Jamestown Parks Manager Dan Stone presents to City Council (June 12, 2023)

The Jamestown City Council received an update Monday on various projects happening in the Parks Department.

Parks Manager Dan Stone, speaking to City Council on Monday, presented a lengthy list of projects and events the Parks Department has been involved with so far this year.

He detailed several American Rescue Plan funded projects that were completed in time for the season, “We did new ball field in-fields at Allen Park, Nordstrom Park, number 3 (field) at Bergman Park was completely skinned and replaced with ballfield material; and both in-fields at Roseland Park as well. Disc golf is now an 18-hole golf course up at Bergman Park. We just need to install tee boxes at this point.”

Stone said they’re planning to build the boxes using old city brick. He said the basketball courts at Allen, Bergman, and Jackson-Taylor Parks are all sealed and painted. He hopes to put new rims on the hoops this week.

In regards to the two Splash Pad projects, Stone said he’s waiting on prices from Parkitects for the Allen Park Splash Pad to come back. He said the city is also still waiting for the soil test results for Jackson-Taylor Park. The administration said there is currently a 12-week delay on those coming back.

Stone announced the Chautauqua Region Community Foundation has awarded a grant for new picnic tables at Diethrick Stadium. He said they’ve been ordered from Jamestown Advanced Products and hopes they’ll be delivered in the next month.

Stone added that while there will not be a Summer Playground Program in the parks this year, the Jamestown YMCA will still be providing the free summer lunch program on week days, starting June 26, at Lillian Dickson Park.

Fleet Manager Pat Monaghan, DPW/Acting Parks Director Jeff Lehman, Parks Manager Dan Stone present budget to Jamestown City Council (October 17, 2022)

The Jamestown DPW and Acting Parks Director is expressing concerns over under-funding or lack of funding in the proposed 2023 executive budget.

Jeff Lehman presented the Public Works Department budget to Jamestown City Council Monday night along with Fleet Manager Pat Monaghan and Parks Manager Dan Stone.

Lehman said the cuts in Traffic Division equipment scare him the most with prices going up 25 to 30%, “We’re going to be over budget, I think, this year as far as some of the things we’re ordering. Just the basic things – lights, traffic control boxes, that type of thing. So that’s got me scared. And then the other thing is the laborer. There’s nothing here for summer labor, which you know, we cut that person out, well, you might not know. So, years ago, I don’t know, Kim (Ecklund), was it five, six years ago? We cut a person out of the Traffic Division. The summer laborer position is about the only way we get somebody help to get the lines all painted in the summer.”

Lehman said he didn’t see summer help funded in any of the Public Works divisions. He said his biggest items are capital items and includes the replacement of the Municipal Building roof for an estimated cost of $800,000, “We’re having some minor repairs done this year because the availability of materials precludes us from doing it this year. We’re hoping if we get approval of this, we can get it on order and have materials in place for next year, but we had pretty major leaking in the fifth floor this year.”

Lehman said with the Municipal Building being 50 years old, the infrastructure needs updating including $800,000 to fix wall facade on the outside of the building, $200,000 for air quality control in the building’s HVAC system, and $25,000 to replace plumbing in the jail. He added phase two of the Tracy Plaza deck replacement on the northern portion of the plaza is estimated to cost $1 million.

Fleet Manager Pat Monaghan presented on 20 different purchase requests from the $7.5 million in DPW and Parks equipment and replacement program requests. He said those 20 pieces of equipment were at the end of their life with three vehicles having to be taken out of services due issues that can no longer be repaired.

Parks Manager Dan Stone said his biggest concern that wasn’t reflected in the budget is having enough employees in the Parks Department to maintain the over 500 acres of park land along with everything that has been added to the parks system in the last 17 years, “This year alone, right, we put in what I consider not just a park but a destination place with the Skatepark that we just did the grand opening. But that’s a whole another huge area that we’re looking at having to maintain with the same workforce. We’ve added disc golf. Again, I think it’s going to be another destination place in one of our parks, but that’s another area to maintain as well.”

Stone said two new kayak launches have been installed this year, there are more properties and areas to mow, more garbage pick-up routes needed in the parks, and there’s more demand for parks workers to assist with events in the city, “‘Cause I don’t want to get us to the point where we’re sacrificing quality for quantity. That’s not a point we want to be at. Besides that, we plow more than what we had due to streets projects that have occurred in the alleyways and, again, more developed areas throughout the city. And we still maintain our urban forest and continue to grow and keep that as healthy as we can by trimming, removing trees, and planting new trees.”

Stone said the $10,000 budget line for flags and banners was cut entirely and he said the department was on target to spend $12,000 on that this year alone. He said the horticulture line also was cut entirely, which means the department won’t have a budget to purchase flowers, shrubs, or mulch for flower beds or flower pots in the city.

City Council will hear budget presentations from the City Clerk, Finance, Assessor’s Office, and Corporation Counsel Departments at 6:30 p.m. Monday, October 24 before the City Council’s Voting Session

Bergman Park Disc Golf Course Map

A new disc golf course is officially open at Bergman Park in the City of Jamestown.

The course currently has 12 holes, with an additional 6 to make a full 18-hole course expected to open in Spring of 2023.

City officials say the course utilizes many of the underused, open areas of the park, as well as some of the wooded areas around Bergman Park. City officials say use of the course is free of charge.

City Comptroller John Sellstrom said the $5,620 project was funded using Neighborhood Target Area Infrastructure monies as part of the Community Development Block Grant program. This funded the baskets for all 18-holes.

The City, in partnership with Twin Tiers Disc Golf, have applied for funding from the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation to go toward purchasing discs and portable baskets for the Summer Playground program.

A free Disc Golf Youth Camp is also being planned for Tuesday, August 30 at Bergman Park. The camp will give kids ages 7 to 13 an introduction to the sport of disc golf. No experience is necessary. It will be taught using the Educational Disc Golf Experience (EDGE) curriculum.

The free program is being made possible by the Ralph C. Wilson Jr Legacy Funds administered by the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo.

The link for more information about the camp can be found here: https://fb.me/e/5hv2miXDq

The map of the disc golf course can be found here: https://udisc.com/courses/bergman-park-x3mX.