Loading...
051110 PK MINS CITY OF SHOREWOOD 5755 COUNTRY CLUB RD PARK TOUR & COMMISSION MEETING SHOREWOOD CITY HALL TUESDAY, MAY 11, 2010 7:00 P.M. MINUTES PARK TOUR The Commission met at City Hall at approximately 5:45pm and departed for Freeman Park. FREEMAN PARK NORTH: The Commission discussed the potential for placing a synthetic board hard surfaced rink near Eddy Station and what impact this might have on views. Anderson pointed out the replacement items from the Public Works inventory and noted that the playground perimeters were designed with the specific play structures in mind. FREEMAN PARK SOUTH: The Commission acknowledged the removal of the old little league shed and looked at the proposed batting cage location expansion. They also commented on the signs on the fences of the fields. Brown urged the Commission to consider the expansion carefully and insist the little league ‘finish’ the area around the cages with edging and grass seed. CATHCART PARK: The Commission acknowledged the poor condition of the rink lights and discussed the need to replace them or remove them this season. The Commission looked at the tennis courts and were pleased with how the surface had sustained itself over the winter. In addition, the Commission discussed the playground amenities and potential for replacing or expanding the playground. CRESCENT BEACH: Director Brown indicated that there were no changes or comments with regard to the Beach. BADGER PARK: It was noted that several boards on the warming house had been replaced and that the tennis court overlay had been approved by Council the previous night. The Commission adjourned to their regular Park Commission Meeting. 1. CONVENE PARK COMMISSION MEETING Chair Norman convened the regular meeting following the Park Tour at 7:00p.m. A. Roll Call Present: Chair Norman; Commissioners Quinlan, Robb, Edmondson, and Gaidos; Public Works Director Brown; City Council liaison Zerby; and Park Coordinator Anderson Absent: Commissioner Trent B. Review Agenda Quinlan moved, Robb seconded, approving the agenda as submitted. Motion passed 5/0. PARK COMMISSION MINUTES TUESDAY, MAY 11, 2010 PAGE 2 OF 7 2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES A. Park Commission Meeting Minutes of April 13, 2010 Robb moved, Quinlan seconded, approving the Minutes of April 13, 2010, as presented. Motion passed 5/0. 3. MATTERS FROM THE FLOOR There were none. 4. REPORTS A. Report on City Council Meeting Zerby reported that the Council discussed treatment for Lake Minnetonka, approved aggregate for seal coating, as well as, the Badger tennis court overlay. B. Review Monthly Expenditure Report and 2010 CIP – (Finance Director, Bonnie Burton) Director Burton reviewed the current monthly expenditure report and 2010 CIP with the Commission. She explained that the Park fund is one of 20 departments which make up the General Fund, and accounts for 5% of the General Fund. She noted that the Operation budget is a different fund. Chair Norman pointed out that the CIP funds must be applied to infrastructure, improvements to the parks. He requested that, in addition to the expenditure report each month that the Commission also is supplied with the operations budget for reference each month. C. Update on Work Program Anderson shared the work program with the Commission acknowledging that all items and tasks seem to be running on schedule and indicated she would stand for questions. Chair Norman requested that staff include the Manor Park neighbors by keeping the lines of communication open and sharing with them when the project will break ground. D. Update on Grant Programs Anderson reported that the Hennepin County Youth Sports Grant would be before committee in May and that a decision should be reached by the end of the month. She shared the status of the other grants as shown on the 2010 Grants table in the packet. Quinlan asked if staff could continue to apply for the Pepsi Refresh grant. Anderson confirmed that the refresh grants could be applied for continuously but were based on the numbers of votes received for projects. She encouraged the Commission to cast their votes repeatedly if staff were to pursue this in the future, as our small population would warrant repeated supporters. Chair Norman suggested staff continue to research and pursue new grant opportunities and partnerships with local Target stores for Arts, Education, and Early Childhood Development to offset and enhance summer programming. Zerby interjected that grants might exist from Cub and Xcel Energy. PARK COMMISSION MINUTES TUESDAY, MAY 11, 2010 PAGE 3 OF 7 E. Update on Summer Programs Anderson explained and asked for feedback on the Movie in the Park program. She urged the Commission to consider the costs and inclement weather cancellation policy provided by the vendor. She asked for direction on proceeding with the movie program. Chair Norman noted that the movies tend to start later in Minneapolis and are the result of partnerships with the Art center. He suggested the City find a partner to sponsor the event in an effort to attract more people to the event. Gaidos stated that she would investigate whether she could find a movie permitting provider that might be more cost effective than the one the City had received a quote from. Quinlan asked what value we could add by piggybacking this with something else. Brown pointed out that the current Ordinance requires a 10pm close for the parks and that an exception would need to be made at the Council level to air the movie past 10pm. Robb asked staff to verify the logistical issues of airing the movie for completion by 10pm, and/or whether their equipment was strong enough to offset the issues the sunset might cause. th Zerby stated that sunset is typically 8:45pm on August 6 and further suggested the Commission contact the high school drama department to see if they’d like to perform. F. Update on South Tonka Little League Proposed Batting Cages Anderson reported that, to her knowledge, the little league had applied for the appropriate permits with the MCWD and would be seen before the Planning Commission at their next meeting followed by the City Council the end of the month. 