HomeMy WebLinkAbout2011-09-07 PACKET 04.D.REQUEST OF CITY COUNCIL ACTION COUNCIL AGENDA
MEETING ITEM#
DATE 9/7/11
PREPARED BY: Parks and Recreation Zac Dockter
ORIGINATING DEPARTMENT DEPARTMENT HEAD
COUNCIL ACTION REQUEST:
Consider amending Cottage Grove's Recreational Facility Use Policy.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
Amend Cottage Grove's Recreational Facility Use Policy as amended.
BUDGET IMPLICATION: n/a n/a
BUDGETED AMOUNT ACTUAL AMOUNT
ADVISORY COMMISSION ACTION
SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS:
Z MEMO/LETTER:
❑ RESOLUTION:
❑ ORDINANCE:
F ENGINEERING RECOMMENDATION:
❑ LEGAL RECOMMENDATION:
F OTHER:
ADMINISTRATORS COMMENTS:
,947z,
WityAdministrator Date
HAFacility Use PoliciesTacility Use Amendments 2011 \Council Action Form - Facility Use Amendment 9711.doc
DATE REVIEWED
APPROVED
DENIED
❑
PLANNING
❑
❑ ❑
❑
PUBLIC SAFETY
F
❑ ❑
F
PUBLIC WORKS
❑
1:1 1:1
Z
PARKS AND RECREATION 818/11
z
z ❑
F
HUMAN SERVICES /RIGHTS
❑
El ❑
[:1
ECONOMIC DEV. AUTHORITY
1:1
1:1 ❑
F
F
F ❑
SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS:
Z MEMO/LETTER:
❑ RESOLUTION:
❑ ORDINANCE:
F ENGINEERING RECOMMENDATION:
❑ LEGAL RECOMMENDATION:
F OTHER:
ADMINISTRATORS COMMENTS:
,947z,
WityAdministrator Date
HAFacility Use PoliciesTacility Use Amendments 2011 \Council Action Form - Facility Use Amendment 9711.doc
To: Honorable Mayor and City Council
From: Zac Dockter, Parks and Recreation Director
Cc: Ryan Schroeder, City Administrator
Date: August 15, 2011
Subject: Park Facility Use Policy
Introduction
On May 4, 2011, the City Council held a workshop to discuss revising the city's Recreational
Facility Use Policy to address multiple concerns regarding priority use of municipal facilities.
For your reference, that council report is included with this memo as Appendix A. At the
workshop, staff was directed to bring the issue to the Parks, Recreation and Natural
Resources Commission for amore thorough review and recommendation to council.
Discussion
The Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission reviewed council's direction
regarding the Facility Use Policy at its June meeting. Based on commission comments, staff
drafted an amended Facility Use Policy for review at its August meeting. The Commission
invited board members from both the Cottage Grove Athletic Association and East Ridge
Athletic Association to participate in the conversation. Neither group was in representation at
the meeting. Lack of attendance and further phone conversations with each group lead staff to
believe that there is no overwhelming disapproval from either side regarding the proposed
changes.
Upon review of the amended policy, the Commission voted unanimously to approve the
proposed changes with additional verbiage relating standing prioritization based on consistent
use basis. To address this request, staff has added a line stating that prioritization of users will
remain static unless written proposals are submitted to the commission to justify a review of
priority levels.
Staff Recommendation
Amend Cottage Grove's Recreational Facility Use Policy as presented.
Cottage Grove
Recreational 'facility Use Policy
PURPOSE
The purpose of this policy is to establish guidelines for the priority use of outdoor athletic facilities in
the City of Cottage Grove and /or those being allocated by the City of Cottage Grove.
It is the intent of this policy to grant priority use for organizations and groups that may desire the use of
specific facilities for a specific period of time. The priority system is a listu,,om highest to lowest in
terms of reserving specific times and facilities by organizations or grow s yEach priority lists the
following:
0 Requirements of the organization or group.
♦ Uses that may require fees.
