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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2020-11-23 PRC MINrl lira ter The Birthplace of Minnesota 216 41h Street N, Stillwater, MN 55082 651-430-8800 www.ci.stillwater.mn.us PARKS AND RECREATION COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES November 23, 2020 REGULAR MEETING 7:00 P.M. Chairman Brandt called the meeting to order via Zoom at 7:00 p.m. Present: Chairman David Brandt, Scott Christensen, Pam Johnson, Sam Nelson, Sandy Snellman, Council Representative Mike Polehna Absent: Commissioners Linda Amrein and Stephanie Souter Staff: Public Works Superintendent Tim Moore and City Planner Abbi Wittman OPEN FORUM Ryan Chamberlain, 3344 Barons Way, asked if Legends Park will have a skating a rink this year. Public Works Superintendent Moore explained that the building of the wellhouse in Legends Park interfered with the location of the rink, so the Commission decided that Bergmann would be a better location for a rink this year. Commissioner Nelson reported items needing maintenance in Teddy Bear Park. Louise Watson said more volunteers are needed for a buckthorn bust at Lily Lake Park December 5. Mr. Moore stated that the City is using goats to remove buckthorn on the east side of Long Lake. APPROVAL OF MINUTES Possible approval of October 26, 2020 Parks Commission meeting minutes Motion by Chairman Brandt, seconded by Commissioner Snellman, to approve the October 26, 2020 meeting minutes. All in favor. Chairman Brandt announced Commissioner Amrein is resigning from the Commission. She will be missed, as she has been a member since 1997. She would like to give someone else a chance to serve the community. There will be an opening on the Commission. UNFINISHED BUSINESS There was no unfinished business. NEW BUSINESS St. Croix Preparatory Academy Park Names Karen Vidlock, teacher of ninth grade AP Human Geography at St. Croix Preparatory Academy, explained a class project coming up with possible names for the Aiple property park. The following names were submitted: Brown's Creek Riverside Park (Mansi Stiles & Erin Davis); Aiple's Haven (Bryce Feller, Blake Klemenhagen & DJ Peterson); Log Stop Park (Joey Arens & Owen Fager); Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting November 23, 2020 Riverside Park (Clara & Scyler Hall, Quinn Stokes, Brielle Sanders & Mimi Wicks); and Zephyr Park (Brady Nelson & Aldan Welsh). Students explained the rationale behind their submissions. The Commissioners commended the students for their great suggestions. Mr. Moore added that Mayor Kozlowski is compiling additional submissions for the Commission's consideration, so the naming of the park could be tabled for another meeting. North Aiple Park Plan Final Draft City Planner Wittman reviewed the final draft of the "North Aiple" park plan which is anticipated to be implemented in three phases over the next 10+ years. Short-term projects to be completed in the next five years include site access, connection to the Browns Creek State Trail, an ADA accessible canoe/kayak launch and fishing pier improvements. Mid-term projects, to be completed in 5-10 years, include parking lot expansion, conversion of the detached garage to picnic shelter/pond overlook, and construction of the pond trail, benches and overlooks. Long-term projects include the full conversion of the former Aiple residence to a community gathering space and non -motorized rental facility and south kayak/canoe launch and fishing pier. The cost of all improvements totals $2.5 million. A variety of local, state and federal partners have been identified to assist the City in the development of this property, for example, the Federal Lands Access Program that could fund up to 800%0 of the cost for transportation facility improvements that provide access to the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway. The final plan draft was released for stakeholder and general public comment on October 30 with a comment deadline of November 13. City staff is requesting the Parks Commission to provide comments and make a recommendation to the City Council. Specifically, Ms. Wittman asked that the Commission consider the possible development of the building for year- round use and whether or not to build a bird blind on the property, as recently suggested by Sustainable Stillwater. Commissioner Snellman asked if the building will be winterized. Ms. Wittman replied yes, there is a desire to have restrooms and community gathering spaces available in the winter. Commissioner Johnson asked how much a bird blind might cost and how prevalent they are. Ms. Wittman replied there are no bird blinds in Stillwater yet but there is an active birding community. Staff has not researched the cost, but this item would be one of the ]cast expensive improvements on the property. Chairman Brandt asked if there would be a