Minutes for the July 8th Meeting on the Proposed Dr. Phillips Park
Orange
Commissioner Teresa Jacobs, Melvin
Pittman, Venetta Valdengo-Blevins, Darren Gray,
William
Potter, Robert Goff, Ken Pelham, Dennis Weatherford, Kelly Kaak, Anthony
Cotter,
Bill Toth and Vanessa Castillo.
I. Welcome and Overview - Venetta Valdengo-Blevins, Deputy Director, Community & Environmental Services
Ø A brief overview was presented to the residents.
Ø Approximately 2 years ago, the Board of County Commissioners approved the purchase of 83 acres in which 41 acres were uplands and are to be used for the development of Dr. P. Phillips Park.
Ø In December 2001, surveys were distributed to approximately 9,000 residents to collect data regarding the improvements and enhancements that are going to be put into the park.
Ø This property was formerly a trap and skeet club.
Ø Environmental clean up will take place prior to the park’s development.
II. Opening Comments - Commissioner Teresa Jacobs, District 1
Ø The purpose of this meeting is to give more realistic expectations on what would be needed for this project to move forward.
Ø
Although this property will be a community park,
the demand for another regional soccer complex in
Ø The survey form was sent to residents that would be directly impacted by the park and who were within a 3-mile radius.
Ø As a result of the surveys sent out in December 2001, 1,055 replies were returned to us.
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IV. History/Update of Dr. P. Phillips Park – Dennis Weatherford, Interim Assistant Manager, Environmental Protection Division and Bill Toth, Orange County Health Department
Ø Dennis discussed various issues encountered on site, which include high levels of lead shots, clay pigeon fragments and lead impacted ground water as a result of this site being a former skeet shooting range.
Ø Dennis explained the process in which red zone soils would have to be screened and go through a chemical fixation process and possibly be retreated if it does not pass residential requirements.
V. Future Action – Venetta Valdengo-Blevins
Ø The next meeting will be held in approximately six months.
Ø A newsletter will also be sent to residents who live within the 3-mile radius. This newsletter will include a summary of tonight’s meeting and will be distributed either quarterly or bi-yearly.
VI. Questions & Answers
Q: Will there be hours of operation, as well as gates around the park?
A: Yes, it is our intention to have both. (William Potter)
Q: Will the totlot be covered?
A: Yes, also the adult sitting areas will be covered. (William Potter)
Q: What will be the access to the park?
A: It will be down and off Fenton into the park. This will stay this way, but we will meet with residents beforehand if we do decide to shift/change it. (William Potter)
Q: Out of the $4 million for this park, how much is actually being spent on it?
A: Approximately between ½ million to $750,000 for roads/infrastructure, etc. with the rest going into Phase 1 development. (William Potter)
Q: When will the park open?
A: We will come back in six months and give a more definite time frame.
(Venetta Valdengo-Blevins)
Q: Who gave up this property?
A:
It was not given up.
A: Originally, it was owned by the Dr. P. Phillips Foundation.
(Commissioner Jacobs)
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Dr.
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Q: Will the park be developed exactly as we see (on the conceptual)?
A: What we have for Phase 1 and based on tonight’s meeting. (William Potter)
Q: What is the point of having little fields? We have expressed concerns in having a sports complex, particularly for soccer.
A:
We cannot say that we can devote the whole area for soccer, but we do
need more soccer fields in
Q: How much access?
A: There will be one way in and out. This gives residents an opportunity to see who comes in/out and keeps vehicles away from people. (William Potter)
Q: Does this site include lights? What are the hours?
A:
The soccer fields will be lit until
Q: How many parking spaces will there be?
A: There will be 90 parking spaces for Phase 1, although we realize that it is not enough. We will add more in Phase 2. (William Potter)
Q: Are there 48 total acres?
A: Yes, Phase 1 consists of about 50% of it. (William Potter)
A: 41 acres are uplands. (Venetta Valdengo-Blevins)
Q: Why isn’t a park done on the clean side?
A: We would rather make sure the site is completely tested and safe. (William Potter)
Q: Does the Phase 2 need clean up?
A: No. (William Potter)
Q: The soccer fields seem out of proportion.