The City of Cottage Grove reserves the right to detef an
considered "a scheduled facility" or not. In other w s C]
best interest to periodically not schedule specific outdoor a
need to rest a field for maintenance or safety purposes, or ma'i
available to the public at large. These poh.s do not apply to I
Oaks golf course. �h v„
Priority I: City of Cottage Grove Programs
Activities directly organized of the City's
by the City as a cooperatry*0 io
programs, special evetsken to
offered
Use - Use will be based on ` 1
communicated praor to spring
Fees — Clams I fee
athletic facihfy all ,be
m '
ecide that it is public's
11-4 4xamples wool nclude the
outdoor athletic facilities
ieii. or River
h Department or directly sponsored
programs, summer playground
kds will be established annually and
each season.
forms for detailed fees).
Priority ublic and Privk4�Schools = `
Schools muse located withi City of Cottage Grove and there must be an agreement in place that
provides the C)r ith the recipial use of the school's athletic facilities. If no agreement is in place,
priority sball be p1 Priority
Use - Use will be limited 'Weekday activities and concluding prior to or at 3:30 p.m, The types of uses
allowed will be for org ii , ed school programs and physical education classes, provided there is no
disruption to the City's normal maintenance of the facilities. Limited use will be allowed for later
weekday hours and tournaments provided there are no scheduling conflicts with Priority I or Priority III
groups (fees shall be assessed for this limited use).
Fees — Class 2 or 3 based on event type (see reservation forms for detailed fees).
Priority III: Recognized Community Youth Organizations
it is the City of Cottage Grove's view that the public is best served when there is only one community-
based recreational offering per sport. As such. the City of Cottage Grove will only recognzize one y outh
or�lanization per sport at the priority III level for recreational (in- house) proarans. Recreational
rp ogr should be
defined as those pi consisting of youth awed 15 and under where a minimum
of 70% of names are nlaved at Cottage Grove facilities versus other Cottage Grove based teams.
Priority III organizations will also include competitive (traveling) y -Youth organizations (18 and under)
that are members of one of the following independently incorporated youth at associations that are
currently recognized by the City of Cottage Grove. The two currently reco organizations in
Cottage Grove are the Cottage Grove Athletic Association (CGAA) ands East�idge Athletic
�
Association (ERAA). l u
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All of the above recognized organizations must meet the
within this priority category. Where multiple organizati�
Must be a Cottage Grove and/or Woodbury based,
the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Proof of 501c3
the City of Cottage Grove along wi ,,annual certifn
organization.
Participation shall be ninety percent (90)
within School District 833. A listing of oar
the City of Cottage Cuvith names, add€
scheduling meetrng.ci; will be allocz
within a nartic i r snort recii mg outdoor
• A copy of the
to remain
U3 organizatiofi as defined by
from IRS) will be required by
is by an office of the
W000r -ve resielp § and/or attending school
SrI� must be submitted by sport to
is to prove�"'sidency requirements prior to the
based up c the # of Cottage Grove residents
etic facilities.
shall be submitted to the City of Cottage
nization %ard of c rr .ors must consistently maintain the ability to provide items A —
and sign ofn*,,a form provided by the City of Cottage Grove.
v ,.
copy of the ent byius polices and procedures, which govern the operations, shall
made availablo the City of Cottage Grove or any resident of the community upon
B. The ciation�ay not discriminate based on race, ethnic background, or religion, or
ability ?wed, may make team assignments based on ability. There will be a policy in
place desing the formation of teams.
C. The orgization shall have a coach's certification training program in place for head
coaches of all sports and it shall address sportsmanship values, safety and liability.
D. All board meetings are open to the public. The election of the governing body shall be a
process, which is open to all members as defined by the bylaws of the organization.
E. The organization shall have a policy in place for dealing with members that have special
economic, physical and /or social needs.
F. The oraaruzation shalt be able to present verbally and/or in writhig its effectiveness as to
theoreanization's program management in regards to program offerings, par(icipation,
youth development skill /team development and positive representation of t he
com munity.
