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PR 11/14/1979 - 31251� ;� n 0 k'ARKS t#NI) kcCREATION CONL*�t�[SSION � I�E'iING � �JOVEMBER 14, �979 CALL '.CU �R7aER: Chaizperson Barbara Hughes called the November 14, 1979, Parks & RecreatiGn Cammission meeting to or�ier at 7:32 p.m. ROLL CALL• Members Present: Barbara Hughes, Dave Kondrick, Di,ck Young, Betty t�tech farr. 8:30) Members Absent: Jan Seeger Others Present: Charles Boudreau, Parks & Recreation Director Curt Dahlberg, Farks Mainte�ance Supervisor hPPi:�t�AL OF OCTOBER 17, 1979, PA" & RECR.�ATION COMMI�SiON MINU'i'ES: MOTION b}�2ar. Young, seconded by Mr. Kondrick, to approve the Nov�mber 14, 1979, rarks &�iecreation Cornmission meet:ing minuices as Grcitten. Upon a v�i.ce vote, all. eoting a}�e, Chair�e�son Hu�hes declared the motion carried unanimously. �.���zov.� oF �c�rmti: T?�e fo�.lo�aing items were added to the agenda: ICE RINK CLOSINGS BY MIiVI+7E�4POLI5 PARK BO�RD - Item E under "D:.rec�or's Report" �lSP'S LC?Ct�TION OF SMALL POWER PL=�TTS - Item B under"New Business" ChaiLperson Hughes declared the agenda approved as amended. I . 77ZRFCTOR' S REPORT : A. Craft �'Fair Mr. Boudreau s4ated that the Craft A'Fair �aas held a cuuple of weekends ago. Ii: «as anoti�er attempt to get into cu1L-ur31 arts . �,pproximately 40 bac;�Yts were set u�� and about 1,0�0 people attended the Craft A'Fair. About $3'�0 was co].lecteu in reni:al fees fro:n the boot-hs, and this was split between Com.manity Edaca.tion and the Pa�-1cs & Recreation Department. It wa� an ouc- st.ar<ding first venrure and they hoped to have it again next year. � B: 3� ri.dley fFourmies Tree af Pear_e Mr, l3oudreau stated that he had r.eceived. a communication from t2ober.t Schroer, � Boatd c�f Directors of the Fridley/Fourinies Sister City organization, i.n w,iich _ t�ie organization was presenting �he idea of utilizing a 40 foot fir tree in PARKS & RECREATION CG�ISSION riEETING, NOVFMBER 14, 1979 - PAGE 2 �� Eisenhower Park during the Christmas season. In cooperation with the City and other individuals, they would decorate and light the tree and identify the tree as a Sister City Tree of Peace or something to that effect. Mr. Boudreau stated that the letter had come with a sense of urgency, so he � had taken it upon himself to inform the City Manager that he thought it was an administrative decision and a good program 'in keeping with the City's dedication to the Sister City Project and that the Parks & Recreation Depart- ment was going to assist in any way possible. Mr. Boudreau stated the City Council did approve the project and had also approved monies out of their budget to purchase lights, if necessary for the tree. Mr. Boudreau stated that Mr. Schroer had come up.with the idea that the Committee would attempt to sell one Christmas tree light for $1 to residents to try to generate more community feeling and a sense of ownership that this is really Fridley's Tree of Peace with its Sister City. Mr. Schroer had informed Mr. Boudreau that he had already sold $15 worth of lights and hoped to generate enough revenue to do a good job on the tree. Mr. Boudreau stated that the tree was located in the southeast corner of Eisenhower Park. The tree would be lit some time in December and he would keep the Commission informed about this. Ms. Hughes stated that the City was really in need of an energy commission. Had anybody in the City thought about the energy that would be used to light � the tree? � Mr. Young stated that was the question he was going to bring up. He felt the majorfty of homeowners in the last four years had cut down drastically on the amount of outdoor lighting. He had not put up his outside lights for four years, because of the concept of energy conservation. He liked the concept of the Tree of Peace, but if they were supposed to stress energy conservation, the City should be the one to show the example, and he was not in favor of it. Ms. Hughes stated she did not object to the Parks & Recreation Department cooperating in the project, but she did object to this kind of display. Mr. Kondrick stated he understood what Ms. Hughes and Mr. Young were saying, yet there was a terrible misuse of electricity by used car lots and other such places. It was not right to have to eliminate such a beautiful thing as a Christmas tree and the idea of Christmas and peace. He thought it was a very good idea, and the City could concentrate on other areas more wasteful � of energy. He was in favor of the Tree of Peace, but that a sensible riumber of lights should be put on the tree. z Ms. Hughes stated she realized Mr. Kondrick's position, but she also agreed with Mr. i'oung in that the City should be setting an example. �-. 