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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12.A. Adopt-A-Park Program J:2.A, CITY OF SHAKOPEE Memorandum To: City Council, Mayor, and City Administrator From: Andrea Weber, Park and Recreation Landscape Design Subject: Adopt-A-Park Program Date: April 22, 2008 INTRODUCTION This memo introduces a proposal for re-establishing an "adopt-a-park" volunteer program. BACKGROUND At their February 25th meeting, the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, unanimously recommended moving forward with the Adopt a Park Program as described below. History and purpose of the proqram The City of Shakopee has had an "adopt a park" program in the past (last documented in 1995), but as a result of staff turnover and workloads, it has been discontinued. Currently the city does organize an annual Park Clean-up and volunteer groups also regularly add enhancements to parks, but these types of activities are not coordinated or tracked. At times, local service groups who have requested to do projects within the parks have been turned down due to the lack of staff availability to facilitate these requests. If there were a volunteer program established, less staff time would be needed to accommodate volunteer requests and the city could take advantage of offers to help with park enhancements. In the past several years, many new parks and facilities have been developed in the city. This creates a strain on Park Maintenance to keep up with all of the new tasks. New parks also often require extra maintenance as plants are still establishing. Park maintenance has added staff, but "hand labor" such as weeding or picking up trash is a time intensive activity, which is difficult to devote enough time to. This is the type of work that service groups or individuals can assist the City to complete. A volunteer program has the potential to reduce liability for the city by ensuring staff oversight of any improvements made to parks by volunteer groups. The city has a responsibility to the public that park amenities are properly constructed. Another way the program would reduce risk would be to require all participants who volunteer to do work in a park to sign a waiver. The waver will be part of the application to participate in the program, attached. Encouraging a sense of ownership of parks is a great way to promote pride in the city. Allowing volunteers to participate in park cleaning and enhancements not only provides additional labor to assist with park maintenance, it offers residents a chance to feel pride in contributing to their city. When residents feel a sense of ownership for a park they are more likely to watch over it. This can contribute to less vandalism and a reduction of other undesirable activity, according to Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) research. The purpose of the Shakopee "adopt-a-park" program is to offer residents and local groups who are interested in performing community service, a defined opportunity to assist the City in the maintenance and enhancement of public parks and open spaces. In recognition of this service, they will receive training and staff support needed to do their task. They will also receive recognition with a sign placed in their designated park. DISCUSSION Since there are different sizes of parks, with different features in each of them, there are different types of tasks that are potentially available for volunteers. To provide some structure, a two-tier "Adopt" program is proposed: "Adopt a Park" would be for an entire park and "Adopt a Planting Area" would be for specific planting beds or features within a park. Adopt-a-Park would be directed at groups of individuals looking for a regular service activity. The intent of this program is for groups to help with seasonal clean-ups and other enhancements to the park. Adopt a Park requirements would be specified from a list of possible tasks for each group and an agreement /application would be signed by the group leader. Examples of activities could include: . Park clean-ups (trash pick up, sand raking, reporting graffiti) several times a year . Funding park enhancements including fundraising (donate bench, tree, or other materials as approved by staff) and labor, as agreed with group Groups would be required to: . Provide current contact information and all participants names and all participants would be required to sign the City's waiver attached to the application form . Coordinate dates and tasks with city staff based on staff availability . Provide their own transportation to the site and to pick up materials from the city if needed . Make a minimum 2 year commitment, with encouragement to renew if the group fulfills their responsibilities Staff support would be arranged on a staff availability basis. Types of staff support might include: . Coordinating the agreement and assigning parks to be "adopted" with specific tasks to be completed . Provide materials for tasks (garbage bags, etc.) . Provide additional follow up support (garbage pick-up, assist in prep of planting areas or install of equipment, review of plans and materials, observation of