11.16.21 HR Meeting Minutes-FINALHEALTH AND RECREATION COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 2021
TOWN HALL COUNCIL CHAMBERS
HEALTH AND RECREATION COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES, NOVEMBER 16, 2021 PAGE 1 | 3
1. ROLL CALL
Present- Committee Members: Chairperson Tom Kiddoo, Vice Chair Pat Nolan and Members Pam Warren and Kathy Ryan
via phone
Staff: Interim Recreation Director of Recreation Michael Labaugh, Recreation Services Superintendent Jerrica Miller,
Aquatics Superintendent Kacy Carmichael, General Government Manager Ineke de Jong and General Government
Intern Emily Myler.
Absent-
Town Council: Councilors Scott Prince and Lindsay Hardy and Mayor Sarah Smith Hymes.
Committee Chair Tom Kiddoo opened the meeting at 10:02 a.m..
2. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA
Committee Chair Tom Kiddoo made a motion to approve the agenda for the November 16 meeting. Committee vice chair Pat
Nolan seconded the motion and Kiddoo declared the agenda approved.
3. APPROVAL OF THE July 20, 2021 MEETING MINUTES
Committee Chair Tom Kiddoo made a motion to approve the minutes from September 14. Committee Vice-Chair Pat Nolan
seconded the motion and Kiddoo declared the minutes approved.
4. PUBLIC COMMENT
No public comments were made.
5. BUSINESS ITEMS
Recreation Staffing
Interim Recreation Director Michael Labaugh said the Recreation Center is now fully staffed for full time employees and
introduced the two new superintendents present at the meeting. The Center still needs more part time staff. They recently
launched a new online platform to make reservations, buy memberships, check in and other customer services. The new website
is a huge upgrade from the previous one which was outdated and didn’t offer the various services needed. Avon Recreation is
working with Vail Recreation and Mountain Recreation to give access to county-wide recreation in one place. The site can collect
and portray data trends and will eventually allow users to submit feedback as well. It can fully embed into the Town’s website,
Avon.org. There are sales coming up for memberships and punch cards which will be on the site.
The Committee commented/inquired:
A. How is staffing for classes?
B. It’s important to continue to offer lots of classes because they’re very popular and offer a valuable social opportunity
C. The Recreation Center should do whatever it can to attract good staff
D. Will senior and adult programs be separate on the site?
E. The site looks really good. It’s great that the Recreation Center is getting to upgrade
Interim Recreation Director Labaugh said he has had to cancel a few fitness classes due to lack of staff. The Recreation Center is
working hard to hire more staff as quickly as possible. Current staff has the opportunity to train in different skills in order to take
on additional responsibilities. For now, senior programs are under the adult tab, but it may make sense to separate them out as
the site becomes more popular.
HEALTH AND RECREATION COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 2021
TOWN HALL COUNCIL CHAMBERS
HEALTH AND RECREATION COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES, NOVEMBER 16, 2021 PAGE 2 | 3
Recreation Center Renovations
Interim Recreation Director Labaugh updated the Committee on the renovations at the Recreation Center. The locker rooms are
nearly done, just waiting on a few finishing details and change orders. The pool replastering went well. The hot tub is more
difficult as the initial excavation was unsuccessful at locating the leak. More issues were discovered, and the project has become
larger than expected. The hot tub should reopen in a few weeks. The old lockers will be recycled to various other places soon.
The Committee commented/inquired:
A. It’s nice that the shower and toilet stall doors close all the way now
B. Is there handicap accessibility to get into the women’s locker room
C. Is the kitchen almost done?
D. Are there any new cleaning protocols that would help people feel more comfortable using amenities like the steam room
during COVID-19?
E. Compliments on finishing the project mostly on time
Interim Recreation Director said there haven’t been any updates to accessibility, but it is something to consider moving forw ard in
the project or added to the list for next year. The kitchen is close, but cabi nets have been slow to arrive. They should be here
soon and the project can be completed. Access to the new kitchen, as well as meeting room rentals, birthday parties and picnic
shelter rentals are all on the new website. The Recreation Staff and contracte d cleaning company have been diligent cleaning the
spaces, and will advertise their protocols as people move their recreation inside for the winter.
Tennis and Pickleball Court Resurfacing
Interim Recreation Director Labaugh said the pickleball survey is complete and provided feedback on how to resurface the tennis
courts for tennis and pickleball players. The most popular choice was to put six pickleball courts and two tennis courts in t he
space. His goal is to obtain more feedback from the Committee and make a decision on which option to recommend to Town
Council based on survey results.
The Committee commented/inquired:
A. Is there fencing between the pickleball and tennis courts?
B. Does the surface material need to change for pickleball users?
C. It makes sense to adhere to the majority of survey responses and select option three
D. More people can play pickleball than tennis
E. What is the timeline?
Interim Recreation Director Labaugh said there is a fence between the courts. The surface can be the same across the pad for
both tennis and pickleball. The concrete pad will be expanded a few feet towards Nottingham Lake to give the courts more spac e.
He has some concern that the survey was disproportionately used by pickleball us ers, but he doesn’t think the hybrid court is a
good option. He asked if everyone agreed to recommend option three and the Committee members all responded yes. The
courts will be open for a short period in the spring and then closed most of the summer sinc e the construction has to happen in
good weather.
Recreation Survey
Interim Recreation Director Labaugh said there is budgeting for long-range planning in 2022 for updates to the campus of
recreation in and surrounding the Recreation Center. Right now there are plans to do a longer survey for Recreation Center
patrons and people who participate in general recreation in the valley. He asked the Committee what information the survey
should gather. He also showed the answers to the recreation questions on the 2021 Community Survey, many of which were
addressed during the recent renovations. He’s excited to gather new ideas and find out what’s within the realm of possibilities.
HEALTH AND RECREATION COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 2021
TOWN HALL COUNCIL CHAMBERS
HEALTH AND RECREATION COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES, NOVEMBER 16, 2021 PAGE 3 | 3
The Committee commented/inquired:
A. Other recreation departments in the valley attempted to merge in 2021 in a ballot measure which didn’t pass. What did
those who worked on that learn about county-wide collaboration that Avon can benefit from?
B. The survey should help people prioritize projects rather than allowing them to come up with whatever project they want
C. Parking is going to be a huge barrier to any growth projects across town
D. What are the measures of success?
Committee Member Pat Nolan left the meeting at 10:58 am.
Interim Recreation Director Labaugh said the voters didn’t seem to approve of the expense of that project and are generally
happy with the current offerings. He agreed that in past feedback gathering there were too many options and no research on
what would be feasible. He will bring a second draft of survey questions in the Committee’s January meeting and aim to have the
survey live in February or March. His number one metric for success is supporting the staff he already has through creating
efficient and sustainable best practices. Second is the connection the commu nity has with the Recreation Center and meeting its
needs. He is also
2022 Committee Meeting Schedule
Interim Recreation Director Labaugh showed the Committee the tentative dates for meetings in 2022 and asked if there were any
initial concerns. He asked what time would work best and the Committee members responded that 10:00 a.m. works for them. He
asked members to let him know if any issues arise that would require amending the schedule.
6. A DJOURNMENT
Committee Chair Kiddoo motioned to adjourn the meeting and Committee Member Pam Warren seconded the motion. Committee
Chair Tom Kiddoo declared the meeting adjourned at 11:11 a.m.
Respectfully Submitted by
Emily Myler
General Government Intern