The organization shall have liability insurance in place in an amount equal to the statutory
maximum liability of a government unit with the State of Minnesota as set forth in state law
naming the City of Cottage Grove as an additional insured. A copy of this insurance must be
submitted to the City of Cottage Grove Parks & Recreation Department at the time of field
reservation. The current statutory limits are $1,000,000 for each gccun
The organization agrees to indemnify and defend it from
against the City for injury or death to any third person or
third person, arising out of the negligent acts of the ag
either party as they relates to the shared use of the fwelds
this policy. The intent of the indemnification reglaaa'i�nq,
the party against whom a claim is being
Minnesota Statutes Chapter 466.
As an act of good faith and for the Health & WSJ
recommends that that all associations do backgrc
Use — Fields will be allocated Fas pon the mu
residing within the Cit .Cottage ve) in the
interfere with Priorit ar" use T Se` Ci will
Fees —
(see
Pnor : Cottage C
Youi i or Pflt Cottage
Use - Use shall t
Requests will be
III.
as brought or actions filed
or damage to property of
fps, and representatives of
nt of this Ard
to the City's
are reserved under
to impose upon
,of liability under
Me City of Cottage Grove
volunteers and board members.
City of Cottage Grove residents (participants
auestina outdoor athletic facilities and shall not
forms for detailed fees).
businesses, team or residents not meeting
to avw"lability of athletic facilities and shall not interfere with Priorities 1 -III.
� r ompletion of field allocation of Priority I -III requests.
Fees — Class 4 based or>vent type.
Priority V: Non - Resident Groups
Youth or Adult Non - Cottage Grove based organizations, schools, businesses, teams.
Use - Use shall be limited to availability of athletic facilities and shall not interfere with Priorities I - IV
use. Requests will be filled after completion of field allocation of Priority I -IV requests.
Fees — Class 5 based on event type, dates and times.
PROCEDURES:
® The Parks and Recreation Department makes determination of priority and class levels based on
aforementioned criteria.
♦ The City will only authorize reservations and changes throughout the reservation period with one
field coordinator per sport.
® If organizations or groups are at the same priority level, then the organization or group that selves
the highest number of Cottage Grove residents will receive the higher number of fields during field
x:
allocation meeting. ,A
o Any organization or group, which fails to provide for and follow
provides false information is subject to revocation of its athletic
discretion of the Parks and Recreation Department.
s No organization or group will be allowed to sublease athiet fa
RAIN OUT PROCEDURES:
In the event of inclement weather or saturated ground will
A=
participants and to prevent turf damage. Inclement weat Ind
a. Thunderstorms (thunder, lightening and /or hail)y
b. Heavy rain storms and/orsatura d ground*
c. Heavy frost or snow cover v
d. Extreme Temperatures a
e. Any weather condition that may bon g rtici
*Saturated ground refers to stp *,,ig water on a
the field will damage the turd
The decision to closeeou athleti" cilities will
Recreation Department staff he de n to close
ties, set forth above, or
reservation at the
to ensure >w of
fields.
the ground is so wet that use of
by City of Cottage Grove Parks and
athletic facilities will be made as follows:
a. W ,b athletic �aCilities are cl s the Parks & Recreation Department will send an
=mail to t Schedt Coordinators identified at the begirming of the season by the
sport directors` ,the spo Meld Scheduling Coordinators responsibility to contact all
a paches involved canceltion information.
b kdays. When passible, the decision to close outdoor athletic facilities will be made by
3 ni. If inelem weather conditions develop after the office closes, the umpire /referee
..
of the maintena e staff on duty will make the decision to close fields.
C. City of a Grove and District 833 personnel reserve the right to close outdoor athletic
facilities unrl# special circumstances.
d. If fees have en assessed; credits will be issued if fields are closed by the City of Cottage
Grove. Fees ill not be refunded if sport coaches cancel a practice without the fields being
closed due to weather or field conditions.
