Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout07-20 CITY OF LAKEVILLE PARKS AND RECREATION ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING JULY 20, 1994 ITEM #1 Call to order. The meeting was called to order by Chairperson Illa at 7:00 PM. ITEM #2 Roll call. Present were H. Lovelace, C. Warless-Sobel, L. Lulf, K. Illa, A. Raymond and G. Grenz. Committee member Messinger was absent. Also present were Park Director Steve Michaud, Linda Kleinschmidt of Barton-Aschman Associates, recording secretary Judi Ryan, and several citizens. ITEM #3 Minutes of June 15, 1994. The minutes of the June 15, 1994 Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee meeting were discussed. There were no additions or corrections and the minutes were approved as printed. Chairman Illa suggested that Item 8 be moved forward on the agenda to accommodate the citizens who were present. ITEM #8 Review and discuss Golden Pond preliminary plat and make park and trail dedication recommendation to City Council. Warren Israelson of Progress Land Company, Inc. was present to answer questions from neighboring residents and committee members concerning Golden Pond preliminary plat. The Golden Pond subdivision is located on the southeast quadrant of the Dodd Blvd. and 210th Street intersection. The plat consists of 108 single family residential lots on approximately 63 acres. Staff explained that there currently are no park search areas in this plat, however, 210th Street is a designated MPTW and a major collector. Staff's recommendation was to ask for a cash contribution for parks and trails, plus an escrow of funds from the developer of 5/8 share cost to construct trails along 210th Street at such time that the street is upgraded to urban section. • Citizens were concerned about how much land is taken in order to put MPTW's on both sides of a major collector. Staff explained that the right-of--way may be Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee Minutes July 20, 1994 up to 100' but no additional land is taken for trails since the trails fit into the right-of--way. Staff explained which classifications of roadways receive which types of trails single, both sides, or sidewalks to serve residents. Mr. Israelson stated that Hummingbird Ave. is a potential minor collector which will loop back to Dodd Blvd. but will not access Co. Rd. 70. Chairperson Illa asked if the trees on the south side of the plat are included in the tree preservation plan. Mr. Israelson stated they are mostly box elders but possibly only one tree will be lost. The spruce trees which have been raised in the area by the Emond family will be transplanted into berms throughout the development. Committee member Grenz asked about the ponding area. A stormwater ponding area will be built along the plat's east boundary. Grenz suggested the possibility of a walking trail around the pond. Mr. Israelson stated that the pond is very close to the railroad property and there is probably not enough room to construct a trail. Staff also felt a trail that close to the railroad would not be advisable. ~.23 Motion was made by Raymond, seconded by Lulf, to recommend City Council approve the preliminary plat of Golden Pond and accept a cash contribution to satisfy the park and trail dedication requirements. In addition the developer should escrow funds to be used for future construction of MPTW's. Staff stated that he had studied the area for a park search area and sees a need for a future park somewhere north or south of this plat, even though there is no mention of it at this time in the Park and Open Space System Plan. Terrace Park and Jaycee Park will not meet neighborhood park needs as areas develop west and south of downtown. Citizens present stated that an unsafe situation would be created with children walking and riding their bikes along the shoulder of 210th Street. They wondered if there could be a safer access to 210th Street for pedestrian and bike traffic out of the plat. Committee member Lulf suggested a temporary easement from the cul-de-sac to 210th St. near the railroad crossing. Staff asked Warren Israelson if • he would consider installing that temporary easement. Mr. Israelson said he would not be in favor of that because it would be detrimental to those particular Page 2 Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee Minutes July 20, 1994 • lots. Another location was suggested along the north/south property line of Lot 1 on the west side, which Mr. Israelson felt was a less intrusive site. There was discussion as to whether the trail easement should be temporary or permanent. An amendment was suggested to the motion which was on the floor to further state a contingency for the trail easement through the cul-de-sac. Raymond added to the motion the need for a permanent or temporary trail easement, to be a minimum of six feet wide, the location of which will be determined by staff. Motion passed. Staff thanked the citizens for their concerns and suggestion. ITEM #7 Review and discuss Beachside preliminary and final plat and make park and .trail recommendations to City Council. This plat consists of seven single family residential lots on land located on the • west side of Judicial Road, north of 175th Street, southwest of Orchard Lake Beach. The Beachside plat involves the replatting of portions of two outlots and small portions of platted lots in the old Liberty Heights subdivision. Due to the cancellation of the July 6, 1994 meeting, the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee did not act upon this plat prior to City Council approval. There are no sidewalks planned for the plat, but the possibility exists for future sidewalks on the east side of Judicial Road to the public beach. Chairperson Illa stated that a good job had been done with the tree preservation plan for this plat. 94.24 Motion was made by Grenz, seconded by Raymond, to recommend City Council approve the preliminary and final plat of Beachside and accept a cash contribution to satisfy the park and trail dedication requirements. Motion passed. ITEM #6 -Ritter Farm Park master plan update review and development of preliminary recommendation for City Council review. Linda Kleinschmidt of Barton-Aschman was present to receive committee comments on the draft of the Ritter Farm Park master plan. Ms. Kleinschmidt has been working with Barry Warner and has attended staff meetings concerning the Page 3 Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee Minutes July 20, 1994 • document. Barton-Aschman is currentl workin on a matrix to com are Ritter Y g P Farm Park with similar parks in the region which may offer comparable facilities, such as equestrian trails, mountain biking and snowmobiling. The