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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2004-01-12 MINUTESREQUEST OF CITY COUNCIL ACTION COUNCIL AGENDA MEETING ITEM # �/� ✓ DATE 05/05/04 PREPARED BY Community Development Howard Blin ORIGINATING DEPARTMENT STAFF AUTHOR COUNCIL ACTION REQUEST Accept and place on file the minutes of the January 12, 2004 Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission meeting. STAFF RECOMMENDATION Accept and place on file the minutes of the January 12, 2004 Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission meeting. BUDGET IMPLICATION $ BUDGETED AMOUNT ACTUAL AMOUNT FUNDING SOURCE ADVISORY COMMISSION ACTION DATE ❑ PLANNING ❑ PUBLIC SAFETY ❑ PUBLIC WORKS ❑ PARKS AND RECREATION ❑ HUMAN SERVICES /RIGHTS ❑ ECONOMIC DEV. AUTHORITY SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS ❑ MEMO /LETTER: ❑ RESOLUTION: ❑ ORDINANCE: ❑ ENGINEERING RECOMMENDATION: ❑ LEGAL RECOMMENDATION: ® OTHER: Minutes Attached. REVIEWED APPROVED DENIED Fj 0 El ❑ 11 El 0 ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ADMINISTRATORS COMMENTS City Administrator Date * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * COUNCIL ACTION TAKEN: APPROVED ❑ DENIED ❑ OTHER City of Cottage Grove Parks, Recreation & Natural Resources Commission January 12, 2004 Pursuant to due call and notice thereof, a regular meeting of the Parks, Recreation, and Natural Resources Commission was duly held at City Hall 7516 — 80th Street South, Cottage Grove, Minnesota, on the 12th day of January 2004. Chair Steve Morse called the meeting to order at 7:05 p.m. MEMBERS PRESENT: Steve Morse, Allan Dubois, Eddy Wuorenma, Tim Sirianni, Jon Mortrud, Bob Davy, Barry Hamilton MEMBERS ABSENT: Amanda Totino, OTHERS PRESENT: ce /Recreati n Manager Zac Dockter Council Member Mark Grossklaus APPROVAL OF AGENDA Agenda approved as submitted APPROVAL OF MINUTES Minutes approved as mailed. OPEN FORUM Michelle Steeber of 8721 Hamlet Avenue inquired about the sale of Oakwood Park land. Michelle asked if the entire park had been sold or just a portion or none of it at all had been sold. Burbank indicated that would be addressed in the next session of the agenda. However, he explained that as part of the grading process involved with the street construction, part of Oakwood Park was going to have to be regraded and as that was being done the intention was to sell off that land because the land would be of more value on the commercial market. So, with the recommendation of the Commission and the City Council two commercial blocks would be sold. The actual sale has not yet been made. The expectation is that Ruby Tuesday's and Oppidan Investments will be in the commercial block. Parks Commission Minutes January 12, 2004 OLD BUSINESS 2 A. Gateway North 1 Addition —Land Sale This was addressed in open forum. The Ruby Tuesday's restaurant will be a rather large one seating about 284 people. The other project will be a small retail mall to the north. The City has retained control over the architecture and signage. As Chair Morse stated, if the City had not sold off this property it would have just been a steep retaining wall following the Hardwood Road project. Burbank addressed tree mitigation. In some cases, two trees will replace one that was removed. Also, some softwood trees will be replaced by hardwood trees such as oaks and maples. A variety of areas in Cottage Grove will benefit from the tree replacements. The City will receive approximately 1.4 million dollars as a result of these sales. In addition, the sale of this property will require the buyers to contribute to Park Trust funds. NEW BUSINESS A. Tree Mitigation During the grading portion of the Gateway North project, it was necessary to remove trees that were in the way. Staff is looking at putting together a plan for the replacement of those trees using the City's Tree Replacement Ordinance. We will also be working closely with Parks Maintenance staff to ensure we don't have a conflict with irrigation lines, balance of shade and mowing, etc. Basically, the rule is the smaller the trees, the more trees you have to put in. We're looking at placing trees in high traffic areas or softening areas such as Kingston Park. Barry Hamilton inquired whether the soil has been treated after all the movement to ensure that the trees and shrubs will grow. Burbank verified that staff would be working with the City Forester to see that the soil is suitable. Morse added that the PCA is pretty stringent when grading of that magnitude is going on. B. Clear Channel Land Acquisition The City is currently looking into acquiring the land on the west side of 61 where the billboards are when you come into Cottage Grove from St. Paul Park. This land consists of wetlands. As a part of the West Draw development, the City had surface water management ponding requirements. The City wants this to be part of the pond requirements from a regional basis. After the City entered into discussions with the property owner, it was determined that they have six to eight billboards on the property now. Their