4 � PARKS & RECREATION CUMMISSION MEETING, NOVEMBER 14, 1979 - PAGE 3 C. Cabaret Nite Mr. Boudreau stated that, in an attempt to create a well-rounded cultural arts prograrn, the Parks & Recreation Department was �oing to sponsor a Cabaret Nite for the first time on Sunday, December 2, at the Senior High School. This night will consist of different acts of local talent. Try- outs were to be held on the evening of November 20. They were trying to demonstrate that Fridl.ey has a lot of local talent, and these people should have the opp�r�unity to perform as well as the football, softball, hockey people, etc. Mr. Boudreau encouraged the Commission members to either participate in or attend the Cabaret Nite. � D. Park Dedication Fee Ms. Iiughes stated that this item had come up at a Planning Commission meeting. Mr.. Boudreau read Ordinance ��633, Chapter 211.063, amended as follows: "Each - plat on a subdivision shall be required to dedicate land,or pay in the city fund a cash payment equivalent,for public land uses including schools, parks, playgrounds, and other public purposes other than public right-of�way in the following manner: � 1Cf'/o of the gross area of. resi.dential zoned property to be subdivisiori. 3% of the gross area of commercial or industrial zaned property to be subdivided. Any land dedications in excess of the 1�'/0 or 3% requirement should be reserved for a period of two years durfng which time the City or other public body may buy such land. The option of a land dedication or cash payment is at the discretion of the Cit,y." ' � Mr. Boudreau stated he also had a Planning & Zoning Form and the policy state- ment on the back of that form states: "The park fee for residential subdivision is $500 per lot to be paid at the time the City approves a final plat or lot split." He stated this was a revision dated 10/1/79. Ms. Hughes ask�d what happens to the park fee when it i_s requested by the City? Mr. Boudreau stated that it goes into theix general operating fund. The Parks F� Recrea�ion Department draws their budget mo::ey out of the general oper�tiug fund and that is wherE: he believed they got the yearly item on Land Purchase and Capital Ourlay of $10,000-$I2,000. ihey try ta projcct what they might take in and tl�at is put: under the budget item of Land Purchases. s Ms. HughES stated she �vanted tne Conanission to be aware of these numbers, because thc�;� l�:�d changed recently. This was imp�rt-ant because the Commzssion was not as��d a?�out this, and because if the City was charging $S00 per lot f�r park purposes, the Commissi.on may never even sea that money. How do they know if it is $10,000 or $12,000 that the City is taking in for park purposes? The Commission ought to lool; at t:hase things at biidget time in terrns �f how mucYi mone_y actually end.s up in tize plats and, particularly, in terms of p�rk dedication, a PARKS & RECREATION CO1�II�SSION MEETING, NOVEMBER 14, 1979 - PAGE 4 r Ms. Hughes stated that another fee the Planning Commission learned about last week has been called by various names including an "Environmental Development Fee". Nobody seems to know what is i� used for, other than more revenue to take care of the various things the City has to do relating to platting and lot splits. She stated it may well be very questionable. She stated the Planning CoBnnission will try to get same answers on that, because they are tending to call it environmental kinds of things, and people may start to think of that as being parks. She was very sensitive to that. It probably only meant for storm water or other kinds of development consider- ations. She stated she would keep the Commission inf ormed on this, and she would like the Co�ission to look at the park dedicat ion fee thing at year end to see how much money is coming in and how much the Parks & Recreation Department is really seeing out of it. Mr. Boudreau stated that he has also requested of Mr. Boardman, City Planner, and