Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes 02-27-06APPROVED Members Present: Mike Eliason, Eric Johnson, Kelly Sampo Members Absent: Leslie Defries, Mark Jacobs Staff Present: Dan Schultz, Director of Parks and Recreation and Sonja Honl, Recording Secretary Student Volunteer: Jonathan Nutzmann Others Present: None 1. CALL TO ORDER: Johnson called the meeting to order at 7:03 p.m. 2. ADDITIONS TO THE AGENDA: New Business C. Director’s Report: JJT/Business Park-Parks Dedication Fees. 3. APPROVAL OF THE JANUARY 23, 2006 MEETING MINUTES: MOTION by Sampo to approve the minutes of the January 2006 meeting. SECOND by Eliason. Ayes: 3 Nays: 0 Motion passed. 4. AUDIENCE INPUT: None. 5. DISCUSSION (Response to Audience Input): None. 6. OLD BUSINESS: None. 7. NEW BUSINESS: a. Family Resource Center Annual Report – Each year the Parks and Recreation Commission receives the annual report for the operations of the Family Resource Center to ensure that the building is being used for its intended purpose, and that the goals listed in the grant for the facility are being met. Dorene Ulrich, from the Community Action Council, provided the Commission with the highlights for 2005 and an overview of the activities and services provided by the Community Action Council (CAC) at the Family Resource Center. The CAC staff members (paid staff and volunteers) at the Family Resource Center provide assistance to adults and children, covering basic needs such as food, housing, and clothing, as well as assistance for battered women, before and after school activities, and youth mentoring. The CAC works with a network of partners to provide these services. Ms. Ulrich thanked the Commission for their support and offered an open invitation to them to stop by the Family Resource Center. MOTION by Eliason to accept the Community Action Council’s annual report. SECOND by Sampo. Ayes: 3 Nays: 0 Motion passed. b. Request for Improvements to Central Park – The Leprechaun Days and Halloween Committees sent a letter to the Parks and Recreation Department asking the City to consider making six specific improvements to the electrical services at Central Park. Both committees use the Central Park electric services for their events, and the additional outlets and circuit breakers they have requested would help them provide safe, quality events for the community. Schultz recommended getting itemized quotes for each of the six items. One of the requests, for an outlet 150’ from the back of the stage, may not be feasible due to the trenching, etc., that would be involved. MOTION by Eliason to recommend that City staff get individual price quotes for each of the six items requested and bring the quotes back to the next meeting. SECOND by Sampo. Ayes: 3 Nays: 0 Motion passed. c. Director’s Report – The Park Improvement Fund Balance as of January 31, 2006 was $1,664,777.02. Interest of $6,124.33 was received and there were no expenditures. Meeting with Rosemount Area Athletic Association (RAAA) - At the January 2006 meeting with RAAA, staff asked RAAA to provide the City with a list of their top 10 needs. RAAA came up with a list of three items they would like immediate help with. The items are lighting at Shannon Park fields, a large flat grass area with adjacent parking, and protective fencing around the bench/spectator area at some of the current baseball/softball fields. Per Schultz, we were actually looking for ways to make the most of all of our facilities, such as Rosemount Middle School, etc., satellite fields for games and practices, extending times on Saturdays. The focus would be on maximizing the use of available fields, while making sure that the fields aren’t damaged by over-use. The Commission asked about the possibility of lighting the fields. This would be a better utilization of facilities as more games could be played after dark. Per Schultz, this could be possible, but a public meeting would be necessary, and neighbors would have to be notified. The Commission asked for a quote for lights, with a cost breakdown by field. They also asked about getting quotes for the fencing. Schultz will bring back price quotes we have from last year for the fencing, as well as quotes for the field lights. Nutzmann stated that the cost of making these improvements versus using funds for the athletic complex should be considered, and the Commission agreed with this. Updating of the City Codes Relating to Parks - There are discrepancies between the Elk River Park code and what was printed in their brochure. The City Attorney is looking into this further. Athletic Complex – The City Council discussed the athletic complex and other recreational based facilities at their workshop on Wednesday, February 22, 2006 and at their goal setting session on Friday, February 24, 2006. They would like to make headway on this in 2006. Schultz will be meeting with the City administrator to develop a work plan that will include a cost estimate, land availability, a community survey focusing on recreational facilities, etc. The Commission asked what the City Council needs in order to move forward. Schultz explained that the work plan would include all the information the City Council is looking for in order to make a decision. The Commission felt that they could not make any other decisions until the City Council makes their decision. Schultz recommended having a work session in mid-March to discuss the athletic complex work plan and to talk with the architect regarding the Bloomfield Park shelter. JJT/Business Park – JJT is looking at subdividing a 44 acre property in the industrial park. Based on the parks dedication fee of 10% of the total area, the parks dedication would be approximately 4 to 4.5 acres. Because the parks master plan does not identify a park in this area, the City would take cash dedication in lieu of land. This would be approximately $217,000 in parks dedication. JJT would like to defer this amount until they apply for building permits. The benefit of deferring the payment is that they will pay parks dedication based on the rate at the time of payment. This could possibly be double the current amount. They will be developing the smaller piece of land first, and the business to be located there may be assembly line work employing adults with special needs. JJT will probably be applying for a building permit within the next three months. Schultz would like the Commission to review our parks dedication fees and our collection methods sometime in the next few months, as property has recently been sold in Rosemount for approximately $140,000/acre. Our current parks dedication collection rate is based on $75,000/acre. The Commission was willing to delay payment of parks dedication fees until JJT applies for their permits. The Commission asked whether some of the parks dedication could be used for benches, sidewalks, etc., to meet the needs of the employees who will be working at the business, or for special needs amenities in some of our other parks. MOTION by Sampo to accept parks dedication fees at the time the property is permitted, and that the dedication fees be collected at the prevailing current rate. SECOND by Eliason. Ayes: 3 Nays: 0 Motion passed. d. Tour of Central Park Shelter Building – Wednesday, March 15, 2006 was set as the tentative date for a work session to meet with the Bloomfield Park shelter architect and to discuss other items. An e-mail will be sent to the Commissioners confirming the date and time. The Commission then headed to the Central Park shelter. There was discussion on ideas for the Bloomfield Park shelter. Sampo asked if Schultz could bring the Bloomfield Park playground equipment specs to the March work session so the Commission could look at the colors being used. 8. ADJOURNMENT MOTION by Sampo to adjourn the meeting. SECOND by Eliason. Ayes: 3 Nays: 0 Motion passed. The meeting was adjourned at 8:47 p.m. Respectfully submitted by Sonja Honl, Recording Secretary