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Minutes of Aldermanic Parks Mee ting February 11, 1 969 'I'he reg u1lar monthly meeting of the Ald e rmanic Parks Committe e was held Tuesday ., February 11., 1 969 at 2 : 00 P . M. in Committee Room No . 2 ., City Ha li. Present were Aldermen Charlie Leftwich., Chairman., Douglas L. Fowlkes., , Vice Chairman., and G. Everett Millic an . Also present ~er~ Messrs . Jack C. Delius., General Manager of Parks and Recre a tion., J . · D. Chamblee., Parks Maint e n a nce Superintendent., A. P. Brindley., Parks Engine e r., Edwin Vaughn., Office Manage r., Jim Davey , Golf Pro at Bobby Jones Golf Course, a nd Mr . Henry Eng land., Foreman of Bobby Jones . Mi ss Virginia Ca rmichael., Director of Recreation, and Miss Jimmie Mims ; Assistant Director of Re creat i on., were also present . Cha i rma n · Leftwich called · the meet i ng to order and the minutes of the la s t regular mee tin g of J a nuary 14, 1969, a s well as the minutes of a called mee ting of F ebrua ry 3, 1 9 6 9 , we r e a pproved . Mr. Gene Hay, Public Links Committ eeman for the United States Gol f Associ a tion, appear e d fir st before the Committee . He made a request on b eha lf of his organi za tion tha t the City of Atla nta allow the use of one of the City ' s g olf courses for the purpo se of a City Public Links Cha mpions h i p p layoff in 1 969 , with the City Champion from thi s comp e tition t9 g o to the Na tional Compet ition, wh ic h would be h e l d on June 17, 1 969. Mr . Ha y told the Committ ee this would ne c e s sitate clo s ing whichever City golf cours e would b e u s ed for t wo days ; one da y would be for the Se ctional Qualif-yi ng Rounds and one d a y for the Amat e ur Public Links Champion s hip. Mr . Hay al s o aske d tha t th e g r ee n s f ees b e wa iv e d for tho se p articipat i ng in the comp e tition . Committ ee as k e d Mr . Hay i f membe rs of privat e club s we r e e ligibl e f o r thi s c omp e t i tion . Mr . Hay r ep li e d t hat they we r e not e ligible a nd it was al s o me ntione d tha t priv at e clubs do h a v e the ir o wn champions hip s . Sinc e the Na tiona l Compe tition i s h e ld June 17, it was thoug ht the City Qua lif ying Roun d s and Champ ions h ip p l a yoff s hould b e h e ld some time i n Ma y or J u ne prior to and we ll i n advanc e of the Nat i onal Comp e ti tion . It wa s al s o me nt i one d t h at the s e two day s should b e wee k d ays . Mr. Hay wa s thanke d for coming b e for e th e Commi tt ee a n d a dv i s e d t h a t it would b e di s cusse d furth e r in Exe cutiv e Sess ion. Mr. Frank Ca nt re ll , 4 930 Ro swe ll Road, Atl a nta , Ge org ia app e ar e d b e fo r e t h e Committ ee to r e qu e s t p e r miss i on t o put on s ome r ock a nd r o ll s h ows a t t h e bui l d i n g tha t i s p r esent ly o cc u pi e d b y Muni c ipal The at e r a t Cha s t a in Memo ria l Pa rk. Thi s i s th e buildi n g , it wa s expla i n e d , t h a t Municip a l Th e a t e r s ti l l owes a l a rge b a l a n c e on . Mr. De lius me n ti one d t hat Municipa l Theater ' s Gene r al Man a g e r, Mr . Chri s Mano s , h a d c a ll e d hi s office on J anu a ry 28 , 1 969 , sta ting t h a t the ir orig ina l d ebt h a d amount e d to a rou nd $30~00 0 . 00 - t hat t h e y h a d p a id it down to $1 9 ,000.00 a nd woul d li ke a chance t o fin ish payi ng t h i s d e bt. If it d eve lop e d t h a t th e l e as e wi th Municipal Theater was not -c e ne-:-i ed ; 5_t 1,ras s t ated that t h e Parks and Recreation De part~ e· _t h8 d grea t need of t he bu ilding . Mr . Chamble e said tne Parks De p:?..rt me nt needs addit iona l storage space a t Chas t ain Memor i al Park , and Mi ss Ca r mi chae l s t a t ed t hat the Rec r eati on Div i s i on c ould a l s o make g ood u se of the building if it b ecame avai l a bl e . Th e Committ ee exp l a i ne d t o Mr. Ca nt re l l that �many groups had r e qu es t e d u se of the building but even i f Municip a l Theater vacates th e building , it was not l i ke ly tha t any of th es e r equ e sts would b e g rant e d since the City has n eed of the building . Mr . Can tr e ll was ~hanked for appea ri ng ' for e th e Committee and told he would b e advised if the situation c:; .ged . Ne x t to appear b e fore the Committ ee was Mr . Carl Fl i nt , of 1346 Peach Val l ey Road , Atlanta , Georgia . It was explained