Veterans want a designation, not a playground — and the director tables the name change to go ask them why

If you read nothing else

• Three of seven seats were filled. Districts 2 and 3 and the At Large seat are vacant.
• The Veterans Memorial Park renaming was tabled to August. The director said she had not been part of the earlier conversations and wants to ask the Veterans Advisory Board what changing the name gets them.
• The Veterans Advisory Board's vice-chair said the name change may not be the right ask — the special-use designation is. He also said the playground should move: the gold star mothers monument sits within 30 feet of it.
• The Parks & Rec master plan still shows a playground at Veterans Memorial Park; the Vice-Chair said the Veterans Advisory Board had been told it was definitely going to be removed, and asked why the information conflicts.
• Gallagher Park's plan was designed by its own neighbors at a whiteboard charette, against a $150,000 budget staff said will not cover the horseshoe pit or shade structure.
• Apodaca Park's aquatic playground grant: applied 2018, awarded 2019, still unfunded — staff said the National Park Service is "completely and utterly overwhelmed."
• The Vice-Chair said the board "slept-walked through a vote," having read the wrong minutes date into the motion. Staff said it was fine; the board left it uncorrected.

Who was in the room

Public comment

Kept at length on purpose. Every point raised is listed, in the order the minutes record it.

Why the renaming was tabled

Sonya Delgado said she wanted to visit with the Veterans Advisory Board, whose meeting is next week Tuesday, and to show them the presentation she is going to give — because she has questions about what their intention is. She said she has not been part of the conversations, that a few meetings were held, and that she wants to get that information and pass it on to this board. She asked for the item to be tabled to next month's meeting.

The questions she said she will put to the Veterans Advisory Board and ask them to forward to this board: Why change the name? What does that do? By changing the name, what does that get them — what is their end goal? What do you want to accomplish? What will make this park different than all the others? Are there any specific changes they are looking for? She said everyone needs to be on the same page, that she will have to answer those questions moving forward, and that she wants to be completely clear to avoid misspeaking for the City, the Veterans Advisory Board and this board.

What the city's park categories actually mean

Delgado laid out the categories. General use parks, pocket parks, neighborhood parks, community and regional parks. Athletic ballfields, courts, softball, baseball. Specialty parks: skate park, horseshoe courts, BMX tracks, RC airport. Anyone can visit the parks, open dawn to dusk, unless it is a specialty area. Anyone can permit a portion of a park or the entire park; there are fees, and permitting includes insurance requirements depending on the activity. The Renaissance Fair was given as the example — it petitions and permits the entire Young Park for three to four days, Parks and Rec helps with some setup and tear down, the permitter provides insurance, and the park is assessed before and after for damage.

Specialty parks with athletic fields host tournaments and are used only for tournament-style play. In baseball they can use the outfield for football, flag football and smaller-scale soccer tournaments, but it is for athletic play. Those fields are not open for practices, nor for general use permits.

Specialty parks with limited access carry restrictions, fencing or gating, specific hours, or a specific program. They can be rented if all requirements are met, with insurance matching the activity. Usually there is a group that helps the City take care of the facility. The RC Airport is the example: a 501(c)(3) operates the facility for the City including opening and closing, the City helps maintain it, it is used only for RC Airport activities, and the group has a board and keys. The facility is accessible only if someone from that board is on site. Parks and Rec and Utilities share that space and set the hours; there is an agreement in place. Last week the RC Airport hosted a remote-control airplane competition — everyone had to have insurance, and the event itself had to have insurance for the facility.

Special use parks and facilities accommodate unique recreation activities: the RC track, the Butterfield shooting range, horseshoe courts and the skate park. Those are the only activities that happen there — no soccer, softball, picnics or family reunions. They are gated with specific open and close times, and groups work with Parks and Rec on them.

