Antrim County Parks and Recreation Commission
March 02, 2004
Minutes
Members Present:		Al Luurtsema, Russ Blasdell, Mark Stone, Jerome Dobrzelewski, Al Pecar and Stan Moore
Members Absent:		Mike Crawford, Jerry Basch and Mike Meriwether
Staff Present:		Howard Yamaguchi, Eileen Wallick
Others Present:		Kent Reynolds
I.          Call to Order
	Al Luurtsema called the meeting of the Parks & Recreation Commission (Parks & Rec) to order at 9:04 a.m.
II.         Approval of the Minutes of the January 27, 2004 Meeting
	Motion by Stan Moore, seconded by Mark Stone, to approve the minutes of the January 27, 2004, meeting.  Motion passed - unanimous.
III.        Elk Rapids Rotary Club Trail Update
	Kent Reynolds of the Elk Rapids Rotary Club spoke to Parks & Rec about the efforts by the Club to rekindle interest in a non-motorized trail connecting the Grand Traverse trails with the Charlevoix County trails.  The Club is working with the local townships to develop a vision for the trails and incorporate them into their local plans.  There have been several meetings of the trails group, including a meeting with the County and the Road Commission, and the Club is currently shopping around for engineering services for a feasibility study.  Other possible trails are routes that connect Elk Rapids with Alden, the Grass River Natural Area, and Bellaire.
	Jerome Dobrzelewski noted that Torch Lake township is talking about possible shoulder work on their roads.  Mr. Reynolds noted that the challenge is to provide a safe route for the stretch between Barnes Road and Eastport; the rest can be on less traveled routes.  Stan Moore encouraged the Rotary Club to provide a write-up which could conceivably be incorporated into the county parks plan.  MDOT and other funding agencies like to hear about how proposed projects fit into the big picture.
	Some discussion ensued on joint grant applications.  Some discussion also ensued on the Elk Rapids Fishing Park parking upgrades.
IV.        Wetzel Lake Planning Update
	Howard distributed Janet Person’s draft plan to be submitted to the DNR.  It will be cleared through the Parks Committee this week.  Al Luurtsema instructed Parks & Rec to read and comment on the draft plan.
V.         Comprehensive Recreation Plan Update
	Stan Moore requested comments on the draft Section A of the Comprehensive Rec Plan.  The consensus of the group was to include statistics on tourism and visitors to emphasize the importance of recreation to the county.  Another aspect to add to the Comprehensive Rec Plan was historical sites, as historical tourism is another component that generates visitor-days in the County.  There was talk of expanding the Parks & Rec Commission to include a member of the historical societies.
VI.        Parks Forum Update
	Stan Moore demonstrated the voting machine (Option Finder) that will be used at the Parks Forum.  He also demonstrated the different types of questions that can be asked and how statistics can be gathered for each type of question.  Stan requested assistance in setting the various questions.  Mark Stone suggested distributing the rec-related pie charts (opinion survey) and visioning session results at the Forum.  Stan noted that questions can be in demographics, priorities, where we are currently, evaluation, forest lands, and promotions.  Al Luurtsema instructed Parks & Rec to contact Stan immediately with question suggestions.
VII.       Barnes Park Update
	Howard briefed Parks & Rec about his contact with DNR’s Linda Hegstrom about the timing for a contract for the grant that Antrim County was awarded for Barnes Park improvements (electrification of 27 sites, trails, and a visitor center).  Contract may not be awarded until mid-year at the earliest, although permission to proceed with engineering may be given earlier.
VIII.      Elk Rapids Park Update
	Howard distributed the Elk Rapids Park scope of work.  Al Luurtsema briefed the Commission on the meeting that produced the scope.  The Parks Committee must sign off on the program.
IX.        Adjournment Meeting adjourned at 11:10 a.m.
	Next Meeting Thursday, March 25, 2004, at 9:00 a.m.