the Planning Commission that when someone comes in with a plat that involves parks, that it be sent to the Parks & Recreation Commission for a recommendation that, yes, the Parks & Recreation Commission would like a certain parcel of land or they would like an "x" amount of dollars. E. Zce Rink Closings by Minneapolis Park Board Mr. Boudreau referred to an article in the Minneapolis paper which stated that the Minneapolis.Park Board plans to shut down 25 ice rinks. The article ^ stated: "1960 Park Board policy recommends th at the�e be one skating rink for every 7,000 people and one hockey rink for every 14,000 people." Mr. Boudreau stated that if the City of Fridley followed that, they would have two hockey rinks and six skating rinks. The skating rinks for Minneapolis serve a radius of 1/2 mile and the hockey rinks serve a radius of 3/4 mile. According to the report, Minneapolis' population warrants about 54 skating rinks and about 28 hockey rinks. Mr. Boudreau stated that for this winter season, the Cammission has approved 10 hocl:ey rinks and 20 general skating areas, and they are approaching the numbers of rinks that the City of Minneapolis is talking about. He wondered if the Commission should at some time look at a broad policy to guide them on when is a hockey rink warranted and when i� a general skating area warranted. It also ties in with the energy crisis. T.he energy that is expended upon hockey and skating rink maintenance over a 3-month period is much more than 50 lighted Christmas trees per month. There needs to be some sensible guide- lines established. He hoped that prior to next winter, he and Mr. Dahlber� could get together with Planning and with the Commission and come up wir_h some proposed policies for the Commission's consideration that might guide them in future developments of hockey and general skating areas. " Ms. Hughes agreed that this is a discussion the Commission should get involved in. . � . 0 PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION h1EETING NOVEMl3ER 1.4 1979 - PAGE � Mr. Young asked if the Parks & Recreation Department kept figures an the number of people using the rinks on a daily basis, Mr. Boudreau stated that, yes, they did, but they had to depend upon the honesty of the warming house attendants to give accurate figures. He stated that the aetendance on the skating areas where there are warming house attendants has declined in the last two years to the extent that he felt the Commission should establish some policies for guidance in the future. Ms. Hughes stated that '�he Commission members might try to keep an eye on the rinks in their neighborhoods this winter to observe the amount of usage. Mr. Boudreau stated that in March, he would have a complete recap of the rink.s, their locations, their attendance, and areas where he felt they could shortstop some expense and still provide the quality service they strive for. II. CHAIRPERSON'S REPORT: Ms. Hughes stated she had nothing further to report to the Comsmission. III. NEW BUSINESS: E!. Philosophy - Curt Dahlbert (Parks Maintenance Supervisor) � Mr. Boudreau introduced T4r. Dahlberg to the Commission, stating that Mr. Dahlberg was a long time employee of the City of Fridley and the one who really makes ttie new innovated things go in the park system. Mr. Dah�berg stated that hi_s philosophy in park main.tenance is based on four important areas: {1) education; (2) innovation; (3) planning; and, (4) cooperation. � Mr. Dahlberg stated he felt education is a dai3�y Iearning process supple- mented by daily workshops, conferences, seminars, and through professional �rganizations. He is a member of the Minnesota Park Supervisors Association and is presently on its Planning Cammittee. There are licensing require- ments put out by the State of Minnesota, and they attend the mandatory workshops. Tcti�o good examples of licenses are the shade tree license and the license to spray dandelions. They also service other employees by sending them to these particular workshops and seminars. Mr. Dahlberg stated they subscribe to professional magazines, manuals, � and charts. In regard to manuals, he had given the Commission members a sample of a manual they had made. In addition to these types of manuals, they have also prepared "Haw To" manuais for tha employees and for the public. Mr. Dahlberg stated they get a lot of calls frcmt residents about grass, trimming trees, etc., and he felt that was pa-r.t of the education process � throughout the year. They also take slides for slide presentations. They arrange tours for public benefit. �hey also work in a work study pro�ram ' with District 14. They usually have a senior f.rom the high school who works ; PARKS & REC1tEATIO�( COMMISSION 1�it:Z'CZ�'dG, N(?