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Arden Hills Service Directory 1245 West Highway 96 Arden Hills, MN 55112-5734 Summer Office Hours Monday through Thursday 7:30 a.m. — 5:00 p.m. Friday 7:30-11:30 a.m. City Contact Information 651-792-7800 www.cityofardenhills.org Sheriff and Fire 911 Water and Sewer Problems (During non-business hours) 651-767-0640 Mayor: David Grant 651-538-0747 dgrant@cityofardenhills.org Councilmembers: Brenda Holden 651-636-2987 bholden@cityofardenhills.org Fran Holmes 651-631-1866 fholmes@cityofardenhills.org Dave McClung 651-332-0352 davemcclung@comcast.net Robert Woodburn 651-633-2389 rwood37393@aol.com City Administrator: Patrick Klaers 651-792-7810 pklaers@cityofardenhills.org Communications Committee Editors/writers: Susan Cathey, Tina Kulzer Writer: Emma Theis Council Liaison: David Grant Staff Liaison: Amy Dietl Desktop Publisher: Mary Nosek Council meetings are held at City Hall on the second and last Monday of the month at 7 p.m. Meetings are televised live on Cable Channel 16. Meetings of the Planning Commission are televised as well. Visit www.cityofardenhills.org for information about taped meeting playbacks. Arden Hills Notes is the official news- letter of the City of Arden Hills, an equal-opportunity employer. 2 City Park Profiles--a series Perry Park 3700 New Brighton RoadOn any given day, there are numerous reasons for City residents to pay a visit to Perry Park. This “Level One” park is the largest City park in Arden Hills, occupying 20 acres (equal to that of Floral Park) on the east side of New Brighton Road at Thom Drive. It was developed over the decades to accommodate a wide range of organized sports, social events, neighborhood activities, and recreational pursuits. Situated in the midst of the beautiful and expansive Tony Schmidt Regional Park space, Perry Park boasts high-quali- ty athletic facilities, connectivity to a scenic county trail system, and a heritage that dates back to the founding days of our now-vibrant metropolitan community. The first major park development Perry Park began as 20 acres of undeveloped, largely wetland property purchased by the City in 1966 from Ralph Perry (1914-1999). It was the City’s first major park develop- ment project and was not completed until 1972. During this time, a permanent shelter, hockey boards and lights, two ball fields on the south side of the park (referred to at the time as “upper” Perry), roadway, and parking were installed. A Park Committee headed the project and – together with the City Council – spent a large amount of effort planning, coordinating, and completing this first stage of develop- ment. As a result of the time required and breadth of such a large project, the City’s first full-time Director of Parks and Recreation was hired to assume the responsibility for future park developments. Arden Hills made a significant financial investment in Perry Park, and $95,042 was spent to complete the project. However, very few of the City’s expenditures were on labor costs. Park Committee members, neighbors, teen youth, and volunteers provided most of the labor that built Perry Park – as was the case with most of the City park de- velopment and beautification efforts of this time. During the City’s major period of park improvement in the 1970s, a second phase of construction was completed at Perry Park: a park sign was installed, two more ball fields were constructed on the north (“lower”) side (which was swamp land and was originally planned to be left undeveloped as natural park area), and the hockey rink was relocated to the north side by the new ball fields – where it still is today. The play structure area was graded and equipment added by 1981. A hub for athletics and events City Council minutes from 1969 regarding Perry Park stated, “Necessity for getting the ball fields in playing condition is urgent.” Resident access to ball fields was a priority for Perry Park during its early development, and it accounts for a significant portion of the park’s usage today. The park features three adult ball fields and one youth ball field, all fully equipped with sideline and outfield fencing, bleachers for spectators, and field irrigation. Considered by some to be more of an athletic complex than a park because of the scope of the ball fields and related amenities, Perry Park is home to the City’s adult softball leagues and is also heavily utilized by other sports groups and leagues in the community. by Tina Kulzer continued on page 4