working fireplace. Ms. Wittman replied possibly; building plans are not final yet. Commissioner Johnson asked who would maintain the building. Ms. Wittman responded that ideally, the City would hire someone, either City staff or a vendor, to operate the non -motorized storage and rentals and oversee the building. Chairman Brandt asked about the decision to have three -season rather than four -season use of the building. Ms. Wittman replied that there have been more summertime passive recreational uses discussed (kayaks, canoes and paddleboards) than winter uses. During the summer, someone would be on site to manage rentals whereas during the winter, there might be ski rental but there may not be as much volume, so having staff or a vendor there might not be as cost effective. Another reason for three - season use is maintenance - it is a lot of ground to plow to get in and out of the site. Ms. Watson asked if the gates would still be open in winter. Page 2 of 6 Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting November 23, 2020 Ms. Wittman replied there has been no discussion about closing the gate. Commissioner Johnson asked if there would be groomed trails. Chairman Brandt commented that the trails are not wide enough, not suited to grooming. Snowshoeing and hiking would be more suitable. In general he likes the master plan. Ms. Watson noted there is a stream and ponds on the property. She asked to what degree will the Watershed District be involved in designing the park? Ms. Wittman stated that the Watershed District and Washington County Conservation District have reviewed the plan. The plan includes a very strong natural resource management component. Of the $2.5 million total, about $150,000 will go toward natural resource management. Ms. Watson pointed out that the Bird City program is part of the Sustainable Stillwater/GreenStep Cities Committee's work. She would like to further explore the bird blind concept. She also suggested installing a permanent viewing scope for viewing the islands. Mr. Moore asked about the connection to Brown's Creek Trail. He has noticed there is a ledge like an old trail bed. He asked if it might be used for access up the trail, possibly ADA access. Ms. Wittman replied that is where the connection to the State trail would be. The connection would use that bench. It is the hope to be ADA accessible from the State trail. Commissioner Christensen said he appreciates all the work that has gone into the plan but he will have to vote no. The Commission has spent the last 2-3 meetings eliminating several capital improvement projects that cost $30,000-50,000 such as paving parking lots, irrigation systems, and cutting the Northland playground in half. He opposes spending $ 1 + million on the building which adds nothing to the park. The bathroom situation at Pioneer Park is good and that would be good enough for this park. He would like to get this park up and running but he cannot support the plan with money going into the structure, knowing the reality of the budget constraints. Commissioner Johnson asked, if the Commission recommends adoption of this plan, is that approving the $1 million long term improvement? Ms. Wittman replied that by approving the plan, the Commission is not approving any budget items. The $1 million pricetag for the structure is an item that is anticipated in the 10 year horizon. It would be slated into the City's capital improvement planning. Commissioner Nelson asked what will happen with the house short term, if renovation is 10+ years out? Ms. Wittman replied currently the heat is on low and the building is unoccupied. The City would do minimal maintenance to prevent further degradation. The building cannot be used as is for public use. Commissioner Nelson remarked, so for the next 10 years there would be a vacant unused house in the middle of the park. Chairman Brandt asked Ms. Wittman to speak to how master plans are used - not everything in the plan becomes reality. Ms. Wittman said she respects Commissioner Christensen's concerns about sinking $1 million into the 1960s residential structure. The City would never get another building there because of proximity to the floodplain. As the City plans for park development, portions of this plan will get revisited every year and priorities may shift if funding is obtained. For instance, the City developed the Bridgeview Park plan five years ago and has not yet done any improvements. The short term Page 3 of 6 Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting November 23, 2020 goals are site accessibility, the ADA accessible paddlecraft launch and fishing pier. Providing access to the sandy beach is more important now than building renovation and picnic shelters, but as funding comes in, some of those might move up in priority. Chairman Brandt said he is not a fan of having buildings in the parks that