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PR 04/06/2009 - 29896CITY OF FRIDLEY PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION MEETING — APRIL 6, 2009 CALL TO ORDER: Chairperson Sibell called the April 6, 2009 Parks & Recreation Commission Meeting to order at 7:07 p.m. ROLL CALL: Members Present Others Present: Marcy Sibell Dave Kondrick Mike Heintz Tim Solberg Michele Barrett (arrived at 7:38 pm) Jack Kirk, Director of Parks and Recreation Siah St. Clair, Springbrook Nature Center Director APPROVAL OF MARCH 2, 2009 PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION MINUTES MOTION by Mr. Heintz, seconded by Mr. Kondrick, to approve the minutes of the March 2, 2009 meeting. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL MEMBERS VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON SIBELL DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED. APPROVAL OF PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION AGENDA FOR APRIL 6, 2009 MOTION by Mr. Solberg, seconded by Mr. Heintz, to approve the agenda for the April 6, 2009. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL MEMBERS VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON SIBELL DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED. 1. STAFF REPORT a. Program Update Mr. Kirk stated that this Program Update was a report of the activities of the Parks and Recreation Department in the past month. He wanted to call attention to the Senior Program Tax Assistance program that is run in cooperation with AARP. Volunteers help the seniors do their taxes every Wednesday at the Community Center. A new addition to this program this year is an opportunity to make an appointment to have taxes done on Tuesday evenings at Springbrook Nature Center. There has been an excellent response to the tax assistance service this year. Mr. Kirk further stated that the workers in the Chores and More Program have been helping to install the DTV converters as part of a national installation program for seniors. Chores and More also has an emergency special projects program which can help with funding for emergency homeowner situations for seniors. The program has recently helped with several water heater replacements, a drywall mold issue and some plumbing problems. Parks and Recreation Commission Meetinq — April 6, 2009 Paqe 2 Mr. Kirk further stated that the Springbrook Nature Center Volunteer Appreciation dinner was held on Saturday, March 7t". The volunteers are extremely important to the overall operation of the nature center and the many programs. There were 75 people in attendance at this volunteer dinner. Mr. Kirk stated that there has been a big response to our community gardens program for this year and as of April 1St, all 46 garden plots have been rented. He knows that Unity Hospital is considering starting a community garden program this year, so they will be able to refer other gardeners to that opportunity. Mr. Kirk further stated that the Recreation Office is getting a lot of requests for ballfield and picnic shelter rentals for the spring and summer months. b. Park Maintenance Report Mr. Kirk stated that Mr. Lindquist could not be at the meeting tonight, but he has submitted a written report of park maintenance activity during the past month. The workers have been busy cleaning and putting away the winter equipment, in addition to preparing the park buildings, shelters and grounds for the spring acitivity. c. Springbrook Nature Center Report Mr. St. Clair stated that the work on the 85t" Avenue trail is well underway and he showed a slide show of the project to date. They took down about thirty trees to make room for trail through the nature center. Much of the trail will go over wetland areas and that is one of the reasons the trail is so expensive. There are bridges required for the trail over the wetland area. The trail should be completed this summer and we will likely have some type of grand opening event at that time. d. Commission Member Re-appointments Mr. Kirk stated that the City Council has reappointed Marcy Sibell and Dave Kondrick to new three-year terms on the Parks and Recreation Commission. Staff and the Commission members congratulated Ms. Sibell and Mr. Kondrick on their reappointments e. Springbrook Nature Center Foundation Fifth Annual Auction Fundraiser Mr. Kirk stated that the Springbrook Nature Center Foundation will be holding their annual auction fundraiser on Saturday, May 2 at the North Air Event Center. All proceeds go to benefit the nature center and the programs. The Commission members are invited to attend the event. Tickets can be purchased on-line or from members of the SNC Foundation board. f. Innsbruck Nature Center Recreational Trail Mr. Kirk stated that he was just notified this week that the City was approved for the $15,000 matching grant to improve the trails at Innsbruck Park. This grant was originally approved to support mountain biking trails in the park. After neighborhood input and discussion with the Parks and Recreation Commission, the decision was made to focus on improving walking trails. The grant application was resubmitted and the grant will be available for our use this summer. That is really good news and should help us make some nice improved trails at Innsbruck Park. Parks and Recreation Commission Meetinq — April 6, 2009 Paqe 3 2. NEW BUSINESS a. Election of Officers Ms. Sibell stated that the Parks and Recreation Commission elects a Chairperson and Vice- Chairperson at the April meeting each year. The Chairperson presides over all Commission meetings and serves on the City's Planning Commission. The Vice-Chairperson serves as Chairperson when the Chairperson is absent. Ms. Sibell asked if there were any nominations for officers of the Parks and Recreation Commission. MOTION by Mr. Kondrick, seconded by Ms. Barrett, to elect Marcy Sibell as Chairperson of the Parks and Recreation Commission and Tim Solberg as Vice-Chairperson of the Commission. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL MEMBERS VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON SIBELL DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED. Mr. Kirk thanked Ms. Sibell and Mr. Solberg for being willing to take on the leadership roles for this Commission. b. Request for Wellness Event at Springbrook Nature Center — Especially for Children Mr. Kirk stated that the City has received a request from a business named "Especially for Children" to hold a wellness event at Springbrook Nature Center. They are a child care center located in Coon Rapids. They wanted to hold the event this June. We have not had a similar request for use of the nature center, so they were told that this would need to go before the Parks and Recreation Commission. Mr. Kirk further stated that through some additional conversation with this group in the past week, we have found out that they want to have a 5K run, a shorter fun run and booths set up in the park to promote wellness. Over the years, staff has tried to discourage running in the park due to damage caused to the wooden boardwalk system. An event like this would likely be a problem for our boardwalk system and staff would not be recommending approval of this request. Mr. Kirk stated that the organization making this request of the City was told that staff would not be recommending approval. With that information, they decided not to attend the meeting this evening. Mr. Kondrick stated that if running was a problem on the trail, could the running portion of the event be held on City streets just north of the nature center and the other parts of the event at Springbrook. This could bring a number of people into our park that day. Mr. St. Clair stated that as a one time type of event he wouldn't be so concerned, but he feels that once we open the door to this type of event, we will have many more requests in the future. Also, individuals who have been at a running event at the park may come here on a regular basis and continued running on the boardwalks will be a concern. Running on the floating boardwalk can break the hinges holding the sections together. Parks and Recreation Commission Meetinq — April 6, 2009 Paqe 4 Mr. Heintz asked what the advantage would be for the City to host this type of event. Mr. Kondrick stated that is what he would like to ask the Commission members. Is there some advantage for Springbrook, such as good publicity or some additional revenue. We could get exposure of our nature center to a larger audience. He further stated that he would like to see this group gather at our center to get organized and then have the actual run outside of the park. Mr. St. Clair stated he likes the idea of a wellness event at the nature center. If it wasn't for the damage that can be caused by the running, he would be in favor of it. Having part of the event at Springbrook and part outside the park would likely be expensive because it would require police department assistance. Mr. Kondrick asked if a walking event would be okay instead of a running event. Mr. St. Clair stated he would be supportive of that. Mr. St. Clair showed some slides of damage to the wooden boardwalk system that is caused by runners on the trail. MOTION by Mr. Heintz, seconded by Mr. Kondrick to go along with the staff recommendation and not allow the 5K run at Springbrook Nature Center in conjunction with this wellness event request. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL MEMBERS VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON SIBELL DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED. c. Parks 5-Year Capital Improvement Program Mr. Kirk stated that he has a staff recommended 5-Year Parks Capital Improvement Program to present to the Commission this evening. The Commission may make recommended additions or changes as they see needed to this plan and it will then be sent to the City Council for their consideration. Mr. Kirk stated that they have reduced the number of projects and expenditures for the next two years due to the budget concerns. The most important year for the Commission to review is the 2010 schedule, as that is the next year for projects. The following is the 5-Year Parks Capital Improvement program as recommended by staff: 2010 2011 • Park Furnishings ................................................. 5,000 • Court Surfacing / Overlays ................................ 50,000 • Fencing Replacements ..................................... 12,000 $ 67, 000 • Court Surfacing / Overlays .............................. $40,000 • Park Furnishings ................................................. 5,000 • Moore Lake Picnic Shelter Replace .................. 45,000 • Moore Lake South Area Landscape ................. 30,000 • Briardale Picnic Shelter ..................................... 35,000 • FCC Carpet/Flooring Replacement .................. 45,000 $200, 000 Parks and Recreation Commission Meetinq — April 6, 2009 Paqe 5 2012 2013 2014 • Court Surfacing / Overlays .............................. $42,000 • Park Furnishings ............................................... 10,000 • Madsen Park Picnic Shelter .............................. 35,000 • Riverview Heights Picnic Shelter ... ... ... ... ... ......35,000 • Community Park Lighting Upgrades .................30,000 $150, 000 • Court Surfacing / Overlays .............................. $35,000 • Park Furnishings ............................................... 10,000 • Community Park Plaza Area and Shelter.......... 90,000 • Locke Park Picnic Shelter and Storage ............. 35,000 $185, 000 • Court Surfacing/ Overlays ... ... ... ... ... ... ... .......