The Trenton Park Board May 4th discussed the opening of the Trenton Family Aquatic Center and voted to enact two policies related to vandalism at city parks.
Park Board President Curtis Crawford reported the board has been advertising for pool positions for several months, and as of the beginning of this week, there were no pool manager applications. There were five lifeguards applications and seven non-certified staff applications for things like running the concession stand.
He said a staffing problem is not just happening in Trenton. He heard that Gallatin and other area cities are having staffing problems with their pools.
Park Board Vice President and Pool Committee Chairperson Andy Cox reported the pool needed to have nine daily workers, and seven had to be lifeguards, to have all areas of the pool open. Not everyone will work every single day. Crawford said there were 18 employees last year.
Park Board Member John Hamilton said Park Superintendent David Shockley told him sometimes certain areas of the pool have to be closed if there are not enough lifeguards.
Crawford noted the Pool Committee met, and the Park Board raised the pay last month. The pay for a pool manager was set at $13.50 per hour, an assistant manager $11.50 per hour, and certified lifeguards $10 per hour. Returning employees would receive a 25-cent per hour raise for each year they return. The city is exempt from paying the minimum wage, which is $11.15 per hour in Missouri.
There is also a program to reimburse employees for lifeguard certification. The program pays employees $75 per year for two years, for a total of $150.
Cox reported Trenton is paying about the same amount as area pools.
He remarked that, for the right person with the right circumstances, the Park Board could negotiate, if needed, and set a higher wage for the pool manager, if pay would make a difference. A special meeting would have to be called in a situation like that. He did not want to put a cap on the pay for that position.
Cox reported that, in the past, the city has had a pool manager and an assistant manager, so the assistant manager could take over for an afternoon or if the manager needed time off.
Crawford said Shockley wants about two weeks to prepare the pool for its usual opening on Memorial Day weekend. That would mean around May 16th would be the cut off date for determining if there are enough employees to open the pool for this season.
Crawford commented that he did not know if there was much more the Park Board could do than what has already been done. He said the high school and college have been contacted. He thought more students might apply now that the school year is coming to a close.
Cox said information about applying for pool positions has been posted on Facebook. He noted a lot of students wait until May to apply, but the city has had more applications at this time of the year in past years.
Cox said he was not sure what the solution was, but he thought the Park Board might want to look into how to add stability in the future.
Park Board Member Lynda Lynch wondered if the city still had the names of employees from last year and if they had been contacted. Cox said he believed Shockley had reached out to employees from last year.
Park Board Member Mary Peterson asked if cutting back the days the pool is open would help with getting employees. Crawford said that might be what needed to be done, but the pool would have to be open on weekends.
Park Board Member Gary Schuett said it would probably make the most sense to close the pool Mondays and Tuesdays if it was going to be closed certain days.
Cox added that the board might need to hold a special meeting to discuss the opening of the Trenton Family Aquatic Center if more applications have not been received by May 16th.
The Park Board enacted one policy for use of security cameras and another for establishing a reward system for information leading to an arrest or conviction of persons who vandalize or steal from the Park Department. Schuett worked with City Attorney Tara Walker on the policies, which are to help deter vandalism.
The policy for the security cameras says the cameras will be placed in various public locations in the city park system. They will not be placed in areas such as bathrooms. Images and recordings will be available to law enforcement, prosecutors, and the Park Department to identify and prosecute persons who commit crimes in city parks.
The policy for the reward system says the Park Board will work in coordination with Green Hills Rural Development to establish a reward fund. Rewards would be given to individuals who provide information to the police which leads to the arrest and conviction of persons who vandalize and/or steal from the Park Department. The rewards will be funded by public donations to Green Hills Rural Development, and the organization would disperse funds upon conviction of offenders. The Park Board will determine the size of the rewards based on the amount in the fund and level of damage done by offenders. Rewards will not be paid to City of Trenton employees or its elected officials.
Schuett said anyone could make a donation to the reward fund. He planned to donate to the fund May 5th.
Schuett reported replacement of the Rock Barn sign is still being planned. It was reported at a previous meeting that the sign was blown down.
Hamilton reported the weather was causing problems for Shockley and the Park Department. Hamilton said they had not been able to install some items that arrived last year.
Shockley was not at the meeting, but Crawford presented the Park Superintendent’s Report.
The report said the bathrooms at Upper Moberly, Ebbe, Burleigh Grimes, and 12th Street were open to the public. The Park Department is waiting to open the Gladeys Grimes bathrooms next week. The Lower Moberly bathrooms are expected to be open in a couple of weeks, as the Park Department is waiting on parts to fix a leak in the pool filter building.
During a storm a couple of weeks ago, a set of bleachers at the fairgrounds flipped over. Shockley is working with insurance to get that set of bleachers replaced.
The Park Superintendent’s Report noted that the Park Department is working on getting parks mowed between rains and mower problems. One mower is in the shop being worked on. Another mower runs, but it has problems running all day. A part is on the way to fix that mower. Crawford noted Shockley thought the part would arrive May 5th or 6th. A third mower has not shown any problems.
The Park Department has gone through most of the park system spraying weeds. Shockley’s report said he should know next week what was missed or needs to be sprayed again. The Park Department will start broadleaf spraying in the coming week and will continue to leaf vac when the weather allows.
Trenton Mayor Linda Crooks attended the Park Board meeting. She provided information on Kids to Parks Day organized by the National Park Trust. She plans to proclaim May 21st as Kids to Parks Day. The day is to empower children and encourage families to get outdoors and visit local parks, public lands, and waters.
The Park Board went into a closed session for personnel matters.
