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PR 10/15/1980 - 31262.-. CITY OF FRIDLEY PARKS & RECREATION COMMIS�ION MEETING OCTOBER 15, 1980 CALL TO ORDER: Chairperson Hughes cal7ed the October 15, 1980, Parks & Recreation Commission mee�ing to order at 7:40 p.m. � ROLL CALL: Members Present: Barbara Hughes, Dave Kondrick, Jan Seeger, Dick Young, Dan Allen Members Absent: None Others Present: Charles Boudreau, Parks & Recreation Director APPROVAL OF SEPTtM6ER 17, 198Q, PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION MINUTES: ^ Chairperson Hughes declare� the September 17,:i980, Parks & Recreation Commission mi nutes arrr�e�ed as wri t+pn _ . APPROVAL OF A�ENDA: The following item was added to the agenda under "Chairperson's Report"; B. Springbrook Nature Center Foundation Letter Chairperson Hughes declarea the agenda approved as amended. 1. DIRECTOR'S REPORT: A. Nature Center Progress Report Dr. Boudreau showed the Commission pictures of the Nature Center . building that were taken about two weeks ago. He also showed the Commission some polaroid pictures of the "Sounds of !ife Music, Youth for Christ group who volunteered about 10 hours of their time to lay sod on the zmbankments of the nature center building. He stated they are a very har�+ working, conscientious group, and this is the second time they have volunteered their time. Last year, they did a spring clean-up job at the nature center. Dr. Boudreau stated he felt this group should be recognized by the Commission for their efforts. He stated tnat Mr. St. Clair � was also writing them a letter of thanks and was inviting them back to take part in the opening ceremonies of the nature center building. He stated that the City of Fridley was very fortunate to have the interest of a group suchas this. PARKS & RECREATION CO��MISSION r4EETING, OCTOBEP, 15, 1980 PAGE 2 b10TI0N BY MR. YOUNG, SECONJF.D BY 1�1R. ALLEN, TO ASK DR. BOUDREAU TO WRITE A LETTER OF TIzANIC,� T.O THE SGUIVL�S OF £,i FE ' MUS.7'C, YOUTH FOR CHRIST GROTIP EXPRE5SING 1'HE COMMISS.IGN'S APPRECIATION FOR THI5 GROUP'S TIME AND INTERF.ST. UPON A VOICE VQTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON HUGHES DECLARED THE MOTION CAi�RIED UNANIMOUSLY. Dr. Boudreau stated the oiitside coat �f stucco is being put on the building. The kell wall has arrived and v�rill be put up within the week, so the building app�ars to 5e p�ogressing well. Dr. Boudreau stated that, as the Commission was aware, he had written a letter to Metropolitan Council r�auesting that they amend the City's present contract upward in the Gmount of $7,000 to cover the cost of a ro71-down security screen on the �ront window of the building. This request has gone through t�e Parks & Open Space Commission and will be gaing to the full Metropolitan Counci� for approval on October 23. He stated he understood there sr,ould r�ot be any problem in getting this request approved. . B. N.S.P. Easement at North Park Status - • Dr. Boudreau stated that ;n July; he ���d informed the Commission that NSP wanted an easement thrnugh N�rth Fark. ��SP hacl been informed t�at befor� the City woulu even consider it, tne following four stipulations must be met: (1) NSP would get an easement only; (2) NSP wouid have to buy additioral land in equal size adjoining North Park; (3) Ail poles would have ta be lined up so the v�sual was not disrupted; and, (4; A large sum of money for tne right of easement would have to be given to the City. � _ ^ Dr. Boudreau stated that the City Manager has been negotiating with NSP. These negotiations have now come to the point where NSP has consented to all four stipulations, and NSP has sent a letter stating that they would line up all the poles, grant an equal amount of land on the south side of the existing tJorth Park land, the easement that wc�uld be granted wauld be re�rer•ted back to the City for nature use,_ and that the City would receive aroun� $121,000 for granting the easement. Ne stated no decision has yet been made by the City. Dr. Boudreau stated that if the City finds this desirable and if they want to stay with the four stipulations, they wi-I1 have to get an appraisal of the land taken for easement, an ap�raisal of the replacement land, and write up a complete report of ti�e s��isual