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05/14/2004 - 00028712CITY OF FRIDLEY PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION MEETING — MAY 17, 2004 CALL TO ORDER: Chairperson Kondrick called the May 17, 2004 Parks & Recreation Commission Meeting to order at 6:14 p.m. ROLL CALL: Members Present Others Present Dave Kondrick, Tim Solberg, and Dolores Varichak Jack Kirk, Director of Recreation & Natural Resources APPROVAL OF APRIL 5, 2004 PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION MINUTES MOTION by Ms. Varichak, seconded by Mr. Solberg to approve the minutes of the April 5, 2004 meeting. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL MEMBERS VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON KONDRICK DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED. APPROVAL OF PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION AGENDA FOR MAY 17, 2004 MOTION by Mr. Solberg, seconded by Ms. Varichak, to approve the agenda for the May 17, 2004 meeting. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL MEMBERS VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON KONDRICK DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED. 1. STAFF REPORT a, Program Update Mr. Kirk stated that the Program Update for the Recreation and Natural Resource Department was included in the agenda packet for review by the Commission members. This is a summary of some of the activities that have been held since the last meeting. The spring activities are underway and are going very well. Registration has started for the summer activities. Mr. Kirk stated that Connie has started a new activity at the Senior Center, a chapter of the Red Hat Society. The Red Hat Society is a nation-wide social group that is intent on changing the perception of aging women. The group should be easy to recognize when they get together as the members wear a red hat and purple clothes. Connie reports they have 70 women interested in participating. Parks and Recreation Commission Meetinq - Mav 17, 2004 Paqe 2 b. Park Maintenance Report Mr. Lindquist has provided a written report of Park Maintenance activities during the past month. They have been busy preparing the park areas for the spring and summer months. The work on the softball, baseball and soccer fields has been a major focus of the maintenance workers this time of year. c. Fridley `49er Days Mr. Kirk stated that the annual city celebration, "Fridley `49er Days", is scheduled for June 16- 20 this year. There are many of the regular popular attractions such as the carnival, the Friday night street dance featuring the Fantastic Convertibles and the Saturday street dance featuring the White Sidewalls. The annual parade is set for Thursday night with a 6:30 p.m. starting time. The Stand For Children Day event will be on Saturday afternoon at the arena with activities from 3:00 - 6:30 p.m. The Teen Dance Party will be at Columbia Arena on Thursday night from 8:00 p.m. - 11:00 p.m. The Senior program has a number of tournaments and special activities planned for our seniors. Mr. Kirk handed out `49er Days schedules and invited the Commission members to participate in the `49er Days festivities. 2. NEW BUSINESS a. Showmobile Rental Request — City of St. Anthony Mr. Kirk stated that the City of St. Anthony is requesting use of the Showmobile for the Villagefest Celebration. The unit would be used for a concert on August 7, 2004. The City of St. Anthony has rented the showmobile from us in the past and there were no problems reported. Staff would recommend approval of this request with the standard rental rate of $700 per day and additional costs for moving of the unit. Motion by Ms. Varichak, seconded by Mr. Solberg to approve the Showmobile rental request to the City of St. Anthony with all of the standard rental fees applied. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL MEMBERS VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON KONDRICK DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED. b. Proposed Monopole at Commons Park Mr. Kondrick stated that this next agenda item has to do with a request to place a monopole tower at Commons Park for a cellular phone company. There is a Homeland Security study being conducted to determine if cellular antennas can be placed on water towers, such as the one in Commons Park. The concern is the access to the water supply by allowing the antennas on the water tanks. Mr. Kirk stated that he had received the proposal from Jon Haukaas, Public Works Director for the City. The cellular phone company has proposed placing a structure on the land that is just northeast of the parking lot near the Commons Park skating facility. Parks and Recreation Commission Meetinq - Mav 17, 2004 Paqe 3 Mr. Kirk further stated that Commons Park was identified as an approved site for a cell tower several years ago when the City worked on the plan to designate certain areas for towers. No specific location in the park was identified at that time; however, there was discussion of cellular equipment on the water tower. As just mentioned, access to the water tower may be prohibited in the future. Mr. Haukaas has told him that the study regarding placing the cellular equipment on water towers should be completed in July of this year. Mr. Kondrick asked about the size of the structure or equipment being proposed. Mr. Kirk stated that the cellular company would lease a 25 foot by 25 foot parcel of land for a small building and a 100' tall monopole tower. Mr. Solberg stated the he did not believe the proposed location for this tower seemed like the most ideal spot. What is the cellular company's requirement in terms of elevation needs or is one location at the park much better than another? This particular location (the proposed site) could prevent or alter future use of the park area. Mr. Kondrick stated that he would prefer not to have it in the location being proposed. It is right in the middle of a very active, high use area. It seems like it could be placed in a more out of the way location. Mr. Solberg asked if the cellular equipment could be placed on the light poles at the Fridley High School football field. Mr. Kondrick stated that he knew that specific locations were important as the cellular companies put together their network of service. He stated he also recognized the need for the cellular company to access to the equipment. He would like to look at alternate locations in the park area. Mr. Solberg asked about the access requirements for the cellular company. Do they need to be able to drive a truck right up next to their equipment or just be in reasonable proximity? Mr. Kirk stated that it was his understanding that the company needed to be able to get a truck right next to the equipment location. Mr. Solberg asked what the City gets in compensation for the cellular company equipment in the park? Mr. Kirk stated that the company does pay the City for placing the equipment on the park land, but the money does not necessarily go directly to fund the park system budget. Mr. Solberg stated that another alternative might be a location near the water tower, without the equipment being placed on the tower itself. The cellular equipment could be fenced off separately from the water tower. Mr. Kondrick stated that to sum up what he is hearing the Commission members say regarding this request for a monopole at Commons Park, he would list the preferred options. First choice would be to put the cellular equipment on the water tower. If that is not allowed, the second choice would be a monopole adjacent to the water tower or well house building near 61 St Avenue. The third choice would be near the well houses on the north side of Commons Park. If those sites were not going to work, the Parks and Recreation Commission could revisit this location issue at a future meeting. Mr. Kirk stated that he would pass this information on to Mr. Haukaas. Parks and Recreation Commission Meetinq — Mav 17, 2004 Paqe 4 c. Baseball Tournament Request — Fridley Little League Mr. Kirk stated that the Fridley Little League has requested use of the four Little League fields for a fundraiser tournament on June 4-6, 2004. The Little League organization has run several tournaments in the past and has done a good job caring for the facilities. Staff would recommend approval of the tournament with same fee structure as in past years. Fees would be as follows: $60 for each field used; payment for a dumpster to handle the garbage from the event (estimated at $200); payment for an additional satellite toilet; and payment of actual costs associated with the City providing a maintenance person to take care of the fields. A refundable $200 clean-up/ damage deposit should be required with the rental. MOTION by Mr. Solberg, seconded by Ms. Varichak to approve the baseball tournament request by the Fridley Little League with all the applicable fees outlined by Mr. Kirk. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL MEMBERS VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON KONDRICK DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED. ADJOURNMENT MOTION by Ms. Varichak, seconded by Mr. Solberg to adjourn the meeting at 6:55 p.m. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL MEMBERS VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON KONDRICK DECLARED THE MAY 17, 2004 MEETING ADJOURNED.