Scheduling Coordinators and their athletic associations will be held financially responsible for any turf
damage caused by the use of fields /facilities during inclement weather, by the use of fields with
saturated ground or by the use of fields in a negligent or inappropriate manner at any time. (i.e. hitting
balls into fences (soft toss), batting practice when not using mound or home plate). Damaged fields may
' be closed for extended periods to allow for turf repair and restoration.
4�.
To: Honorable Mayor and City Council
From: Zac Dockter, Parks and Recreation Manager
Date: 4/27/11
Subject: Facility Use Policy and Community /School Based Youth Athletic Programming
Introduction
In 2009, the city council adopted a facility use policy that anticipated the formulation of an East
Ridge Athletic Association (ERAA) to be comprised of both Cottage Grove and Woodbury
residents. The revised facility use policy took into consideration the understanding that some
percentage of ERAA members would be Cottage Grove residents and as such should have
some level of opportunity in scheduling city facilities to meet their needs. A nearly identical
facility use policy was adopted by the city of Woodbury at the same time to assure policies
were equitable across city lines. Since that time, there has been a myriad of issues that
warrant another review of the policies of each city.
Background
Prior to the opening of the East Ridge High School, the Cottage Grove and Woodbury Athletic
Associations as well as the South Washington County School District developed a 12 person
task force to study potential impacts of a third athletic association within the two communities.
The commission was mediated by an independent former athletic director to assure biases
were kept to a minimum. The task force recommendation was for continuation of community
based youth athletic programming. The alternative of school based recreational programming
was not recommended for the in -house recreational levels but it was understood that some
traveling programs may be necessary for fulfillment of high school sports needs (i.e. "feeder
program "). However, the task force recommendation had no formal action plan to assure the
recommendation was adhered to amongst the communities. It should also be noted that many
from the ERAA organization believe that if the study were held today there may be a different
recommendation based on the opportunities that ERAA has now presented to both
communities.
Shortly after the opening of East Ridge High School, a group of parents formed the East Ridge
Athletic Association by forming teams for football and basketball programs. Soon thereafter,
softball, baseball, soccer, volleyball and track and field were added. Most programs of which
are also offered by CGAA and WAA.
Having been able to get advanced notice of the development of ERAA, both the cities of
Woodbury and Cottage Grove quickly developed the aforementioned facility use policies to
address the situation and received council approval. With said facility use policy in place, the
city of Cottage Grove has been able to satisfy the needs of both CGAA and ERAA with relative
ease based on their level of citizenship in each group. However, the city of Woodbury and the
SWC School District have not been so fortunate and are finding the process extremely difficult
to manage. The difference in conflict levels is likely due to the fact that a very small
percentage of ERAA members are residents of Cottage Grove whereas the majority of ERAA
members currently reside in Woodbury.
Even though population and housing levels have remained fairly level since the inception of
ERAA, facility use requests have increased dramatically for the city of Woodbury. This is
contrary to the belief that field and court opportunities should be plentiful with the addition of
many new facilities inherited via the East Ridge High School and Bielenberg Sports Center
expansion projects. The city of Woodbury has multiple concerns /questions that do not seem to
have an easy answer. Those are:
1. Why does it appear there are not enough facilities available for youth programs when
community population levels have been stable yet number of facilities have increased?
2. Are in -house recreational programs getting equal opportunity /access to number and
quality of facilities?
3. Are in -house recreational programs getting the attention they need to foster growth and
opportunity for families to participate?
4. Are the associations focusing first on traveling programs and school based "feeder"
programs for scheduling needs?
5. The community appears split along school lines. There is arguing and resentment
between the two groups. Is this school -based recreational programming concept
splitting community spirit?
6. Is it truly appropriate to split the community at very young age levels based on
"potential" future high school attendance or is it more appropriate to be represented by
the community until children are of age where high school choice may be a factor in
participation?
The above concerns are minimal for Cottage Grove in its current state. However, it is an issue
that will continue to grow and fester as the majority of the East Ravine housing development
will be in the East Ridge school boundary. This means that each year a larger percentage of
city facilities will need to be dedicated to this group.