committee needs to make a recommendation on a mission statement, clarifying the long term purpose and uses of the park. A historical perspective will also be included in the final report. Development policies over the years have allowed the park to accommodate different uses. Staff feels the City has been a good caretaker of the park and the ecology and asked the committee for their opinions of the alternatives which were stated in Barry Warner's original draft of the park plan. What do they envision Ritter Farm Park to be in five, ten or 15 years? Except for the archery range and trail system, most of the park activity is centered around the 15-acre homestead area. Chairperson Illa stated that he likes the way the park is currently used --making resources available to local school children and providing a nature area for citizens. He stressed that he does not want to discourage use of Ritter Park's natural resources by the schools. He also stated that even though there are similar facilities in nearby parks outside of Lakeville, that should not exclude those activities at Ritter Farm Park. He would like to explore the possibility of mountain biking being allowed. Committee member Grenz felt that each activity in the park should be looked at individually with a determination of whether it would be an allowed use partially based on the number of participants for that particular use. Grenz would like to focus the park use on the needs and requests of Lakeville residents. Committee member Lulf asked what the response would be to requests in the future by other sporting enthusiasts. Lulf likes the idea of status quo as he feels it serves many citizens with a wide variety of passive uses. He also stated he would like to have an estimate of the impact of mountain biking on natural resources included in the final report. Staff feels that if a mountain bike trail is opened up at Ritter Farm Park, the impact would be great. Several issues would need to be addressed such as what • groups would be using it, who would pay for the maintenance and signage, how Page 4 Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee Minutes July 20, 1994 would mountain bikers co-mingle with other users, and what would be the long term impact. Grenz suggested that the same number of riders could be expected as what frequents Lebanon Hills or Murphy Hanrehan. Illa stated he does not want to exclude the possibility of such a trail before all the data is collected. Committee member Warless-Sobel stated she is not in favor of mountain biking because she does not feel it co-exists well with hikers or equestrians. She would like to see more emphasis placed on environmental uses. She assumes that equestrian trails may not be a suitable use in the future and will most likely be eliminated for resource preservation reasons. Committee member Lovelace suggested a college student, perhaps a biology major, could live at the park and prepare some reports on the present ecosystem as well as provide some security for the park. Ilia stated that schools do not create adverse conditions for the park and the area should be available to them. Staff agreed and stated the present status of the ELC seems to be working well it is simple, unobtrusive and inexpensive. There is also fundmg m the bond referendum for a plcmc shelter which will be a good addition to the park. The cistern building seems to be in fairly good condition. As the population grows, a higher demand will be placed on the park and it was suggested that additional space may be needed at the ELC. Staff stated that no formal survey on number of users has been done, however the park seems to have constant use. ITEM #5 Staff reports. Staff reported that the ice arena is ahead of schedule. The refrigeration system is ready to be installed; the color schemes are being finalized this week; the hockey association will pay for completion of the walls in the changing rooms; the alarm/sprinkler systems and overhead doors are being installed. Illa asked how the Pan-O-Frog events went, especially the 150-team soccer tournament. Staff stated there was some overuse to the goalie areas which may be sodded this fall, but the rest of the fields withstood the intensity very well. The Pan-O-Frog car show at Antlers Park also went very well, with no adverse impact on the park. This seems to be a very good area for this event. Page 5 Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee Minutes July 20, 1994 • ITEM #9 Unfinished business. Committee member Lovelace asked about the drainage over the trail on 168th Street. The Street Superintendent and Park Director have looked at the situation and discussed possible solutions. A drain the company representative will be looking at the area tomorrow and will make some suggestions for a permanent way to resolve the matter. Grenz also mentioned that the silt fence on 160th and Grove Trail has failed to prevent mud from coming on the trail. Committee members discussed the memo from the Recreation Supervisor concerning keeping the beaches open later. In previous years there have been substantial savings due to rain days, but because the weather has been so good this year, the full budgeted amount will most likely be used. When it gets extremely hot, there are a few complaints and staff would like the lifeguards to have the option to stay open an extra hour if there are a lot of people still wishing to swim. Committee members stated they would like the guards to have more flexibility to make that decision if circumstances warrant. Committee member Raymond stated he would not be at the next meeting but would like to go on record saying that he wants the guards to be able to make that decision. Staff suggested that the discussion be continued with Recreation Supervisor Renee Brekken at the next meeting. This issue will also be considered during the 1995-96 budget meetings now underway. Committee members asked about what park improvements would be made in conjunction with the mediated settlement of the gravel mining dispute. Staff will provide members with a copy of the agreement with the City of Apple Valley. ITEM #10 New business. A meeting has been scheduled with City Attorney Jim Walston, City Administrator Bob Erickson and Finance Director Dennis Feller to discuss implementation of the upcoming bond referendum projects. ITEM #11-- Announcements. The next meeting of the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee is scheduled for August 3, 1994. Page 6 Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee Minutes July 20, 1994 ITEM #12 Ad~ournment. The meeting adjourned at 9:00 PM. Respectfully submitted, ~~1 Ju 'th A. Ryan, Recor g Secretary ATTEST:. Kevm Illa, Chairperson jr Page 7