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INTEROFFICE MEMORANDUM
Date: June 28, 2021
To: The Honorable Mayor and City Council
Through: Ron Burton, City Manager
From: Chandra Alpough, Director of Parks and Recreation
RE: P.R. 22025 —Memorandum of Understanding with KABOOM!
Introduction:
The intent of this Agenda Item is to request the City Council's approval of P.R. No. 22025
authorizing the City Manager to execute a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with
KABOOM! to establish a public-private partnership for collaboration on community playspace
projects.
Background:
KABOOM! is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to ensuring that all children get the
balance of active play that they need to become healthy and successful adults. KABOOM!
creates and catalyzes great places to play, inspires, empowers and leads play advocates, and
educates and elevates the importance of play in children's lives. The purpose of this MOU is to
set forth a structure between the City of Port Arthur and KABOOM! to work together to bring
new infrastructure to the youth living in the City of Port Arthur. The intent of this collaboration
is to create at least two (2) new playspaces per year over the next five years.
Budget Impact:
None
Recommendation:
It is recommended that the City Council approve P.R.No. 22025 authorizing the City Manager
to execute a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with KABOOM! to establish a public-
private partnership for collaboration on community playspace projects.
"Remember,we are here to serve the Citizens of Port Arthur"
P.O.Box 1089 X Port Arthur,Texas 77641-1089 X 409.983.8182 X FAX 409.983.8294
P. R.No. 22025
6/28/2021 ea
RESOLUTION NO.
A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO ENTER INTO A
MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN THE CITY OF PORT ARTHUR AND
KABOOM! TO ESTABLISH A PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP FOR
COLLABORATION ON COMMUNITY PLAYSPACE PROJECTS
WHEREAS, KABOOM!, is a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing balanced and
active play into the daily lives of all kids, particularly those growing up in poverty in America;
and,
WHEREAS,the purpose of this Memorandum of Understanding is to formally establish a
public-private partnership between KABOOM! and the City of Port Arthur Parks and Recreation
Department, to describe and agree to the parameters and scope of each party's intended
engagement in the partnership, and to set forth a structure in which the parties will work in a
mutually beneficial manner to bring new play infrastructure to youth living in the City of Port
Arthur; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PORT ARTHUR:
Section 1. That the facts and opinions in the preamble are true and correct.
Section 2. That the City Manager of the City of Port Arthur is hereby authorized to
execute the Memorandum of Understanding, in substantially the same form as attached hereto as
Exhibit"A".
Section 3. That a copy of the caption of this Resolution be spread upon the Minutes
of the City Council.
READ, ADOPTED AND APPROVED THIS day of , A.D., 2021, at a
Regular Meeting of the City Council of the City of Port Arthur, by the following vote:
AYES: (Mayor)
P. R.No. 22025
6/28/2021 ca
Councilmembers:
NOES:
Thurman"Bill" Bartie
Mayor
ATTEST:
Sherri Bellard
City Secretary
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
V'll,(
Val Tizeno, sq.
City Attorney
APPROVED FOR ADMINISTRATION:
Ron Burton
City Manager
°IfChandra Alpough a()P
Director of Parks and Recreation
P. R.No. 22025
6/28/2021 ca
APPROVED AS TO AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS:
Cam_ 1 Cti
Kandy Daniel T
Interim Director of Finance
el" (44c,
Clifton Wil iams, CPPB
Purchasing Manager
P. R.No. 22025
6/28/2021 ca
EXHIBIT "A"
MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING
between
KABOOM! and the City of Port Arthur, Texas Parks and Recreation Department
I. Purpose
This Memorandum of Understanding ("MOU") is entered into between the City of Port
Arthur, Texas Parks and Recreation Department ("Port Arthur PARD"), 1308 9th Avenue
Port Arthur, TX 77642 and KABOOM! Inc., located at 4301 Connecticut Avenue NW,
Suite ML-100, Washington, DC, 20008, a District of Columbia non-profit organization
(each a "Party," collectively referred to as the "Parties").
KABOOM! believes that play is a critical part of childhood and key to a child's ability to
thrive — physically, socially, emotionally, cognitively and creatively. This is especially true
for kids growing up in under-resourced urban communities. Port Arthur PARD is focused
on strengthening the Port Arthur community through high quality recreational programs,
safe, fun, and accessible parks and state of the art facilities that create memorable life
experiences. Given Port Arthur PARD's desire to increase open spaces for playful uses
throughout the City, KABOOM! and Port Arthur PARD are entering into a partnership
to transform older, underused, and under-maintained spaces into first-rate playspaces
for kids across the City of Port Arthur, thereby having a positive impact on the City's
youngest residents, their families, and their communities as a whole.
