HomeMy WebLinkAbout01-06 CITY OF LAKEVILLE
PARKS AND RECREATION ADVISORY COMMITTEE MINUTES
JANUARY 6, 1993
ITEM 1. -Call to order.
The meeting was called to order at 7:00 PM by Chairman Illa.
ITEM 2. -Roll call.
Present were H. Lovelace, L. Lulf, J. Larson, K. Ilia, G. Grenz P.
Messinger and A. Raymond. Also present were Park Director Steve Mic~iaud
and Recording Secretary Judl Ryan.
ITEM 3. -Minutes of December 16, 1992.
The minutes of the December 16, 1992 Parks and Recreation Advisory
Committee meeting were approved as printed.
ITEM 4. -Presentation of Community Service Award to Ms. Linda
Grublesky on behalf of the Grayslake, Illinois Community Park District.
Committee Chair Illa called Linda Grublesky and her husband Steve to the
podium and introduced them to the committee. Mayor Duane Zaun was also
in attendance to assist with the presentation and commended Ms. Grublesky
on this significant accomplishment. Chairman Illa stated that volunteers
are the cornerstone of what communities are built on and that Grayslake
and the Illinois Park Association were obviously very appreciative of her
contributions. Park Director Steve Michaud stated that having just
• completed a year as president of the MRPA he understood the importance of
volunteerism and the significance of the award. Committee members
applauded her accomplishments and invited her to become involved with the
City of Lakeville.
ITEM 5. -Citizen comments.
Craig Wilson, 17811 Lake Cove Circle, stated his concerns about the
lack of parks on the west side of I-35. He stated there are currentl
over 100 homes in the Lake Villa neighborhood with two more phases of 3~
and 40 homes to be built soon. He is also disappointed with the lack of
trailways which would connect their neighborhood to park facilities in
other parts of the city. Staff mentioned that there are several acres of
park land on the west side of I-35 including Ritter Farm Park, Orchard
Lake Park, Orchard Lake Beach and Wayside Park. He also stated that he
and the committee recognize the need for facilities and trails in the
area such as the need for a trail connection to Orchard Lake. These
needs have been addressed in the recently updated Parks and Open Space
System Plan.
Mr. Wilson also asked about the West Park propert Staff explained that
several years ago the City was close to acquiring West Park but the issue
became tied up m the courts. Most park pro erty is acquired through
park, dedication; not often is land purchasedp outri ht. There is a
possibility of a park bond referendum being held in 193, however there
are several areas of need including athletic facilities. Meetings
concerning future needs have been held with school officials and
Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee Minutes
• Januaryy 6, 1993
Page -Z-
representatives of the athletic associations to determine what
facilities will need to be built to keep up with the growing demands.
Staff also stated that geographic features on the west side of I-35 are
not conducive to park land with heavily wooded areas, numerous wetlands
and steep topography. A, tot lot is being planned in the Brackett's
Townhomes area. A trail is being planned through the Brackett's
Townhome development which will connect to Orchard Lake area park
facilities. Staff also stated that when 185th Street is urbanized to
the west it will include trails across the freeway. City staff fought
for trails during the upgrade of Judicial Road but encountered
opposition from the neighbors of the Orchard Lake area.
Staff explained that the cost of property along the freeway .has become
very expensive and it is hopped thatproperty can be acquired through
park dedication. It is doubtful that funding would be available for the
outright purchase of property. Mr. Wilson feels that with the amount of
money which has been donated through park dedication with Lake Villa and
Brackett's Crossing, that .the residents deserve at least a connection to
the Orchard Lake facilities. Staff explained that there is a meeting
scheduled with staff and officials from Hennepin Parks concerning a
possible trail through Murphy-Hanrehan Park.
• Illa suggested a letter be written to Hennepin Parks by the citizens to
voice their concerns and needs. Larson had attended a point meeting on
the issue and suggested, that citizens be present at council meetings
when their issues are discussed. Staff feels the trail is essential and
will work hard to get this connection approved. Fees from Brackett's
Townhomes should provide enough funds to complete the proposed trail
connection and some park and land development. Staff also explained
that park dedication fees are not always used for the neighborhoods from
which they are collected but are also used for community parks,
benefitting the entire community.
