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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2004-03-08 MINUTESREQUEST OF CITY COUNCIL ACTION COUNCIL AGENDA MEETING ITEM# JJ A DATE 05/05/04 % � PREPARED BY Community Development Howard Blin ORIGINATING DEPARTMENT STAFF AUTHOR * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * • * * * * * * * * f* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * "* * COUNCIL ACTION REQUEST Accept and place on file the minutes of the March 8, 2004 Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission meeting. STAFF RECOMMENDATION Accept and place on file the minutes of the March 8, 2004 Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission meeting. BUDGET IMPLICATION $ $ BUDGETED AMOUNT ACTUAL AMOUNT FUNDING SOURCE ADVISORY COMMISSION ACTION DATE PLANNING REVIEWED ❑ ❑ APPROVED ❑❑ DENIED 0 ❑ ❑ PUBLIC SAFETY ❑ ❑ ❑ PUBLIC WORKS ❑ ❑ El ❑ PARKS AND RECREATION ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ HUMAN SERVICES /RIGHTS ECONOMIC DEV. AUTHORITY 0 SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS ❑ MEMO /LETTER: ❑ RESOLUTION: ❑ ORDINANCE: ❑ ENGINEERING RECOMMENDATION: ❑ LEGAL RECOMMENDATION: ® OTHER: Minutes Attached. ADMINISTRATORS COMMENTS City Administrator Date * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** COUNCIL ACTION TAKEN:PPROVED ❑DENIED ❑OTHER City of Cottage Grove Parks, Recreation & Natural Resources Commission March 8, 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 8th day of March 2004. Chair Steve Morse called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. MEMBERS PRESENT: Steve Morse, Eddy Wuorenma, Jon Mortrud, Bob Davy, Barry Hamilton (arrived late) MEMBERS ABSENT: Allan Dubois, Tim Sirianni OTHERS PRESENT: Senior Planner John Burbank Ice Arena /Recreation Manager Zac Dockter Council Member Mark Grossklaus Community Development Director Howard Blin APPROVAL OF AGENDA Agenda approved as submitted. APPROVAL MINUTES January 12, 2004 meeting minutes approved as mailed. OPEN FORUM None OLD BUSINESS John Burbank introduced new Community Development Director Howard Blin. A. Tree Mitigation Burbank stated with all the current construction projects, for example Kohls, Oakwood Park Platz, 1501 property, any trees that are lost during this construction process must be replaced. Replacement must be at two to one, one to one, or even more depending on the tree size. Burbank shared some of the areas where these trees will be planted. Some of these areas included Pine Glen Park, West Draw Park, Hardwood Avenue, and Water Tower Park. Burbank stated that this is year one of a three year plan. Parks Commission Minutes March 8, 2004 NEW BUSINESS 2 A. Cancellation Policy Dockter stated that Jason West is submitting a memo requesting a cancellation policy be implemented. The cancellation policy is meant to serve many purposes such as refunding patrons, cancellation due to inclement weather with the overall intent to deter customers from canceling our programs at the last minute. A motion was made by Jon Mortrud to pass the cancellation policy with the exception that if the Recreation Department moves the date, or if there is a weather cancellation, that a full refund be processed if the customer cannot attend the newly scheduled date. Motion seconded by Wourenma. Motion carried. B. Facility Fees Dockter stated that this is another memo coming from the Recreation Department asking for an increase in fees with regards to park facility rentals. This item came to fruition when the City of Cottage Grove was notified by the City's certified public accountants that the Recreation Department needs to add sales tax to any facility rental such as buildings, rooms, or picnic shelters. After discussing this fee increase, it was also noted that the Parks Maintenance Division spent several hours throughout the summer cleaning up between these park facility rentals and it would be nice to recoup some of those costs from the users. So, the Cottage Grove Recreation Department is recommending an increase of $5.00 to cover the increase in taxes and for office support and an additional $10.00 as a service fee for the park maintenance clean -up. It was noted that even with this $15.00 increase, the City of Cottage Grove still has the lowest fee structure compared with other metro cities surveyed. Mortrud stated that he was okay with the increase for taxes, but felt it was too much because 6.5 % sales tax is nowhere near $5.00. Dockter responded that the discussion of increasing fees came from the idea of adding taxes to the facilities and then staff recommended the amount of $5.00 as a round number to cover the office support that is