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Home My WebLink About05-27-1997 PTRC Minutes . AGENDA PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION TUESDAY, MAY 279 1997 7:00 - 9:00 P.M. ARMY RESERVE CENTER 1. Call to order and roll call 2. Approve April 22, 1997 Minutes 3. Council Report 4. Letter and Presentation from Colleen Daub 5. Possible Hwy 96 Trail Change 6. 1998 Park Fund Budget 7. Park Fund Long Range Planning 8. Day in the Park-finalize plans and assignments 9. Department Report A. Program B. Director 10. Adjourn *** Please Call Cindy or Lynette if you are unable to attend this meeting*** MINUTES CITY OF ARDEN HILLS, MINNESOTA PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION • TUESDAY, MAY 27, 1997 7:00 P.M. - 9:00 P.M. ARMY RESERVE CENTER LEXINGTON AND HIGHWAY 96 CALL TO ORDER Lynette Kreidler called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. ROLL CALL Present were Chair Lynette Kreidler, Megan Ricke, Don Messerly, Mary Robinson, Anita Larson, Jim Johnson, Council Liaison, Susan Keim, Parks and Recreation Director; Cindy Walsh, and Program Supervisor; Tracy Petersen. Absent: Lou Speggen and Dorothy McClung APPROVE MINUTES Motion to approve minutes was made by Megan Ricke and seconded by Don Messerly. COUNCIL REPORT Council member Keim informed the commission that construction on the first Gateway Business District building is under way. The building is scheduled to be completed July 1. The construction schedule is aggressive, but they are moving along quickly. The City is developing a feasibility study for the Gateway Business District. The plan includes a two million dollar expenditure for streets, water, sewer, etc. The City hired Architectural Alliance as the architects for the new City Hall. Two plans are being developed; one for the existing location, and one for the TCAAP property by Sunfish Lake. Ms. Keim told the commission to come up with an annuity plan to spend down the Park Fund for park and trail projects. The commission will meet in June to begin the process of identifying and prioritizing projects. LETTER AND PRESENTATION FROM COLLEEN DAUB Colleen Daub was present to discuss her idea of having the City plant fir trees to act as beautification and as an environmental sound barrier along the east side of Hwy 51 (Snelling Ave.) between the streets of Ingerson and Cannon. She had written a letter to the City Council on March 9, 1997. Since the area she is referring to is probably State right-of-way, the • commission did not feel that the City could or should plant trees without permission from the State. Even if the State grants permission, the Parks and Recreation Commission did not feel 1 that it was their place to suggest that trees be planted along Snelling Avenue. If the City planted in this particular area, wouldn't every one along Snelling Avenue or other busy highways want trees planted. Ms. Walsh explained that although one row of trees would visually shelter the homes from the highway, it would not create a sound barrier. Parks and Recreation Director Walsh will talk with the Public Works Superintendent to determine if the area is state right-of-way and inform Ms. Daub. Ms. Daub will then contact the appropriate person to ask for permission to plant. She may take her request back to the City Council if she decides to pursue planting. POSSIBLE HWY 96 TRAIL CHANGE Ms. Walsh explained the originally proposed trail along Highway 96. The commission expressed concerns regarding the trail becoming a striped shoulder from Highway 10 to the 35W bridge. Ms. Walsh then explained the proposal to move the Highway 96 trail to the south end of Round Lake and over the existing railroad bridge into New Brighton. The commission had a discussion about the positives of moving the trail off the heavy traffic areas and away from the 35W bridge. They had several concerns about putting pedestrians across 35W with free right turns and a single stop light. The commission preferred the new trail design and asked to be kept informed as progress continues with the plans and specifications. 1998 PARK FUND BUDGET eThe Commission members discussed the annuity plan to spend down the Park Fund money. Given the time lines for the 1998 budget process, the Commission and staff will probably start the 5-7 year annuity plan for the 1999 budget process. Megan Ricke made a motion which was seconded by Don Messerly and passed unanimously to the City Council that the 1998 Park Fund priorities include; trail expansion along County Road F if we are awarded the grant(if we are not awarded the grant, the Commission will reevaluate whether to recommend it for 1998 development or wait until 1999) and paving the trail access segments at Jerrold and Edgewater Avenues, and Katie Court. The replacement of a play structure at Cummings is also a priority, but Council member Keim stated that those types of replacements should start to be budgeted from the General Fund. The Commission would like to stay in the replacement program for one or two parks each year. If the General Fund will not support the replacement,the Park Fund should possibly continue to fund this project at Cummings Park. PARK FUND LONG RANGE PLANNING The discussion regarding long range planning occurred when Council member Keim gave the Council Report. Ms. Walsh was asked to do some research about the cost of paving hockey rink areas for in-line skating. She will also get some ideas about what other City's policies are involving Park Fund spending. 