10-10-07 Parks Commission Minutes

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MINUTES CITY COUNCIL OCTOBER 10, 2007 about the surface of the hockey rink, which is currently grass. The Director indicated that a concrete surface would be installed. Allan asked about St. Paul Water Department's reaction to the skateboard park. The Director noted that St. Paul Water has two 90-inch conduits through this property, one of which is at the edge of the hockey boards. These pipes are buried about 7 feet down, and a representative of St. Paul Water did not feel that installing a concrete pad in the hockey rink would be a problem. If the water mains have to be dug up for some reason, the City's concrete surface is at risk. It was noted that these mains have not been dug up in over 35 years, and St. Paul Water has been doing a lot of sealing of their mains from the inside. The Director indicated that the City will have to go through a formal process with St. Paul Water for approval to install the concrete base in the hockey rink area. The biggest concern is the impact to the watermain when large equipment is in the area for installation of the concrete pad. Keis asked the proposed hours of operation for the skateboard park. The Director noted that the park would not be supervised. Therefore, hours are from dawn to dusk as is provided by ordinance for all the City's park facilities. Allan asked the cost. Bach estimated in the area of $80,000 with an additional $20,000 for the concrete pad. Blesener asked if flooding the rink would be problematic given the concrete pad. The Director indicated that it should not be a problem. Keis asked if there have been issues of keeping control in skateboard parks. Bach reported that there have been few issues in other cities, and the key is to have appropriate signage and an active police department. It was also noted that the hockey rink area is very visible from Little Canada Road. Bach reported that the City of Andover did, however, remove their skateboard park because they could not keep up with the mischief that was occurring. However, this area is very visible, and the equipment is such that someone could not hide behind or under it. The Director reported that the users will police themselves to some degree. He noted that it was his intention to meet with some of the skateboarders in Little Canada to get them involved in the design of the project. Blesener asked if four foot high equipment will be enough to challenge a 17 year old. Bach reported that it would.