Joint Powers Authority
Board of Directors
Present: Breen, Thornton, Walter, Wright
7:00 p.m.
· CALL TO ORDER
· ORGANIZATIONAL MATTERS:
-elect Chairperson and Vice-chairperson;
M/s, Wright/Walter, to elect Peter Breen as Chair of the Board of Directors. Ayes: All.
M/s, Breen/Walter, to elect John Wright as Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors.
Ayes: All
At Chair Breen’s request, Vice-Chair Wright provided an historical summary of the 10 year community effort to develop the Red Hill site. He said it is important to note that the Authority is limited in that it is working under a lease agreement and provides a venue to raise funds for the Red Hill Community Park. He also noted that the fifth member will be appointed from the Ross Valley School District Board within the month.
-establish schedule of meetings
Vice-Chair Wright suggested that the Joint Powers Authority (JPA) schedule its
meetings on a monthly basis, at least for the remainder of the calendar year. The members concurred and also agreed to schedule the monthly meetings on the first Tuesday of the month in the Town Hall Council Chambers. A calendar will be distributed at the March 2 meeting.
· OPEN TIME FOR PUBLIC EXPRESSION
Paul Orbuch asked that the agenda be placed on the Town Web Site. Chair Breen asked staff to look into placing the agenda on the Web Site and bring a recommendation back for the next JPA meeting. Orbuch also suggested that, since the property is owned by the Ross Valley School District, the JPA representative from that District refrain from voting on any action involving design and use policies. Chair Breen asked that the matter be placed on the agenda for the March meeting. Louise Mathews requested that the agenda be posted at the Red Hill information kiosk and on the Red Hill Park Web Site. She also raised the matter of designating alternate members and stressed the importance of accountability remaining with elected officials. After discussion, the JPA members agreed to place the matter of governance of the JPA on the next agenda for further discussion.
· JPA BUDGET AND PARK FUNDRAISING
Chair Breen stated that, as a first step, the JPA needed to officially accept the $50,000 grant from the County of Marin and establish a separate bank account for the JPA.
M/s, Wright/Walters, to authorize staff to proceed with the establishment of a separate bank account for the JPA. Ayes: All.
Member Walter asked about the process involved in holding or transferring funds from other entities, such as the Marin Community Foundation. Vice-Chair Wright stated that would occur further along in the process when there is a more critical mass of funds available. Louise Mathews asked about funds raised by existing 501c3 accounts for specific park improvements. Vice-Chair Wright explained that funds could be donated to separate 501c3 accounts but would eventually have to flow through the JPA. Walter Kopp encouraged the various fundraising units to coordinate their efforts with Ann Murphy and the authorized fundraising committee.
At the request of Chair Breen, Ann Murphy and Ellen Prodromou, co-chairs of the Park Fundraising Committee, presented a summary of the committee’s plan and submitted a written fundraising campaign proposal for the JPA’s consideration. Elements of the proposal included a grant writing campaign, seeking out in-kind donations, a major donor campaign, and a public campaign. Co-chair Prodromou reported that the committee would publicize the project at local events starting this coming weekend. The JPA members encouraged the committee to extend their publicity campaign throughout the entire Ross Valley area. Vice-Chair Wright noted the need to have a plan in place if the committee does not reach its fundraising goal. Member Walters noted the need to keep close track of those donors who want a tax deduction now and those who want to phase their donations through pledges over time. Chair Breen stressed the importance of having major donors committed so that the public campaign can proceed in a timely manner. The committee co-chairs also presented a proposed budget of $25,000 as seed monies for fundraising expenses. After discussion, Vice-Chair Wright and Member Walters both said that the Tamalpais District was prepared to commit up to half of the proposed budget as seed monies for the fundraising committee. After further discussion, it was agreed to defer action on this matter until after the park design presentation.
· PARK DESIGN PRESENTATION
At the JPA’s request, Reinhard Ludke and Peter Arnold made a formal presentation of the design plan. Ludke provided an historical summary of the design process undertaken that resulted in this final plan. Arnold then reviewed the details of the various elements included in the project. They then distributed a written summary of the initial cost estimates for the project, which totaled roughly $2.7 million. It was noted that the proposed park design was presented to the Ross Valley School District last week and they liked the plan. Vice-Chair Wright stated that the access to this community park is not from Shaw Drive. All the intended public access is from Sunny Hills Drive. Chair Breen reported that partnerships have been developed with Sunny Hills School, which would allow for additional mutually beneficial parking on school property. Arnold stated that the project would go through a CEQA process but the use of the property has historically been a recreational use. After discussion, the JPA agreed to place the park design approval on the March meeting agenda. They also agreed to place the matter of use policies and procedures on the March agenda. This use policy discussion will follow the design approval on the agenda. Chair Breen stated that the final use policies and procedures would be the responsibility of the Parks and Recreation Commission.
Chair Breen asked Reinhard how they had arrived at the preliminary cost estimate for the project. Reinhard said that they had taken a conservative approach but did not include utility hookups. The bottom line estimate provides for $2,000,000 in basic construction costs with a 15% contingency for a rough total of $2.7 million. This translates into an $11 cost per square foot. Vice-Chair Wright and Member Walters both stated that the cost estimates were consistent with some recent District capital project costs. The JPA members also noted that the project could be phased in a variety of ways if necessary. Refining the scope of the project would help the fundraising committee in its task of soliciting donations. After discussion, Chair Breen requested that Reinhard and Arnold refine their cost estimates over the next month and bring the matter back to the JPA for approval at its March meeting.
M/s, Walter/Thornton, to approve the overall fundraising proposal submitted by the committee with the provision that fundraising elements, such as naming opportunities and other donor recognition thresholds, be reviewed and approved at a later date. Ayes: All.
· ADJOURN
M/s, Wright/Walter, that the meeting be adjourned at 9:00 p.m. Ayes: All.
Minutes taken by Interim Recreation Director Dennis Smith