January-February 2015 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

4 Sara Grant named Recreation CoordinatorThe Arden Hills City Council ap- pointed Sara Grant to the posi- tion of Recreation Coordinator at its November 10, 2014, meeting. This appointment brings new leadership to the Parks and Recreation Department, as long-time Parks and Recreation Manager Michelle Olson resigned in August 2014 due to relocation. As Recreation Coordinator, Sara’s duties include coordinating the City’s recre- ational offerings for youth, adults, and seniors; after-school activities; summer playground programming; special events; and the City’s forestry initiatives. In this new role, Sara now also serves as the staff liaison to the City’s Parks, Trails, and Recreation Committee. Sara grew up in the Royal Hills neighbor- hood of Arden Hills and began working for the City’s Parks and Recreation De- partment at age 15 when she got her first job as a playground leader. At 18, she be- came the Summer Playground Coordinator and then began full-time work for the City in 2009 as Recreation Programmer. The daughter of two teachers, Sara recalls the importance of teaching and leadership as formative influences in her life. She describes one of the greatest pleasures of her job is being able to teach, lead and coordinate recreational learning activities for children and young adults and be a positive influence in their lives. With her long history of living in and working for Arden Hills, Sara has found great pleasure in getting to know resident families on a very personal level. She has watched neighborhood children grow up over years of participation in City pro- grams and – in several cases – facilitated employment opportunities for those same kids who, as young adults, are interested in and qualified for employment with the Parks and Recreation Depart- ment. Going for- ward, Sara says one of her goals is to increase the variety of offerings that ad- dresses the recreation needs and desires of the City’s aging community. Some of the programs and workshops currently avail- able for area seniors include freezer meal preparation, DIY holiday gift making/ wrapping, foot care, and a new book club for seniors. Sara is also participating in the selection of a Recreation Programmer, who, when hired, will assist her in the Parks and Rec- reation Department. visitors continued to park on County Road E despite the availability of the park- ing lot. In 1974, the City Council began discussions to reconsider the use of Lower Freeway Park as a parking lot, in light of neighborhood requests for expanded use of the park beyond skating. The small play area near the skating rinks was dismantled, and a larger asphalt play area featuring a wooden climbing structure and sandbox area was completed at Lower Freeway Park by fall of 1975. That same year, extensive tree and shrub planting was completed to provide a buffer for road noise and increase overall aesthetics. By the end of the decade, the park amenities also included a hard court area with a ball board and two basketball backboards, and a swinging bench. Current challenges Being the oldest park in the City does not come without its unique challenges. The aesthetic limitations of hockey rink infrastructure (which remains in place and unused the rest of the year) have an undeniable impact on the park’s curb ap- peal. The issue of aesthetics remains at the forefront of most discussions surrounding Freeway Park. Issues of capacity are relevant at Freeway Park as well. The development of the Lake Johanna East neighborhood outpaced the capacity of this small, one-acre park long ago. Following the initial land acquisition in the late 1950s, the City was unable to acquire additional neighboring proper- ties and expand park acreage to fulfill the original Park and Recreation Department goal for park acreage per neighborhood resident (1/100). So, the question of how to facilitate more year-round use of Freeway Park is peren- nial. Bituminous surfacing of most of Upper Freeway Park is proposed, so that it might be used for other activities (ten- nis, for example) in non-skating seasons. Another suggestion is converting the rink area into an off-leash dog area in the sum- mer, following the positive response to the off-leash dog park trial at Hazelnut Park last year. The future of Freeway Park The next few years will likely bring the most significant changes to Freeway Park since Lower Freeway Park was developed in the mid-1970s. The City’s current Capital Improvement Plan draft for 2015-2019 (available on the City’s website) proposes $65,000 in capi- tal improvements for Freeway Park. The public works staff reviewed suggestions made by the Parks, Trails, and Recreation Committee and recommended improve- ments related to park fencing, parking lot size and surface, curb and gutter addi- tions, drainage system improvements, and landscaping. The timeline for implementation of enhancements is being affected by the planned reconstruction of the County Road E bridge over Highway 51 this sum- mer. The City Council has taken recent action to table the improve- ment plan for Freeway Park, as the timeline for the bridge project and its potential impact on any improvements at the park is considered. Freeway Park, continued from page 2 by Tina Kulzer Above: a 1975 flyer promoting a tree-planting project in Freeway Park.