become another item for maintenance. He likes the idea of a picnic pavilion but is not sold on the value that the building brings. He is also concerned that if pervious asphalt is put in for the drive, and then the City has to tear down the building because it becomes too expensive, what does that do to the asphalt. Commissioner Johnson asked, what was the reason for keeping the building? Ms. Wittman answered that since the time of the concept plan it was determined by the City Council that the structure would be retained. It is located in floodplain and does not meet current setbacks from river so if it is demolished, the City may not ever be permitted to have another building there. Councilmember Polehna reiterated that the City will never be allowed to have another building that close to the water. When considering making it a rowing center, he was given cost estimates of $150,000 for a sprinkler system, sewer and water hookup but he found out it could be done for $50,000. When the City bought the property, a requirement was to get rid of the house. The Council got legislators to remove that requirement because they thought it would be unwise to get rid of the house. There is otherwise no good access to the river anywhere in Stillwater. Commissioner Christensen stated the Commission must vote on the plan as presented. The rest of the park is fantastic but he opposes retaining the building. Additionally, he thought Bridgeview was supposed to be an access to the river as well. Councilmember Polehna replied that's not definite yet. There still might be an access site for non - motorized boats at Bridgeview Park but there is major boat traffic in that area. The beauty about the Aiple property is that it is out of the major wave of the boats. Commissioner Christensen stated his whole point is to get the parks up and running along the river. The Commission voted on Bridgeview Park five years ago and nothing has happened. He wants to have a plan that can be implemented in a timely way. He appreciates everything Councilmember Polehna does. He has nothing against his opinion but wants to see the park developed. Councilmember Polehna acknowledged that the City Council has been pushing to have a Parks Director to put together programming for parks. Ms. Wittman recognized that there is about $20-30,000 funding for the Aiple property in next year's Capital Improvement Plan. Looking at the plan, one possible use of the funding would be access to the Brown's Creek Trail. She too does not like to plan and not build. There is a gap right now in the parks system between planning and development. Councilmember Polehna added there are lots of grants that are not pursued because the City's development and planning staff are overloaded. The City needs to get a parks person to start implementing these things. Motion by Chairman Brandt, seconded by Commissioner Snellman, to recommend that the City adopt the North Aiple Park Master Plan, noting their comments that they are not fans of the house being retained. Commissioner Christensen pointed out if the Commission votes yes, it gets conveyed to the Council that the Commission likes the plan. Ms. Wittman said she will advise the Council that there is not an overwhelming majority that supports putting money into the building and maintaining it into perpetuity. Page 4 of 6 Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting All in favor. Downtown Winter Events November 23, 2020 Mr. Moore informed the Commission that applications have been received for two events this winter in downtown Stillwater: 1) a European Market November 20--February 22 (Thursday -Sunday) in Lot 2 south of the bridge (however, this event will not take place until the Governor's restrictions are lifted); and 2) Fire and Ice January 29-31 in North Lowell Park using 5 parking spots in Parking Lot 9. Applicable State Guidelines will apply. Councilmember Polehna updated the Commission on the holiday lighting of downtown businesses, Main Street, the Christmas Trees, Chestnut Plaza area and the lift bridge, and other activities. Motion by Commissioner Snellman, seconded by Commissioner Johnson, to recommend approval of the Fire and Ice event. All in favor. INFORMATIONAL ITEMS Memorial Benches and Trees Mr. Moore provided a draft application form and certificate that could be used for a formal bench and tree donation program. Commissioner Johnson suggested formatting changes. Chairman Brandt provided additional wording changes and suggested recognizing donors at meetings if they are willing. OTHER ITEMS OF DISCUSSION Councilmember Polehna reported Stillwater was picked as the top new bike trail in the State. ADJOURNMENT Motion by Commissioner Snellman, seconded by Chairman Brandt, to adjourn. All in favor. The meeting was adjourned at 8:31 p.m. David Brandt, Chair ATTF 5T: Tim core, Public Works Superintendent Page 5 of 6