ERAA is an established organization and that must be respected. It is not recommended that
the either city discuss the elimination of this organization. However, there appears to be
agreement between both cities of Woodbury and Cottage Grove that revising the facility use
policy may provide opportunity to resolve all or most of the aforementioned concerns.
A simple revision to the facility use policy whereas to acknowledge just one community basec
in -house programming organization for Priority Level III (Recognized Community Youth
Organizations) seems to provide a starting point for discussion. Should this revision take
place, an application process would likely be needed to assure the group chosen for this
priority level by the city meets the designed criteria of the policy. Such criteria would be:
1. Group must actively attempt to serve all community residents.
2. Group must provide a variety of programming options.
3. Group must show ability to manage the operations effectively and efficiently to be able
to maximize participation at minimal cost to residents.
It's not anticipated this policy change would affect traveling teams /clubs and as such would not
eliminate any of the organizations that exist today. However, acknowledging one community
based in -house program operator at Priority Level III resolves previously discussed concerns
by doing the following:
1. Having one association manage the in -house program provides that group the ability to
manage teams and leagues more effectively to fit within any limitations of the facility
provisions. It's believed one larger association has more flexibility in sizing of teams to
better utilize facilities as opposed to two smaller associations. Focusing on community
based in -house programming also assures youth are developing at the skill level they
belong which proves to build confidence, fun and ultimately retainment of player levels.
2. Community based field usage management assures all residents get equal opportunity
for use of all city and school facilities within the community they reside regardless of
location of the facilities within the school zones. Currently most fields are scheduled to
associations based on location first to ease travel commitments of families. For
example, currently CGAA primarily gets priority use of fields located within the Park
High School boundary whereas ERAA gets priority use of fields located within the East
Ridge High School boundary area. This leads to resentment between groups who
believe that their association does not get equal access to superior facilities within the
community.
3. Offering community based programs builds community pride not through where children
go to school, but by where they live. Most children begin sports at the age of five. It's
likely there will be many variables that may impact where that child ends up going to
high school. As such, understanding which organization to register with for in -house
youth sports seems confusing to many residents. As an example, a child with intent on
attending private school may be confused on where to register being they have no
public high school affiliation. A more appealing process is considered playing for the
community you reside until one makes a decision on school choice.
4. Reduces the fragmentation of community based on school boundaries. Cottage Grove
and Woodbury both take great pride in building strong communities and neighborhoods.
Anything that negatively impacts that sense of community should be carefully reviewed.
Although physically changing the facility use policy is an easy process, there are both political
and legal ramifications that must be considered. With that understanding, legal counsel was
addressed by both cities of Cottage Grove and Woodbury to further understand the ability to
limit priority levels to one organization of the community within the facility use policies.
Generally, both legal consultants agreed that the city has the right to manage its facilities using
a priority based system. Further, the city has the right to only acknowledge one community
based organization to offer programming at a given priority level. It is suggested that there be
a periodic and public application process with set criteria for application and all organizations
meeting such criteria are invited to apply. The decision on the applicant must be based solely
on the ability of the organization to meet the specified criteria. Applicants not chosen for that
aspired priority level must continue to be provided the opportunity to secure facilities at a lower
priority level.
Political ramification may be as concerning as the legal. Action on the policy change has the
potential to greatly reduce or even eliminate participants and/or funds from one of the three
current athletic associations. This could create further turmoil and split amongst the
community in the short term. However the long term solution to the problems presented
should be the goal regardless of short term turmoil.
Staff is seeking direction from the council on amendment to the current facility use policy.
Should council direct staff to devise a facility use policy that provides for one recognized
community -based organization to operate within priority level 111, staff will work with the Parks,
Recreation and Natural Resources Commission as well as the city of Woodbury and
Community Education to assure the process and implementation of such a change would be
done so in a manner that truly intends to benefit both communities.
Staff Recommendation
Provide direction to staff on facility use policy.
Enclosed Documents:
1. Cottage Grove Facility Use Policy (current)
2. City of Woodbury's recommended Facility Use Policy revisions