take a roll call call vote on counselor's councelor McKenna's motion to keep this in committee mom on councelor McKenna's motion to leave this ordinance in committee for further discussion councelor greo SAA no no councelor h yes yes councelor Haro yes yes councelor McKenna yes yes and chairwoman Kelly yes yes the ordinance will uh remain in committee for now no for their business that concludes our meeting tonight thank you e