Applications for the Haines Borough’s revived, seven-member Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee are still being accepted, after only one resident applied by an initial June 21 deadline.
Dr. Marnie Hartman, a physical therapist who has led the nonprofit Well and Fit Community Council’s efforts to promote a Haines recreation center, was the lone applicant as of press time Wednesday.
“(The committee) just goes along with my overall goal of trying to facilitate greater health and wellness and physical activity in our community, and I think it’s a great way to partner with the borough and try to make that happen,” Hartman said.
Applications are available at http://www.hainesborough.us. Letters of interest for the mayor-appointed committee should be sent to the borough clerk’s office and will be accepted until all seats are filled.
“It would work like the other advisory committees that we have, like the tourism advisory and harbor advisory committees,” said borough manager Mark Earnest. “They would meet on a regular basis and we would have staff appointed to facilitate the agendas and meetings.”
The previous group, called the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, went dormant in 2008, with members citing a lack of authority.
According to an ordinance the Haines Borough Assembly adopted last month to re-establish the group, committee members “will be appointed to reflect the diversity of user groups in the Haines Borough.” Appointees would serve staggered, three-year terms and “advise the borough in the operation and maintenance of parks and recreation programs, facilities, and activities.”
“They would discuss ideas or suggestions and present those to the Mayor, assembly and administration,” Earnest said. “It can work the other way, too. For example, if there was an idea that came up at the assembly level, they could request that the committee discuss it, too, just so that there’s more discussion and more input.”
Earnest and borough clerk Julie Cozzi said they’ve heard from residents who would like to be on the committee, but have yet to submit an application.
Members would serve as volunteers. Travel assistance money is available for residents driving more than 10 miles one way to attend regular meetings.
The newly adopted ordinance also states the committee will have a chair, vice chair and secretary, and a seat shall be deemed vacated if a member fails to attend three consecutive meetings without being excused.
The committee was re-established a few months after the assembly approved $14,442 for MRV Architects of Juneau to coordinate a “programming” study to measure demand for a community recreation center proposed for the old elementary gymnasium. Results of that study were not yet available this week.
“The programming study is still ongoing,” Earnest said. “I don’t have an estimate on when that will be ready for the public discussion, but we have asked for MRV to put together some bubble diagrams, and then maybe we’ll have another presentation for the public in the near future.”
Results from community opinion and youth surveys collected as part of an update to the borough’s comprehensive plan showed strong support for a community recreation center, with 22 percent of respondents in the adult survey ranking it as the most important proposed project.
Sarah Elliott, the borough’s Community Youth Development director, a part-time borough staffer, will be an ex officio Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee member.
“I think there are a lot of people in the community who want more parks and rec opportunities, especially with this survey that’s going on with the elementary gym,” Elliott said. “It’s a good time to start more discussions about what direction we’re going to go in the community with more recreation.”