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111808 PK MIN CITY OF SHOREWOOD 5735 COUNTRY CLUB RD PARK COMMISSION MEETING SOUTHSHORE COMMUNITY CENTER TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2008 7:00 P.M. MINUTES 1.CONVENE PARK COMMISSION MEETING Chair Norman convened the Park Commission Meeting at 7:00 p.m. A.Roll Call Present: Chair Norman; Commissioners Young, Hensley, Norman, Trent, Quinlan, DeMers, and late arrival Davis; City Engineer Landini; and City Council liaison Wellens B. Review Agenda Item 5 was moved up to Item 3 on the agenda since STLL representative Kuzma was present. Trent moved, Quinlan seconded, approving the Agenda as amended. Motion passed 6/0. 2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES A. Park Commission Meeting Minutes of October 14, 2008 Hensley moved, DeMers seconded, approving the Minutes of the October 14, 2008, Park Commission Meeting as presented. Motion passed 6/0. 3. MR. FRANK KUZMA OF SOUTH TONKA LITTLE LEAGUE WILL BE PRESENT TO DISCUSS SIGNAGE ON BASEBALL FIELD FENCES Mr. Kuzma, representative of South Tonka Little League (STLL) and Diamond Sports, explained that he had met with Administrator Heck and Mayor Lizée the past week regarding selling sponsorships and advertising on the fences at Freeman Park ball fields 1-3. It was suggested that he attend the Park Commission meeting to gauge whether the Commission would support such an endeavor before presenting the concept to the Planning Commission for sign review. In addition to feeding their scholarship funds, Kuzma stated that it is Diamond Sports desire to offset some costs from the construction of Veteran and Legacy fields rather than passing these costs on to families of ballplayers via increased registration fees. He indicated that the City of Minnetonka had allowed them to go forward with sponsorship on Veteran and Legacy fields, which raises $100,000 annually. He pointed out that several other fields do the same, including Bennett in Minnetonka, and he was confident sponsors would step forward to support their efforts at Freeman in Shorewood as well. DeMers asked whether the signs were up all year long. Kuzma stated the signs are posted largely from April 1 thru mid November. Hensley asked how Bennett has signs, how much is raised for baseball via sponsorships, and what they had in mind for Freeman. PARK COMMISSION AGENDA TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2008 PAGE 2 OF 8 Kuzma stated that Bennett is a private facility that has always had sponsorship signs that were even grandfathered in when the City changed their rules and regulations. He indicated that, with three fields at Freeman, they would likely raise $25,000-30,000 annually from April 1 – October 30. Hensley asked how much of that money would remain in Shorewood to support our community users versus sent off to the high school. Kuzma stated that all of the funds would stay within Shorewood to assist STLL and not be sent on to the High School. Chair Norman pointed out that Bennett Park and Veterans Park are both privately owned parks and not city owned. He feared that by allowing sponsorship signage to be posted at City Parks the Commission might be opening a can or worms. The public versus private use concerned him. Kuzma stated that the organization has a unique partnership with the school and that they are committed to making good on the note held by the school for the construction of the fields there, as well as, keeping overall costs low for all participants. He estimated that roughly 70% of the money raised would be applied to keeping costs down and 30% would be put towards scholarships. He added that STLL representatives would even go so far as to knock on doors to see if there would be support by the neighbors for the sign initiative. Davis arrived at 7:17 p.m. Chair Norman asked whether there was any opportunity for revenue sharing for other Shorewood missions and scholarship opportunities. Kuzma stated that they would be open to discussing it since it is their desire to help kids anywhere. He urged the Commission to share their reservations and stated that if there was any angst with regard to the request they would withdraw it before going further. Upon his departure, Kuzma asked the Commission to consider the request and share their thoughts with him at their next meeting. DeMers stated that he did not object to the idea since he sees signs on ball fencing at many parks. Young concurred. Davis stated that she was against the installation of sponsorship signs in the main pristine end of the Park where Eddy Station and the soccer fields are, commenting that if the sports group wishes to clutter up their end that is another matter. Trent disagreed, stating that he did not support the over commercialization of City Parks. While private parks were another matter, he was concerned about the separation. Davis noted that there would end up being maintenance issues for public works. She suggested that the City have a say over what the signs look like and who could advertise. PARK COMMISSION AGENDA TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2008 PAGE 3 OF 8 Hensley stated he might be willing to consider signage for fields 1-2-3 only. Chair Norman stated that he would like to see what other cities allow or do in their public parks, and not just at the private facilities. Already cluttered, Norman feared this would only add to the disarray at fields 1-2-3. He voiced his concern that, by allowing sponsorships here, the City might be embarking on a slippery slope evaluating future requests. He maintained that, at minimum, the City would have to require a first right of refusal as to who was allowed to advertise. Davis agreed that, this is Shorewood’s park not the baseball organizations park. Chair