proposal is to dedicate the land to the City instead of the City buying it. They would have the ability to reduce the numbers of signs, but keep the same square footage. You may have noticed that some of the signs are in disrepair. According to our current ordinance criteria, off - premise advertisements are prohibited except for existing signs and it was hoped to get rid of those signs through attrition by state statute. So, we could buy the land 3 Parks Commission Minutes January 12, 2004 and pay money for it and still end up with junky billboards or we can end up with a reduced number of billboards that are structurally better in terms of the wind and aesthetics standpoint. The City would get the land for surface pond management and being that this land is in the Gateway project it would be part of the public open space area. It could present an opportunity to extend the Hamlet walking trail, to install prairie grasses, or wetland restoration. Whereas, we would have been putting the dollars into purchasing the property. Burbank doesn't believe there is a signed document yet, but the attorneys are working on that. Allan Dubois commented that he lives a couple of blocks from that land and he has had his eye on it. He questioned whether this wetland would be linked to Hamlet Park and Burbank answered in the affirmative. Now there are pipes pumping into the pond, but not out and that would change with this development. Jon Mortrud questioned whether the City would have any say on the advertising on the billboards. Burbank answered that he would check on that. Eddy Wuorenma questioned what was meant concerning one of the structures having four faces. Morse answered that he believes it indicates a large billboard with two advertisements on each side. Burbank indicated that the City engineers are working with the DNR on the holding pond. Don Geislinger of 8739 Hamlet was wondering how deep the holding pond was going to be. If we get an excessive amount of rain is the water going to run off or come up to the home. Burbank responded that as part of the Surface Water Management there may be some ponds that will be dry except for years where there is heavy rain. Morse responded that this project is to help avoid heavy rain flooding. Morse brought up the history of the CGAA trying to have advertising on ball fields and the fact that it was denied because of the sign ordinance. It was felt an exception couldn't be made for them because it would set a precedent. Morse wondered, therefore, why we are making an exception for the billboards. Burbank indicated that there are existing billboards there and the City will be benefiting by not having to spend public dollars for the acquisition of the land. In addition, they will be upgrading the signs and they won't be falling down. We're not getting any additional signage, just improved signage. If there were any more billboards popping up, you would hear the City saying no. Morse indicated he wasn't saying that because of the billboards they should let the CGAA advertise at the ball fields. C. Work Plan and Accomplishme Burbank indicated for the most part this is a pat on the Commission's back. He thanked the Commission for their attendance and input on all the accomplishments they have achieved. Dubois questioned about the final decision on geo caching. Burbank indicated a policy was put in place, not an ordinance. PARK MASTER PLANNING WORKSHOP A. Hamlet Park Parking Lot Improve Dockter discussed the parking lot improvements indicating that originally they were just going to repave the lot without the addition of new parking spots. However, there seems to be an issue with on- street parking that needs to be addressed. There were two options El Parks Commission Minutes January 12, 2004 presented to the Commission in October. The current recommendation is to go with option two, which includes the removal of the existing t -ball field and the addition of approximately 112 parking stalls. The recommendation was referred to the Public Safety Commission, but no formal recommendation was made by them; they are still waiting for more information. Any further recommendation will be referred back to the Public Safety Commission. The next step was to send out a letter to the neighborhood. Dockter invited members in the audience to come forward with any comments or concerns they might have. Wuorenma questioned about the addition of parking to the south by the proposed new ball fields. Burbank responded that a lot of that depends on the ponding, the rock in the soil and the addition of a road. Hopefully, one of the options will help to alleviate congestion on Hamlet Avenue. Morse reviewed the three options. Dockter added that there would be trees planted along any of the three options. Rick Wilmert, 8869 Hamlet Avenue, questioned why we're giving up a t -ball field to a parking lot. He realizes occasionally there is some congested parking, but he feels that is due to over scheduling the park. He commented that many people walk, bike and rollerblade through the park to get to the trails. He understood the