07-16-07 Item 2A, PTRC Funding Discussion

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City Council Parks, Trails, and Recreation Funding Discussion 2 The PTRC has been discussing and researching various funding options for parks and trail improvements, including an email survey to other City Park Departments and inviting Sue Iverson, City Finance Director to attend two meetings. After requesting information from other Cities, it became apparent that there are no clear cut trends as to how to fund park improvements. However, the options that the PTRC found to be a possibility and should be discussed as future funding strategies include: . Bonding - In order to bond, the City would need to have this funding source approved by a referendum. This funding source would be utilized for specifically identified projects. It cannot be used simply to increase a fund balance. . Park Referendum - Ifthe PTRC identifies a specific project that they feel is worthy of a Park Referendum, they would bring forward to the City Council a recommendation with the reasoning and justification for such a funding resource. This would also require a resident vote and therefore, it would require a group effort to help it become successful and pass. This funding source would be utilized for a specifically identified project. . TIF District Funds - Use of funds after a TIP District expires is a possibility. Once those properties come back on the tax roll, it is possible to allocate those funds for a specific purpose. We have two TIP Districts, however, one will expire in a couple of years and the other is further out in the future. . Levy Increase - The levy would only produce approximately $25,000 for every 1 % increase. This is not a significant amount of funding. However, City Council could choose to increase the Park Fund Balance each year. The PTRC also encourages the City to pursue other alternative funding sources whenever possible such as: . Federal and State Grants - Grants can be extremely competitive and can be difficult to obtain. Further, repeated efforts to solicit funding from this source are crucial to success. . Cooperative Agreements - The City has attempted to secure cooperative agreements through MNDOT regarding improvements to County Road E. While the application for the bridge on County Road E was not successful, there will be other opportunities for cooperative agreements in the future. However, this will again depend on the specific project. . Sponsorships and Partnerships - Working with local businesses and community colleges is strongly encouraged. The EDC Committee can help the City establish working relationships with local businesses. While partnerships are always welcome and a valuable part of the Parks system, they tend to be project \\Metro-inet.us\ardenhills\PR&PW\Parks\Memos\Council Memos\Memo to CC regarding Park Funding Discussion with PTRC07-4.doc