Delgado said that at the last presentation, Community Development's Larry Nichols — also the liaison for the Veterans Advisory Board — used the Lush 'n Lean demonstration park on Picacho as an example. Lush 'n Lean is a specialty park that can be rented, open dawn to dusk, too small for softball, usable anytime with no reservation though reservations can be made — a specialty park that is open with full access. She said she would have liked to explain better that there really are two different types, and to figure out which way the veterans want to go.

On public access at specialty parks: it is for a specific activity or sport, the public is welcome anytime it is open, and it can also be permitted. That includes the skate park, the shooting range, tennis courts (which host tournaments and are used by other groups and the schools), and pickleball courts.

On Veterans Memorial Park as it stands: open to the public dawn to dusk, with green spaces, a gazebo and picnic areas, first come first serve unless permitted. Multiple access points, a trail, wetlands and a parking lot. Delgado said Parks and Rec has been asked why they permit soccer and baseball teams — and they do not. Parks are first come, first serve; there is no permitting of any practice teams on any of the parks. Some athletic fields are permitted for practice on a rotation, with a process at the main administrative office, but anyone can go to any park and use open space. Birthday parties and family gatherings are permitted.

The master plan says one thing, the veterans were told another

Chair McClure asked whether there was a way to stipulate the type of permits for a specialty park. Delgado said they could, but that this is again a reason for asking what the Veterans Advisory Board is looking for.

Vice-Chair Engle said the Parks & Rec master plan still includes the playground area, and that the Veterans Advisory Board said it was definitely going to be removed. He questioned why there is conflicting information.

Delgado said the master plan has been a few years, and addressed how the park could grow and making sure there was a trail for people to get through. She said it went back and forth on whether the playground should stay, be removed, be moved, or be changed to something reflecting the veterans, and that it is still being discussed. When it was voted on it was still in the master plan; if the Veterans Advisory Board wants to change that, the master plan can be brought back to them to clarify anything on it. She said the same would apply to other changes — removing the grills, for example, since grills are in the master plan — and that whatever happens in the future needs to be reflected in the master plan, including a possible graveyard or mausoleum.

Chair McClure said she has heard two different phrases, "special use" and "speciality park," and asked for clarification. Delgado said that will be discussed more for clarity, and that it really depends on what they want to accomplish and the steps to get there.

Cameras at Veterans Memorial Park: two reports so far

Chair McClure asked to get LCPD and vandalism figures for the next meeting — specifically what happened after the cameras were placed and the effects of that.

Delgado said that since the cameras were placed there have been two reports: one for animal control, and one for a welfare check on someone in the parking lot. She said it has been requested to call non-emergency just to make sure they do not have anything more, but no response was received prior to this meeting.

Gallagher Park: a plan the neighbors drew themselves

Catherine Mathews presented the improvements, the process with the neighbors, and the design layout. She said they are going to use the $150,000 project budget the best way possible to meet the needs of the neighborhood. The first public meeting was April 28, the second May 26.

The neighbors' priorities: create a gathering space, keep the play equipment, add shade. They wanted something unique, not typical, not standard. They separated needs from desires — safety surfacing, upgraded site furnishings including doggy doo bag dispensers, and shade were the needs; stormwater harvesting, solar power for lighting, game tables, bulletin boards and shade were the desires. Mathews said they went to the full extreme with the desired items, which spurred good conversation, and that the options she presented on May 26 spurred a lot of discussion including frank talk about the budget and its limitations.

The neighborhood looked at the options, took a vote about priorities, and moved on as it was not working. Mathews described neighbors who are very engaged, very active and very excited to have the opportunity to design their own park. They took on the activity of conducting a charette — quick design while talking, throwing out ideas and working them out on a whiteboard. She said this is the way the community members wanted it, and she took those ideas and came up with the plan shown.

The plan: existing trees and play equipment, and a concrete sidewalk from north to south connecting the ADA accessible entry to the play equipment past the existing picnic table. New features in prioritized order — triangular shade sails over the existing play equipment; additional six-foot benches clustered in conversational groups in shaded areas, keeping eyes on the children; additional safety surfacing and extended open play space without play equipment, for more flexibility.