A: The fields are at a 60’ scale and are both adult-size fields. (Ken Pelham)
Q: Could dogs be walked here?
A: Yes. Also, we will be building 2 more dog parks next year in our already existing parks where pets can be walked in a fenced area without a leash. (William Potter)
Q: Will any part of the property be for a middle school?
A: Orange County Public Schools realizes that Bay Meadows Elementary is
overcrowded and another school is needed. This issue is #4 on their priority list. (Roy Messinger – Southern Dr. Phillips Homeowners Coalition)
Q: What will the perimeter of the park be?
A: Fencing. (William Potter)
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Q: How will pedestrian activity be controlled?
A: We want a pedestrian access gate that can open and close so that residents do not have to walk all the way around the park. (Commissioner Jacobs)
A: This gate will only be open during park hours. (William Potter)
Q: Isn’t additional parking needed?
A: If we need another parking mode, we will move it east. Until then, if the park becomes overcrowded, people will need to park on the lawn. (William Potter)
Q:
Can people park on
A: Yes, for now, but they will not be allowed once the park is completed.
(William Potter)
Q: Could we use the wooded areas and dedicate it to youth sports?
A: We hear you, but we send out surveys so that a park can be built based on its
outcome. (William Potter)
A: We cannot decide on this tonight for this property. (Commissioner Jacobs)
Q: Can this property be extended so that people outside the 3-mile radius can use it?
A: In
the Orange County Comprehensive Land Use Plan’s definition, a community park
is a multi-faceted, active recreational facility that serves a primary target
audience within a customer base of a 3-mile radius. (William Potter)
Q: Why is soccer being poorly represented?
A: You can support this by attending budget meetings, etc. I realize and agree that we do not have enough, but we do have the West Orange Soccer fields and one on the east side of town. (Commissioner Jacobs)
Q: Has anyone looked into requiring developers to help fund utilized land space to acquire the property wanted and needed?
A:
In large projects, they are required to set aside a certain amount of
open space/recreational fields, but not on smaller projects.
This is something that I feel needs to be looked at and reconsidered.
(Commissioner Jacobs)
Q:
What is happening to
A: Ideally, our goal is to get rid of the chain link fence and provide a walkway to keep cars off of it without going all the way around. (Commissioner Jacobs)
Q: How will priority usage of the field be handled?
A:
The same as all
Q: Does Parks and Recreation do demographics on who is sent surveys?
A: No, we send it to everyone within the 3-mile radius of the park. (William Potter)
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A: We do have the West Orange Soccer Complex. (Commissioner Jacobs)
Q:
Will
A: We are not sure. At a minimum, it would be vinyl-clad. (William Potter)
Q:
Will there be pedestrian access from
A: Very likely. (Commissioner Jacobs)
Q: Can you encompass all of Dr. Phillips in the survey?
A: It can be sent to a wider area if it can be sent cost effectively.
A: This will not necessarily be the only park in the Dr. Phillips area.
(Commissioner Jacobs) (William Potter)
Q:
What will be done about
A:
The issue of
Q:
Will the area where
A: At this time, we do not have an answer, but we are taking note of it. (Commissioner Jacobs)
Q: Is this the exact design or will it evolve?
A: Basically, with possibly very little change unless we hear otherwise.
(William Potter)
Q: Can you look at getting 3 youth-size fields out of the 2 adult-size fields?
A: It may shift once we get into full design. (Venetta Valdengo-Blevins)
Q: Based on the conceptual, what are the sports deficiencies in this park?
A: We are deficient in soccer, football and softball. (William Potter)
Q: What is the schedule for Phase 1?
A: We will get back to you in approximately 6 months. (Commissioner Jacobs)
Q: As a soccer mom, what am I getting for my tax dollars?
A: We are going to try to put a variety of uses in this park site. (Commissioner Jacobs)
Q: What can we do in order to have more soccer facilities?
A: This will be a separate project, but we are moving forward.
(Commissioner Jacobs)
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Thank you for participating in this public meeting. If you have any questions regarding this project, please contact Ken Pelham at (407) 836-6200.
Sincerely,
Robert
Goff
Robert Goff
Project Manager