(A) A Department of Parks and Recreation shall hereby be established for the control and management of all the public parks in the town. The Department of Parks and Recreation shall consist of a Park and Recreation Board and other personnel that the Board determines.
(B) The Park and Recreation Board shall control and manage all public parks that are, as of this moment and hereafter, owned or controlled by the town. The Board shall have all powers, and upon which shall be imposed all the duties that are now or may hereafter be imposed by law upon the Board of Parks and Recreation by the town.
(C) The Park and Recreation Board shall consist of four members. The Park and Recreation Board membership shall be composed of:
(1) Four members appointed by the Town Council on the basis of their interest in and knowledge of parks and recreation. These members shall be residents of the town. No more than two members may be affiliated with the same political party. A member the Town Council shall not serve as a member of the Board. The Town Council shall have the right to vote to waive the requirement that no more than two members may be affiliated with the same political party only in the event that waiving this requirement is necessary due to the absence of persons who are willing to serve and who satisfy all of the requirements.
(2) One ex official member who is a member of Board of Trustees of Daleville Community School Corporation and selected by said Board or designated by said Board shall also be appointed to the Park and Recreation Board.
(D) (1) Upon establishment of the Park and Recreation Board, the terms of the members initially appointed by the Town Council shall be:
(a) One member for a term of one year;
(b) One member for term of two years;
(c) One member for a term of three years; and
(d) One member for a term of four years.
(2) As a term expires, each new appointment shall be made by the Town Council for a term of four years. All terms expire on the first Monday in January, but a member shall continue in office until his or her successor is appointed. If an appointment is not made by the Town Council by the first Monday in April, the incumbent shall serve another term. If a vacancy on the Board occurs, the appointing authority shall appoint a person to serve for the remainder of the unexpired term.
(E) A member of the Park and Recreation Board may be removed only for cause, upon specific charges filed against them. The charges shall be filed with and heard by the appointing authority, unless the appointing authority is bringing the charges. If the Town Council is bringing the charges, the Town Council shall appoint a hearing officer. The person to hear the charges shall fix a date for a public hearing and give public notice at least ten days in advance of the hearing. At the hearing, the member is entitled to present evidence and argument and to be represented by counsel.
(F) All meetings of the Parks and Recreation Board are open to the public. The Parks and Recreation Board shall keep a record thereof of all its transactions. The Parks and Recreation Board shall fix the time and place of its regular meetings, but shall meet at least quarterly. Special meetings of the Parks and Recreation Board may be called by the President or by any two members by written request to the Secretary. The Secretary shall send to each member, at least two days before a special meeting, a written notice of a special meeting fixing the time, place and purpose of the meeting. Written notice of a special meeting is not required if the time of the special meeting is fixed at a regular meeting or if all members are present at the special meeting.
(G) The Parks and Recreation Board, as soon as practical after the passage of this section and at is first regular meeting each year shall elect a President and a Vice President. The Vice President may act as President during the absence or disability of the President. The Parks and Recreation Board may select a Secretary either from within or outside of its membership.
(H) A majority of the members of the Parks and Recreation Board constitutes a quorum. Action of the Board is not official unless it is authorized by at least three members present and acting.
(I) The Parks and Recreation Board shall have the power to make rules and regulations, not inconsistent with this or other ordinances of said town, to govern the transactions of its business, and for the care, management, and control of the public parks entrusted to its management or control. In addition, the Board shall have all of the powers and duties listed in I.C. 36-10-3, including but not limited to:
(1) Exercise general supervision of and make rules for the Department;
(2) Establish rules governing the use of the park and recreation facilities by the public;
(3) Provide police protection for its property and activities, either by requesting assistance from state, municipal, or county police authorities;
(4) Appoint the necessary administrative officers of the department and fix their duties;
(5) Establish standards and qualifications for the appointment of all personnel and approve their appointments without regard to politics; and
(6) Make recommendations and an annual report to the Town Council concerning the operation of the Board and the status of park and recreations programs.
(J) There shall be established a Park Fund pursuant to I.C. 36-10-3. To provide for the Fund, the Town Council shall levy a tax at a rate of $0.023 on each $100 of taxable personal and real property within the town. These taxes, when collected, shall be held in the established Park Fund. The funds collected from the special levy that is held in the Park Funds shall be used solely for park and recreational purposes.
(K) The Parks and Recreation Board shall prepare and submit an annual budget in the same manner as other executive departments of the town as prescribed by the State Board of Accounts. The budget shall be subject to review and to change by the Town Council in the same manner as other department budgets of the town are now reviewed. Thereafter, the Town Council shall, in their regular budget ordinance, set out the fund known as “Park Fund” in an amount necessary to raise such money as the Town Council deems necessary for the ensuing year. All money expended from the Recreation Fund shall first be approved by the Parks and Recreation Board, who in turn shall certify the claim vouchers to the Clerk-Treasurer, who shall in turn submit the claim vouchers to the Town Council for their action thereon. If the approvals are forthcoming, the Clerk-Treasurer shall be authorized to write checks and pay out of the Recreation Fund the various claimants whose vouchers have been approved. The Recreation Fund shall be a continuing fund, and any balance remaining therein at the end of the calendar year shall not revert to the General Fund of the town, but shall continue to be subject to expenditure in like manner as set out above.
(L) The Parks and Recreation Board may accept gifts, donations and subsidies for park and recreation purposes. However, a gift or transfer of property to the Board may not be made without its approval. There is established a special nonreverting fund for the Parks and Recreation Board to be known as the “Park and Recreation Department Gift Nonreverting Fund”. A gift or grant of money shall be deposited in the Parks and Recreation Department Gift Nonreverting Fund to be available for expenditure by the Parks and Recreation Board for purposes specified by the grantor. The Clerk-Treasurer may draw warrants against the fund only upon vouchers signed by the President and Secretary of the Board.
(Ord. 2014-02, passed 8-11-2014)