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memo 2 pages

Also attached to this agenda item: August 18%2C 2023 Memo on Gouveia Memo Gouveia Park Narrative August 2023 November 16%2C 2023 letter from Maria Slippen%2C Chair... November 8%2C 2023 Memo from Mark Duncan%2C...

To: Croton-on-Hudson Village Manager Bryan Healy, Mayor Brian Pugh, Trustees Sherry Horowitz, Ian Murtaugh, and Len Simon From: Trustee Nora Nicholson Re: Gouveia Park Next Steps November 20, 2023 Based on the extensive work and recommendations of the AdHoc Advisory Committee of 2019, with the support of the Recreation Advisory Council, the Board of Trustees should support the creation of a Cultural and Community Center located in Gouveia Park. The public use of the house and grounds was the intention of the gift, and it is our responsibility to carry this out. To achieve this goal, I recommended that a Gouveai Park Working Group be formed. The group would consist of the following members (10): ● Two Liasions From the Board of Trustees ● Village Manager Bryan Healey ● Department of Recreation Mark Duncan ● Department of Public Works Frank Bruni ● Recreation Advisory Committee Representative ● Arts and Humanities Advisory Committee Representative ● Croton Council on the Arts Representative ● Two Appointed Croton Residents It is important to remember that this work is not starting from the beginning and is part of a long conversation around Gouveia. The intention of the gift was for public use, and that should be the guiding principle of the working group, as it is stated in the 2017 Strategic Plan. The building should have some dedicated administrative space that will be used in some capacity by the Recreation Department either as the primary office of the Recreation Department or as a satellite office. I also recommend using some of the endowment to hire an outside design professional or professionals to help develop, along with this working group, a phased plan to achieve the goal of having the main house on the property open to the public. The land as a beautifully planned park and the house as a beautifully restored, flexible public structure will require a sensitive, interdisciplinary team (landscape architect/ park planner and architect, although perhaps only through part of the process). The team and process will be distinct from much of the village’s park planning in that this will be a park and a cultural amenity. The extent to which the park and home become destinations that are both beautiful and function well would enhance the village’s ability to generate income from the improvements. The design professional(s) will also be responsible for creating a master planning document that would convey a clear, compelling vision of the village’s goals and priorities that can be used to solicit funds for the project