�1'�rIBER 14, 1979 - PAGE 6 ' .-�. with them after school and duri.zt� the surruner. They try to give the student some training programs and theti turn in grading reports to the school. (Ms. Mech arrived at the meetin� at 8:30 p.m.) Mr. Dahlber� stated that safety is an, ove�all program they have woriced on. They have a strong�Safety Committee within the City and the Committee provides them with manuals, posCers, meetings, and �snything that wi11 help boost their safety consciousness. They have benefitted fr.otn these safety prog�'ams. Education can be summed up as an important beginning, but���aithout innovation, they would not be meeting new challenge� and problems. Mr. Dahlberg stated that they ha�e found that the different types of innovations come in long and short term solut=ions. They try to treat the problea�s before they become problems, and try to use innovation in labor and maintenance techniques. They do tasting and experimenting to come up with ways to save costs and maintenance time. He stated that new ideas are important, but the overall planning of equipment <:nd personnel is something they have to look into. Mr. Dahlberg stated that plannir�g is an ongoing process that helps in the long ruc�.. One example is the landscaping they started 32 years ago. They first started by planting all the trees they could in the particular landscape designs for the parks. These were a11 the deciduous *rees for shade and beauty �•�hich they called "summer color". They feel they have enough trees no�v to look i�zte the second phase of the ev�rall landscape planning grogram .^ whi.ch is "winter color". After the "winter color", they hope they �aill have enough money to put in shrubs. They feel that once they have all these things in, they will have a nice city beautification program. . Mr. Dahlberg stated that with regard to st�ucturc�s, they did not have many buildi.ngs in the parkes to work with. They tried to put s�ructures within the best tra.ffic patterns and not where there were drainage problems. They were going to new wood structures as they wnre modern l.00king, were more useful, and were cost comparable to the metal structures. Mr. Dahlberg stated tliat the Commi_ssion members had a copy of the "1979 Revised Suuuner Park tassignments" which �rowec� the planning of inen and equipment . Mr. Dahlberg stated that in working �oith park maintenance, they have to be alert to other graups, such as recrcation �roups and civic �r.oups, arid what their progr.ams are ar.d wliat they can do ��r these groups. Recreation is prebably the biggest group th�.y �aork with by 1i.nizig up il�e fields and Bringing in the equipmeut for iootball; soccer, tennis, volleyball, etc. They help the 3aycees with �hei.r_ state tournameizt, help tt�e Islands of Peace, and, in addition, they work with companies such as H, B. Fuller Co., who wi�h to give donati.�ns. They provide all the equipment, material, and manpower, with the exception of a , police officer, for the bike rodeos at the elementary schools. They also coaperate ��ith the Public Works Department hy doing a l.ot of highway maintenance along one side of University Avenue. � f� 8 - PARTGS & RECREATION COiL�IxSSION MEETING, NOV�MI3ER 1.4, 1979 - PAGF. 7 Mr. Dahlberg stated that this summed up what they clo rhroughout the City durin� the year. He hoped the �o�unission felt as he did that education, innovation, planning, an� cooperation are all a go�d part of the success of the park department and that they try to give the City and its peopl.e the best park syste:r, within the available resources and within their budget limitations. Mr.Kondrick stated that Mr. Dahlberg gave an excellent presentation. He asked Mr. Dahlberg what the Commission could or should do to make his job easier. Mr. Dahlberg stated that one thing was what Mr. Boudreau had talked about earlier in the meeting regarding the need for policies for guidance in