The purpose of this MOU is to formally establish a public-private partnership
between KABOOM! and Port Arthur PARD and to describe and agree to the parameters
and scope of each party's intended engagement in the partnership. This MOU sets forth
a structure in which the Parties will work in a mutually beneficial manner to bring new
play infrastructure to kids living in the City of Port Arthur, TX. The partnership includes,
but is not limited to, collaboration on community playspace projects.
II. Background
A. KABOOM! was founded in 1996 as the national non-profit organization dedicated
to bringing balanced and active play into the daily lives of all kids, particularly those
growing up in poverty in America. Play offers an opportunity for children to be physically
active, build social-emotional skills, and engage and explore the world around them,
which is crucial to whole child development. For more than 20 years, KABOOM! has
been working to create safe, engaging places to play, partnering with communities to
promote and support play, and drive the national discussion about the importance of
play in fostering healthy and productive lives. Since the organization's inception,
KABOOM! has collaborated with our partners to build, open, or improve more than
17,000 playgrounds, engage over 1.5 million volunteers, and serve nearly 11.5 million
kids. KABOOM! recognizes that there is a disparity in access to safe, high-quality play
spaces for kids of color across the United States. Therefore, KABOOM! works with
cities, communities, and partners from all sectors to close the racial equity gap in access
to play. KABOOM! is committed to finding solutions to systemic challenges to ensure
that every kid can learn, explore, and grow.
B. The mission of Port Arthur PARD is to make Port Arthur the best place to live,
work, and play by providing safe and aesthetically pleasing parks and facilities; along with
diverse and innovative programming that will build a string community and enhance the
quality of life for the citizens.
III. Objectives of the Partnership and MOU
Through this MOU, KABOOM! and Port Arthur PARD agree to collaborate on a full
assessment of the conditions of playspaces across all Port Arthur PARD open spaces
adjacent or nearby to public elementary and middle school spaces and will intend to
create at least two (2) new playspaces per year over the next five years. KABOOM! and
Port Arthur PARD will develop a plan for addressing the need for playspaces across
the park system, which will include working closely with staff to engage kids, caretakers,
and community members in building new playspaces. The locations of
the playspaces will be mutually agreed upon by KABOOM! and Port Arthur PARD, taking
into consideration key factors, including but not limited to, the goal of reducing racial
disparities in access to play, accelerating childhood health outcomes, and considering
the most urgent need, the resources available, and the interest from the community.
Through this partnership, KABOOM! will work with Port Arthur PARD and have the
opportunity to partner with the community to design and create new playspaces at sites
owned by Port Arthur PARD and under the oversight of Port Arthur PARD's Parks
Division leveraging the framework of KABOOM!'s flagship Build It With KABOOM!
(BIWK) program model, where community-build play projects are designed and built by
the community to transform the physical playspace. BIWK projects are based on the
principles of asset-based community development that recognizes local assets to be the
primary building blocks of sustainable community development. Each project results in a
new and exciting playspace in a high need community while also yielding transformative
and sustained impact across the community.
Through this MOU, which formalizes a KABOOM! and Port Arthur PARD
partnership, KABOOM! is able to begin using internal resources to leverage its
fundraising resources while Port Arthur PARD can bring together relevant staff members
and external partners to build out the plan for completion of the needs assessment.
IV. Timeline
The term of this MOU shall be from June 10th, 2021 to December 31st, 2026 with the
possibility of extending into future years as mutually agreed upon by both parties in
writing, to allow ample time for the needs assessment, planning, fundraising, community
engagement, and implementation of each playspace project. In the event Port Arthur
PARD and KABOOM! agree to collaborate on additional new playspaces or
partnerships, the terms and conditions of this agreement shall form the basis of further
collaboration among the parties.
V. Roles and Responsibilities
A. Through this partnership, KABOOM! will:
i. In collaboration with Port Arthur PARD, develop and conduct a needs
assessment to understand the current condition of playspaces across
the Port Arthur PARD system and make recommendations for
playspace replacement, repair, or development.
ii. Leverage its experience building safe, engaging playspaces that enlist
kids in designing their dream playspace and support the community to
take leadership and ownership over the project.
iii. Provide strategic oversight of the initiative on behalf of all parties.
iv. Manage the overall execution of the initiative on behalf of the
partners.
v. Leverage its fundraising, marketing and networking capacity to help
build playspaces.
vi. Provide technical and organizational leadership and guidance for the
initiative.
vii. Facilitate playspace design, including regular planning meetings
and work with vendors to procure equipment and materials in a timely
manner.
viii. Manage construction logistics for the initiative, coordinate
site preparation activities with Port Arthur PARD, inventory equipment
and materials, and assure that the necessary tools and materials and
other general supplies are available on the day of the event.
ix. Lead Design Days activities and any other community engagement
efforts.
x. Lead event activities, including the coordination of all volunteers.
xi. Provide promotional materials relating to the initiative.
xii. Work with Port Arthur PARD to capture outcomes and reports.