6.DISCUSS PARK TOURS In an effort to keep discussion to a minimum, Chair Norman stated that park items would be addressed during the CIP discussion that follows. He indicated that, in his opinion, the parks appeared to be in very good shape with no glaring concerns. Quinlan interjected that he believed the lights at Cathcart must be addressed this year and added back into a current CIP. Although he hoped staff could locate a grant to apply for the installation of a rink at Freeman, he did not believe Cathcart could wait. On the other hand, he believed the lights could be removed from Cathcart and replaced with ones at Freemen. Brown pointed out that the rink at Cathcart is intensely used by the hockey association and he wouldn’t recommend removing the lights without talking with the group first and deciding which location they would be most comfortable with. He added that, if the construction at Freeman or replacement at Cathcart were to happen this year, the Commission would need to act soon. Robb reminded the Commission that Cathcart Park is a Shorewood Park and the City should accept that fact and commit to maintaining it. If there is to be a rink, then they need to install and fix the lights. He believed that, due to the proximity to Shorewood and Highway 7, it is most frequented by Shorewood residents. Quinlan concurred, noting that the Commission and City must support Cathcart regardless of whether it falls within the boundaries of Chanhassen or not. He maintained that the City needs to PARK COMMISSION MINUTES TUESDAY, MAY 11, 2010 PAGE 4 OF 7 get over the fact that Chanhassen does not choose to participate on the improvements, incorporate it into the City of Shorewood and support it. Edmondson suggested the City investigate annexing it or revising the boundaries to incorporate Cathcart Park into the City of Shorewood. Chair Norman asked whether the Commission might like to consider redeveloping Cathcart Park by relocating the skating rinks to Freeman Park, which might be better suited to accommodate it. He pointed out that if more time was necessary to make a decision, he would not feel pressured to fix the lights, construct a new rink at Freeman, or any of the above. Especially if it added greatly to public works work load. Gaidos supported moving skating to Freeman. Brown urged the Commission to not let the dollar issues hamper their vision for the parks. While rinks require a significant amount of staff investment, he stated he was more concerned about the amount of time necessary to get the work done. He acknowledged that Eddy Station was designed for the purpose of being a warming house despite the additional workload. Brown indicated that he would have staff check the condition of the lights at Cathcart. 7. REVIEW CIP FOR 2011 Anderson pointed out that the CIP was created with several elements in mind to promote and challenge discussion with regard to improvements at Cathcart Park, updates to Badger warming house, and tennis court replacement. She noted that the Council had suggested the Commission review their CIP and prioritize items in coming years. Chair Norman noted that the way the CIP was set up currently, these reflected all of the priority one improvements. He urged the Commissioners to take the CIP home with them and dust off their previous ‘pie in the sky’ wish lists as discussed last fall to insert into the long term CIP and come back next month to reflect on these further. Anderson stated that the CIP was accompanied by the Park Inventory and Useful Life estimates assembled for their review in order to make good decisions about needed improvements in coming years with regard to playgrounds and park infrastructure. Brown added that the building inspector has also begun putting together a plan for ongoing maintenance of Shorewood buildings, parks, and assets. Robb asked whether the Commission wished to retain the hockey rink or tennis courts at Badger. Anderson noted that other surface tennis courts and grants could be considered. She also noted that the Badger rink is highly used. She pointed out that staff did have drawings for a new rink at Freeman Park which had been used as part of the Hennepin County Youth Sports Grant last winter. Brown asked what the Commission felt it gained by moving the tennis court at Badger. He asked whether the Commission truly could see people coming to City Hall for passive use. He urged them to consider the highest and best use. Chair Norman stated that in the grand scheme, Badger had been identified as the last park they had envisioned making any significant changes to. He added that the shelter updates could be done at a minimal cost to merely match or coordinate with the City Hall campus appearance. PARK COMMISSION MINUTES TUESDAY, MAY 11, 2010 PAGE 5 OF 7 Anderson asked whether the Commission envisioned a new warming house or shelter. Quinlan stated that, to him, it was not a priority to change the courts now. He viewed the warming house updates as necessary improvements to give a more campus like feel but not to the extend we rip out the tennis courts, hockey rink, and warming house now. He asked staff to follow-up with Director Burton on the availability of the TIF funds for Silverwood park shelter. Once again, Chair Norman urged the Commissioners to give greater thought to the CIP, their wish lists, and to prioritize those items for the next meeting. He asked staff to share this