fu�ure development of hockey and general skating rinks. Also, there was a real need for new buildings in the parks for the citizens of the City. He stated they were al�.Tays open to new ideas and would appreciate any comments the Commission might have. Mr. Young asked Mr. Dahlberg if he had a yearly figure on the amount of vandalism in th.e parks. Mr. Dahlberg stated he did not have any figures with him on vandalism, but could get those figures from th� files for a later meeting. � Mr. Young stated tnat at one ta.me there was a park �anger who patro�l.led the. parks. He wondered if tiie vandalism had increased now that there was no lo:iger a park ranger. Mr. Dahlberg stated that w:�en he began working for the City, the amount of vandalism was e�tremely hibh. It has been.steadily decreasing in the years he has been �aith the Ci.ty. However, after the�park ranger quit, there was an influx of vandalism for about lz months. They now have additional cooperation with the police department who are patrolliilg the parks a little heavier, so the vandalism is on the decrease again. Ms. Hughes thanked Mr. Dahlberg very much for his presentation and stated that it had been very inforniative. B. NSP's Location of Small Power Plants Ms. Hughes stated that about a week ago, NSP ann.our�ced they were going to build three, 200 megawatt small power plants in the metropolitan area, They � announced eight possible s�,tes for these plants. One of these sites is`acr�ss the street from North Pa.rk/Springbrook Nature Center on the Iand that is being cleared now in Coon Rapids along County Road 132. ' Ms. HugtYes stated that a second site is in rridley at East River Road and b94, and there are at least 2-3 ch�ices there, one of whicYi might be the FP�IC propert��. Another choice there is north ot 694 and east of East River Road ^ in the industri_aZ area there. � PnItKS & RECREATION CON�IISSION MEETING, NOVEMBER 14, 1979 -__ PAGE $ � ,�, Ms. Hughes stated that a third site that is northeast is the Riverside Plant. She knew there were some permits being requested at the Pollution Control. Agency to expand Riverside. Other sites were all south--Shakopee, Eagen, and the Black Dog Plant in MinneaQolis. Ms. Hughes stated this was for the Commission's information, but she thought they should be aware of this, because two of the potential sites are located in or near Fridley parks. IV. OLD BUSiNESS: A. County Develovment - F.M.C. Property Ms. Hughes stated that the Commission members had copies of a packet of material on the FMC property that went to Metropolitan Council. It includes a description of the project and a map on the last page that shows some of the development. She would like the Commission to be aware of that. , Ms. Hughes stated that the last information she had was that part of the money the State has in the Great River Road Project for parks has been earmarked for purchase of this property and all of it. There won`t be any reserved parts for a m otel or anything like that. It would also tie tite�Islands of Peace into this and there would be some attempt to run a spur line from this park up to get on to the Mississippi Island. She stated that the Commission had not been asked to comment on this, but she wanted them to be aware of this � proposal. The City Council has already agreed to the plan. Mr. Boudreau stated that, staffwise, they were in concurrence with these plans, because it is another park area to serve the residents of Fridley, yet it will be a regional facility. They are also looking at how Fridley may benefit from it in fulfilling the requests they have had to build some kind of launch for boats onto the Mississippi River. ------------------ Ms, Hughes stated that in the new year, she would like the Commission to start some discussions about a park philosophy. She would not like them to talk about specific staff recommendations and staff proposals, but have them just take the topic, "parks and recreation", and hash it out so they will see if they have a philosorhy as a citizen board. She stated the cemments they have been getting from the staff have been excellent and guiding. �1DJOURNMENT : 4 Chairperson Hughes declared the November 14, 1979, Parks & Recreation Cosnmission meeting adj�urned at 9:21 p.m. Respectfully s mitted, �� / ,�-!`,.' . �. Ly e Saba � Recorc�ing Secretary 8