B. Port Arthur PARD will:
A. In partnership with KABOOM!, develop needs assessment and feasibility
analysis, and identify sites for playspaces.
B. Facilitate access to playground sites for data collection to support the
needs assessment.
C. Provide oversight to park project managers who serve as main points of
contact for each playspace project.
D. Communicate with community members about the prospect of new and
engaging playspaces; facilitate conversations with potential community
partners; host design day & build week; and provide guidance with
screening potential sites for projects.
E. Assist KABOOM! and City agencies (as applicable), and depending on
sufficient budget appropriations, to facilitate the following activities at two
(2) sites per year: site preparation, environmental remediation, removal
of existing equipment, street closures, licenses, granting permits and
other issues that may arise as necessary prior to playspace installation.
F. Work with other City agencies (as applicable) to secure a Space and Use
Agreement for the design and installation of playspaces.
G. Collaborate in fundraising and marketing for the playgrounds.
H. Work with KABOOM! and other City agencies (as applicable) to develop a
maintenance plan for the playspaces.
VI. Project Selection and Management
Using the results of the needs assessment, KABOOM! and Port Arthur PARD, the
parties will collaborate on decision-making around project locations and types. A formal
contract must be entered into before the commencement of a joint Port Arthur PARD-
KABOOM! project for a particular site, similar to the agreement already signed by
KABOOM! and Port Arthur PARD for previously completed projects. The scope of work
can be found in Appendix A of this MOU.
VII. Funding Contingency
KABOOM! and Port Arthur PARD will collaborate on project scoping and city
processes to define the items outlined in Section V. of this MOU. KABOOM! will work
with Port Arthur PARD to ensure fundraising for this partnership is executed in
coordination with PARD and the city's other fundraising priorities. The parties shall
reasonably cooperate with each other in fundraising efforts. Any third-party funding
source, other than those to which the parties have already agreed, that will be publicly
acknowledged must be mutually agreed upon by KABOOM! and Port Arthur PARD. In
the event future projects are unable to be scoped out, or conditions change which make
future projects unfeasible, this MOU can be terminated upon written notification from
KABOOM! or Port Arthur PARD after good faith efforts to create a more feasible
project are attempted. Such termination will not absolve either party of any outstanding
obligations and warranties from work which was previously contracted for in accordance
with this MOU.
VIII.Contact Information
KABOOM!
Kathryn Lusk, Senior Director, Programs
4301 Connecticut Ave. NW, Suite ML-1
Washington, DC 20008
klusk@kaboom.org
202-464-6163
City of Port Arthur Parks and Recreation Department
Chandra Alpough, Director of Parks and Recreation
1308 9th Avenue
Port Arthur, TX 77642
Chandra.alpough@portarthurtx.gov]
409-983-8152
IX.General Terms and Conditions
This agreement is effective when signed by both Parties and as of the date of the final
signature and will remain in effect until six (6) months after completion of the last
playspace installation as mutually agreed upon by the Parties.
This MOU shall be construed according to Texas law and subject to the jurisdiction of its
courts. Furthermore, the parties agree that any suits or actions brought by either party
against the other shall be filed in a court of competent jurisdiction in Jefferson County.
By executing this Memorandum of Understanding where indicated below, each Party agrees, as
of the date of the final signature, to be bound by the terms and provisions set forth above.
For KABOOM! Inc.: For City of Port Arthur
Parks and Recreation Department:
By: By:
Date: Date:
Name: George T. Megas Name: Ron Burton
Title: Chief Financial Officer Title: City Manager
Address: Address:
4301 Connecticut Ave. NW, Suite ML-1 444 4th Street
Washington, DC 20008 Port Arthur, TX 77640
202-464-6180 409-983-8152
Email: gmegas@kaboom.org Email: ron.burton@portarthurtx.gov
Attachments:
Appendix A: Proposed Scope of Work for the City of Port Arthur Parks and Recreation
Department & KABOOM!
APPENDIX A
Proposed Scope of Work for the City of Port Arthur Parks and Recreation Department &
KABOOM! Partnership (2021-2025)