need for option one. Dockter responded he didn't feel it was over scheduling. Most of the parking issues are on days when there are baseball tournaments. The reason we're able to justify getting rid of the t -ball field is the addition of two ball fields at Cottage Grove Elementary and another t- ball field at Peter Thompson Park. There will be four additional fields this coming spring and that was the justification why we could get rid of that t -ball field. Also, now Hamlet will be down to four ball fields instead of five and hopefully that will cut down on congestion. Mr. Wilmert commented with the addition of 112 parking stalls how are we going to deal with the fact that there is only one way in and one way out of Hamlet Park. Between 6:00 and 8:00 p.m., it is very busy at the entrance. Dockter responded that we are not scheduling any more events and there won't be any more people coming and going. We're just trying to get them off the street and into a parking lot. Again, Mr. Wilmert expressed concern about the safety of pedestrians. Dockter indicated that would be taken into consideration and presented to the Public Safety Commission. One of their suggestions was to have it fenced off and separated so that safety was allowed for. Mr. Wilmert suggested adding parking off 84 Street instead to ease congestion on 89th Street. Burbank responded that's where the second stage ponding will be located. They're also looking at trying to create a trail link to Hamlet Park which would ensure safety. Eddy Wuorenma question Mr. Wilmert's objections. He wanted to clarify if he just didn't want a parking lot behind his house. Mr. Wilmert responded that he enjoys the t -ball field and watching the kids play. Mr. Wilmert doesn't see parking on the street as an issue. Morse responded that the CGAA has indicated to the Parks Commission and the City that they would like to have an athletic facility where they can schedule more events and tournaments. However, they recognize that 89` Street and parking are issues and don't want to make matters worse. The Commission is trying to figure out how to make that happen utilizing input from neighbors and residents. Burbank read a letter for the record that he received from John Dick, 8871 Hamlet Avenue. He is opposed to option two and he believes you can find a better spot for a parking lot. He also wanted to have better signage to get to the park. He doesn't like the way traffic is routed. Parks Commission Minutes January 12, 2004 Michelle Steeber, 8771 Hamlet Avenue, also opposes option two and doesn't think we should get rid of the t -ball field. She also believes there are other options, such as the south end of the park. That parking lot would be closer to the four new fields. She wanted to know how many feet from the lot line to the option two parking lot. She alluded to the 30 feet easement that residents were given years ago and wanted to know if the 25 feet Dockter refers to in his letter starts from the end of that easement. Burbank responded to her concern and also reiterated that trees would be planted also. This is just a discussion stage, not the final design. Steeber questions if the plan would affect the new playground which was installed. Burbank responded that it would not. She also questioned if the park would be developed to the north. She doesn't want to see the trees cut down. She was also concerned if lighting would be installed. She indicated that her family and neighbors all use the park and it's a big reason why they've lived there for 20 years. She's all for expanding the park, but not for parking lots. Burbank responded that to locate the parking lot at the south end would take people away from the other existing recreational facilities. Also, that lot would potentially affect 15 to 20 homes and the traffic flow in front of their homes. With option 2 you leave the traffic flow the same, but remove the parking from the street. Steeber believes more options need to be explored and the big picture taken into consideration. Morse responded to Steeber's comments about not sacrificing a t -ball field. He said the bottom line is more parking is needed. If it's not a t -ball field it would be a soccer or football field. The CGAA explored what we were most in need of. The parking lot expansion was staffs recommendation not the Parks Commission. Dallas Jensen, 8853 Hamlet is against option two. He feels if you take away the t -ball field from the little kids to expand for the big kids and adults you're leaving the little kids with little or nothing for entertainment. About all they'll have is the playground. Morse responded again that it comes down to what the CGAA has determined their needs to be. They're saying we need more Little League fields and tournament fields not t -ball fields. Morse inquired if this was just a meeting to gather information. Dockter responded he would like to get some kind of recommendation so they can move onto Public Safety and City Council. Eddy Wuorenma responded that he felt safety was a big issue along with littering etc. However he felt that 25 feet