2018 October Senior Staff Meeting Notes

MARYLAND PARK SERVICE

SENIOR STAFF MEETING NOTES

October 10, 2018

Broadneck Office, Annapolis, MD

Attendees: Nita Settina, Chris Bushman, Amanda Mock, Mary Owens, Christy Bright, Steve McCoy, Patrick Bright, Rob Dyke (next meeting’s manager-of-the-month – Southeast)

REGIONAL REPORTS

Southeast – Patrick Bright

·        Assateague State Park – Challenging week at Assateague, with a horse being struck and killed, and two fatal drownings in one day. Park staff did an outstanding job handling these very difficult events.

·        Point Lookout State Park – Discussion about the benefits of shifting to debit / credit-only day-use payment approach at contact stations. Consensus was to not move forward.

·        Discussion about campers exceeding the two-week maximum stay. If dealing with problem campers vacating and returning, staff should focus on problematic behavior itself and whether additional education and/or enforcement is required.

·        Pocomoke River State Park - A thorough bed bug treatment will be administered throughout the park by Abate next week, with subsequent treatments administered on a monthly basis.

Central – Stephen McCoy

      

·        North Point State Park – Community meeting to provide information on new managed hunting programs went smoothly. Some conversations about the North Point trail occurred after the meeting.

·        Elk Neck State Park – Planning associated with replacing the rustic cabins is moving forward. Some interest in considering installation of pre-constructed “tiny houses.”

·        Patapsco Valley State Park – Hammonds Ferry Road clean-up still dependent on obtaining an MDE permit and lining up a contractor.

Patapsco Valley State Park / Ranger School – Rob Dyke

·        Rob showed several pictures of the current status of Bloede Dam deconstruction, i.e. the Patapsco River sans dam.

·        Grist Mill Trail – Useful meeting with MDE staff on development of a site plan. Another meeting will be scheduled to develop more detailed plans for the site.

·        Park Sign Equipment – New “V Carve” sign software / equipment was recently acquired and park staff are experimenting with the software and tools. The Training Division plans to develop a routed signs training and policy in collaboration with the MPS planning team.

·        Tentative Ranger School agenda discussed. More focus on participants completing prerequisite training sessions (e.g. CORE, traffic direction, report writing) to reduce daily school hours. Suggested teaching staff and visiting cooks will be shared for review and feedback.

·        County planning concerning the future of River Road and Thistle Road is ongoing and park staff is actively involved in providing feedback.

West – Christy Bright

·        Wolf Den Run – Approximately 20 volunteers participated in a Work / Ride day and the clean-up was a big success. A path was cleared in the Short Run Area (Parcel C) which provides adequate space for Jeeps to maneuver. An October 20 Open House and Ride is scheduled. Some discussion about the park’s hunting season / policies. Christy Bright will work with Mary Owens to develop a FAQ about current and anticipated park use.

Review of Customer Service / Attendance Reporting

·        Per customer feedback, there is a need for additional shelves and hooks throughout full-service cabins, mini-cabins, and in camp loop restrooms.

·        Kudos to parks that have staffed contact stations during warm fall weekends – this is critical to ensuring that MPS reaches its FY 2019 revenue generation target.

PLANNING AND CONSERVATION PROGRAMS – Mary Owens

·        It is critically important for park staff to ensure that the terms of various leases on park land are being fulfilled. Lease properties must be inspected annually and park staff must document in writing and potentially via pictures whether lease terms are being met. Leases with numerous unique terms require thoughtful and complete inspection. Staff should develop supplemental evaluation documentation for leases to help ensure oversight of unique lease terms (e.g. was barn roof replaced by certain date? Was the plan for a new structure submitted?).

·        Project Review – 268 projects have been submitted for review to-date. New MPS long-term contractual planner April Sparkman started last week.

·        Planning Projects – Significant focus being placed on planning associated with new State Parks such as Wolf Den Run and Bohemia River.

·        Conservation Jobs Corps – Started after-school CJC program on weekends that involves a dozen students who participated in the 2018 summer programs.

·        Please let Mary Owens know if construction contractors are not completing work as expected or in an unprofessional manner so she can work with E&C and DGS on resolution.

ADMINISTRATION – Amanda Mock

·        FY 2020 budget submitted to FAS. Proposed FY 2020 budget is lower than the current FY 2019 budget.

·        FY 2019 first quarter budget projection spreadsheets will be ready by the November Managers Meeting.

·        Parks should be ensuring that honor envelopes are available and used. Patapsco Valley has many honor envelopes available – contact Jeff Mouton to arrange pick up.

·        Concession contract payment tracking spreadsheets were created by Lauren Buckmaster and shared with appropriate parks for completion. Thank you to the parks that have completed the spreadsheets.

·        Volunteer Management - Alison Woodfield emailed Park Managers on September 28 with important information about communicating with eCoordinator to ensure volunteer projects and hours are tracked / communicated.

SUPERINTENDENT UPDATE – Nita Settina

·        Reviewed September Senior Staff Notes

·        Employee Field Day – September 26 – Thank you, and great job, Patpsco Valley State Park team, led by Alyssa Myers!

·        Currently planning to hold the next Employee Field Day on September 25, 2019 at PVSP / Pickall again.

·        The draft agenda for the November Managers Meeting at North Bay was discussed and is still being finalized. Thank you, Elk Neck State Park staff, for hosting again!

·        Maryland Park Service Strategic Management Plan (SMP) – Since a handful of park-specific SMPs are complete, and numerous system-wide priorities, goals and strategies already exist, we are well-positioned to develop a single, system-wide SMP. A very initial draft list of goals and strategies was distributed for feedback.

DEPUTY SUPERINTENDENT UPDATE – Chris Bushman

·        Policy Issues – Lost and Found – If any visitor property, e.g. credit cards, are found, the property is to be held for one year, consistent with statute (below) and MPS lost and found procedures. No other issues brought forward from regional meetings.

·        Please forward any 2018 MPS NRP Officer of the Year nominations to Chris Bushman.

·        Managed Hunt Permit – The $35 Managed Hunt Permit will continue to be required for those parks grandfathered in when the MHP was created. However, the MHP will not be required for newly created managed hunting programs. MHP revenue can be used to support any hunting activities in State Parks.

·        Use Agreements – All Maryland Park Service use agreements, minimal use or otherwise, must be accompanied with proof of insurance that specifically lists the State of Maryland as co-insured.

§ 5-213. Disposition of lost or abandoned property within State forests, parks, etc.

An item lost or abandoned within a State forest, park, or wildlife management area and unclaimed for one year becomes the property of the State, and the Secretary may dispose of the item in the best interest of the State.