impact on all the alter- natives looked at. Ali this materiai must go to State Planning, who in turn will review the �lans an� either make a positive or negative recommendation to the Federal peop�e. So, it is still at tt�e point of exploration as to what the reaction from the State Planning people might be and what the reaction of the Federal people might be to allowing a power line to cross park land that has been purchased with LAWCON funds. � �-. PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION MEETING, OCTOBER 15, 1980 PAGE 3 Ms. Hughes stated she felt it was very important for the Commission members to see the maps. She stated that Mr. Boardman and Mr. St. Clair made a�resentation to the Springbrook Nature Center Faundation. They had asked the Foundation what their feelings were about the trade of land and the location of the poles. She stated she thought it was the Foundation's feeling that thisv�s acceptable and they urged the City to continue negotiations. She had told the Foundation that haw they felt about this particular proposal would be an important con�ider- ation to the Parks & Recreation Commission. She stated this proposal has not gone to the Planning Commission yet, and she felt the Park� & Recreation Commissian should look at it. Ms. Hughes asked Dr. Boudreau to obtain the maps for the Commission members to look at, and they could make comments later in the meeting under "Old Business". C. Annual Horseshoe Club Report Dr. Boucireau stated he had received the Annual Horseshoe Club Report He stated they have moved the city horseshoe courts from Commons Park � to Locke Park on one end of the west parking lot. The majority of the work in putting in the courts was accomplished by the Horseshoe Clu� itself. The Club has been so thrilled with the eight courts p�i in � - in th? spring that they had requested eight more at the othz,^ :.,,u of the parking lot. So, they now have a complex of 16 courts all fenced • in. In their annual report, the Horseshoe Club expresses their thanlcs to tne Parks & Recreation Department. Dr. Boudreau stated he had brought this to the Commission's attenti��n, because it is one of the clubs the City helps. The Horseshoe Club's membership is 68. They have expanded and now have a women`s league that started this year. They have a children's league starting, so they are continuing to grow. The C�ub is trying to bring in the National Horseshoe Tournament to Fridley, and they would be doing all the volunteer work for that tournament. D. Curling Club Proposal Dr. Boudreau stated that Mr. Dave Roth came into his office with tN�o other gentlemen representing the Arden Hills Curling Club, They had a facility in Arden Hills, but this facility was sold and the lease on this facility with the new owner has been cancelled. He was informed that the Curling Club is looking for a new home, and they were approaching the City of Fridley to see if there was any public land available that they may lease from the City to build a 75' x 185' block building with a tin roof to be used for a curling club facility. Dr. Boudreau stated the,Club has their own ice-making equipment, and �. they would do al] their own maintenance. They would use the facility from November through March. The months from April to November, they have stated verbally that the City could use the facility for whatever the City wanted. During the months they are in operation, the City PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION MEETI.yG, GCTOQ�R 15, 1980 PAGE 4 � ^ could use the facility for curling classes. The club only requires the facility five nights a week. , Dr. Boudreau stated this was only a proposal. The club must come in with a written proposal before any action is taken. He stated he will inform the Commission as he gets more information. 2. CHAIRPERSON'S REPORT: A. Planning Commission Actions Ms. Hughes stated that the Pianning Corrvnission has looked at a proposal from Medtronic to construct a building (addition to the complex) just east of Old Central from their current location and it will be ccnnected by an overpass.