Agenda

1.

Call to Order

Co-chair Washington call the meeting to order at 12:03 PM.

2.

Roll Call

NOTE: One or more Commission Members may be in attendance telephonically or by other technological means.

Diana Cudeii, Ex-Officio; Excused Absence
Meg Kabotie Adakai, E-Officio; Excused Absence
Vacant Seat, Ex-Officio
Cora M. Phillips, Co-Chair; Excused Absence
Joe. W. Washington, Co-Chair; Present
Darrell Marks; Present
Fawn Toya; Present
Kiara Weathersby; Present
Shawna Whitehat; Present
Jonathan Yellowhair; Excused Absence

Others Present: Councilmember Adam Shimoni, Council Liaison; Rose Toehe, Staff Liaison; Andi Rogers, Southwest Decision Resources, Inc.; Sarah Langley, Public Affairs Director; Rebecca Sayers, Parks Recreation Open Space & Events (PROSE) Director; Amy Hagin, Parks & Recreation Assistant Director; Carla McCord, Loven Contracting; Chris Jocks, Indigenous Circle of Flagstaff; Jean Toner, Commission on Diversity Awareness; Jenna Ortega, Climate Engagement Coordinator, Sustainability Division.

A.

LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT

The Flagstaff City Council humbly acknowledges the ancestral homelands of this area’s Indigenous nations and original stewards. These lands, still inhabited by Native descendants, border mountains sacred to Indigenous peoples. We honor them, their legacies, their traditions, and their continued contributions. We celebrate their past, present, and future generations who will forever know this place as home.

3.

Public Comment
At this time, any member of the public may address the Commission on any subject within their jurisdiction that is not scheduled before the Commission on that day. Due to Open Meeting Laws, the Commission cannot discuss or act on items presented during this portion of the agenda. To address the Commission on an item that is on the agenda, please wait for the Chair to call for Public Comment at the time the item is heard. (Five minutes maximum per speaker)

Councilmember Shimoni provided gratitude regarding an incredible Indigenous Peoples Day event. He also gave comment on a presentation he attended with the National League of Cities (NLC) on Indigenous engagement, representation, and healing. The presenters also created a tool guide, a toolkit cities can use to work on these topics. The guide can be located at this link www.nlc.org/resource/rebuilding-trust-and-repairing-relationships-with-indigenous-populations/

4.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

A.

Approval of Minutes for September 7, 2022
Motion to approve Minutes as is or approve with amendments.

Commissioner Toya motioned to approve the Minutes as is. Co-chair Washington seconded. It was passed unanimously.

5.

GENERAL BUSINESS

None.

6.

DISCUSSION ITEMS. POSSIBLE VOTE OR RECOMMENDATION

A.

Thorpe Park Annex Parcel
Southwest Decision Resources, Inc. (SDR) representative will provide a presentation on the results of public participation and the development of possible concepts based on gathered information. Parks, Recreation, Open Space, and Events (PROSE) staff will be available to add any pertinent information as needed. There will be a Q & A session after the presentation.

Andi Rogers, Southwest Decision Resources, Inc. (SDR), introduced herself. She provided a PowerPoint presentation (PPT) which also introduced her teams with SDR and Wheat Design Group. This PPT presentation is also slated to be in front of Parks and Recreation Commission on October 17th, then on to City Council on October 25th. The presentation is regarding the results of the year long effort in outreach and public participation with the Thorpe Park Annex Parcel and its future.

Ms. Rogers provided an in-depth look at all the ways public participation was completed. The goals of the process was to have a community supported design concept plan for approval by Flagstaff City Council. This was to be done through robust and transparent community dialogue across Flagstaff and beyond. SDR's community engagement approach was to: Foster multiple methods; Focused on inclusive, interactive, and iterative strategies; Each method built on the feedback from the previous.

SDR took the following path in the past year:
Listening and Learning (Fall 2021): SDR took stakeholder assessment; Community survey; and Virtual information sessions which points to Values, Visions, Potential Programming.
Conversation & Design (Spring/Summer 2022): SDR took the public through two design sessions. Design Session1 was about "Get to know the parcel" and "Build a Park". Design Session 2 was development of Design Concept A, Design Concept B, and Design Concept C.
Refinement/Approval (Fall 2022): Date refinement/coding; City Council Review/Approval; Public release. These will encompass Concept A & B and rolling that into a Selected Final Concept.

SDR provided details regarding contact with key partners, targeted populations, and groups during this process. In general, the common elements in the final concepts are:
• Community garden
• Ethnobotanical garden and orchard
• Event space
• Fitness loop
• Indigenous Community Cultural Center (ICCC) & Indigenous ceremonial space
• Market space
• Pickleball courts
• Play area
• Skate park/pump track

Discussion followed with questions, concerns, and answers. These have been noted and will be taken by the team and added to the feedback on the topics. The Commission decided to support a recommendation to City Council.

Commissioner Marks made a motion to support Concept 1. Commissioner Toya seconded the motion. The motion passed unanimously.

7.

INFORMATIONAL ITEMS TO/FROM COMMISSION MEMBERS, STAFF, AND FUTURE AGENDA ITEM REQUESTS

Rose Toehe expressed appreciation for the Commissioners who helped organize the events for Indigenous Peoples Day. It had received many comments and gratitude for the cultural shares. It was well done.

Commissioner Marks also wanted to ask if the youth would be able to help shape the traditional space when it comes time for that space to be built. Rebecca Sayers stated it would be essential and looking forward to working with the Commission and other Indigenous organizations.

8.

ADJOURNMENT

Co-chair Washington adjourned the meeting at 1:07 PM.