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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2010-05-24 PRC MIN City of Stillwater Parks and Recreation Commission May 24, 2010 Present: Linda Amrein, chair David Brandt, Scott Christensen, Rob McGarry, Solveg Peterson, Mike Polehna and Sandy Snellman Staff present: Assistant Public Works Superintendent Tim Moore Approval of minutes: Ms. Amrein noted a correction to the time of the Lost Dogs concert on page 1, should be 6:30 p.m. Ms. Amrein moved approval of the minutes of April 26, 2010, with that correction. Mr. Brandt seconded the motion; motion passed unanimously. ACTION ITEMS Special event applications Community Dinner, Lowell Park, September 11, 2010 Mr. Moore pointed out that providing electricity to the area of the applicant’s option A would require running some electrical cords, which may prove difficult. Olivier Vrambout, applicant, said he preferred option A but had listed three location options as he was told there might be construction going in the portions of the park at the time of the event, Sept. 11. Mr. Moore said the possibility of construction going on at this time is likely pretty small; there was discussion about options for providing electricity to the area of option A. Mr. Vrambout briefly explained the event, a dinner to promote sustainable agriculture in the St. Croix Valley. When asked if alcohol would be available, Mr. Vrambout said he thought it would be nice to involve a local brewery, but said he didn’t know what would be required to do that; he said the alcohol wouldn’t be sold, but served as an option with the dinner. Mr. Moore advised him to work through the City Clerk’s office for the necessary permits and noted the area must be fenced if alcohol is available. Mr. Vrambout noted the food would be donated and the money received from the ticket sales would be distributed back to the farmers who donated the food; he said the intent is to raise awareness only. Mr. Vrambout said for the first year of the event he would anticipate attendance to be about 100 people. He said he would also like to have some local musicians playing if that would be allowable; it was noted music must conclude by 10 p.m. according to the City’s noise ordinance. Mr. Brandt moved to approve the application for the Community Dinner on Sept. 11 with the details to be worked out with City staff. Ms. Snellman seconded the motion; motion passed unanimously. Plie Dance, Pioneer Park, August 18, 2010 Mr. Moore briefly reviewed the application by Plie Dance Company to use the band shell at Pioneer Park for a dance performance on Aug. 18. Mr. McGarry moved, seconded by Ms. Peterson, to approve the application by Plie Dance Company for use of the band shell on Aug. 18. Motion passed unanimously. St. Croix Valley Recreation Center rental rates Doug Brady, manager of the St. Croix Valley Recreation Center, reviewed his proposal for increased rental fees for the Rec Center. The proposal, he said is to increase ice time rentals by $5 an hour and field house rentals by $10 an hour. There was discussion about replacement of the turf in the field house. Mr. Brady noted that the City has set aside $240,000 of the estimated cost of $400,000, and the Soccer Club has committed to fund the remainder. He said the cost may be about $30,000 extra depending on the difficulty of removal of the old turf, and the Soccer Club has indicated it will pay that cost as well. Mr. Polehna suggested the possibility of charging additional for non-resident use. On a question by Mr. McGarry, Mr. Brady said the Park and Recreation Board Minutes May 24, 2010 Page 2 of 3 rental rates have been going up consistently. Mr. Brady noted there was no bonding last year for capital improvements. Mr. McGarry said he favored increases not to keep pace with neighboring facilities but to keep pace with inflation and maintenance expenses and moved to approve the proposed rate increases for the 2010-11 season. Ms. Snellman seconded the motion; motion passed unanimously. Ms. Amrein suggested it might be good to visit the facility during the annual park tour. Mr. Brady updated the Commission on a proposal for Dairy Queen to operate the concessions at the facility. He briefly spoke of an upcoming showcase event for the Suburban East Conference hockey teams on Dec. 18, an event he said will be a good test for the air quality monitoring system; he explained the system. Mr. Polehna brought up the issue of parking. COMMISSION ITEMS/TOPICS Mr. Moore said he had received an e-mail from Allison McGinniss regarding the dog park; he distributed copies of the message. He noted the Commission has discussed this issue on several occasions, and he said he met separately with the group promoting the dog park regarding the City’s plan. Mr. Moore said at this time, the City does not have any money budgeted for a dog park; several sites have been looked at, but no site designated as a dog park. He said the Council discussed it in conjunction with the Comprehensive Plan update and removed it from the