07-13-2026 Parks & Recreation Commission - Jul 13, 2026

meeting

Santa Clara Boards and Commissions 1h 8m 1 speaker 7 agenda items transcribed 2 days ago official recording ↗

▲ 0

Transcript

jump: agenda · speakers · find in transcript

Transcript

Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.

What is the purpose and agenda of this Parks & Recreation Commission meeting?

Derek DeMarco 0:02

Good evening. Today is Monday, July thirteenth, twenty twenty six. This is the regular meeting of the Parks and Recreation Commission. This is a hybrid meeting and the meeting will be recorded. The Zoom application will notify you that this meeting is being recorded upon your entry. Please press continue on the Zoom application to stay in the meeting. Use the raise your hand feature in Zoom when you would like to speak on an item and to also lower your hand when you're finished speaking. Please unmute yourself when called upon to speak and mute yourself when you are done speaking. If you're calling in by phone, identify yourself by name before speaking on an item. You may press star nine on your phone to raise and lower your hand, and press star six if you are participating by phone to unmute yourself.

Derek DeMarco 0:43

My name is uh Derek DeMarco and I'm the vice chair for the Parks and Recreation Commission. I'm serving uh as the facilitator of this meeting in our chair's remote participation from India as noted on the agenda. Welcome to the Parks and Recreation Commission meeting. I now call to order a meeting of July thirteenth, twenty twenty six, and it is seven oh two. As I just mentioned, uh Chair Gupta has provided advanced notice of remote participation and he is attending the meeting remotely from India as noted on the agenda. Let's take roll. Uh Commissioner Koblaff. Mission Shoe. Yeah. Commissioner DeMarco is here. Commissioner Forte. Yeah. Commissioner Ganesh here. Welcome to your first meeting of the Parks and Recreation Commission.

Derek DeMarco 1:27

Uh Chair Gupta. Yeah. Yeah, you are. And Commissioner Sousa. Here. So we've taken roll. Thanks everybody for your attendance tonight. Wanted to take just a brief moment to do some introductions. So our newest commissioner feels at home. I will start and then we'll go around the room and allow everyone to give an introduction to themselves before we get into our newest commissioner. As I mentioned, my name is Derek. I use he home pronouns. I uh currently work at UC Berkeley. I've been on the commission for this is my third year, so I've finished two years. Um I've got two kids that use the parks all the time and it seemed like a good way to get involved and um kind of help their interests.

Unknown 2:05

I'm Commissioner Chu. I also have two kids who use the parks all the time. I'm an environmental engineer in my day job. And I've been on the commission for this is beginning my second term. So I just finished one term.

Lee Forte 2:16

Ms. Lee Forte. This is my seventh year on parks and recreation. Before that I was on the cultural commission for a bunch of years. Uh my other life, previously software engineer, hardware engineer, I part-time acting stunts. Um Do I teach fitness classes? I'm known for kickboxing. All things in life, I'm known as the kickboxing guy. And

Derek DeMarco 2:40

I would say that I know Eversley is the first the top of whatever new park we cut the ribbon for. Okay.

Lee Forte 2:46

But we gotta go train, I gotta go jump parkour. Parkour. I'm up I'm gonna tell you. Okay, all right then. Next week the twenty sixth Sunday, parkour day. Right.

Ed Sousa 3:00

I'm Ed Sousa. Uh call me Ed. Yep. Uh and uh I've been on the commission one year. And uh I really enjoy. This group of people. Well welcome welcome.

Dana Caldwell 3:15

I'm Dana Caldwell. This is my fifth year on the commission in my first full term. Um, I live over across the street from Maywood Park off Prune Ridge. Um, and I'm the service and parts director at Stevens Creek Hyundai, also a varsity basketball coach at Cupertino High School. And I have three daughters that are all grown. And No longer use our parks 'cause they don't live in Saint Eclair.

Derek DeMarco 3:37

But they did.

Dana Caldwell 3:38

No, they go they take their grandkids to the park across the street. So uh

Derek DeMarco 3:42

Nikash, you wanna give yourself an introduction before um we turn the floor over to a friend?

Vikas Gupta 3:46

Yes, uh my name is Vikas Gupta. Um I live pretty close to where Dana lives, um close to Maywood Park and the the um whatever that other park is called, I forgot, uh, which is now a cricket field. Um My day job is uh tending to my family, uh spend a lot of time with them, and uh I also involve myself with uh the community.