was a little close and inquired if there could be an option three. He wondered if option three can move the lot back and reduce some of the parking stalls. Dockter said it could be done if that's what the Commission wants. Possibly 20 stalls could be knocked off. That would push it back about 65 feet from the lot and either way there's going to be significant buffering. Morse stated that he would like to give Bob Davy a chance to go back to the CGAA and find out how many stalls are really necessary. We've heard from the residents, now let's hear from the users. Dockter recommended going back to the Public Safety Commission and the CGAA and coming back to this item at February's meeting. Dubois commented that nobody wants to eliminate parkland, but this seems like a logical solution to him. He said he has two black topped parking lots across the street from his house, a church and the armory. He would rather they weren't there, but they are both good neighbors. He walks or bikes around Hamlet Park three or more times a week, so he's really familiar with the area. He's been to soccer games and wasn't able to find a parking space, so he knows parking is an issue. He thinks it's a good plan and he would vote for option two. Dubois made a motion to adopt option two. There was no second so the motion died. Eddy Wuorenma felt the need for more information. He asked Dockter if it had to be done tonight. Dockter said no, it's part of the Parks Commission Minutes January 12, 2004 Pavement Management Plan and we would like a decision by spring. Bob Davy will check with the CGAA. B. Camel's Hump Overlook 1.9 Burbank explained this is part of our Park Master Planning process and Camel's Hump Park is the bedrock outcropping that has a cave in it directly to the north and east of Highway 61 as you're coming into Cottage Grove. There are native prairie grasses growing there. It is about 17 acres, and the City entrance sign is on the property too. In the Capital Improvements Plan for 2005 there is $300,000 scheduled for improvement to that park. It has always been talked about having a scenic overlook up there. It's a little hard to access right now, but there are some nice views and different vegetation up there. There would be some sort of residential development north of the park with a roadway coming to this area. The West Draw Task Force discussed this area as part of their planning process and we discussed looking at it from a passive standpoint. There was talk of moving the Munger house there and having some type of history, interpretive center. Given the terrain it won't be an active park. Burbank was going to research to see if University of Minnesota students had studied this location. He wants to get the process started with feedback from the current Commission. Morse doesn't think it should be highly developed. He likes the idea of kiosks, an interpretive center, and trails. Dubois would like to see a trail up the hill from the highway side. Morse inquired if he understood correctly that students from the Landscape and Architect program would come up with some designs for little or no charges. Burbank responded there was a student who did some work at Hamlet with the ponding and there was also one done for the River Oaks area, so there are opportunities like that out there. Burbank was looking for ideas from the Commission. Dubuois suggested Camel's Hump Memorial Park. COMMUNITY CENTER WORKSHOP A. East Draw Planning Process Up date Most of the Commission should have received a copy of the notice for the public meeting regarding the East Draw planning process. There were 119 people in attendance. AI was at the meeting with John to represent the Parks Commission. There is about 3800 acres in this planning process. Some of that is in parkland such as the Cottage Grove Ravine Park. It is located east of Keats Avenue, south of the Woodbury Border, north of highway 61 and runs over to Kimbro Avenue. An article from the St. Paul paper is in your packet along with some detail sheets that were handed out at the meeting. We will be collecting comment cards in the next few weeks to obtain feedback. The proposal was based on market analysis for that area. The Council has not made any decisions yet, they are in the beginning process. One option that seems to be well received is more open space. Burbank showed a diagram and addressed traffic issues, linking neighborhoods, housing etc. He reiterated that they are looking for as much feedback as they can get from residents, different commissions and the consulting group. Park and open space will be one of the aspects of that including a community center. This will help shape future development in Cottage Grove and he encourages the public's participation. Dubois favored Parks Commission Minutes January 12, 2004 plan C with its open spaces. He commented that it was a very good meeting and he looks forward to the next one. Bob Davy favored plan C also. He feels it will add to the value of the community. TRAIL WAY PLAN A. Central Draw Trail Way Project 7 About two miles of trail was installed running