Secondary priorities: a new picnic table, and a horseshoe pit with a shade element that would throw shadows over the pit in the afternoon when shade is needed most. Mathews said the horseshoe pit and shade structure are unlikely to fit within the budget at this time, which is why they were identified as secondary. A bicycle rack was included at the northern end.

Her rough cost estimate: they could do the triangular shade elements, some of the benches and likely the additional safety surfacing and open play space within the budget — maybe a picnic shade structure and maybe a picnic table, but they have to see. She said Parks and Rec will do their very best, possibly installing the benches with in-house labor rather than a contractor to get a few extra dollars.

The current rendition has not been presented to the neighborhood yet; another public hearing will be held. City Council has already approved the budget and it is on the CIP, so it is ready to go to construction as soon as the process is finished. Vice-Chair Engle asked about the bicycle parking; Mathews said it was not identified as a top priority but they will fit it in if they can monetarily. Chair McClure agreed to making the bicycle rack a "mini priority."

Capital projects update

Skate park renovation: still in process. The contract is a design-build contract, which Mathews said is new to her. It is in review with legal to confirm all details and be sure the consultant is able to voice concerns. A design kickoff meeting was hoped for August 5.

Apodaca Park aquatic playground and multiuse path: still waiting on funding through state parks from the National Park Service. Mathews said she spoke with the state parks representative, who noted the National Park Service is completely and utterly overwhelmed. The application was made in 2018 and award was notified in 2019. She and the City Grants Administrator continue to pursue all available avenues including speaking with senators. Proposed timeline: hopefully planning does not take 18 months, hopefully design can shorten, bidding likely four months, construction probably about 12 months and maybe up to 18 if the splash pad is included. Park impact fees continue to be designated for the grant match. Total project: $1.5 million.

Park security and lighting: work completed last month at Veterans Memorial Park, installing additional lighting and security cameras. The lighting was accepted from the contractor; punch list items were addressed after parts arrived following an eight-week wait. The Veterans Memorial Park portion of the project is complete. At Gomez Park on Espina, additional lighting will be added along the north/south pathway on the west side, using solar powered bollard lighting. The remaining budget of about $50,000 will install those lights. It is in planning now, with a proposed completion by 2023 — June 30, 2023 is the funding expiration date.

Board Member Schuller asked, with the new lighting, what happens with the vandalism at Veterans Memorial Park and the impact on what they are trying to accomplish, saying the timing seemed spot on. Mathews said the intention of the lighting — for which the veterans sought the funding and the City received it because of advocacy with state legislators — is to improve the safety and security of the park, and that is the expectation.

Las Cruces Lateral Trail: a Recreation Trails Program (RTP) grant through DOT from the Federal Highway Administration. Planning is complete and design will be complete in August 2022. They received an extension on the grant because of difficulties getting certifications from the various entities that have to sign off. The Elephant Butte Irrigation District board approved the permit for the length of the lateral from University to Boutz. The construction budget will not stretch to the full limits of the proposed project, so it was scaled back: Phase 1 runs University to Las Cruces High School. Funding is currently slightly less than the engineer's estimate for that portion, so at bid they may need to seek additional funding to complete Phase 1.

Smart controllers: a WaterSMART grant, a federal grant through the Bureau of Reclamation, to be completed by September 2022. They are working with El Paso Electric to upgrade electrical service to Soldados Field for a booster pump, to help the irrigation system achieve greater efficiency.

Highland Park: still on the list, working with the consultant on another contract to bring the plans up to speed, get it under bid and into construction. Completion is projected through winter 2024.

Pioneer Women's Park gazebo: Council was recently presented with the design and approved the project. Parks and Rec highlighted the public input process and the good quality, sometimes contentious, discussions. There is approximately $140,000 to complete construction; staff are working on how to phase construction to fit the budget while seeking additional budget. One proposal is to relocate some electrical services and the irrigation backflow preventer so they do not interfere with the gazebo's aesthetics. This is anticipated sometime this fiscal year.