$35,000 • Park Furnishings .........................................10,000 • Commons Park Irrigation System ..................160,000 $205, 000 Mr. Kondrick asked if the money allocated for picnic shelters was sufficient to get the type of shelter we needed at the parks. Mr. Kirk stated that it should allow us to get an appropriate shelter at the park locations. Mr. Solberg asked what is wrong with the Briardale shelter, that it needs to be replaced. He has looked at it and it doesn't seem to be in too bad of condition. Mr. Kirk stated that staff looks at the various structures in the parks and tries to determine a need for improvements and replacements. It has been recommended that we replace this shelter. It is a park we use for the playground program, so that is also a factor in wanting to upgrade the facility. He further stated that staff can take another look at that shelter. Ms. Sibell stated the amount of money in the plan for park furnishings each year does not seem like very much money. Should that amount be increased. Mr. Kirk stated it is not a lot in any one year, but it does allow us to make a number of replacement purchases each year. Mr. Solberg stated that as he looks through the five year plan, he doesn't see any money allocated to replacement of playground equipment. He knows we replaced most of the equipment about ten to fifteen years ago, but we may need to start doing some playground upgrades again fairly soon. Mr. Kirk stated that he is correct and we will need to look at scheduling playground equipment again in our capital improvement program within the next few years. Parks and Recreation Commission Meetinq — April 6, 2009 Paqe 6 Mr. Kondrick asked if Dr. Burns (City Manager) has anticipated that the $107,000 shift of property tax dollars to the general fund would just be for two years and then returned to the parks capital improvement program. Mr. Kirk stated that is the plan right now, for two years only. Mr. Kondrick stated that if money really becomes tight in the future, it is his opinion that we could cut back somewhat on the court resurfacing dollars in this plan. We are looking at $40,000 to $50,000 each year for courts and that is a lot to allocate. We would have to get by without resurfacing the courts as often. Ms. Barrett stated that if you do not take care of the courts on a regular basis, the playing surface gets in really bad shape and may cost even more money to repair or replace. MOTION by Mr. Solberg, seconded by Mr. Heintz, to approve the 5-Year Parks Capital Improvement program as presented by staff. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL MEMBERS VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON SIBELL DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED. d. Showmobile Rental Request — American Cancer Society/ ISD 286 Mr. Kirk stated that the American Cancer Society and Independent School District #286 in Brooklyn Center have requested use of the Showmobile for a Relay For Life community event on July 10t". This is the first time they will have rented the showmobile. The Relay for Life events are very nice community activities and staff would recommend approval of this rental request at the normal rental rates. MOTION by Mr. Kondrick, seconded by Mr. Solberg, to approve the Showmobile rental request by the American Cancer Society and Independent School District 286 for a July 10t" event. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL MEMBERS VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON SIBELL DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED. e. FYSA Baseball Tournament Requests Mr. Kirk stated that the City has received four baseball tournament requests from the Fridley Youth Sports Association baseball division. Brett Gamble will be the tournament director for these tournaments and he has submitted the applications. There are varying age groups for each tournament and the requests involve different City park ballfields. The tournament request are as follows: • A Minnesota Youth Athletic Services Gopher State Spring Training Series tournament on May 16 and 17, 2009. Fields used would be Little League #1, #2 and #3, along with Commons #1. • A Fridley Baseball Association 10U House Tournament on May 29 — 31, 2009. Fields used would be Little League #1, #2, and #3. • A Fridley Baseball Association 12U House Tournament on June 5— 7, 2009. Fields used would be Little League #1, and #2, and #3. • A Minnesota Youth Athletic Services 10U State Championship Series on July 31 — August 2, 2009. Fields used would be Little League fields 1,2 and 3; Commons #2 and Commons #3. Parks and Recreation Commission Meetinq — April 6, 2009 Paqe 7 Mr. Kirk stated that all of these tournaments would require an additional dumpster and an additional portable toilet facility. The last tournament on July 31 — August 2 would require installation of 60 foot basis and a 42 foot pitching rubber on Commons fields number 2 and 3. Staff is recommending approval of these tournament requests at the normal rate for local non- profit organizations. That rate is $75 per field for the tournament. Any additional costs incurred for the tournament such as dumpsters or portable toilets would also be assessed to the tournament sponsor. Mr. Heintz suggested that staff talk with Brett Gamble about the costs for renting a portable toilet. With several tournaments close together, it may make financial sense to have a unit brought in for the summer, rather than paying the higher one time special event costs. It may be cheaper to have the unit there all summer than to have it brought in for each individual tournament. MOTION by Mr. Solberg, seconded by Ms. Barrett, to approve the four tournament requests by the Fridley Youth Sports Association Baseball. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL MEMBERS VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON SIBELL DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED. f. Showmobile Rental Request — City of Mound Mr. Kirk stated that the City of Mound has requested use of the Showmobile for an event on July 17t" and 18t". They have rented from us before and staff would recommend approval of this rental request at the normal rental rates. MOTION by Ms. Barrett, seconded by Mr. Kondrick, to approve the Showmobile rental request by the City of Mound for a July 17 & 18, 2009 event. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL MEMBERS VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON SIBELL DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED. ADJOURNMENT MOTION by Mr. Solberg, seconded by Mr. Heintz, to adjourn the April 6, 2009 meeting at 8:56 p.m. UPON A VOICE VOTE, ALL MEMBERS VOTING AYE, CHAIRPERSON SIBELL DECLARED THE MOTION CARRIED AND THE APRIL 6, 2009 MEETING ADJOURNED.