ITEM 6. -Staff reports.
Staff ex lamed the volatile situation which occurred on Christmas Eve
at the ~blic Works maintenance building when the Ford 4000 tractor
burned while inside the building. The tractor apparently smouldered and
eventually burned itself out, but not before the building suffered
extensive smoke damage. Staff was thankful that the tractor was these
powered, a fuel which is not explosive. This fact probably saved the
rest of the building from severe damage.
The rinks are continuing to be flooded, weather permitting. Shelli
Morgan is doing a good fob filling in for Renee part time while she is
on maternity leave. The maintenance crew is groomin trails at Ritter
Farm Park as well as the trails in Eagan as .part o~ the equipment
exchange program. Lakeville charges Eagan a nominal hourly rate.
Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee Minutes
• Januaryy 6, 1993
Page -3-
The ISTEA combined grant with MnDot and Dakota County for installation
of a trail as part of the Highwa 50 upgrade program did not rank high
enough to be funded. Lyynn Myoratzka of Dakota County Planning, the
grants author, will be doin some research on how the grants were
ranked. Dakota County did receive an ISTEA grant in the "unique"
category for kiosks and signage on their trail system.
Illa mentioned the transformation at Ritter Farm Park. The building is
now sheetrocked and insulated. The STS crew has been of tremendous help
in accomplishing the work on the duplex.
NSP is bringing in ower to the buildingg at Aronson Park now that the
poles are erected. ~he main panel is sYll on back-order but should be
delivered in the next few weeks.
Staff has been attempting to get power relocated for the aeration system
at its new location on the south side of the lake. He is working with
the DNR and NSP to get power to the site. Staff will keep the committee
informed of the progress.
ITEM 7. -Review updated 1993 Park Dedication Fund priority listing.
Staff informed the committee that Council has set a work session for
Saturday, January 30th and the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee
• is schedule to meet with them for one hour at 8:30 AM.
Staff is workingg on determining the park dedication fund carry-over
balance from 19y2 and has examined documents and expenditures for 1992
to determine account balances. In 1992 there were about 615 platted
lots. Several were categorized as replats. Some of those eligible lots
were charged a lower rate per previous development agreements. Even
with the amount of park dedication fees collected, there will be a need
to look for alternate funding sources considering the amount of projects
which are listed on the prioritized sheet. Costs for playground
installation have increased dramatically with the passage of the
American Disabilities Act (ADA) and there are several other projects for
which funds have been committed. The Park Dept. was fortunate to
receive funding from equipment certificates to assist with the Aronson
Park field lighting project.
Staff mentioned other commitments which have been made for park
dedication funds including purchase of property for the new high school,
testing at the Quigle -Same property, Aronson field lighting, materials
for upgrade at Ritter arm Park, share cost of the water tanker with the
street department and improved turf establishment at several locations.
Three separate lists will be formulated: park dedication projects,
possible bond referendum projects, and existing 1993 commitments.
Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee Minutes
• Januaryy 6, 1993
Page -4-
Staff discussed several of the projects on the priority list with the
committee. Illa mentioned that the Antlers Park restroom renovation
needs to be moved to a higher priority. Staff also mentioned that
several of the projects on the list are 1993 commitments. There will be
a citizen survey done shortly and one of the questions is whether
citizens support the purchase of property for future needs or the
development of land which is already owned. Another concept is to
include funds m the referendum for purchase of unspecified park land in
order to have funds available when appropriate property becomes
available.
Messinger feels a high priority is the planting of. trees on an annual
basis. She also agrees with moving the renovation of Antlers Park
restrooms to a higher level of priority.. Messinger stated she can't
justify putting a large amount of park dedication funds into development
of the Quigley-Sime pro erty as there are many upgrades and repairs
which have been needed ~or some time, such as renovation of the Bunker
Hill tennis courts.