tha t h e had writte n to Alderman Left wich concerning t wenty to forty acres in front of his home . Mr . De lius mentioned that this acreage was actually Pan iel Johnson Pa rk . Mr . Flint explained that h e had written in regard to keeping a hors e on th e l an d and that th e r e were very few children of "p ark age 11 in the vicinity. He a l so stated that th e re was a sewer probl em on th e ac r eage , tha t h e had. 11b een kill i ng larvae and skimmers .... " Ald e rman Millican said we would have to check the sewage problP~ · Chairman Leftwich suggested that Alderman Mil l ican go by and ch, _ i t and tha t he would a lso go by and look at it . · Mr . Brindley told the Committ ee tha t h e believed this l a nd consist e d of e i ght to t we lv e acres but that th e boundaries were vag u e - tha t a t O!1e time th e former Parks Manager , Mr . Simons, h a d tried to find th s bounda ri es . Chairman Lef t wich stated that h e would like for the Ge~e r a l Manager to check th e deed and tha t we should try to fin d ju ~ c whe r e th s prop e rty lines ar e and look i n to r eopeni pg th e d eve lop ment of thi s park . He a l so told Mr . Flint tha t th e Park mi g ht b e r es trict e d to park u se . Mr . Flint was thanke d for coming to the mee ting. At thi s time , Mr . 1~e lius introc. ·r~ed Mr . Edwin Vaughn, new Office Manager for the Pa r ks Depa ~tment, to th e Committ ee , who wished him g ood luck in his ne w ~ob . Th e General Manager i nformed t he Commi tt ee tha t th e Showmob il e will be put to a new use for the public as a vo ti ng booth in an a r ea known as John son Est a t es . Mr. Delius told th e Con~vriitt ee t ha t a citizen, Mr . J. M. Ford, III, h ad complained s omet l ~~ ago about an inc id ent a t th e Bobby Jones Golf Cours e , and tha t it had be en di sc ussed with th e Committe e before. However, Alderman Cook wan t e d mo L·c ~2ta i l s on th e i nc id en t and s o th e General Manager had aske ~ ~he Golf Pro, Mr . Davey, th e For eman, Mr . England , and any other employees they thought necessary, to attend to day's meeting i n order to discuss the incident . According to our information, Mr. De l ius explained, this c iti z en was apparent l y told that h e could not l et hi s fiv e - year -old son accompany him on th e cour se, but l ater said he was advised if h e would r en t an e l ec tri c golf cart that permission could be granted. The citizen was indignant sinc e he felt t hat it woul d b e as dang e rous for his son to acc omp any him in a c art as it would b e otherwise. Bo th Messrs . Davey and England reit e r a t ed wha t they had said in October (when t he matter was first d i s cus se d), that they knew nothing whatsoever about th e incid e nt. Howe ve r, th e Go lf Starter, who had come to th e me e ting, stated that · he might hav e said something tha t was mi sunders tood. He said that h e had told a ci ti zen (who h ad b een a c c o mp an i e d by a child) t hat he had heard of another golf course near f.Iar j_e tt a where a.pparently childr en could accon~any adults on t~e course . He explain e d that he understood this was a semi -pri vate c ourse. Alder1nan Millican stated that if anyone h ad t alke d rudely to the man or if anyo ne t h ough t - 2 - �this had happened, that we write a l etter of apology . However, the Committee reaffirmed its position on the regulations prohibiting non-players on the go lf course . It was mentioned that i n the past there had been many citizens who followed golfers, placing bets, etc. Th1e fact that non-players also crowd the course, slowing down the game, as 0e ll as the element of danger in being hit with a golf ball, was discussed . The Committee Members asked Mr . Davey, the Golf Pro, if th ese regulations regarding non - players were posted in a promine nit place in the clubhouse and Mr . Davey replied that t hey were. He also stated that many times a golfer will make all arrangements to play and that th e children who accompany them will not appear until the golfer is ready to te e off, apparently having been kept in the golfer's automobile until he is ready to play. Apparently, thi s has been a problem for the employees at th e golf courses who wish to carry out the rules without offending any citizens. It was decided that , if a citizen had been offended, a letter should be written to him apologizing for any rudeness, but