Gomez Park and Frenger Park: master plans recently went to Council and were approved. Mathews called them quite excellent and said the consultant did a good job of listening to the public. Frenger Park has the swimming pool; pool services will shift to the aquatic center when it opens, which opens the opportunity to use that space for a splash pad as the master plan calls for. There are no construction dollars yet, but the plan opens up opportunities for grants and other funding.

Branigan Master Plan: completed and approved. Parks and Rec is working with the grants office to seek a grant potentially to purchase some of the properties adjacent to Branigan and bring the full master plan to fruition.

Trail and Park wayfinding: another RTP grant through DOT. The selected consultant signed the contract that day; it goes next to legal and purchasing for signature. A New Mexico landscape architect serves as general consultant, with a nationally recognized wayfinding signage team brought in. The plan would revamp the entire signage system for trails and parks, hopefully in conjunction with the county, BLM and other agencies so the whole trail system reads as one system.

Mathews shared the weekly tracking list of fully engaged projects — the top 10 and the next 10 — covering what is going on, who is under contract, and the next steps, plus internal projects, parking lot projects and on-hold projects.

Vice-Chair Engle asked about the Las Cruces Lateral and whether rising construction costs were what shortened it from Boutz. Mathews said escalating construction costs are largely the issue — the grant was sought about four or five years ago. She added a design finding: where the Las Cruces Lateral hits Main Street the right-of-way is too narrow not to pipe the lateral, so they will have to pipe it to have room for a decent-sized trail and a maintenance road for EBID personnel, plus retaining wall work. It could be changed, but the approval process through DOT is lengthy and would extend the timeframe. She anticipates the project will continue to receive future RTP grants and that the City will incrementally continue RTP funding until the total scope is complete.

Disc golf and the Veterans Park parking question

Chair McClure asked about the disc golf, and whether closing off a section of Veterans Park would affect it. Delgado said they are talking about that internally — it could be an issue, but it depends on what they want to do.

As of now, players would use the parking lot and come through the Veterans side, walking all the way down to get to the disc golf, or come from the other side. Staff said they will probably come through Veterans. It was mentioned there is no other parking, due to a steep embankment on one side and private property on the other. Delgado said that once there was a bigger parking lot they should be okay, but now it could be an issue. She said this will also be addressed via the Veterans, and that it needs further discussion.

GO Bond update

The item was agendaed to David Sedillo, Director of Public Works; Tony Trevino, Deputy Director of Public Works, gave the update.

The Hadley Complex is complete — the improvements are nice and the lighting is amazing for nighttime play. The project was the parks and sports courts. They are awaiting resolution of erosion issues at Young Park with the main shade structure, where retaining walls and landscaping were put in to address erosion. The project is complete, though there are ADA questions at the Apodaca pickleball court currently being addressed.

Unidad Park is about 69% complete. The shade structure rehabs throughout the park are done. The restroom has been the hiccup — getting material in, about 65% with the steel. On hold are some of the partitions for the restrooms and showers, with material expected by August. Splash pad plumbing is ongoing and all the new play equipment is installed.

East Mesa Public Rec Complex: moving dirt and on schedule. All baseball and softball fields are graded; now grading the pickleball courts and installing utilities from Sonoma Springs, which was a Public Works CIP project for the entrance road, tying those two with Camino Coyote. Slated to be scheduled hopefully by February 2023 with some ARPA funding. All GO Bond funding will be spent by the December 31, 2022 deadline. The remaining pieces are landscaping items where it is difficult to get a contractor to nail down a price due to escalating costs, with the work starting toward winter, so contractors are hesitant to sign at current prices.

Dog parks are included within the Animal Service Center of Mesilla Valley project. At Rinconada Park the up work is 95% done and surveying is almost complete; site concrete is done and furnishings have been delivered. At Burn Lake Park the landscape is complete, further ahead because parking and amenities are already there. This counts as 79% complete as part of the Animal Service Center. Estimated completion of the entire project is December 8, 2022.

