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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-17 CITY OF LAKEVILLE PARKS, RECREATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES COMMITTEE November 17, 2004 ITEM #1. Call to order. The meeting was called to order in the Council Chambers at City Hall at 6:00 PM. ITEM #2. Roll call. Present were Committee Members J. Berg, R. Boldus, J. Volimas and H. Lovelace. Also present were Parks and Recreation Director Steve Michaud and Recording Secretary Pat Vinje. Special guests attending included members of the Economic Development Commission: Robert Brantly, Jack Matasosky and Barry Pogatchnik. Unable to attend were P. Messinger and T. Goodwin. ITEM #3. Approval of Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Committee meeting minutes of November 3, 2004. The minutes of the November 3, 2004 Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Committee meeting were presented. The minutes were approved as written. ITEM #4. Citizen Comments. There were no citizens present at the meeting for items other than what is scheduled on the agenda. ITEM#6. Continued discussion regarding park dedication fees. Parks and Recreation Director Steve Michaud introduced members present from the Economic Development Commission including Robert Brantley, Jack Matasosky and Barry Pogatchnik. The discussion of the park dedication ordinance focused on the commercial and industrial fees. Staff referred to the outline indicating the park dedication fees for commercial and industrial plats had not been increased since December 2000. Since that time, land prices have increased dramatically. State statute allows for up to 10% of land or land value for park dedication. City Attorney Roger Knutson has recommended the City base their park dedication ordinance on land values. EDC Member Brantly asked how the needs for parks are currently being met. Staff responded in addition to park dedication fees, the park bond referendums of 1984 ($1.8 million) and 1994 ($3.8 million) in addition to grant funding have assisted with meeting park development needs. One additional athletic complex is identified in the Lakeville Park and Open Space System Plan. However, with the construction of a second high school, which was not anticipated when the City updated the last park system plan in 2000, an additional athletic complex may not be needed. Staff will need to watch demographic trends to determine future needs associated with major youth athletic associations. Annually, the City park dedication fund expends about $1 million per year within the park system. Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Committee Page 2 November 17, 2004 The fund is struggling to maintain a balance as new parks are added to the system. In addition, certain facilities within the system are 20-30 years old. The Antlers Park building (28 years old) and Aronson Park building (30 years old) will need upgrades and/or replacement in the near future. In addition to replacing older buildings, the City has started a playground replacement plan. This is being funded by the park dedication fund. It may be proper to transfer these replacements to the general fund major maintenance category. New neighborhood parks such as Prairie Lake, Village Creek and Chadwick Farm may cost $500,000 to 800,000 each to develop. When a park is dedicated in lieu of cash, available funds in the park dedication fund may take a couple of years to recover enough to afford the next major park development. The purpose of the park dedication fund is to provide funds for new development and provide new parks to service the recreational needs of new residents. EDC Member Matasosky stated there should be a good plan in place instituting a process or sharing information about the issues. The business community will want to know why the fees are being raised. The Economic Development Commission encourages on-going communication. Staff stated prior to 2002-2003, the formula used to increase park dedication fees was based on the consumer price index and the construction cost index. In 2003, the Parks, Recreation and Natural resources Committee and City Council approved establishing a base land value per acre. The base land value was then used to calculate the per dwelling unit cost for new developments. The 2003 per acre land value was $50,000. The 2004 per acre land value was increased to $56,000. At present, there are several land sales ranging between $80,000 and $125,000 per acre. The change to a per acre land value base to determine park dedication fees was recommended by our attorney in order to be more in line with state statutes. Member Matasosky indicated the Industrial business owners do not see any return on investment from park dedication fees. Minnesota has the most expensive development fees in the 5-state area. The commercial park dedication fee needs to incorporate charges for parks, engineering and the corridor design study to legitimize the fee. It was mentioned commercial and industrial businesses do impact a community?s parks and recreation program and facilities