OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Parks, Recreation and Beautification Committee Meeting - June 22, 2026

Meeting PortalMonday, June 22, 2026
BodyClovis, New Mexico
SessionMeeting Portal
DateMonday, June 22, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:30:42

Transcript — Verbatim
17:25

Are we ready to start?

17:35

That was my fault, I wasn't paying attention.

17:37

We work these sides.

17:39

Uh let's get started.

17:40

Welcome to the parks, recreation and beautification committee meeting.

17:44

Vicky, would you call roll, please?

17:47

Commissioner Paula.

17:48

Here.

17:49

Commissioner Cassows.

17:51

Commissioner Porter.

17:53

Julie Serena.

17:55

Brian Davis.

17:56

Hunter McLamore.

17:58

Here.

17:58

Commissioner Jones.

18:00

Michael Perkins.

18:01

Here.

18:02

Kim Tipton?

18:03

Here.

18:03

Philip Frazy.

18:05

Thank you, Vicky.

18:07

Before you in the packet, you have the minutes from our last meeting from May eighteenth.

18:13

Have you had time to look them over?

18:15

I'll take a motion for approval.

18:17

So I have a motion and a second to approve the minutes from May eighteenth.

18:23

All those in favor say aye.

18:26

Anyone opposed?

18:27

Same sign.

18:28

The minutes are approved from our last meeting.

18:55

At that point in time, we found out that there are rules and restrictions.

19:14

So I will kind of turn it over to across the chamber.

20:00

Morris because his uh explanation has a lot more legal authority to it than mine.

20:03

And so we'll leave that to him to respond to but uh just to let you know that we have not received any feedback from the artist himself.

20:11

Okay.

20:11

Mr.

20:12

Morris Madam Chair So I actually I understand that you have one form of the waiver in front of you.

20:19

I actually drafted one before that that I like much much better and it's shorter and it's simpler and it just says you waive all VARA rights period.

20:28

We can do whatever we want however we want whenever we want you waive all your rights.

20:33

That seems to me to be the way most cities handle it but after reaching out to Albuquerque they took a much softer approach and they wanted to give their artists some you know some deference and some the ability to interject and do the repairs themselves or have some say so.

20:50

So after getting their feedback I drafted this second version that you have in front of you.

20:55

I didn't put a timeline on it so in the fourth paragraph down it's it talks about in cases of emergency public safety concerns or where immediate action is reasonably required the city will make reasonable documented efforts to notify the artist prior to undertaking significant restoration alteration or repair of the artwork which is essentially we've done in this case it goes on to say upon such notice artists shall have a reasonable opportunity at a mutually agreed and reasonable cost to the city to perform or oversee any necessary repairs, restoration or touch-ups.

21:34

And then the next paragraph is where we prescribe the amount of the time they have to respond to us we just write that word reasonable again.

21:42

So that's intentional because every situation can be dealt with on a kind of a case by case basis.

21:49

The way reasonable is defined under Black's law is it reads courts generally define it as the amount of time that an ordinarily prudent person would consider fair and appropriate under the specific circumstances.

22:03

What is quote reasonable and quote depends heavily on the facts industry standards the nature of the obligation the urgency the party's expectation expectation and sometimes local custom or statutory context in this case I think it would make a difference if the person's here local what's a reasonable amount of time versus if they're maybe National Guard and deployed in Afghanistan or or something.

22:29

So I think where they are how we notified them was it mail was it a phone call was it email all of that would factor into what we think is reasonable.

22:37

Or we could just put a timeline on it.

22:39

I think reasonable is a little bit safer but we could put a lengthy timeline on it give them 90 days, 120 days if we wanted to do that.

22:47

I don't see why not that's to me that seems like that would be plenty of notice.

22:51

Or we can do with away with it all together and just require that they waive all their rights and give unfettered discretion to the city to touch up repair restore et cetera so I'm not sure what the better option is.

23:03

I don't know what the market's like whether artists would you know scoff at that first waiver or not all I can say is I've seen that done in other cities just a very basic one page waiver that does that does that.