Trails: the Mesilla Drain is complete. On the Las Cruces Drain trail they are working on ADA ramps and crosswalks, with hot thermal plastic being put across the roads for pedestrians and bicycles. The Armijo Drain Trail is on the final punch list.

Board Member Schuller noticed Apodaca was underbudget and asked what happens to the funds. Trevino said the three projects were put into one — Hadley, parks and sports courts, and the East Mesa Rec Complex — so the amount spent today is $1.8 million against a budget of $1.82 million, and the remainder will go toward the East Mesa Sports Complex. The money has to stay within these three.

Lift Up Las Cruces

Delgado said this is a program initiated by the City Manager, who has been in the paper earlier this week. The area they are in right now is District 1, including Solano, Spruce, Madrid and just past Ash. Apodaca Park is the only facility in that area, so some events will be held there — Movies in the Park and Family Game Nights, with an event at Apodaca that same night.

The first Lift Up Las Cruces event for the area is July 30, 9:00 a.m. to noon, from Wade to Calle Sosa and Ash to Mulberry, the housing development area. Agencies and community organizations will offer information; the foodbank, police and fire will be there, Parks and Rec with activities, and codes will have a little rodeo. The day before, codes and PD will do a cleanup.

The City has over $200,000 budgeted for the program, so other infrastructure projects will be done as well. Public Works is also involved, and reconstruction of Madrid is part of it. Delgado called this the start.

Staff comments — CAPRA accreditation, and a request for the board's help

Franco Granillo said they are just trying to keep up with everything — keeping on top of the turf, weed abatement, and keeping the parks looking good.

Catherine Mathews recognized two project specialists, Wilfred Martinez and Sergio Esparza. She said Wilfred was essential in completing the master plans on time and managing that project to perfection, and that the success of those three projects is largely due to him.

Delgado thanked the board for the feedback and welcomed more. She said Parks and Rec is going through CAPRA accreditation, with individuals coming from the Los Alamos Fire Department who have done accreditation and travel the country helping others understand the process — not only the initial accreditation but what happens long-term. They arrive next week. Parks and Rec has a core CAPRA team and a supervisor team. There are 151 standards to meet. The end date for completion and review is December 31, 2022; they will ship all EOCs, standards and a video to the group by March 2023, and the group returns in June to do a formal review and inform them of pass or fail.

Delgado said City of Las Cruces Parks and Rec helps other agencies and Parks and Rec departments throughout the state, and has been contacted by individuals out of state.

She said she needs the board's help to create the standard for onboarding board members — what should it look like, what components would be in it — and suggested a work session for further discussion and some frank conversations, so new board members can expect a certain level of professionalism and service. Chair McClure suggested September for a possible work session, at approximately an hour.

Board comments — a vote the Vice-Chair says was slept through

Vice-Chair Engle said the board "slept-walked through a vote." He said he made a mistake reading the wrong minutes that needed to be amended, and then everyone voted for it: he thought he said agenda item 4.2 but was looking at the document for May 26. Delgado said they should be fine, as the date was mentioned. Engle said he believes he stated the wrong date — he stated 4.2 and then stated the meeting of May 26. Board Member Schuller suggested waiting for these minutes and then correcting them to reflect the correct dates. Delgado said she was comfortable saying they are fine, even by accident, that it will be checked by staff and can be brought back if needed. No correction was made on the record.

Board Member Schuller said she will be out of town on August 18 and the 25th, and proposed Wednesday the 17th if possible. Chair McClure has another board meeting then. Schuller suggested Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday of either the third or fourth week of August. Tuesday the 16th was mentioned, which the board could all do — although Becky Baum will be unable to attend or record, but will transcribe.

Schuller mentioned items from her recent trip. She was grateful for the rain, and said a question regularly asked was how much rain they get, with the answer "enough." She said when we think of a park we want playground equipment and those types of items; in Europe they are called gardens, with multiple uses. She asked the board to consider having a place like a garden, with desert garden landscaping, benches, and a gathering space with no conflicts between open space — something low maintenance for facilities.

Recorded votes

Left open at the gavel