PERIOD REPORT
DATE: September 12, 2018 Report No. P&R-18-009
TO: Laurie Hurst, Chief Administrative Officer
FROM: Scott Hartman, Director of Parks and Recreation Services
SUBJECT:TITLE Parks and Recreation Services Department - 2018 Second Period Report
Body
The following is a report on the activities pertaining to the Parks and Recreation Services Department from May 1, 2018 to August 31, 2018.
I. DIVISION ACHIEVEMENTS AND ACTIVITIES
1. Parks Services
• Sailor’s Walk plaques were installed at Memorial Park
• A granite bench was installed in the Japanese Garden at Gorge Park
• A new picnic table was installed at Saxe Point Park
• A new License of Use Agreement, with DND, for Macaulay Point was drafted
• All picnic tables and benches in Saxe Point Park and Macaulay Point were re-furbished
• The material bins and storage yard at the Parks Nursery was expanded
• A landscape plan for the Lampson Park passive area was developed and construction is underway
• 16 Boulevard/Park trees were removed; 40 Boulevard/Park trees were pruned
• There were 41 tree removal permit applications submitted, 40 permits were approved
• There were 19 tree pruning permit applications, all 19 permits were approved
• Bookings May - August 2017
o Saxe Point Park - 34 bookings - 29 weddings, 5 events/picnics
o Esquimalt Gorge Park - 30 bookings - 9 weddings, 15 events/picnics
o Memorial Park - 39 bookings, 2 events/picnics
o Bullen Park - 90 bookings
o L’ecole Brodeur - 21 bookings
o Colville Sport Court - 9 bookings
o Fleming Beach / Buxton Green - 5 bookings - 3 weddings, 3 events/picnics
2. Recreation Services
Marketing and Registration
• 6,454 program registrations (course and drop in reservations) were processed during this period, compared with 6,130 during the same period last year.
• 2,745 membership products were purchased during this period compared with 2,414 during the same period last year. These included passes and drop in punch cards sold and renewed, and specialized passed for personal training services and childminding.
• 651 products were sold through the Recreation Centre Shop during this period compared with 468 during the same period last year.
• There was 24,815 drop in admissions during this period compared with 22,971 during the same period last year.
• During the July 23-August 23 period, a successful online campaign ran which compared month-to-month website traffic. There was an increase of views (4,250 versus 3,732) to the parks and recreation landing page as well as an increase in unique views (3,376 versus 2,911).
• 1395 registrations for courses starting during this period were completed online, accounting for 44.8% of the total course registrations. By comparison, 944 registrations accounting for 26.9% of this total occurred during the same period last year.
• The Summer Access Pass, providing admissions from June 29-September 3 increased from 298 passes this year, compared with 240 last year. The Child/Youth Summer Access Pass sales increased from 76 passes this year, compared to 34 last year.
• Parks & Recreation e-Newsletters were delivered for May and June with a 35.11% and 41.19% open rate.
• Esquimalt Parks & Recreation social media platforms continue to be a strong tool to connect with clientele:
o 1,164 followers on Instagram - up from 1,112 last period
o 4,270 followers on Twitter - down from 4,311 followers last period
o 4,308 followers on Facebook - up from 4,251 last period.
Health & Fitness
• Registration for Fitness Programs for Children, Youth and Adults in the second period was 391. Drop-In’s for registered programs equaled 127 for a total of 518 registrants, an increase of 187 from the same period in 2017.
• An additional drop-in program was added: Stroller Fit on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 11:45am - 12:45pm.
Arts, Culture, Social & Special Interest Programs
• Creative Arts students and instructors hosted a community art show in the Esquimalt Public Library during the month of June, with 55 art pieces and 35 students/instructors involved. Ages of participants ranged from 5 years to 85 years.
• ArtLab and StitchLab instructors and students hosted pop-up activity booths at the Esquimalt Arts Festival in August.
• The Esquimalt Ukulele Club performed twice at the Esquimalt Farmers Market.
• The first annual Esquimalt Ukulele Festival took place in May. This festival had 200 people attending the Ukulele Strum-in at Memorial Park, 100 people attending the Gala at Esquimalt United Church and 50 people attending the Open House and Workshops at the Esquimalt Recreation Centre.
Recreation Facilities
• At the Sports Centre the installation of LED lighting was completed in the arena hallway, skate shop, Jr. B dressing room, accessible dressing room, referees dressing room, Zamboni garage, 2 offices and the curling rink.
• Old domestic water piping in the boiler room was re-designed and replaced this year as part of the ongoing replacement of old domestic water lines in the facility.
• Fraser Valley Refrigeration continues their work in the refrigeration plant as part of the chiller replacement project; Technical Safety BC inspected all work to date allowing the plant to start up and the ice to be installed in the hockey rink. As the plate and frame style chillers are more efficient in exchanging heat/cold we are noticing one compressor is able to maintain the ice set point temperature with the warm summer weather, unlike previous years. Only 350 pounds of ammonia is now on site. The plant held 1100 pounds before this project started.