Grenz would like to see a contracted permanent concession stand at
Antlers and renovation of the building to accommodate that. He also
suggested expansion of the Aronson Park restrooms. Staff mentioned the
.limited lift station cappabilities at Aronson and also that if restrooms
were designed into tfie development of Quigley-Sime, this would be
beneficial on tournament weekends.
It has been suggested that the City ppa the estimated $90,000 for
flooring at the proposed ice arena. ~ta~f and committee agreed that
this would be a more appropriate use of park dedication funds rather
than bond referendum funds.
Committee member Raymond had discussed the shortage of ballfields with a
citizen who had attended the December 16th Parks and Recreation
meeting. The citizen was quite adamant that a youth ballfield complex
is needed in the City and a group is considering purchasing a 20-acre
site south of Lakeville. Messinger gave some possible scenarios for
land purchases and development of an exclusive youth baseball complex.
She also supports this idea.
The concept of school/city coordination on school owned ballfield
maintenance was discussed at a meeting with school officials and will
continue to be negotiated. A decision will need to be made on the
Zweber property whether to purchase. it outright or wait for
acquisition through the platting process. This piece of property is now
within the MUSA boundaries and is not affected by the moratorium.
Grenz sug ested that funds will need to be available to align the
entrance to~alley Lake Park with Galaxy Avenue at the time that County
• Road 46 is upgraded along this stretch. Several committee members
Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee Minutes
• January 6, 1993
Page -5-
questioned whether this is the best plan for that area because of the
increased traffic it would create throwgh the park.. Access to Valley
Lake Park will be determined during final master planning.
Illa commented that the completion of turf establishment at Casperson
Park was essential.
Larson commented that the North Park trail expenditure should be part of
the trail fund, not the park dedication fund. He also felt that
adequate suns and fencing at Antlers Park has been a problem and needs
a higher priority listing.
Messinger stated there are some problems with snowmobiles on the
sidewalks in Valley Park and at Parkview Park. There have also been
some problems at Antlers Park with people going across the grass to get
on the lake. Several boulders have been placed in strategic areas as a
deterrent.
Lulf supports the development of the Quigley-Sime ballfield complex.
Staff stated the development of that complex will not handle the
~rojected growth in the community and additional baseball and softball
fields will still be needed.
i Lovelace also mentioned that the parents . ma not be so enthusiastic
about drivin their children to an athletic ~acility located south of
County Road~0.
ITEM 8. -Review State Outdoor Recreation Public Advisory Committee
report.
Staff and committee reviewed the issues involved in this report which
mostly involved state and regional park systems. The main issues
included the infrastructures of the state parks, and maintenance and
operations for the regional level parks. Committee asked staff to
respond with a letter thanking ORPAC for including the committee in the
survey.
ITEM 9. -Unfinished business.
a.) Election of 1993 Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee officers.
The following officers were elected b written ballot: Kevin Illa,
Chair; Pat Messinger, Vice Chair; and JeffyLarson, Secretary.
Also under unfinished business, staff informed the committee that there
would be a public hearing at the Planning Commission meeting of January
?th to discuss the Park and O~?en Space System Plan update and make a
recommendation to Council. The plan will then be brought to the Council
at their meeting on January 19th, then on to the Metropolitan Council.
ITEM 10. -New business.
• Ace Raymond informed staff that he would not be available to attend the
Council work session on January 30th as he would be out of town,
Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee Minutes
Januarryy 6, 1993
Page -b-
Also under new business, Larson stated. that he considers the volleyball
standards at McGuire Junior High to be potentially. dangerous because of
the design of the handle used to tighten the nets which sticks out of
the side of the standard. Staff will have John Hoger take a look at the
system to see if any improvements can be made.
ITEM 11. -Announcements.
The next meeting of the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee is
scheduled for Wednesday, January 20, 1993, 7:00 PM at the Lakeville City
Hall Council Chambers.
ITEM 12. -Adjourn.
There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned.
Respectfully submitted,
Jud yan, Re rding Secretary
l~ ` ~
Kevin Ilia, Chair
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