Plan. He said he would contact Ms. McGinniss and clarify some items. He said in the meeting with the promoters of the park, he made it clear the City had no money budgeted for a dog park but offered to assist them in working with City staff to set up a non-profit entity for their fundraising. Ms. Peterson pointed out that not having a site for a park has been part of the Commission’s discussion all along. Mr. Moore said in talking with other communities, creating a dog park was not an overnight success – it took several years and a lot of work to get a park established. Mr. Moore noted that ultimately this is a Council decision. In discussion, members suggested that it should be made clear that there is no designated site in Stillwater and perhaps promoters should talk with neighboring communities about possible sites. Mr. Christensen suggested that part of the reason for the e-mail is that Ms. McGinniss has allegedly been receiving mixed messages from some City people. Mr. Polehna suggested having either Administrator Hansen or Public Works Director Sanders respond to Ms. McGinnis and provide her with copies of past Park Commission minutes to eliminate any hearsay. Mr. Moore provided the Commission with an update on the levee wall project and Lowell Park plan. He said this was a topic of discussion at the recent City Council retreat and Council decided to pursue a hybrid version of the levee project using the money the City and Corps already have available. He said the levee project would include some storm sewer work in the parking lot areas, re-grading and resurfacing the parking lot areas and re- grading portion of Lowell Park from Nelson to Mulberry and a portion of north Lowell Park for use as an amphitheater. He said the Council also discussed some improvements to Lowell Park that would be part of the project. He said staff was directed to begin working on that plan. He said staff is working with the Corps so that agency will be doing a certain amount of the work that will expedite park improvements. He said he believes it might be possible to start this year on the south end of Lowell Park from Myrtle or Chestnut down to Nelson. He said the existing irrigation system, a galvanized system that must be manually operated, would be upgraded with automated sprinkler heads. He said the drinking fountain would be replaced and there would be improvements to the restrooms. He said part of the process will be developing a plan so the City can actively start pursuing grants/donations from the community for additional improvements. He said as part of the retreat discussion, the Council also directed staff to develop an overall park maintenance program; he said he has started on that with the turf management plan and the playground equipment audit. He said in the next several months, he would be coming to the Commission with additional Park and Recreation Board Minutes May 24, 2010 Page 3 of 3 information regarding the maintenance program and Lowell Park improvements. He noted that in the past the Commission has taken its annual tour in June; he said if preliminary plans are available perhaps the Commission could visit Lowell Park as part of the tour to envision the plans. Mr. Polehna talked about the reason for the Council’s decision. Ms. Peterson spoke of several communities’ projects to raise money for waterfront improvements. Mr. Polehna talked about plans for a plaza area. Mr. Moore said staff is looking at the possibility of a boat launch at the Barge Terminal Property. He stated the process of removing the Cayuga has begun. He said the launch may be of a somewhat temporary nature pending the bridge work. Mr. Moore said the City has been approached by the Minnesota Train Museum about the tracks in the area; as part of the agreement the Museum would take the rails and clean up the brush in the area. There was discussion of the June park tour. Ms. Amrein suggested including the open space area on the east side of Long Lake; Mr. Polehna talked about the possibility of using Tree Trust people to build a trail in that area. Mr. Moore stated a letter would be going out to Long Lake residents informing them they have to remove their items from City property; he said as time becomes available, staff would be locating property markers. Mr. Christensen nd said it would be nice to have a plan for 72 Street, which is heavily used by walkers but not set up for that use. Ms. Snellman asked about the upper Northland Park area; Mr. Moore explained that within a park there may be three different levels of maintenance, with one level perhaps mowed only once a month. It was agreed the tour would include Lowell Park and the east side of Long Lake. There was discussion of various other water-quality related issues. It was agreed to start the June meeting at 6 p.m. or earlier if staff needs additional time for topics; it was noted the after-gathering is a potluck event. Ms. Snellman, seconded by Mr. Brandt, moved to adjourn at 8:55 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Sharon Baker Recording Secretary