• Glycol piping, all valves and thermostats used to cool compressors in the refrigeration room were replaced this year.
• The brine expansion tank and platform for the curling rink was replaced.
• A new ammonia warning system has been installed including audible and flashing blue lights, throughout the Sports Centre.
• LED lighting has been installed in the filter room at the Recreation Centre,
• Servicing of the high voltage transformer in front of the Recreation Centre was completed. The high voltage equipment inside the Recreation Centre was also serviced at the same time.
Preschool, Children, Arena and Youth Services
• Summer Playgrounds had 25 participants per week in Adventure Kids and 22 children per week in Fun Seekers all summer long. Preschool camps were full with 16, 3-5 yr olds each week.
• Our Licensed OSC Camps ran with full numbers of 20 each week in both camps.
• Our Extended Care in the morning operated at a maximum of 35 kids and 40 in the afternoon. This is up from last year where we averaged 20 in the mornings and 30 in the afternoons.
• Our Specialty Camps for both school age groups were also full with 22 kids per week.
• Youth Services has significantly increased Teen Night numbers on Thursdays and Saturdays with an average of 70 youth and up to 120 youth on Friday Nights.
Community Development and Events
• Buccaneer Days & Pirates Den: May 11-13th. The Pirates Den is a free, outdoor activity area for children and this year included a scavenger hunt, refreshment table, crafts, bouncy castle, and a glitter temporary tattoo booth.
• Esquimalt Neighborhood Party: Saturday June 9th. The 4th Annual Neighborhood Party shifted to a focus on building resilient neighborhoods this year. We worked to bring awareness to local businesses and charitable organizations to begin building relationships between local players and citizens in the community. This year’s event had 400 people enjoy a bouncy castle, a BBQ lunch hosted by the Esquimalt Lions, some get to know your neighborhood activities, and a craft table
• EcoChamps Environmental Education Program occurred every Tuesday from July 17th - August 21th. This was the second year of the EcoChamps program. The event rotated through Gorge Park, Saxe Point Park and Highrock Park.
• 54 children and youth participated in various public engagement activity stations to receive input on a Township of Esquimalt parade float. Drawings were received starting at Buccaneer Days in May until Ribfest in September. The responses showed a preference for a nautical theme.
• There were 2 block parties and 2 event trailer rentals during this time period.
• The Community Development section provided support for the following events: Fort Macaulay Historic Interpretive Tour, Memorial Park Music Fest, Esquimalt Arts Festival, Aeriosa, Bard Across the Bridge, World Fisheries Trust Ocean’s Day; and the Esquimalt Farmer’s Market.
• The Summer Outdoor Movie Series was held at Bullen Park again this year. We partnered with the Esquimalt Lions who ran a concession for each movie Attendance at the last session was low due to the smoky conditions.
|
Date |
Movie |
Park |
Attendance |
|
July 11, 2018 |
Wonder Woman |
Bullen Park |
350 |
|
July 25, 2018 |
Lego Batman Movie |
Bullen Park |
300 |
|
August 8, 2018 |
Footloose |
Bullen Park |
325 |
|
August 22, 2018 |
Trolls |
Bullen Park |
150 |
Aquatics
• The 1:00 to 4:00 “Fun Factor” swims averaged 125 participants every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday throughout the summer, on some days exceeding 180 people.
• We offered a variety of private lessons this summer with a total of 131 participants compared to 109 participants in summer 2017.
• We changed our lesson offerings for the summer to add more once and twice a week sessions. This summer we had 360 participants in community swimming lessons compared to 347 during the summer 2017.
• The Aquatics section offers 20 drop in Waterfit classes/week. Our busiest classes throughout the summer saw an average of 56 people participating compared to the average of 40 in summer 2017.
Facility Bookings and Events
• The Archie Browning Sports Centre hosted four “Eves of Destruction” Roller Derby games during this time period. The average attendance was 200 spectators.
• The BC Fire Fighters Expo was held in the Archie Browning Sports Centre Curling Arena and back parking lot June 4th, 5th and 6th .
• Victoria Esquimalt Lacrosse Association hosted a Bantam Lacrosse Tournament June 15th -17th at the Archie Browning Sports Centre.
• A two day Power lifting event was held in the Archie Browning Sports Centre Curling Arena. This event partnered with the Special Olympics. Approximately 150 spectators and athletes attended this new event.
• The Great Benjamin’s Circus occurred in the Archie Browning Sports Centre Main Hockey Arena on May 19th bringing a total of 800 people in for all three show times.
• Greater Victoria Minor Ball Hockey hosted the Western Challenge Cup at the Archie Browning Sports Centre Main Hockey Arena on July 12th - 15th.
• Archie Browning Curling Rink Hosted a “Retro Roller Disco” Dance. This event sold 400 tickets.
II. COMMITTEES
• The Parks & Recreation Advisory Committee met on June 6th.