23:16

So that's what I know so far but I would be happy to answer any questions that you have.

23:21

Thank you, Mr.

23:22

Morris I know that was kind of a big uh question that we had at the last meeting for the the murals that we have I know we have one artist that has said she's willing to waive all of her rights.

23:39

Do you think we'll have a difficult time if we have a very basic waiver getting someone to come in and paint murals anyone have a thought I'm not sure and I I also don't know why we couldn't present them both options.

23:52

I know we like to have uniformity and have everyone sign the same waivers and I know why but I think we could also treat it on a case by case basis and if there was a particular artist that wanted to change the waiver then we could be open to that so to answer a question I don't know the answer maybe Russell or Justin would know the answer to that I'm not sure.

24:11

Okay.

24:12

Does anyone on the committee have any questions?

24:14

I have a question.

24:15

Yes.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Parks and Recreation█████████████████████████████████████████████67%
Engineering And Infrastructure█████8%
Arts And Culture████6%
Budget Equity Analysis████6%
Procedural███5%
Animal Welfare███4%
Environmental Protection2%
Public Safety1%
Technology and Innovation1%
Summary of Proceedings

Parks, Recreation and Beautification Committee Meeting - June 22, 2026

The Parks, Recreation and Beautification Committee met on June 22, 2026, to discuss and approve items including a mural artwork waiver, zoo pricing adjustments, and playground equipment selections. Reports were provided on zoo operations, recreation programs, parks maintenance, and a yard-of-the-month program. The next meeting is scheduled for July 20, 2026.

Consent Calendar

  • Minutes Approval: The minutes from the May 18 meeting were unanimously approved by voice vote following a motion and second.

Discussion Items

  • Mural Artwork Waiver: Mr. Morris (legal counsel) presented two versions of a waiver for artist rights under VARA. The first version required a full waiver of all rights; the second allowed the artist a "reasonable" opportunity to respond to restoration or repair requests, with the timeline defined by circumstances. Committee members discussed offering both options to artists but opted for uniformity. A motion to approve the second version (with reasonable timeline) was made and seconded, then passed with all in favor.
  • Zoo Pricing for Events: Mr. Hooper proposed adjusting entry fees for two annual events at Hillcrest Park Zoo: Zoo Nights (Christmas lights) from free to $3 per person, and Haunting at Hillcrest from $1 to $2 per person. Discussion centered on consistency across events and tying fees to the group admission rate (currently $2 but listed as $3 on the website). A motion was made to set the fee at the group admission rate for all events (including these two) and to charge $3 per person for groups of 10 or more. The motion was seconded and approved. This recommendation will be forwarded to the city commission for final approval, effective after the next commission meeting.
  • Playground Equipment: Mr. Hooper presented proposals from five companies for playgrounds at Potter Park ($250,000 budget), Sunset Park and Pat Sandoval ($120,000 each), Ned Houk/Powwow (approx. $1 million via county funds), and Patchwork (part of Ned Houk). Each park had multiple design options. Committee members reviewed score sheets and photos. Consensus leaned toward Altitude as the preferred vendor for multiple parks. Staff were directed to negotiate with Altitude for potential discounts and additional amenities. No formal vote was taken; staff will proceed with guidance from the committee.

Reports

  • Zoo Report (Stephanie): Staff completed a chemical immobilization course for dart tranquilizers. The zoo master plan is progressing. Three warthog piglets (Raya and Poomba) were born two days prior.
  • Recreation Report (Amy): Roy Walker Community Center's weight room and pickleball are popular. Zumba averages 15–20 participants. Karate was discontinued; yoga with instructor Melissa Jackson will start Wednesdays at 6 PM and Saturdays at 11 AM. Aquatic center pool plastering is scheduled for June 27, with filling starting June 28–29. Opening expected mid-to-late July, pending chemical balance and lifeguard scheduling. Splash pad at Potter Park is performing well.
  • Parks Report (Russell): Baseball field lights are installed. Irrigation repairs are ongoing; new underground lines are in place. A fountain was delivered and is scheduled for installation before July 4. The soccer tournament had 91 teams (35 adult, 56 youth). Custom Classic event this weekend will have additional trash services. A mosquito trapping study with UNM Health Sciences Center has begun, collecting samples from multiple locations to test for West Nile virus and other diseases.
  • Yard of the Month (Miss Burroughs): The program will run this summer. Residents can participate by contacting the city manager's office; voting will be online via Facebook. Details to be released soon.