work, marking of work locations, GSOC utility verification, etc.). . Creating and installing signage naming the "adopt" group near the park entry made of reflective metal, produced by the public works sign shop. The wording on the sign would be approved by staff. Adopt-a-Plantinq Area would be a program appropriate for a small group, family or individual who could take on an existing planting area and/or donate materials and labor to install a new planting bed (from an approved plant list, in approved locations). Adopting a planting may include any of the following tasks (totaling 3-5 days/year): . Maintain (weed) plantings (1-2 hours bi-weekly during May-September: 10-20 hours) . Plant annuals (only in approved locations: 2-4 hours) . Remove dead and diseased plant material (end of season fall or early spring: 2-4 hours) . Replenish wood mulch (once every two years, mulch delivered to site by City, 2-4 hours) Applicants would be required to: . All participants would be required to sign the City's waiver attached to the application form . Notify staff of all planned work time/tasks . Provide their own transportation to pick up materials and to the site, . Provide their own recommended materials for comfort (gloves, kneeling pad, sun protection, insect repellent) . Provide their own simple gardening hand tools (trowel, rake, shovel, pruners, etc.) . Make a minimum 2 year commitment (20-40 hours per growing season) Tasks of staff support might include: . Coordinating the agreement and assigning parks to be "adopted" with specific tasks to be completed . Provide materials for tasks (in some cases, plants, mulch) . Provide additional labor and equipment (garbage pick-up, assist in prep of planting areas, delivery of mulch to site, review of plans and materials, observation of work, marking of work locations, GSOC verification) . Creating and installing signage naming the "adopt" person or group near the planting bed, made of reflective metal, produced by the public works sign shop. The wording on the sign would be approved by staff. APPLICATION The application form, a draft is attached. would list specific tasks and times per season they will be completed. The specific tasks would be selected based on the area to be adopted and the interests/capabilities of the volunteers. An application would be filled out and signed by the individual or group leader for every site. In addition, every participant would need to sign the part of the application that includes the city's waiver. These would be filed for easy coordination and tracking of work hours completed (some volunteers require a record of their hours in order to satisfy work, school, or other service requirements). There would not be a formal city employment application, and no background checks would be made. The two year minimum agreement would reduce the need for staff time, as the second year would require significantly less supervision than the first. Longer time commitments and renewals would be strongly encouraged. If a person or group does not fulfill their agreed tasks, the group would be contacted and if they decide to end the application, or are not able to be contacted, the sign would be removed by the city. Existinq qroups Existing groups who already have associations or who have informal arrangements with the city to enhance specific parks would be offered the first chance to adopt the park they have been involved with. The program will preserve the ongoing relationship with the groups by keeping contact information current and available to staff and by documenting and coordinating their projects. This program will require staff support from the coordinator of the program (Park and Recreation Department) as well as Park Maintenance. Park maintenance assistance will be requested with as much flexibility and lead time as possible. Volunteers will be informed that the City reserves the right to postpone or reschedule any staff support it needs to for any reason. The number and location of adopt sites available may need to be prioritized with park maintenance prior to beginning the season. RELATIONSHIP TO VISION A-Active and healthy community. B-High quality of life. C-Great place for kids to grow up. E-Financially strong. ALTERNATIVES 1. Move to adopt Resolution No. 6756, A Resolution of the City of Shakopee, Minnesota, Establishing an "Adopt a Park" program. 2. Or, table the recommendation and direct staff for more information. PARK AND RECREATION ADVISORY BOARD RECOMMENDATION The Advisory Board unanimously recommended moving forward with the "adopt a park" program. RECOMMENDED ACTION If the Council concurs, offer Resolution No 6756, A Resolution of the City of Shakopee, Minnesota, Establishing an "Adopt a Park" program, and move its adoption RESOLUTION NO. 6756 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF SHAKOPEE, MINNESOTA, ADOPTING A PROGRAM CALLED "ADOPT A PARK" WHEREAS, The City has numerous tot lot, neighborhood, community and special use parks, many of which have been created due to development within the last several years; and, WHEREAS, The development of the additional parks requires improvements and maintenance resulting in additional cost and staff time; and WHEREAS, There are residents and civic organizations who desire to participate in improving and maintaining certain parks; and, WHEREAS, It is desirable to establish guidelines and procedures for an "Adopt and Park" Program in order to define opportunities for residents to voluntarily work in parks; and, WHEREAS, The Park and Recreation Advisory Board recommends adopting an Adopt a Park Program; and a policy called "Adopt a Park"; and, WHEREAS, the City Council desires to allow volunteers to assist with the maintenance and enhancement of city parks. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SHAKOPEE, MINNESOTA, that the "Adopt a Park" Proqram, dated April 22, 2008, attached hereto and made a part hereof, is hereby adopted. Adopted in this 22nd day of April, 2008. session of the City Council of the City of Shakopee, Minnesota, held Mayor of the City of Shakopee Attest: City Clerk Adopt A Park Proaram April 22,2008 Historv and purpose of the proqram The City of Shakopee has had an "adopt a park" program in the past (last documented in 1995), but as a result of staff turnover and workloads, it has been discontinued. Currently the city does organize an annual Park Clean-up and volunteer groups also regularly add enhancements to parks, but these types of activities are not coordinated or tracked. At times, local service groups who have requested to do projects within the parks have been turned down due to the lack of staff availability to facilitate these requests. If there were a volunteer program established, less staff time would be needed to accommodate volunteer requests and the city could take advantage of offers to help with park enhancements. In the past several years, many new parks and facilities have been developed in the city. This creates a strain on Park Maintenance to keep up with all of the new tasks. New parks also often require extra maintenance as plants are still establishing. Park maintenance has added staff, but "hand labor" such as weeding or picking up trash is a time intensive activity, which is difficult to devote enough time to. This is the type of work that service groups or individuals can assist the City to complete. A volunteer program has the potential to reduce liability for the city by ensuring staff oversight of any improvements made to parks by volunteer groups. The city has a responsibility to the public that park amenities are properly constructed. Another way the program would reduce risk would be to require all participants who volunteer to do work in a park to sign a waiver. The waver will be part of the application to participate in the program, attached. Encouraging a sense of ownership of parks is a great way to promote pride in the city. Allowing volunteers to participate in park cleaning and enhancements not only provides additional labor to assist with park maintenance, it offers residents a chance to feel pride in contributing to their city. When residents feel a sense of ownership for a park they are more likely to watch over it. This can contribute to less vandalism and a reduction of other undesirable activity, according to Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) research. The purpose of the Shakopee "adopt-a-park" program is to offer residents and local groups who are interested in performing community service, a defined opportunity to assist the City in the maintenance and enhancement of public parks and open spaces. In recognition of this service, they will receive training and staff support needed to do their task. They will also receive recognition with a sign placed in their designated park. DISCUSSION Since there are different sizes of parks, with different features in each of them, there are different types of tasks that are potentially available for volunteers. To provide some structure, a two-tier "Adopt" program is proposed: "Adopt a Park" would be for an entire park and "Adopt a Planting Area" would be for specific planting beds or features within a park. Adoot-a-Park would be directed at groups of individuals looking for a regular service activity. The intent of this program is for groups to help with seasonal clean-ups and other enhancements to the park. Adopt a Park requirements would be specified from a list of possible tasks for each group and an agreement /application would be signed by the group leader. Examples of activities could include: · Park clean-ups (trash pick up, sand raking, reporting graffiti) several times a year · Funding park enhancements including fundraising (donate bench, tree, or other materials as approved by staff) and labor, as agreed with group Groups would be required to: · Provide current contact information and all participants names and all participants would be required to sign the City's waiver attached to the application form · Coordinate dates and tasks with city staff based on staff availability · Provide their own transportation to the site and to pick up materials from the city if needed · Make a minimum 2 year commitment, with encouragement to renew if the group fulfills their responsibilities Staff support would be arranged on a staff availability basis. Types of