from 80 Street down to the Ravine Park as a joint effort between 3M and Washington County. Some general discussions with people outside of Cottage Grove initiated talk about expanding the trail to a much larger project entailing many facets of government. The ideal goal would be to enable people to walk, or bike from the Ravine Park to the Lake Elmo Park Reserve. B. Motorized Scooters Included in this item is some information Burbank came across on banning scooters in the different communities. Currently they are banned on streets and in parks in Cottage Grove, but we don't really have a policy for the City trail ways. The goals and policies from our master trail plan talks about providing trails for non - motorized uses except for handicap uses. Parents are buying these scooters before they know what the allowed uses are. He felt a policy should be drafted to help save people time and money before they buy something that can only be driven in their driveway. He will then forward it on to City Council for further action. Some other cities have banned them and some are in the discussion stages. Wuorenma would prefer not having them on the trails, as that was the Commissions original plan. Dubois agreed the trails should be non- motorized and let the Police Department take care of the streets. There was information that California allows them on the road with age restrictions and safety equipment. Morse questioned Burbank about his thoughts. Burbank felt Cottage Grove should have a policy either allowing them or not so that the Police can enforce it and also get the information out to the general public. Hamilton said that in the last six months he's seen many of those scooters around Cottage Grove and not just for kids. People are using them. He felt that before we make a decision one way or the other, we should go back to the community and see how they feel. Eddy Wuorenma suggested getting feedback from the city attorney. Morse wanted a clearer understanding of what's on the market, exactly what kind of scooter we are referring to. He'd also like to see what other communities are doing. Burbank indicated he would do more research. Sirianni expressed concern that when skateboards first came out people were quick to ban them and now we have a skateboard park. Mortrud believed it should be addressed by Public Safety before it comes to the Parks Commission. Dubois thought it was a simple decision only non - motorized vehicles on trails. There was some discussion of pros and cons. The subject will be revisited after more information is obtained. Parks Commission Minutes January 12, 2004 REPORTS A. Golf Division No comments. B. Ice Arena Division No comments. C. Parks Division No comments. D. Recreation Programming Division No comments. E. Planning Commission No comments. F. Historic Preservation No comments. G. Council Agendas 0 Dubois inquired about the item on Acting Mayor. Grossklaus responded that is in the case of Mayor Shiely's absence. The Acting Mayor would be Council Member Wolcott. H. Monday News No comments. I. CGAA Bob Eddy indicated he has approached the CGAA about putting the Parks Commission on every one of their agendas so that information can be circulated between them. He will also e -mail information on Hamlet Park parking to the chairs. He believes this will be a good start to the liaison process. PARK PLANNING /MANAGEMENT EDUCATION MATERIALS I This includes items of interest that are going on in other communities and items to help commissioners become better members. Parks Commission Minutes January 12, 2004 COMMISSION COMMENTS Jon Mortrud wanted to add that he'd like to see language in the Clear Channel Land Acquisition that would prohibit tobacco or alcohol advertising on the billboards. Morse mentioned that the Commission falls under the Community Development Department and a new director was recently hired to replace Kim Lindquist. His name is Howard Blin and he will be attending the February Commission meeting at which time he will be introduced. Morse recommended that the City try to get a web address without a hyphen in it. Burbank responded that the City is in the process of getting a different web address, it just has not been transferred yet. Dubois congratulated John Burbank on his appointment to Senior Planner. COUNCIL COMMENTS Grossklaus mentioned that the Council goals were established at the last Council meeting and one of those is a big push to get river access in Cottage Grove since we have so much riverfront footage. Also, Council wants an inventory of all public facilities from the top priority to repair or replace. Grossklaus brought up the need to replace the Pine Tree Pond building. Council also wants quality park buildings and will not cut money just to throw together a building that will eventually have to be replaced. Morse questioned if he would see staffs list of priorities. Burbank responded they are working on that. They are getting it ready for Council. STAFF COMMENTS None ADJOURNMENT Motion made by Allan Dubois. Seconded by Eddy Wuorenma. Motion to adjourn carried at 9:10 P.M.