- She stated it is the site where there used to be a pole yard, ar,d in their investigatians, they have ended up doing some testing for creosote on that location. They have dealt with the Pollution Control Agency. Ms. Hughes stated that the Plannina Commission and City Council approved an Envir�onmental Impact Sta�ement (EIS) prepared on that particular part of the property which indicated that there was not a great d�al of concern �n the creosote that might be in that land at this time: The p�a�cs where they �dentified the r,��;'� creosote problems were preba�ly � going to ae under the parking lot or the landscaped areas and not under the building: On that basis, the City is acCepting the EIS which will go to the Environmental �uality Board for �ts consideration and will go before the PCA Board on OctGber 28. P1s. Hughes stated it appeared to her that there might be some water contamination into Rice Creek from the Onan property and the new Medtronic property--hignly unlikely from the Medtronic property, but highly possible from the Onan property because of the high concentrations on the Onan property. Those are som� distance away, and the PCA is reasonably comfortable with it. Ms. Hughes stated shesaw this as being some threat to the water. The Commission has some res�onsibility for this, because of how they might expect to use the Creek in recreational areas or in parks. She stated a loi depends on how they feel about pentachiorophenol and creosote and its decompositions prod«cts and how dangerous that really is. The EIS prepared by Medtronic for the City of Fridley did not mention the creosote problem in this particular area, Under "Other Environmental Affects", they were saying there w�re not any and they were really minimizing what that problem might be. That was the deficiency the Planning Commission thought should have been dealt with. Ms. Nughes stated it was something the Comnission should keep an eye on. � .-. PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION MEETING, OCTOBER 15, 1980 PAGE 5 6. Sprinqbrook Nature Center Founcation Letter Ms. Hughes stated that the Springbrook Nature Center Foundation is concerned about the charges made in Frank Liebl's campaign literature. They intend to write a letter to the editor and have asked the Parks & Recreation Commission if the Commission would write a similar letter or write a joint letter with them. She stated she felt the Commission should respond to some of the charges and asked how the Commission members felt about this. Should they respond as a commission or as individuals? � Mr. Kondrick stated he felt the Commission should respond to these charges. � Ms. Seeger stated she felt there were some charges directed at this � Co►n�nission a�out placing priorities; for instance, letting the neighborhood parks run down, andifiat kind of thing. She did not feel they have let the neighborhood parks run down. If anything, they have added to them. She stated that in lic�ht of the fact that they seem to have difficulty letting the community know they care, that Narth Park is a nature center, that they have, ir� fact, acknowledged that Spring- brook Nature Center Foundation has dor�e all the Foundation said it would do, and now the City has reassumed the nature center as a � � recreation they feel is vital in this town, she thought the Commi3sion ^ ought to respond to these chargPs in some way. Mr. Allen stated he felt the Commission should not get involved in poli�ics, but he stated he would support the Commission if they felt it was important to respond with a letter. Mr. Young stated Mr. Liebl's article did disturb him. I� made him feel as though their time on the C�mmission was being wasted. He felt it would be more important for the Commission to respond as a commission, rather than as individua7s. MOTION BY MR. YOUNG, SECONDED BY MR. KONDRICK, THAT THE PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION RESPOND TD THE COMMENTS AND CLAIMS MADE BY MR. FRANK LIEBL RELATED TO THE PARKS OPERATIOIV IN GENERAL AND PROGRAMMING IN THE CITY OF FkIDLEY. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON HUGHES DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. Ms. Hughes stated she would draft up the letter with help from the Commission members. Mr. Kondrick stated he agreed with Mr. Allen, and that the letter should be on a level that is non-political--just answers to the comments made by Mr. �iebl. � PARKS & RECREATION COMh1ISSI0N MEETING, OCTOaER 15, 1980 PAGE 6 .