staff support might include: · Coordinating the agreement and assigning parks to be "adopted" with specific tasks to be completed . Provide materials for tasks (garbage bags, etc.) · Provide additional follow up support (garbage pick-up, assist in prep of planting areas or install of equipment, review of plans and materials, observation of work, marking of work locations, GSOC utility verification, etc.). . Creating and installing signage naming the "adopt" group near the park entry made of reflective metal, produced by the public works sign shop. The wording on the sign would be approved by staff. Adopt-a-Plantinq Area would be a program appropriate for a small group, family or individual who could take on an existing planting area and/or donate materials and labor to install a new planting bed (from an approved plant list, in approved locations). Adopting a planting may include any of the following tasks (totaling 3-5 days/year): . Maintain (weed) plantings (1-2 hours bi-weekly during May-September: 10-20 hours) . Plant annuals (only in approved locations: 2-4 hours) . Remove dead and diseased plant material (end of season fall or early spring: 2-4 hours) . Replenish wood mulch (once every two years, mulch delivered to site by City, 2-4 hours) Applicants would be required to: . All participants would be required to sign the City's waiver attached to the application form . Notify staff of all planned work time/tasks . Provide their own transportation to pick up materials and to the site, · Provide their own recommended materials for comfort (gloves, kneeling pad, sun protection, insect repellent) · Provide their own simple gardening hand tools (trowel, rake, shovel, pruners, etc.) . Make a minimum 2 year commitment (20-40 hours per growing season) Tasks of staff support might include: . Coordinating the agreement and assigning parks to be "adopted" with specific tasks to be completed . Provide materials for tasks (in some cases, plants, mulch) . Provide additional labor and equipment (garbage pick-up, assist in prep of planting areas, delivery of mulch to site, review of plans and materials, observation of work, marking of work locations, GSOC verification) . Creating and installing signage naming the "adopt" person or group near the planting bed, made of reflective metal, produced by the public works sign shop. The wording on the sign would be approved by staff. APPLICATION The application form, attached. would list specific tasks and times per season they will be completed. The specific tasks would be selected based on the area to be adopted and the interests/capabilities of the volunteers. An application would be filled out and signed by the individual or group leader for every site. In addition, every participant would need to sign the part of the application that includes the city's waiver. These would be filed for easy coordination and tracking of work hours completed (some volunteers require a record of their hours in order to satisfy work, school, or other service requirements). There would not be a formal city employment application, and no background checks would be made. The two year minimum agreement would reduce the need for staff time, as the second year would require significantly less supervision than the first. Longer time commitments and renewals would be strongly encouraged. If a person or group does not fulfill their agreed tasks, the group would be contacted and if they decide to end the application, or are not able to be contacted, the sign would be removed by the city. Existinq qroups Existing groups who already have associations or who have informal arrangements with the city to enhance specific parks would be offered the first chance to adopt the park they have been involved with. The program will preserve the ongoing relationship with the groups by keeping contact information current and available to staff and by documenting and coordinating their projects. This program will require staff support from the coordinator of the program (Park and Recreation Department) as well as Park Maintenance. Park maintenance assistance will be requested with as much flexibility and lead time as possible. Volunteers will be informed that the City reserves the right to postpone or reschedule any staff support it needs to for any reason. The number and location of adopt sites available may need to be prioritized with park maintenance prior to beginning the season. s - ~ ~ , CITY OF SHAKOPEE Memorandum To: City Council, Mayor, and City Administrator From: Andrea Weber, Park and, Recreation Landscape Design Subject: Adopt-A-Park Program-revised with legal input Date: April 22, 2008 INTRODUCTION Attached is a revised application which included text changes to the "adopt-a-park" volunteer program based on the City Attorney's comments. Shakopee Adopt-A-Park Program Application Form aizv 2ona Part 1-To be filled out by City Adopt a Park Coordinator Date Contacted Cit A licant/Group Leader Name: Grou Name if an Phone: H & & C Address: Ci , Zi e-mail address Park Requested: Part 2- To Be filled out with Applicant The applicant agrees to: Pick-up litter once a month (minimum three times per year) During the months