that th e regulations be adhered to. Committee thanked Messrs . Davey and England for coming to the meeting . Mr . Delius told the Committee he would like permission to request a resolution authorizing s ic k leave amounting to ten days over and above acc ui:nul ated sick time in the instance of two Parks employees : Mr . Roger 0 . Stroup e , Position Number 282, Equipme nt Op e rator I, and Mr . Cooper Landers, Position Number L~7 9, Equipment Opera tor I. He explained that theyhad b e en faithful emp loye es in the Parks Department and each had experienced a siege of sickness that had used all their sick leave . Committee granted r e quest . The General Manager told the Committ ee that $6,000 .00 additional fund s were ne e ded to solve the h ea ting problem in the Reptile House and that Mr. Fred Shepherd , Bui ldi ng Inspector , had concurred in this. Committee authorized request. Dale Creek Park was discussed and the fact that there were very few records on it. Committee authorized a resolution for the City Attorney to hav e a titl e report made on this prop e rty fronting on the north easterly side of Dale Creek Drive between Fores t Ridge Drive and Collier Ridge Drive in order to determine the property lines. The General Manager told the Committee that the recr ea tion programs the Parks and Recreat ion Depar t men t had attempted to hav e in the Morningside School area had apparently conflicted with the wishes of resid ent s, including the principal, and that we had b een told th ese citizens didn't wan t such activities as dance s , e tc., which would bring about "boy/girl relationships at such an early age," and that after reviewing th e complaints with the Recreation staff, had moved the program to Garden Hills where we do hav e a building. It was though t that if th e commun ity should change it s opinion, a mee ting could be held with all parties involv ed to work out some type of suitab l e program. - 3 - �Mr . Delil.ils informe d th e Committ ee tha t tl1e Park s Engine er , Mr . Brindley ~ h a d now d es i g n e d a histor ic al ma rk~ r for The Ba ttle of Ezra Church ." Origina lly it had b ee n pl a nn e d for either Mo z l e y or Anderson1 Park , but Mr . Delius said h e h a d b ee n told by Mr . Remb e rt, a f9rmer City Se rvice s Coordinator for the Di x ie Hills ar e a , that there were very strong f ee ling s among young Neg ro e s in tha t area against the placing of any Ci v il War ma rkers in th e se parks . Howe ver, Mr . , Delius said tha t h e h a d been advis e d by Mr . Be verly DuBose that it might be po s sibl e to have a sma ll part of We st v iew Ceme tery for thls -marke r and that it would b e appropriat e sinc e this area was actua lly a part of th e batt l e . Mr . De l ius was a ske d to cont a ct the proper p e op l e to see if this could b e done . Mr . Delius pre s ented a letter from Thompson and Hancock Architects regarding the proposed Cy clorama buildi ng . Th e l etter sta ted tha t both architectural groups that h a d b ee n select e d to work on this proj e ct wer e now in ag r eemen t a s to jus t h o w t hey would proc ee d an d who- would b e in charge of the various pha s es . Th e l etter stated that Mr . R. H. Thomp son, of Thomp s on and Ha ncoc k , would b e the Project Manage r , whil e Mr . Bill Finch, of Finch , Alexa nd e r , Ba rn e s , Rothchilrl, and Pa s c ha l Ar c hit e ct s ~ would b e th e Proj e ct Architect . The l e tt e r s tat e d tha t th e work would b e p e rformed at 303 3 Mapl e Driv e , Atlanta, Ge orgia , and tha t th e City would shortly r ece iv e anoth e r l e tt e r with furth e r de t a il s . Committ ee a ske d Mr . De liu s to r e qu es t a s imila r l e tt e r fro m the fir m of Finc h, Al exand e r, Ba rnes , Rothc hild, a nd Pas cha l Arc hit e ct s s ta ti ng t he same ag r eemen t s a s ar e sta t e d in the l e tt e r fro·m Thomp s on and Hanc ock . They also ins truct e d Mr . De liu s to as k Mr . We i s Sne ll, wh o at t he p rese nt time i s cl eaning a nd r es toring th e for eg rou n d of th e Cyclorama , to h ea d up th e mov i ng of t h i s g roun d work whe n eve r th e pro j e ct i s f a r e nou g h along for thi s to b e done . Committ ee :'discu sse d th e Wh it e Alms Ho u se at Chas t a in Memori a l Pa r k and the f a ct tha t b a ll e t i s stil l b e ing prac ti ce d th e r e d espite th e cond emna tion of th e