�. 3. OLD BUSINESS: A. Citizens' Advisory Committ�e �pointments and the Committee's Charqe Ms. Nughes stated that the following name should be added to the iist of Advisory Committee Candidates: Willis U�kie - Ms. Hughes defined the charge for the Advisory Committee as follows: 1. To survey tfie types of faci1ities that could be in the building. 2. To survey the � rrounding area (more than Fridley) to see what kinds of facilities are currently provided, both private�and pubiic. 3. To do a survey of the population by neighborhood�in the City by age graup and other parameters appropriate, so that those fi:hings can be related to the kinds of cho;ces that could be made. 4.a.To come up with recommendations on what appears should be • choserr to be in this building. -- b.To come up with suggestions on how to achieve that and whether or not they need fu�ther professional help--hire-a consuTtant, architect, etc. '� , 5. To give seme kind of outlinz for timing and financing-- the funding sources availablE. Ms. Hughes�stated that is what she saw as the charge to the Committee. She stated she would like to appoint Dan Allen as Chairperson of this corunittee, because of his experience in recreati�n. Other commission members can visit and participate, but should be ex-officio and not vote. Mr. Allen stated he would feel more comfortable having a co-chairperson from this commission. I� would be �aod to have someone from the Commission in the event he could not attend a meeting, and it would be helpful to have another point of view when reporting on the Committee's activities to the Commission. Mr. Kondricic stated he agreed with Mr. Allen. He stated he would be happy to do this and help with the worlcload and participate in the Cort�ni ttee. MOTION BY 1�1R. YOUNG, SECOA'DED BY .MS. SEEGER, TO APPOINT THE 13 ADVI50RY COMMITTEE CANDIDATES TO THE CITIZENS' ADVISORY c;OMMITTEE AND THAT, WITH FURTHER ADDTITIONS TO TfIE COMMITTEE, Cr�NSIDERATION BE GIVEN TO WOMEN, SL'NIOR CITIZEN5, AND REPRESENTATIVES FROM THE GEOGRAPHIC AREAS OF THE CITY NOT NOW REpRESENTED ON TIiE COIfA1ITTEE. i-. UPON A VO.ICE VOTE, ALL VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON HUGHES DECLAP.ED THE MOTION CA_xtRIED UNANIMOUSLY . �-. � PARKS & RECREATION COMMTSSION MEETING, OCTOBER 15, 1980 PAGE 7 Ms. Hughes stated stating that they the charge. she would write a letter to be sent to the appointees have been appointed to the Corrmittee and including Mr. Young recommended that the meetinys of the Committee be prior to the ParKS & Recreation Commission meetings so that the Commission would know what is happening right away without a 3-4 week gap. B. NSP Easement - Parks & Recreation Commission Comments Dr. Boudreau showed the Commission members the maps of the proposed NSP easement through North Park, Ms. Hugt�es stated that NSP is proposing the land on the south end of the park as the "swapped" land. Ms. Seeger stated she �bjected to tha�t, as she did not think the land an the south end of the park was of tf�e quality that the land on the east side was. Ms. Sporre stated she would like to speak on this subject. She stated she also objected to the site being proposed by NSP. She stated the nature center can gain or lose from tnis proposal, depending upon the quality �of land.given and the amc�unt of money. She would propose another site. bJith any site around the park, they could gain screening, so the argument of screening is not valid. She felt that the area proposed by NSP was severely dist�rbed. That land has had a tremendous amount of abuse. She felt there were other areas that were more attrac- tive for the City in trade for the easement. They would gain a lot more along the east side of the park than they would on the south side. They would gain the possibility of providing a screening from the lights and traffic of business. On the weekends, industry has a lower level of activity than the commerce that would probably go on along University Avenue. Also, it is the responsibility of commercial developers to provide screening. The land on the east side provides the Creek option. In the Don Fondrick �eport prepared for the City of Fridley, in evaluat- ing this site, Mr. Fondrick suggested that the ponding of the creeks can offer added wildlife amenities, backwater ponding for ducks, muskrats, etc. This site also offers the opportunity to annex another recreation property which is the1�1CA property. Ms. Hughes stated that each of the Commission members should walk back and look at this property, because the Commission will be asked for their input on this proposal in the future. Ms. Sporre urged the Comnission members to review the Don Fondrick Report on this land. PA�KS & RECRE�T?ON CCMMISSION P�EETxNG, �CTOBER 15, 1980 � PAGE 8 �-. 