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PARAB Minutes 06/18/2025 (Draft) 1 MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE PARKS & RECREATION ADVISORY BOARD Naples, Florida June 18, 2025 LET IT BE REMEMBERED, the Collier County Parks & Recreation Advisory Board, in and for the County of Collier, having conducted business herein, met on this date at 2 p.m. in REGULAR SESSION at Max Hasse Jr. Park, 3390 Golden Gate Blvd W, Naples, FL 34117 with the following members present: CHAIRMAN: Edward “Ski” Olesky (excused) VICE CHAIR: Joshua Fruth Lee Dixon (excused) Jessica Bergel Rebecca Gibson-Laemel Eric Kelley ALSO PRESENT: James Hanrahan, Interim Director, Parks & Recreation Miguel Rojas Jr., Admin. Support Specialist II, Parks & Rec. Said Gomes, Region 3 Parks Manager Sid Kitilla, Manager, Air & Air 2 Marissa Baker, Regional Manager, Paradise Sports Complex & Sugden Randi Swindeman, Regional Manager Mike Dee, U.S. Open Pickleball Kyle Bregenzer, Max Hasse Jr. Park Calvin Genzer, Interim Supervisor, Parks & Recreation 2 Anyone who needs a verbatim record of the meeting may request a copy of the recording and PowerPoint presentations from Collier County Parks & Recreation Department. I. Call to Order a. Welcome by the Director b. Roll Call Roll call was taken c. Verification of Quorum Four were in attendance II. Pledge of Allegiance and Invocation The Board recited the Pledge of Allegiance III. Approval of the Agenda Rebecca Gibson-Laemel motioned to approve the agenda. It was seconded by Jessica Bergel. The motion passed unanimously and the agenda was approved. IV. Approval of Previous Meeting Minutes Rebecca Gibson-Laemel motioned to approve the previous minutes. It was seconded by Jessica Bergel. The motion passed unanimously and the Minutes were approved. V. New Business a. Welcome to Max Hasse – Kyle Bregenzer • We are in full swing for our summer camps at this location. We have 116 full summer campers as well as 20 weekly campers and 10 counselors, 4 full time staff and 1 supervisor. This is our offerings. • Tennis is a rental we just started. We have a gentleman who rents our tennis courts out. • I also rent out the softball, baseball and soccer fields for our Soccer Shots Program. We have 25 participants in that so far. They've only done one season, but they're probably going to return in the fall. • Child care is our program. We have about 136 kids daily and us after school program, average around 120, and Golden Gate, American Little League and etc. • Our yard sales sell out all 70 spaces almost every month and, on a weekend, have about 250-300 people. 3 • Future plans are expanding our programs and offerings. My program leaders are all focused on childcare. I don't have athletic program leaders. • When someone from the community says they would like to run soccer here, we partner with them. • My passion is modernizing and streamlining operations through technology. I'm sure if • Jamie French has come in and given our parks one heck of a facelift. I want to keep that going so my staff knows if you see something, say something. If it's broke, put in a work order, let's fix it. • Facility improvements include a new playground in August. • Photos of the children in camp activities were shown and of the tennis program. James Handrahan • Kyle came from Athletics at North Collier and bringing athletics to the childcare program. • He hired a new fitness program leader. Maryann was here for 19 years. We're excited to see what she brings. • We spent close to $80,000 on fence for second A repairs for the playground and baseball area, the tent, and some of the tennis. We're really using the money we have to spruce up the areas. b. Summer Camp – Randi Swindeman • We're in the third week of summer camp with about 803 campers consistently every week. • We have a teen camp at East Naples Community Park, Golden Gate Community Park, Big Corkscrew and Veteran’s which was at North Collier previously. It’s been really successful so far for both locations. • Although not run by us, we offer a ski and sail camp with 15-20 in each. • We're renting to a tennis camp over at Vineyards with have 7 to 10 players. It's a half day in the morning. • We have AIR at Golden Gate Community Park with about 20 kids. They invited the fire department and the sheriff's office and challenged the how can you. How can you be a hero? So they did a food drive and they collected over 400 pounds of food that they're donating for achievements. Teaching kids’ life skills that they can give back to the community in just a small way. • We have a great partnership with the Zoo that offers us fee free visits. • This week they go to the movies, the pool at Golden Gate Community Park and some are going to Big Horse Group, Eagle Lakes, bowling at Headpins. • They go to Sun N Fun week six. 4 • We're really big in athletics and that takes up a big majority of the year. But a lot of the really critical work that we do is in these 9 to 10 weeks that we have these kids over the summer. • Sid and I received an email that was send to Monica Cummings in the AIR program, from a summer camp counselor’s Mom commending your work. • The AIR programs have a 1 to 3 ratio. AIR2 builds on that with a 1 to 6, 8 or 10 ratio • AIR is in the air building at Golden Gate Community Park to the left of the aquatic’s facility. • AIR2 is in the exhibit hall at North Collier. c. U.S. Open Pickleball – Mike Dee • Last December I was here when you authorized the price increase from 50 to $100 for annual membership. In return, the members got more. And when you're able to give them more as members, benefits, values, discount in store, discount on lessons, exclusive times where