Norman stated that he would also like to see what the Planning Director and Commission might have to say. Wellens stated that, while he did not see a great deal of opposition at the City Council level, he did question whether they could even do such a thing in a city park. Hensley suggested the City charge the baseball organization a rental fee for the fence space to offset costs and put that to good use to further city missions. Chair Norman reiterated that he would like to see what comparable cities allow and what, if anything, they would allow. Davis agreed that she found it difficult to support a proposal allowing signs in public parks, especially in light of the new precedent it sets. Anderson, of CRR, interjected that from her observations of numerous parks, most advertising she has seen are at private as opposed to public parks. Chair Norman stated that Administrator Heck and Mayor Lizée simply suggested the Park Commission consider the request. Norman noted that before he could make any kind of judgment, he would need to learn more. Trent stated that, if the Diamond group truly stated they would back off if there was any angst among the Commission, then he would consider this angst and suggest they drop their request. Young stated that he did not want to see the request die without seeing a more specific proposal and learning more from other communities. Landini stated that he would report to Kuzma that the Commission is performing its own internal inquiry and will need more time for consideration. Trent asked what the sign ordinance said today as written. He maintained that it would give him great angst to have to rewrite an Ordinance in order to support something that an Ordinance was designed to prohibit. He suggested staff perform its due diligence and report back at the December meeting. PARK COMMISSION AGENDA TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2008 PAGE 4 OF 8 Davis concurred that it is truly a slippery slope to go down if the Commission is forced to rewrite an Ordinance in order to allow this. She pointed out that this park is nestled in a nice quiet uncluttered neighborhood and questioned whether the surrounding residents would like to look at these signs instead of the park itself. Quinlan questioned whether the costs are truly going to go up to pay for the new stadium and this is why they are looking for outside funding sources. Hensley questioned whether outside sources of funding for Diamond Sports are shrinking and this is a way for them to fundraise. 4. MATTERS FROM THE FLOOR There were none. 5. REPORTS A. Report on City Council Meeting of October 27 and November 10, 2008 th Chair Norman reported that during the October 27 City Council Meeting the concept proposal for tennis lessons for-profit versus non-profit was discussed. Though everyone seemed amiable to the idea, Council member Wellens stated that the Council felt the tennis courts were different than baseball fields and that certain parameters should be set and signage posted as to the hours of assigned use. Landini mentioned that a small lakeshore parcel of land was being offered to the City in tax forfeiture near Howards Point marina. He asked whether the Commission was interested in acquiring this piece. Hensley stated that, if it is a free lakeshore parcel, of course the Commission could make use of it as either a small fishing pier or snowmobile access for the neighborhood. Davis concurred, stating she loved the idea of taking this piece and turning it into a fishing pier, while it could always be sold to a neighbor at a later date if the City changed its mind. Davis moved, Quinlan seconded, that the Commission ask the City Council to take over the tax forfeited piece of land near Howards Point Marina for park use. Motion passed 7/0. Chair Norman asked staff to have a line put in the park budget to allow a representative of the Commission to attend the NPRA Convention in 2009. Landini stated that Administrator Heck already pulled the budget and added the line to it. B. Update on Arctic Fever – (Park Commission Jeremy Norman) - Determine Captain for Volunteers PARK COMMISSION AGENDA TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2008 PAGE 5 OF 8 Chair Norman reported that Commissioner Quinlan agreed to act as Volunteer Chair for the Arctic Fever event. He also pointed out that commercials for the pond hockey tournament have already begun running during Gopher and Wild Hockey games on FSN. Davis added that the LMCC has also been promoting the event and filming commercials. She noted that the coloring contest and flyers have been completed. Chair Norman stated that fundraising has been going a bit slower this year, noting that fewer commitments have been obtained thus far. He pointed out that it should be a great show in Shorewood this year, as REI has already scheduled snowshoeing and geocaching events. Trent asked whether the Commissioners should break up the list and start contacting the potential donors on the list right away. Quinlan mentioned that he would like assistance in recruiting volunteers for Arctic Fever and asked Hensley if the scouts would help this year. Hensley volunteered to help recruit scouts. C. Review Goals and Objectives With regard to Administrator Heck’s request for a progress report on the goals and objectives for 2009-2010, Chair Norman stated that it is the intent of the Commission to increase overall active use of facilities. He pointed out that Music in the Park is impacted by weather and due to tornado warnings last year, attendance was down compared to previous years, but even still over 100 people braved the weather to attend. In addition, Davis stated that it is the Commission’s priority to continue to enhance children’s programs in all of the parks. She asked