needed following the transaction. Wuorenma asked how this item relates to the fee increase that came across the Commission last year. Dockter responded that last year's was an athletic facility rental which covers the rental of fields and athletic complexes where this is the rental of buildings and shelters. Motion made by Wuorenma to approve the fee increase. Seconded by Mortrud. Motion carried. C. Warming House Review Dockter reviewed the warming house memo from the Recreation Department reviewing the 2003/2004 season. Dockter stated that the general attendance and CGHA attendance was comparable to last years considering the closing of Armstrong and Old Cottage Grove Community Park. Dockter said that Jason West said things went well with the Association this year although there were conflicts in ice scheduling and he is considering attending the coaches meeting next year in order to improve communication. Morse asked what percentage of the ice scheduled by CGHA were actually no shows. Dockter responded 52 %. Morse also asked if we received any negative comments from the closing of Armstrong and Old Cottage Grove. Dockter responded he did not receive any negative comments; however the two rinks were heavily used to the same extent as they were last Parks Commission Minutes March 8, 2004 year when the warming houses were open. Morse also asked if there was a way to use the Old Cottage Grove warming house if a resident were able to keep a building open. He said he understands that this is something that can't be done at all parks, but he believes a good job could be done by the residents of Old Cottage Grove. Staff said they would review that before next year's season. D. Council and Commission Goals Burbank highlighted some of the City Council's 2004 goals. Those being to operate in a fiscally acceptable manner, to provide a more natural environment in future developments, and to improve public facilities including parks, park improvements, Mississippi River access and community center needs. Burbank also reviewed the 2003 goals and objectives for the Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission and stated that most of these are long -term goals and could be moved on to 2004. Motion to approve the Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission 2004 goals as created by staff made by Bob Davy. Seconded by Eddy Wuorenma. Motion carried. E. Annual Meeting Burbank stated this is more of a housekeeping item in that it gives the Commission a chance to review the duties and objectives of the Commission. He also stated that it's time a nomination for a Chair and Vice Chair would be needed. Steve Morse nominated Eddy Wuorenma for the Chair position. Seconded by Barry Hamilton. Mortrud nominated Morse for the Chair position. Seconded by Eddy Wuorenma. A vote was taken 3 to 2 in favor of Steve Morse for the Chair position. Steve Morse nominated Eddy Wuorenma for the Vice Chair. Seconded by Jon Mortrud. Motion carried. After reviewing the purpose and duties of the Commission, Steve said he would like to see a clear definition of the relationship with other City organizations. He wants to see a clear statement that there should be a liaison and communication with the CGAA and other local organizations. The communications within all the organizations is working smoothly right now and he doesn't want to see that whither away as new Commission members come on board. PARK MASTER PLANNING WORKSHOP A. Hamlet Park Parking Lot Improvem Dockter stated that a letter was sent out to local residents informing them that the larger parking lot would not be built due to negative feedback from residents and the Athletic Association. The Parks Commission was informed that after all the feedback was solicited it felt that the smaller parking lot which was originally proposed will be the plan for reconstruction this summer. Bob Davy stated that he discussed the issue with CGAA and it appeared that they were more opposed to losing the t -ball field than gaining extra parking. 