through participation in adult sports teams and through company picnics at our community parks. Committee Chair Berg asked for clarification regarding the importance of assessing fees to the developer. Staff answered the residents of Lakeville value the community parks, athletic complexes, neighborhood parks and most importantly the trail system. City biannual surveys consistently show parks and trails rated very high with Lakeville residents. There are many future parks and a Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Committee Page 3 November 17, 2004 comprehensive parks system vision that will need continued funding through park dedication fees well into the future. An additional bond referendum may be needed. Lakeville must continue to support this type of funding or develop alternative resources to meet the needs of a fast growing community. The last comprehensive park and open space system plan was updated in 2000. Updates are recommended every five years. Due to the tremendous growth in Lakeville, staff will be recommending the system plan be updated in 2005. EDC member Matasosky stated there needs to be a clear understanding of the future park system vision. The cost should be based on the people coming in to the city. It is a system of paying for what you?re getting. Whatever the price is, they will pay it. Development will still come to Lakeville. Staff added the new residents and businesses coming to Lakeville are creating the demand for services. The cost per unit in new development pays for parks in new areas plus contributes to community facilities such as North, King, Ritter, Antlers Park and the community wide trail system. Fees need to be raised to keep pace with the escalating cost of land and associated development. EDC member Brantly commented he wants Lakeville to be a leader in every way. It is agreed the fees should come from the newcomers to Lakeville. It is necessary to prove to the existing residents that the park dedication fees are not being paid by existing residents but rather by new development. Staff spoke of recent park developments including Village Creek and Prairie Lake. Residents living near these parks are very happy and feel they are getting good value for the cost and the parks are serving their needs. EDC member Matasosky stated house values will continue to rise. EDC member Brantly added the park system plan should be updated and the fees perceived as reasonable. It is important to continue Lakeville?s reputation for excellence. EDC member Matasosky indicated it is important to know the plan for the future. Reasonable fees are advised. The discussion concluded and staff and the committee thanked the members of the Economic Development Commission for their insight into the commercial park dedication fee review. Staff will keep the Economic Development Commission updated as the review process continues. Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Committee Page 4 November 17, 2004 ITEM #5. Staff reports and summary of current projects. The DNR grant awarded to the Sno-Trackers snowmobile club for the purchase of a new groomer has been delayed. The process between the State and Federal government agencies has not been completed. ITEM #7. RST Addition preliminary and final plat. Within the Chadwick Farm plat, a 60-foot wide by 240-foot long remnant parcel was split off from the final plat. The developer, D R Horton, has worked with the adjoining neighborhood to split this remnant parcel and combine half with each of the adjoining neighbors. There is no park dedication requirement as a result of this platting. All park dedication requirements previously have been satisfied by the Chadwick Farm plat. 04.49 Motion by Boldus and seconded by Lovelace to recommend City Council consider approval of RST Addition preliminary and final plat. The park dedication requirement was previously met with the Chadwick Farms plat. In addition, the developer is required to follow the natural resources requirement detailed in the Planning and Engineering reports associated with tree preservation, grading, drainage and erosion control and further recommendations by the Dakota County Soil and Water Conservation District, if applicable. Ayes ? 4 Nays ? 0 Motion passed. ITEM #8. Unfinished business. There was no unfinished business to report at this time. ITEM #9. New business. Chair Berg requested the gravel excavation issue at the entrance to Ritter Farm Park adjacent the freeway be added to the next agenda. Staff informed the committee representatives of the Brandjten Farm development would be in attendance at the December 15 meeting. ITEM #10. Announcements. The next meeting of the Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Committee is scheduled for Wednesday, December 1, 2004 at 6:00 PM at City Hall. ITEM #11. Adjournment. The meeting adjourned at 7:02 PM. Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Committee Page 5 November 17, 2004 Respectfully submitted, _____________________________________ Patricia J. Vinje, Recording Secretary ATTEST: _____________________________________ John Berg, Chair