0 2 r DAY IN THE PARK Tracy Petersen passed around a sign up sheet for the various activities that need to be supervised for the June 7th event. DEPARTMENT REPORTS Program Report T-ball and softball programs will be starting when school gets out. The playground program has been modified at Arden Manor. There will be enough participants to hold a program. Director's Report Ms. Walsh talked about the letter from Tony Stolp regarding building a skate park at Floral Park. The Commission wants to explore paving one or possibly two hockey rinks in the City for in-line skating. The letter from Mike Rhein was also discussed. He wants a walking path around Lake Johanna. The Commission suggested encouraging the County to put in paved paths at Tony Schmidt Park. However, given the restrictions of the private property that surrounds the lake, it is not feasible to construct a path around the lake. Also, at this time, Lake Johanna Boulevard is a County Road. Ms. Walsh explained the proposed trail/sidewalk in the Gateway Business District. It may change somewhat depending in the Highway 96 trail. There was some discussion about snow plowing trails. Ms. Walsh has done a survey of other communities and how they clear their trails and walks. She explained that cities with a large number of trails do have specialized pieces of equipment for plowing. However, many cities use a plow or snow blower mounted on a bobcat or skid steer. Since the City already owns a skid steer and the park maintenance staff could do the clearing, the commission would like to have the trails and walks cleared during the winter. The City is spending a lot of money on trails that are only being used 7 months out of the year. A motion was made by Megan Ricke and seconded by Lynette Kreidler to recommend to the City Council to clear trails and walks using the skid steer(with a blade attached) using available staff. Discussion followed that the maintenance of the ice rinks should not suffer but that trails could be cleared when time allows. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 9:30 p.m. • 3 CITY OF ARDEN HILLS MEMORANDUM DATE: May 20, 1997 TO: Parks and Recreation Commission n FROM: Cindy S. Walsh, Parks and Recreation Director/ � SUBJECT: May Agenda Report lll�� Letter and Possible Presentation from Colleen Daub I have enclosed a copy of the letter from Colleen Daub. I talked with her last year about a similar request. She indicated that she may be in attendance at the meeting to talk further about her request. I have a couple of thoughts about her request for"quick growth" fir trees as a sound barrier. Research indicates that it takes 50 feet of dense spruce trees to cause enough of a reduction in noise to make the drop in noise level discernable to the human ear. We need a minimum of a 3 decibel change to hear the difference. As an example, the County and State do not put in sound walls along roadways unless they can create a 5 decibel change. Most sound walls do not make a change much more than 5-6 decibels. The trees she suggests will not create a sound barrier. It may beautify the area for her and others since they will not have to look at Snelling Avenue, but they will still hear the traffic. The area she wants planted along Hwy 51 (Snelling Avenue) is a State of Minnesota road right- of-way area. I suggest that she plant trees in her own yard or talk to the State. I do not advise that the City start planting tress along roadways because we would set a precedence for other areas. Possible Highway 96 Trail Change City staff has been exploring ways to make the pedestrian trail safer from Hwy 10 west to New Brighton. I will update the Commission on the proposed plan for rerouting the trail and the County's commitment to apply for an ISTEA bridge over Hwy 10. 1998 Park Fund Budget and Long Range Planning The City Council discussed the Park Fund at their work session on May 19. The consensus was to have the Parks and Recreation Commission come up with a plan to spend down the Park Fund on an annuity type situation. At some point in time, the General Fund (City taxes) would begin to fund the park and trail improvements. The Council understands that spending the interest of approximately $22,000 per year will not make any worthwhile improvements. Council member Keim will be present at the beginning of the meeting to explain and discuss this issue further. The commission should work on a plan over the next few months. • Day in the Park The activities have been confirmed and everything should be ready to go. Please remind your friends and neighbors about the celebration. Tracy will be talking to you about areas where we will need your help on the day of the event. Department Reports I will update you on various activities that are going on within our department. Please check your vacation schedules and decide when and if you intend to meet in June, July and August this year. Also included in your packet are two additional letters from residents. I would like to hear feedback from the Commission about their requests/ideas. Please call me at 633-5767 if you have any quesions before the meeting. 3 y � RTY-- � oc -fin ac - as becuti101`cQ.ti'oh Q�a� cZr eYly� ror� rn�r,-f�zl �7Jt 's O_ ,5C�77�ingly small ---- y �)�n t�� -t-h i s .sPri•r-�y , CG�u 1 a�. b�, _coU�,fer�� n ___ - --- --_ -- --Chc�YQc�-er_'-��-ale}t_�•l�_l-1s r_esi_oLer__f-s---c��'I'r�-�_a�. _ _ me cep n� CC P)e.fe -th S pr�l eet. - -- a 0N^j, 3-6-97 Mayor Dennis Probst City Hall 1450 West highway 96, Arden Hills, MN 55112 Dear Mayor Dennis Probst, My name is Tony Stolp. I am 13 and I am very active in many sports including aggressive roller skating. My friends and I are trying to see if it would be at all possible to have a skate park built at Floral Park in Arden Hills, MN. Floral has more than enough space to build a skate park. All we would require is a 30' by 40 foot of paved ground with a 1 foot high curb around it. We would supply every thing else. My friends and I would greatly appreciate if you were to consider my idea. I would like to here back from you. My address is 1398 Indian Oaks Ct. Arden Hills, MN 55112. Sincerely, Tony olp o {' F-ob --�h-e a �5V-iw,( d nj+ hqH shoald be- k6 I-t- n -ih �, Clot dI 8) r) -C) - Public J �"0(3 ( ks -��)-C*( h+(/ S:hw�icA b�-., �bc, H- jk, 00d kcK no _ VJ eke " o rs - c ti'' �1 C ��1��--. T r) �G�r�'k �1�{" �j r G n�Yl C i S _6us K �e &n � 4 6 t d sil? it Ir cl L6ke _ J-q J`)� va -nn1 - z . �