they get to use the courts, all of those benefits roll up into a great value proposition. I think our fees to the County are up almost 70% year over year during those months. Most of that is membership, but some of that is merchandise, some of that is clinics. • We'll start to renew for 2026 but not proposing any changes to the economics but thinking ahead to 2027 we should think about another increase. • A slide presentation of this year’s U.S. Open Pickleball Championship was viewed. • Signage and Branding was all new as well as a new pro shop. • Wrist bands for membership replaced paper ones. • We have a world class instructor, Bob Bowman with 16 teaching professionals and Justin Romero, director of tennis and pickleball for 13 years at Ocean Reef Club, Key Largo. • The Commission approved a $2 million investment for a new, waterproof canopy last September, contingent upon a study being done funded by Tourism to make sure that the metrics economic return was sufficient to support the project. That report came back positive. And we will move forward to use that money. • Andre Agassi played this year. • A lot of exposure came from being feature as the top story on NBC Nightly News Sports Center. • Around 57,000 fans attended with 3,500 athletes participating during the 7 days. • Collier County Sheriff's Office brought the mobile trailer command center for the first time this year at our request. • Our only complaint from members was the wait time between matches. • Our economic impact study will be this year should be approaching the 15 million dollar mark in terms of hotel nights, restaurants, VRBOs and overall economic impact for the region. 5 • Parking is an issue and the Community Center is being looked at with mindful consideration. VI. Old Business a. Attendance Update – James Handrahan • The at large position expires Dec. 31st. We should look at a replacement based on skill set. • Mr. Dixon is resigning due to time constraints of a new job but I would like to lend him the opportunity to come in and provide feedback. • We'll potentially have the two actual vacancies and then that at large. • The Immokalee Sports Complex Fields had asked the Board for assistance in the form of a letter. • Eric has written a draft for you today. b. Letter of Support - Eric Kelley Dear Commissioners, On behalf of the Collier County Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, I'm ready to respectfully request your continued attention and increased support with the Immokalee community, a growing, dynamic and vital part of our County. Immokalee is experiencing considerate, consistent growth across all age groups and with that growth comes an increasing demand for safe, clean and engaging spaces that support recreational activities and community connection. Unfortunately, the current recreation recreational infrastructure in Immokalee is not sufficient to meet those evolving needs of its residents. I want to highlight that my very first Parks and Recreational Advisory Board meeting that was held in Immokalee with Commissioner McDaniel in attendance. That evening we witnessed an overwhelming turnout, maybe into triple digits of passionate residents who came to share their stories, ideals and heartfelt pleas for change. Their enthusiasm, commitment, love for their community were undeniable. And I know Commissioner McDaniel would attest to the energy and urgency expressed in that room. Now, over a year later, many of those same residents feel not much has changed. While I understand their frustration, I also recognize that meaningful progress takes time. I believe the Collier County's Growth Management team has taken this feedback seriously, and I'm encouraged by what appears to be a new focus and regrouped effort headed in the right direction. However, it's clear more financial support is needed to turn this vision into reality. As a Board, we believe strongly in the power of park creation to enhance the quality of life, support youth development, and foster healthier, more connected communities. Investing in Immokalee's 6 parks, open spaces and recreational programs is not just a matter of equity. It is essential to ensuring that all Collier County residents have access to the same opportunities for wellness, enrichment and engagement. We ask that you prioritize funding, planning and resources to expand and improve recreational spaces in Immokalee. This includes developing facilities that serve people of all ages, from youth sports fields to senior friendly programming areas and ensuring that these spaces are safe, accessible and well maintained. We look forward to working with you collaboratively and to support your future of Immokalee residents to whom call it home. Jessica Bergel • What I'm hearing, your letter is great and it covers everything, but it's saying “these are our issues” but you need to give the solutions. • It's been a year from this date to this date. • The meaningful progress is this. • Our vision is this. • This is how much it will cost. • You have to be very specific with the Commissioners because they are not going to come up with the numbers. James Hanrahan When people talk about Paradise Coast Sports Complex, that money came from increasing the bed tax at hotels. If adding another penny is approved by the BCC, it will appear on the voting ballot in November. That money would be able to fund the rest of the park if a study found that it promotes tourism. I can have Said product the numbers for you Eric. Joshua Fruth • The education aspect of this is huge because you have two sides with the funding. The surtax that could potentially be to fund special projects, which the last surtax did really well. It was capped at 7 years, over $590 million. So far, it's funding a new behavioral health facility, facility upgrades, all, all projects, funding needed. • There are 60,000 students in the school district that operates on a 2.5 billion dollar budget. Collier County as a whole operates on a 2 plus billion dollar budget as a Corporation. And the people who vote say “I don't use parks” but on the other side you heard the people screaming at us at the last meeting. • We have another meeting October. I think we should have some sort of educational aspect for that meeting ready. French and Cook should be there or a Commissioner. 