building by the City Building In s p e ctor. The Ge n eral Manage r was in s truct e d t o writ e a l e tt e r t o th e Fulton County Man age r with copy to g o to Mr. Bill Wofford, City BuiJding In s p ec tor, r emindi ng him t ha t t he City h as co ndemne d t he building as b e i ng unsa f e for s uch a c tiv ity , a nd r es tati ng our po s ition that it should be r e pair e d o r d e mol i shed . Al so go on r eco r d t ha t t he Ci t y ass u mes no r es po ns ib i lity for a n y i n j uries t ha t may b e s u s t a in e d due to s uch prog r am . It wa s t h ough t t ha t t he City coul d b e p l a c e d i n a ve r y emb a rrassing p o si ti on i f s o meone should b e i n jure d h e r e aft e r the City h as co ndemne d "t he · buildi ng . The Genera l Manager told the Co mmitt ee he h a d r eceive d a reques t fro m Mr . Charl es D. Hurt, Jr ., a memb e r of t he J un io r League o f Atl an t a , tha t t h e Ci t y cons id e r c o nve rti ng th e old Cyc lorama b u il ding i n to a Childr en' s Mu s eum wh e n t he new bu ild i ng i s fin i shed t o hous e the p a inting. A possible museu m was d isc u sse d. The Genera l Ma n ag er sa id h e would l ik e t o see a new museum a l ong wit h th e n ew b u iJ ding f o r th e dj sp J a y of C' i v j_l i_fa r i.t ems app ro p r i 9, t e to the pa i n tj ng . _,l cl en:1 3, n Fo wl kes saj cl it vrould d epe:'l d on t he=. e:os t an d t ha t 1,re vrould k.··10·,., L:OrE: wh e n eve r t h e arc hit e cts ar e ab l e to give us an id ea of wha t it will cost. Committe e was of the opinj_on that i t i s too ear l y to knovi what d isposi t i o n will b e ma d e of th e old bui l d i n g . - L~ - �The Adamsville Health Center was discussed briefly. It was suggested that the ' General 'Manage r mi ght write to the County officials, telling them "the twe nty years is up and the City could use the bui lding 11 • I The General Manager told the Committee he was very pleased with the new City Arborist, Mr . C. M. Alexand er , and that the Arbori st seems to be v~ry t actful in approaching citizens and yet is protective of the trees as well . He stated that we now have the capac i ty to maintafn tre es that are planted for downtown beautification and would like to write to the Women ' s Chamber of Commerce regarding thi s . Committ ee was agreeab l e . Committee again · discussed the building erected at Chastain Memorial Park by Municipa l Theater . The General Manage r was asked to determine the exact amount of indebtedness owed on the building by Muni cipal Theater - the original amount of the debt and how much has been paid . The Aldermen agreed that since Mr . Manos had exp r essed a strong wi sh to stay and pay off this d e bt, that this would probably be ihe right thing to do . But the y vo ic ed very strong opinions to the effect that if Municipal Thea ter were a llowed to stay on in the building , a definite time limit should be set on when th ey would liquidate this indebt e dness . They felt this should b e one of the conditions - that p erhaps a time limit of no more than five y ears b e stipulated . Mr . De lius informe d the Committee that in the meantime , the City Attorney had g iven th e Department of Pa rks in structions not to a llow anyone to do anything at all to the building , even to drive a nail, until this i s settled . Mr. De lius mentione d an article that should b e frame d and put in the n ew Cyclorama Museum . He explain e d that thi s is an untitl ed pi e ce of po e try written during the Civil War on the back of a Confederate bill . It was suggested that it be sealed with a water proof plastic or finish by perhaps the Perma - Seal Plaque Company to pres erve it. Committee agree d . The Committee we nt into Exe cutive Session and the golf comp e tition was di s cus sed . Commi tt ee agree d to waive the greens fe es for th e P.ntrant s in thi s eve nt. Mr . De lius told the Committ ee that Mr . Gene Hay had r e turned a check in the amount of $277,63 made payable to the City of Atlanta , which r epre se nted a refund from the grant of $800 . 00 mad e by the Citizens Park Advisory Committ ee for th e Atlanta Golf Team participating in the National Amat e ur Public Links Champions hip. He r e ques t e d p e rmis s ion to d eposi t thi s b ack into City funds. Committee had no obj ec tion to thi s . There being no further business, meeting was adjourned. - 5 - �