of (circle all): Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec In addition, the applicant agrees to: 1.) Donate site furniture/fixed equipment (describe in detail mfr, model, color): Will the applicant install the furniture/equipment? Yes, on date: No 2.) Donate and install plant material (species, quantity, size, location) Will the applicant install the plants? Yes, on date: nNo 3.) Other activities or donations proposed: Special Provisions: Applicant /Group Representative print name Date City Adopt A Park Coordinator print name Date Name to appear on the Sign: Sign to Read (2 Lines, 12 Characters, include spaces): (Text subject to City approval) "[o]nly the full name or abbreviation of the name of the group or business will be placed on the sign. A specific location, address or phone number of the group or business will not be placed on the sign. Statements or slogans are not allowed. CC: Todd Schumacher/P W Signs Bill Egan/P W Parks Group Application Form, page 2 - Part 3- To Be Filled Out by Group Participants H:Wndrea~a-Park PolicyWdopt a Park~AdoptForm-Shakopee.xls Park Name Group Name: Name of Group Leader: The City of Shakopee (City) reserves the right to refuse, cancel or revise this Agreement at any time, including, nature of the group or its sign is political, or controversial, or if the group is not meeting the terms and conditions but not limited to, in instances where the group is not meeting the terms and conditions of this Application and the City's Adopt-A-Park policies. By signing this application, the participant acknowledges-and agrees to comply with the terms of the City. All proposed work or materials proposed to be donated and installed shall be at the approval of City staff and staff may require additional approvals. Work listed on this application is not approved until staff or other review has been completed. Proposed work dates must be coordinated at least 1 week in advance with staff but staff reserves the right to refuse or cancel proposed work dates for any reason. Any and all volunteers of the group or other persons while engaged in the performance of any work or service performed under this application shall not be considered employees of the City, and any and all claims that may or might arise under the Worker's Compensation Act of Minnesota on behalf of said employees or other persons while engaged, and any and all claims made by any third party of the group's volunteers or other persons while so engaged on any of the work or services to be rendered shall in noway be the obligation or responsibility of the City. All group participants (or their legal guardians) must sign this waiver prior to participating in any activity. As lawful consideration for being permitted to participate in the City of Shakopee Parks and Recreation Department program listed on this application, I expressly hold harmless, release, discharge, and agree not to sue the City of Shakopee or any of its officials, employees, agents, contractors or assigns for any loss, costs, damages, actions, claims, judgments and expenses, including attorneys' fees, arising out of any potential negligence on its part relating of Shakop to my participation in this program. By signing this Application, I am not releasing or discharging the City or any of its respective officials, employees, agents, contractors or assigns from any claims or other items arising out of its intentional acts, willful misconduct, or willful neglect of duty. I acknowledge that I am aware of the inherent risks (physical and otherwise) involved in volunteering for this program and I voluntarily assume these risks." With my signature, I verify I have read and agree to the above release statements: 1 Applicant /Group Leader print name and age if under 18 Date 2 Group Participant or guardian signature print name and age if under 18 Date 3 roup Participant or guardian signature print name and age if under 18 Date 4 Group Participant or guardian signature print name and age if under 18 Date 5 roup Participant or guardian signature print name and age if under 18 Date 6 roup Participant or guardian signature print name and age if under 18 Date 7 roup Participant or guardian signature print name and age if under 18 Date 8 Group Participant or guardian signature print name and age if under 18 Date 9 Group Participant or guardian signature print name and age if under 18 Date 10 roup Participant or guardian signature print name and age if un er 18 Date 11 roup Participant or guar ian signature print name and age if under 18 Date 12 roup Participant or guardian signature print name and age if under 18 Date 13 Group Participant or guardian signature print name and age if under 18 Date 14 roup Participant or guardian signature print name and age if under 18 Date 15 roup Participant or guardian signature print name and age if under 18 Date (all participants over 18 years old or their legal guardians must sign prior to participating, attach additional sheets if necessary) Return to: Shakopee Park and Recreation Department Attn: Adopt a Park 15255 Fuller St. H:1Andreala-Park Polic ~,gdohaap fie, MN 55379 CC: Bill Egan/P W Parks y pt P~r WdoptForm-Shakopee.xls