'Pa rks'Commission Minutes March 8, 2004 B. Nina's Park Burbank stated that the 2003 -2007 CIP establishes $20,000 for the replacement of playground equipment at Nina's Park. However, staff identified that there might be some facility redundancies associated with Nina's Park. Currently Nina's Park is identified as a mini park in terms of its form and function. There is a picnic shelter, several outdated playground equipment structures and other minor amenities associated with a parks classification. The standards for a neighborhood park are that they serve residents in a one mile radius. North Ideal Park currently has a newer playground setup, open space, and general skating area. A GIS analysis identified that Nina's Park was 2,400 feet from North Ideal Park and 3,000 feet from the Crestview Playground. Based on the proximity to the existing neighborhood parks, staff questioned if the facility should be assessed prior to installation. In reaction to this information, staff is calling a neighborhood meeting on the park for the April agenda to solicit input from those area residents as to what they feel the needs of the park are. C. Hamlet Skate Park Equipment Dockter stated that this issue arose last August when Mark Casey who is the City's risk manager performed a walk through at Hamlet Park and noticed much of the skateboarding equipment was damaged and needed to be repaired. For several years Park Maintenance staff has been performing band aid repairs and it's getting to a point where the equipment needs to be replaced. However, this equipment comes at a great cost. The equipment will cost approximately $50,000. Dockter said that staff would like to see this money come from the Hamlet Park renovation plan, the same plan that is for the improved parking lot and additional ball fields. However, being that this is a significant amount of money, he would like to see a strong recommendation from the Commission to pursue new skateboarding equipment. Barry Hamilton asked how the meeting between Jason West and the local youth skateboarders went. Dockter responded that it went well and they gained some insight as to what the real users would like to see in a park. Barry encouraged that the meetings should continue to assure the park is built correctly. Bob Davy was concerned with the life expectancy of the new skateboard equipment and questioned if we would have to purchase another $50,000 worth of equipment in five years? Dockter responded that there is a five to ten year warranty, but the actual life expectancy is around twenty years. Steve Morse stated that he felt this was a need in the community. He said we need to provide this recreational equipment since the activity is virtually banned throughout the entire City and this would be the only place to use skateboards. Whenever Eddy Wuorenma visits Hamlet Park he has noticed the equipment being used. Motion by Jon Mortrud to recommend the installation of new skateboarding equipment at Hamlet Park. Seconded by Barry Hamilton. Motion carried. Parks Commission Minutes March 8, 2004 COMMUNITY CENTER WORKSHOP A. East Draw Planning Process — Update Burbank presented the concept chosen by the community during the East Ravine Planning Process. The plan that was chosen had an abundance of green space which is woven within the development. He also noted that there are six potential sites located for a community center. Jon Mortrud asked about the one site in particular and asked how large the area was. Burbank stated that there is 80 -100 acres in the area located near the Washington County Ravine Park, but not all that would be used for a community center. Barry asked the size of the East Ravine Area. Burbank replied approximately 3,800 acres. TRAIL WAY PLAN A. Motorized Scooters Burbank stated staff continues to present this to the Commission and hopes to see a formal policy set in the near future so that residents considering the purchase of one of these pieces of machinery can take the rules set forth by the City into consideration before making a significant investment. Burbank stated that there was information in the packet as to what the scooters are and staff will begin to put together a policy to be reviewed by the Commission. Burbank stated many other communities are dealing with these same problems and staff will continue to research those other communities and their progress. REPORTS A. Golf Division No comments. B. Ice Arena Division No comments. C. Parks Division No comments. D. Recreation Programming Division No comments. Parks Commission Minutes March 8, 2004 E. Planning Commission No comments. F. Historic Preservation No comments. G. Council Aaendas No comments. H. Monday News No comments. I. CGAA No comments. PARK PLANNING/MANAGEMENT EDUCATION MATERIALS This includes items of interest that are going on in other communities and items to help commissioners become better members. No items submitted. N COMMISSION COMMENTS Bob Davy mentioned that CGAA Soccer Board would like to donate a bench to Kingston Park in memory of a recently deceased member. Dockter said he would be in touch and discuss what kind of bench should be purchased and get a proper location for the bench. COUNCIL COMMENTS None STAFF COMMENTS None ADJOURNMENT Motion made by Jon Mortrud. Seconded by Eddy Wuorenma. Motion to adjourn carried at 8:42 p.m.