Geauga Park District Board - November 20, 2023
Meeting: Monday, November 20, 2023 at 8:30 am at Big Creek Park Meyer Center, 9160 Robinson Rd, Chardon, OH 44024. This meeting was in-person only with no virtual option.
Public Comment Policy: The Park District Board does not have a formal policy and in practice, does not permit public comment.
Board Attendance: Commissioners Howard Bates, Jolene Carnabuci, Ray Guarino, Les LaGatta and Frank Stein were all present.
Staff Attendance: John Oros, Executive Director; Dawn Sweeney, Finance Director; Matt McCue, Deputy Director, and Jessica Alpers, Administrative Assistant. Also in attendance were Park Ranger Chief Dennis Sloan and Marketing Coordinator Sandy Ward.
Public Attendance - Todd Hicks, Attorney for Geauga Park District, Members of Protect Geauga Parks, a Reporter from the Maple Leaf, and this observer.
Minutes: Minutes from the October 16, 2023 meeting were approved without discussion and when available are posted online.
Agenda: Approved without discussion.
Financial Report: Dawn Sweeney, Finance Director, verbally reported these individual fund balances as of October 31, 2023:
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Beginning balance General Fund: $4,906,106
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Ending balance General Fund: $4,672,930
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Beginning balance Land Improvement Fund: $2,728,213
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Ending balance Land Improvement Fund: $1,849,120
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Ending Balance Total: $6,522,050
There were no questions and no discussion.
Presentation of Payment Report for October, 2023 - There was no discussion and no questions.
Old Business
Planning Update. Mr. McCue reported on several items:
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The Holbrook Hollows project in Bainbridge Township is almost complete, but the playground still needs some work.
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Veterans Legacy Woods in Newbury (formerly known as Wicked Woods Golf Course) is scheduled for work on trails this year and into next spring.
Observer Note: This Observer asked Mr. Oros after the meeting about the Troy Wetlands Project. It was listed in the board packet. Mr. Oros said they expect it to be open soon. See Troy Wetlands here.
New Business: Resolution 15-2023/The West Woods Road Replacement Bridge/ODOT
This motion was approved with no discussion.
Resolution 16-2023/1,000 Trees Support
Mr. Oros explained that this resolution was to thank those who participated in two days of planning at Veterans Legacy Woods.
2024 Final Budget Draft
This draft will be presented at the December meeting for a vote.
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The beginning 2024 balance estimate is $2,073,937.78. Last year’s beginning balance estimate was $3,245,396.69. The estimated ending general fund balance for 2024 is $1,635,31833.
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Revenues last year were estimated at $8,068,566.57; for 2024 revenues are estimated at $7,079,090.00.
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There is a decrease in property tax revenue from an estimate for 2023 of $6,935,591.01 to $6,662,575.00 Observer Note: This projected decrease in property tax revenue was not explained.
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The Land Improvement estimated beginning fund balance for 2024 is $220,831.93. The estimate for 2023 was $1,635,859.55
The Canine, Capital Reserve and Retirement Reserve funds have been closed.
Mr. Oros stated that there was an overall decrease of 7% in revenue.
There were no questions and no discussion.
Surplus Property - All voted yes. Items listed for the public included a 2015 Ford Explorer (listed as trade in). The following items were listed as scrap: a snow blower, vacuum cleaner and 2 push mowers.
Commissioner Time – There was a video shown of tree planting at Veterans Legacy Woods.
Also shown was the 2023 Space Race (2nd Annual) at Observatory Park. There were 264 runners and walkers participating in the event.
Mr. Oros also reported on the following programs:
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Natural Resource Management (NRM) removed fish and transferred them to a new pond in advance of the work being done at Veterans Legacy Woods on the cold water stream restoration.
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Holly Days was successful with 1,106 shoppers Friday evening and Saturday at the West Woods Nature Center in Russell Township during the first weekend in October.
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For the month, there were 112 programs serving 2,552 people.
The commissioners had no comments.
Executive Session - The Commissioners went into Executive Session for the purpose of discussing the compensation of public employees and collective bargaining with the rangers.
Following the Executive Session, Mr. Oros said there was no action to be taken on these items at this time.
Public Comment - none permitted.
Reviewer Comment: Due to a lack of discussion of agenda items, this was a very brief meeting with the exception of the Executive Session. Without discussion or the opportunity for the public to comment/ask questions, the ability of the public to fully understand the business of the Geauga Park District may be hindered.
Next meeting – Monday, December 18 @ 8:30 am
See the GPD Website for Additional Information and Minutes
Observer: Gail Roussey
Editor: Anne Ondrey
Reviewer: Sarah McGlone
Date Submitted: November 27, 2023
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