whether staff could create a feedback mechanism on the website to obtain immediate feedback from users, which might be useful for planning purposes. Hensley suggested the Commission make contact with the tennis court contractor, take a look at his proposal in January, and get on the list for spring to resolve the tennis court issues. Hensley gave an update from his work on the citizen’s advisory group for the County Road 19 trail project which will run from Shorewood at Smithtown along County Road 19 to County Road 15 in Orono at the Dakota Trail. He stated that the plans are moving along and that a public meeting was held in November for viewing the County Road 19 trail corridor concept drawing with a second public meeting scheduled for December 3, 5-8pm at the Freshwater Institute. Hensley mentioned that no ROW acquisitions would be necessary, although undergrounding power lines would be a big project. 6. REVIEW CHANGES TO THE RFP FOR CONSULTANT SERVICES Trent pointed out that he had incorporated all of the language that was sent his way by the Commissioners and asked for further comment. PARK COMMISSION AGENDA TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2008 PAGE 6 OF 8 Chair Norman stated that they would like to get the revised RFP out in early December in order to collect the proposals and have them presented to the City by the end of December with a viewing by the Commission in January. Chair Norman felt the proposal looked good. Hensley concurred, stated that he was excited to see what people have to say in return about the parks. Young moved, Davis seconded, to move the Request for Proposals for Consulting Park Planning Services to the City Council for their approval. Motion passed 7/0. Chair Norman asked as many Commissioners who could attend to join him at the upcoming th City Council meeting on November 24 to show their support for the proposal and answer Council questions. DeMers, Davis, and Quinlan all agreed to try to attend. 7. REVIEW APPLICATION FOR THE SAFE ROUTES TO SCHOOL (SRTS) GRANT Due to the excessive costs associated with trail construction, Chair Norman explained that the City Council directed city staff to look at a non-infrastructural piece of the grant to help the school. Wellens pointed out that there are over 53 parcels along Smithtown where it is unclear who owns the right of way; therefore it would be difficult, to say the least, to construct a trail. Davis stated that, even as proposed in its lesser form, it is a wonderful thing to do for the school, and although it has little to do with parks anymore they should go for it. 8. DISCUSS TENNIS COURT RESERVATION POLICY / FEE Chair Norman pointed out that, as stated earlier, the City Council wished that more definition be made with regard to the for profit use of the facilities in the priority policy. Landini presented three options for the Commission to consider: 1) Under the Priority Policy, Category 2 and 3, Priority 2 could be revised to include tennis courts. With a set time limit, for example for fro-profit groups of 15-20 hours per week, with residents getting first priority. 2) Have staff collect the registration fee and track the reservations. Similar to the rd skate camps run by 3 Lair and the City splits the revenue with them. 3) Have staff administer it as a City program and contract lessons with the tennis group. Having attended the City Council meeting, Chair Norman stated that, he felt Option 1 most closely addressed the City Council concerns. Trent questioned whether the Commission wished to attach the fee to the use similar to the sports user fee of $5 per hour per court. PARK COMMISSION AGENDA TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2008 PAGE 7 OF 8 Anderson asked whether this could be an addition to the existing user fee Ordinance. Landini the Ordinance is renewed in January and would be amended at that time. DeMers stated that, as a resident, he doesn’t want any restrictions on the time that he can use the courts. Davis believed that, by providing these instructions and some of the free mini camps, the City would be generating interest and providing a good community service. Anderson pointed out that this would be a good extension of the community programs being offered by the City during the summer and on Fridays, and could be inclusive of or attract more varying age groups. She mentioned that Mr. Carlson had also said that he could help the city with its grant writing to the USTA. Trent agreed that he really liked the programming piece of the proposal. Davis concurred, suggesting the open camps and daytime hours run Monday-Fridays. Anderson suggested an alternating schedule of morning and afternoons not to exceed four hours per day. Trent suggested two hours in the morning and two hour blocks in the afternoon between 9am-3pm not to exceed 15 hours per week. Davis moved, Young seconded, to support staff’s recommendation of Option 1, revising the Priority Policy to include tennis courts as a Priority 2, within Category 2 and 3. With the limitations of Option 1 to include 3 hours per day between 9am-3pm Monday-Friday at a fee of $5 per court per hour. Motion passed 7/0. 9. DETERMINE LIAISON FOR CITY COUNCIL MEETING ON NOVEMBER 24 Chair Norman agreed to act as liaison for the City Council Meeting and invited other Commissioners to join him as a show of support before the Council and to answer questions with regard to the request for Consultant Services. Commissioners Davis, Quinlan, and DeMers stated that they would try to attend as well. 10. NEW BUSINESS - There was none. 11. ADJOURN Davis moved, Quinlan seconded, adjourning the Park Commission Meeting of November 18, 2008, at 9:05 p.m. Motion passed 7/0. RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED, Kristi B. Anderson Recorder