7 • They don't understand that a regional park can get funding from a surtax paid by tourists because they host regional tournaments, which creates revenue for the funding of the facility. Immokalee is not a regional park. It's funded by Collier County. VII. Public Comments Joanne Jany, a volunteer for the Conservancy of Southwest Florida, handed out information on the area of Clam Pass that was damaged by Hurricane Ian. The dune that protects the trails and ecosystem was destroyed and needs replacement. The CAC has not offered assistance and she is asking Parks & Recreation to help preserve the park and restore the plantings. James Handrahan • We are trying to figure out the what fund is responsible. We are seeing what the Naples Grand is thinking and what conversations we can have. • I don't want you to think anyone in Parks is passing you on someone else. We're going to have those conversations and see what can be done. But to Josh's point, may not be our bucket of money, but can we help be a supporter of where that money comes from? VIII. Manager Updates Randi Swindeman • We are changing the field lights at Veteran’s Park to LED. • The pickleball courts at Pelican Bay should be ready at end of summer. 10 for Pelican Bay residents and 10 for public use. • They resurfaced the clay on the tennis courts and moved them around. • Vineyards has a really big soccer program and we able to get the sod down by the end of May. • Big Corkscrew is beating Sun n Fun pretty consistently in attendance. Sun n Fun is open every day. • We partnered with North Naples and North Collier Fire Departments to train 51 of their staff to be lifeguards for the County and they are supplementing our staff at both venues. • The softball fields at North Collier are totally shut down for refurbishment. Sid Kitilla • AIR and AIR2 is going really well. • The main building in Golden Gate Park is where we work and I’ve been working on getting things fixed up. • Painting is going on and new signage is part of the project. • A new roof in the Wheels Building. 8 • Eagle Lakes has been super busy with aquatics • Trying to get the fields little league uses shut down for maintenance. • We have about 20 kids a week in a new program with sports camp for little kids. • Golden Gate Community Park started an agility program for kids. • I’m working with Special Olympics and the swimming team at Eagle Lakes on Sudays. Mariss Baker • I’ve been in Parks since 2015 before going to Paradise Coast. Glad to be back at Parks. • Freedom Waters Foundation donated a $41,000 floating dock installation at Sugden which I oversaw. • This week at Paradise Coast Sports Complex we have The Football University, Top Gun for youth football players. It's the best of the best in the Nation with a lot of star power. • Typically be invited to go there and join that camp. • On July 4th we have FC Naples Professional Soccer game. Attendance has been 2,000- 4,500. • We will potentially be able to finish the complex with 6 baseball diamonds. Said Gomez • I am the Interim Regional Manager for Region 3 of Immokalee and Max Hasse and did a presentation earlier today at the CRA meeting. • This year was a Disney theme and were able to help folks who couldn’t pay the $600. fee. • We had a summer foods craft inspiring them to create something new. • They do go on field trips bowling, ice cream, zoo, movies, etc. • We have 55 campers and 3 counselors. • Our fitness center is booming and we kicked off a program Muscle Madness and had 80 scan ins this morning before 10:00. • We offer swimming lessons through Swim Central with 852 swimming lessons. • We did a fishing program with the help of Ace Hardware that provided drinks. FWS taught how to catch and release. • Kyle is helping with athletics. James Handrahan Our other Regional Manager, Michael Sawyer?, manages Freedom Park on Wednesday. Beaches and marinas and boat launch is going well and contract with Blue Water is going well. The Kelly Brothers did a fantastic job on the ramp on 951 and we’re repaving the parking lot and updated some lighting. Caxambas Pass Park was done by them and is really impressive. Complaints about bathroom cleanliness is down. Michael did a great job on that. 9 IX. Director’s Report James Handrahan Full focus on summer aquatics. I’m really challenging the Regional Managers to look at what we’re doing at our parks and what makes sense. Kyle is a great example of what we’re seeing at several parks. Eric Kelley Is there a schedule that comes out in advance? Like, you know, when they're doing aeration with, doing this or that. Is that shared with the other? Randi Swindeman It’s on our website and is usually the same every year generally December through January and May through August. X. Adjourned 3:52 p.m. Collier County Parks & Recreation Advisory Board _________________________________________ Chairman Edward “Ski” Olesky The Minutes were approved by ____________________________________ Name ____________________________________ Signature as presented___________________ or amended____________________ 10