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. . e ARDEN HILLS CITY COUNCIL - FEBRUARY 8,1999 10 not new. There had been ajoint effort at the new Wayzata High School where the fields at the High School are owned by the City of Plymouth. Mr. Hjelle stated that there are no hidden agendas with the project. He indicated that Bethel College will work with the City and pointed out that Bethel College has made donations in the past to Parks and Recreation in order to support parks. The College also feels there are advantages to working with the City for fund raising. In response to the issue of the mature oak trees on the property, Mr. Hjelle stated that Bethel College is sensitive that the proposed tennis courts are encroaching into this area. The hope of the College is to preserve these trees and keep the courts as far away from the area as possible. With regard to lights, this issue is similar to the one raised when the football field had been constructed. Lights had not been proposed then and are still not being used. There currently are six tennis courts on the campus which are in disrepair. These tennis courts have been in place since 1972 and have never been lighted. All campus activities happen during the day so there would be no need for lighting. COlmcilmember Malone reiterated that the property is privately owned and can be developed. He pointed out that Bethel College is making an effort to integrate the land use into the conununity. He agreed that the steps taken thus far may be out of process and noted that the community is normally not aware of this sort of development proposal until it is presented to the Planning Commission for approval. Councilmember Malone stated that the cost of the project will be an issue. Although the City has a fixed budget for capital expenditures, this project may not require a great deal of capital funds which may make it an attractive proposal. The City would be negligent if they were to not pursue the opportunities. Councilmember Malone stated that the issues regarding the wetlands and lighting are legitimate, however there is no way to control at this point what may happen in the City years from now, He stated that the City is in the early journey of fact finding and will work its way through the process. He stated that he appreciates the public's point of view and that the City does need to move forward and collect additional information. Councilmember Rem suggested the idea of a Task Force. She indicated this process may be more efficient if there is a formal structure and a regular meeting schedule. Mayor Probst stated that it was his hope that, ifthe Council chooses to move forward, it would direct the Parks and Recreation Conunission to continue working with the public as it has in the past. This has worked during past controversial park issues and the Commission has been successful in coming to conclusions which satisfy both the City and the residents involved. MOTION: Councilmember Aplikowski moved and Councilmember Rem seconded a motion to direct Staff to work with Bethel College on site planning issues and for the Parks and Recreation Conunission to hold neighborhood meetings to gather input regarding the proposed concept plan.