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Monday's Internet Edition, January 05, 2009.
RMA approves Parks Committee funds for Stonehouse lights
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Photo by Wendy Smith
Rancho Murieta residents pack the Rancho Murieta Association meeting room on Nov. 18 to hear about the board’s decision to support the Parks Committee in committing funds to the Stonehouse Park lighting project.
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By Wendy Smith
River Valley Times Staff
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The Rancho Murieta Association board of directors has approved the decision made by its representatives to the Parks Committee to use funds for the Stonehouse Park lighting project. The board made the decision during their Tuesday, Nov. 18 meeting.
While the Parks Committee is its own entity with its own funds, the RMA board asked that its two representatives, Paul Gumbinger and Mike Martel report back to the board so that directors could have final approval. In the process, the board also heard from resident Sam Sommers who has been championing the cause of lights for the fields in Stonehouse Park.
“We’ve had a shift in demographics in recent years. There are now more children living in Rancho Murieta, and they’re growing up and need a place where they can be involved in activities,” said Sommers. “There’s a perception here that our youth are acting out, and while that may be true for some of them, we need to ensure that we have positive outlets like sports for our youth.”
Sommers also came armed with information about the life expectancy of the lights, which he reported would be 20 years, and outlined the general cost of running those lights. Costs would fluctuate, depending on the time of year and the number of teams using the fields on any given day. The most expensive lights to run would be for the Little League at roughly $5 per hour. “The lights that we chose are also in compliance with the Little League standards, which are very stringent,” said Sommers. “Right now the mobile lights that we have are nowhere near up to par, though even as we speak they are serving as lighting for a soccer game.”
Sommers also assured the board that the numbers that he presented to them were high-end estimates and that in most cases the costs would be lower. Board Director Jim Moore was in favor of the lighting project. “I think that we need a park that can serve everyone’s needs, and Stonehouse Park is the one area that we have where we can do that. With what the sports leagues pay - such as the over $2,000 a year from soccer leagues - I think that this would work financially,” Moore said.
Director Mel Standart agreed that there would be long-term benefits in the park being well lit, however he believed that the timing is poor. “I believe that it is inauspicious to look at doing this with the way that the economy is at present,” he said.
Standart was not the only one with economic concerns. Resident Deborah Keyes raised the point that in recent meetings there had been objections to even a $4 per month raise in dues. “I realize that this is not coming out of the RMA budget, but what are the costs going to be to the community beyond simply the building of the lights? Is it wise to think about that with the downturn?” Keyes asked.
Gumbinger took the time to explain that the funds going toward the lighting project were already present. “These are not coming from the RMA budget. I want to make that very clear. The Parks Committee is its own entity, with representatives from the RMA, the Community Services District and developers. The money going toward this project is already set aside specifically for parks improvement, and if or when further development happens, there will be more money coming in for other projects from developers,” said Gumbinger.
He also addressed the question of Greens Park, responding that it was still in the planning phase and that the lighting project would not in any way impact it. Ultimately, with a large portion of questions answered, the motion to support the Parks Committee spending for Stonehouse Park lighting was passed.
The board also encouraged residents to get their votes in for RMA director by Dec. 4, as counting will begin at 9 a.m. on Dec. 5 and continue until roughly 7:30 p.m. during the annual meeting. There were some questions as to how proxy votes would be collected, with the board promising a response in the near future and notification to residents.
The annual RMA meeting will be held on Thursday, Dec. 5, with the next regular monthly meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 16.
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