4, OTH�R SUSINESS: Ms. Sporre stated she would like to ask the Parks & Recreation Commissian the fo3lowing questions: As they see it, does the Commission �eel the Springbrook Nature Center Foundation should have an on-going funding base that is local, county�, or regional? Do2s the Commission feel the Metrcpo'itan Council sees Springbrook Nature Center as a local park? Does Anoka County see Spri�gbrook Nat:ure Center as a local park? Does the Comrmission see SpringbrooK Nature Center as a local park? Will the Nature Center serve all fo�r school districts in Fridley, which include the cities of Coiumbia Heights, Spring Lake Park, and Coon Rapids? Or are ��e going to be just looking at a District 14 facility? If we are thinking of covering all fc�ur schoo] distric�s, geographi- cally coming from Columbia Heigh±s �o Isanti, in the Commission's mind, does that make the Naturp CPni:Pr regior?�1 for a funding h?sP? ^ Is the Nature Center being recognized in any �f the other agencies' comprehensive �lao�s; for example, the County �omprehensive Pian or the Metropolitan Comprehensive Plan? Ms. Sporre stated she{� d been advised tha� there was an outdoor ]earning center included in the Anoka County Parks Plan. Is it in the Plan or is it not? Did Frid7ey approve it or did tney not? In approving the Joint I'owers Agreement, what is the Commission's under;tanding of that? Would Fridley approve it if it were proposed since �:here is such a very short time in the review process? She feit it was going to be very d�ifficult for this Commission to respond to any kind of proposal of the public. What was the Commission's position on that? Is that f«cility in the County Comprehensive Park Plan? Ms. Hughes stated that Ms. Spor•re should write these questiors down, and the Commission will have�b have some �ime to think about them and get answers to them, particularly in terms of the questions of the Nature Center in North Park that was in the original anc,<a County Master Plan for the Trail and is not there now. That needs to be clarified. " Ms: Hughes stated that, regarding the Rice Creek-West Regional Trail Master Plan, there were some changes from what she understood was in the h1aster Plan that went through the hearinys and which had been submitted to the Metropolitan Council. She stated she had asked if Mr. Dave Torkildson ,^ Director of the Anoka County Parks & Recreation Department, could attend a Commission meeting to �ell the CommiSSion what the schedulE is, what his intentions are,and what the changes are. Mr. Tprki�dson had sent�this copy RARKS & RECREATION C4MMISSION M�ETING, OCTO�ER 15, 198� pq�� 9 � of the Rice Creek-West Regional Master Plan and ��ill apparently come at some time in the future if t.he Commission has further questions. Dr. Boudreau stated he thought that a Ms. Sporre should be addressed to the Commission, because it is the Cour�ty's lot of the questions raised by Caunty Board, rather �han this €'l an. Ms. Seeger stated i:hey need to ask Mr. Torki,ldsor� when this Plan was approved by the County and when it was approved by Metropolitan Council. Is this the complete, �inal draft? She also did not think the Plan was very environmenta�ly co��scious. 7here v,�ere some environmental queszion�. The Commissicr, members agreed they would like to have Mr. T.�rkildsQ�.att:end a Commission roeetin� to ans+�er questions regarding the Rice Creek-bJest Regional Trail Master Plan. ADJOURNMENT: MOTION by Mr. Young, seconded by Ms. 5eeger, to adjourn the meeting. L�pon a voice vote, a11 voting aye, Chairperson Hughes declared the October 15, 198a, Parks & Recreation Commissian rleeting adjour.ned at 10:32 p.m. � Respectfully submitted, � z� � Lyr�ne �Saba . Recording Secretary .-.