direction with Trent. Anderson asked what more, with regard to the CIP, staff could do to update the CIP for the next meeting. Chair Norman asked that the Badger shelter updates line item be added back in and that staff investigate that it would take to build a rink at Freeman Park, with or without lights, and a hard surface. In addition, he asked public works staff to evaluate the condition of the Cathcart Park rink lights once and for all. 8. REVIEW PUBLIC WORKS STAFF PLAYGROUND EQUIPMENT IMPROVEMENTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Anderson reviewed the Playground Safety Improvement list with the Commission as provided by Public Works staff, along with the accompanying recommendations and quotes for direction. Robb asked whether these would be viewed as operation and maintenance or CIP items. Both Anderson and Brown pointed out that these improvements would be viewed as CIP items, other than the replaced timbers and true maintenance items. Chair Norman pointed out that the tot addition pieces and improvement pieces would come out of the $12,000 line item for additional tot pieces. He also noted that the Legion had mentioned early on that they might be willing to donate a tot piece a year to the parks. He suggested they wait for Manor Park construction and the award for the Hennepin County Youth Sports Grant to make a decision. Gaidos indicated that in view of the costs associated with replacing a few pieces at the playgrounds versus replacing the entire play structure in a few years, it begs the question, whether the replacement costs are worth it. She noted that, perhaps, they should challenge the City to move the playground replacement forward on the CIP. Brown and Anderson acknowledged that these were good questions. Brown asked whether it would be possible to take out the hazardous pieces altogether, block their access points, and re-evaluate the playgrounds in general. Zerby even suggested a different replacement piece be used in place of those removed. Chair Norman thought we may even wish to move pieces from playground to playground in lieu of some repairs. Robb disagreed, stating that pulling an item forward 5 years to spend $50,000 now as opposed to planning for this expenditure in five years could be detrimental to their budget. PARK COMMISSION MINUTES TUESDAY, MAY 11, 2010 PAGE 6 OF 7 Gaidos asked what the life expectancies were for the playground fixtures. Anderson pointed out that the useful life estimates were provided. Quinlan moved, Gaidos seconded, to recommend to the City Council the purchase of all of the proposed replacement items for all of the parks except items over $3,000 each and these undergo an analysis for replacement of the entire playground structure. Robb stated that he would prefer they wait for Manor Park. Gaidos suggested they specifically identify the two Freeman slides as the items to withhold. Quinlan amended his motion, moving that everything but the Rumble and Roll Slide and Spiral Slide at Freeman Park South is replaced pending analysis of life expectancy for the super structures. Gaidos seconded. Motion passed 5/0 Chair Norman maintained that, given we are so close to finding out about the grants, he suggested we wait to order the Manor Park pieces until we hear about the grants. 9. EVALUATE NEW PLAYGROUND EQUIPMENT ADDITONS/REPLACEMENT Anderson explained that, once again, the playground perimeters were designed with the specific playgrounds in mind and suggested the Commission consider which playgrounds they wish to add their chosen proposed tot pieces to and direct staff to go back to determine what implications this will have a given park playground. The Commission asked staff to identify what it would cost to add tot pieces to every park playground. Anderson urged the Commission to identify two locations and two tot pieces for staff to go back and obtain more specifics, rather than each and every park. Chair Norman stated that, although Manor would be his first choice, given the potential grant process he would wait and his next choice would be Freeman Park North and Cathcart. The Commission concurred and directed staff to evaluate adding the ‘whirl’ piece to Freeman North first, South if this is an issue, and also the Dinosaur Spring Rider to Cathcart Park. 10. REVIEW REVISED PARK COMMISSION CHAPTER 202CITY CODE Chair Norman reported that the Council had asked the Park Commission to adopt the City Code items in order to be consistent with what the Planning Commission passed at their last meeting. Zerby noted that the changes had to do with removals, attendance, etc, pointing out that Commissioners are appointed by the Council at whim and can be removed by the Council at whim as well. Edmondson indicated that he found that this was like operating under a shroud of fear and questioned removal without cause. He pointed out that, though a good thing in general for Commissioners who put in the effort, as compared to those who do not, those that do put in the effort should not feel their position is tenuous. PARK COMMISSION MINUTES TUESDAY, MAY 11, 2010 PAGE 7 OF 7 Chair Norman stated that it is a good thing and reminded the Commission that, they too, have asked that these terms be tightened up. He noted that, in reality, nothing had really changed and that the Council has always had the ability to remove appointees at whim. Edmondson moved, Gaidos seconded, recommending approval of the amendments to the City Code, Chapter 202 Park Commission. Motion passed 5/0. 11. NEW BUSINESS There was none. 12 ADJOURN Edmondson moved, Quinlan seconded, adjourning the Park Commission Meeting of May 11, 2010, at 9:47p.m. Motion passed 5/0. RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED, Kristi B. Anderson Recorder Liaison for City Council Meeting on May 24 Meeting - Gaidos