Key Outcomes

  • Minutes Approved: Unanimous approval.
  • Mural Waiver Approved: The second version (with reasonable timeline) passed.
  • Zoo Pricing Increase Approved by Committee: $3 per person for all group events, tied to the group admission rate. To be submitted to city commission for final adoption.
  • Playground Equipment Direction: Staff will negotiate with Altitude for multiple park projects, aiming for discounts. No formal vote; guidance provided.
  • Next Meeting: Monday, July 20, 2026, at 5:30 PM in the North Annex.

Meeting Transcript

Are we ready to start? That was my fault, I wasn't paying attention. We work these sides. Uh let's get started. Welcome to the parks, recreation and beautification committee meeting. Vicky, would you call roll, please? Commissioner Paula. Here. Commissioner Cassows. Commissioner Porter. Julie Serena. Brian Davis. Hunter McLamore. Here. Commissioner Jones. Michael Perkins. Here. Kim Tipton? Here. Philip Frazy. Thank you, Vicky. Before you in the packet, you have the minutes from our last meeting from May eighteenth. Have you had time to look them over? I'll take a motion for approval. So I have a motion and a second to approve the minutes from May eighteenth. All those in favor say aye. Anyone opposed? Same sign. The minutes are approved from our last meeting. At that point in time, we found out that there are rules and restrictions. So I will kind of turn it over to across the chamber. Morris because his uh explanation has a lot more legal authority to it than mine. And so we'll leave that to him to respond to but uh just to let you know that we have not received any feedback from the artist himself. Okay. Mr. Morris Madam Chair So I actually I understand that you have one form of the waiver in front of you. I actually drafted one before that that I like much much better and it's shorter and it's simpler and it just says you waive all VARA rights period. We can do whatever we want however we want whenever we want you waive all your rights. That seems to me to be the way most cities handle it but after reaching out to Albuquerque they took a much softer approach and they wanted to give their artists some you know some deference and some the ability to interject and do the repairs themselves or have some say so. So after getting their feedback I drafted this second version that you have in front of you. I didn't put a timeline on it so in the fourth paragraph down it's it talks about in cases of emergency public safety concerns or where immediate action is reasonably required the city will make reasonable documented efforts to notify the artist prior to undertaking significant restoration alteration or repair of the artwork which is essentially we've done in this case it goes on to say upon such notice artists shall have a reasonable opportunity at a mutually agreed and reasonable cost to the city to perform or oversee any necessary repairs, restoration or touch-ups. And then the next paragraph is where we prescribe the amount of the time they have to respond to us we just write that word reasonable again. So that's intentional because every situation can be dealt with on a kind of a case by case basis. The way reasonable is defined under Black's law is it reads courts generally define it as the amount of time that an ordinarily prudent person would consider fair and appropriate under the specific circumstances. What is quote reasonable and quote depends heavily on the facts industry standards the nature of the obligation the urgency the party's expectation expectation and sometimes local custom or statutory context in this case I think it would make a difference if the person's here local what's a reasonable amount of time versus if they're maybe National Guard and deployed in Afghanistan or or something. So I think where they are how we notified them was it mail was it a phone call was it email all of that would factor into what we think is reasonable. Or we could just put a timeline on it. I think reasonable is a little bit safer but we could put a lengthy timeline on it give them 90 days, 120 days if we wanted to do that. I don't see why not that's to me that seems like that would be plenty of notice. Or we can do with away with it all together and just require that they waive all their rights and give unfettered discretion to the city to touch up repair restore et cetera so I'm not sure what the better option is.

SUMMARIZED BY OPENPUBLICA AI
TRANSCRIPT VIA PUBLIC VIDEO
openpublica.com