10/01/2001 Park Board Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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Sue Walseth 4 • With hindsight, the city should have purchased the land in 1994, when the Whitcomb's were "pushing" the city to buy their land. Now because of extended city delays, the Whitcomb's have reversed their decision. • Regarding the 7/30/01, Park Board meeting "minutes" (page 5) - - -it stated that " staff did not feel comfortable in identifying possible land value impact on the remaining property." • The land needed for the park access is wetland, and not buildable. Hokanson Development intentionally didn't include that portion, as part of his land purchase in 1994 — in fact the border on the northwest portion of Trappers' Crossing (where this park access is located) is intentionally cut off diagonally to eliminate the worthless wetland there. • This park access is land - locked and will never have access to any road. Because of this parcel's location and topography, there is no negative impact on the other 20 acres, which is part of the same extensive wetland. The majority of the 20 acres is wetland. It is not in MUSA and zoned rural. The park access is part of a triangular wetland peninsula that sticks out from the main 20 acres. • The Whitcomb's no longer live in Lino Lakes, and have NEVER used this portion of their property for anything, because it was too wet for farming and too swampy for cattle grazing — in all the years they have owned it. This property was not adjoined to their prior homestead on Holly Drive. Lino Lakes has been willing to condemn other properties in Lino Lakes that are direct parts of residents' homesteads, so why is there hesitation in this case? • I have lived on Holly Drive for the past 17 years. In all these years, experiencing different weather conditions, involving excessively wet or dry winters and summers — I have never ever seen as much water in that 20 -acre parcel as was present this spring — it was literally a lake where you could canoe between the trees. I believe it has been due to the water runoff from all the residential developments along the County Ditch from the Birch Street area and Trappers' Crossing and Gemini Estates. This higher water table makes the 20 -acre parcel even less attractive for development. • In regards to a resident survey being required, regarding the park access: When Trappers' Crossing was platted in 1994, there was always a trail access drawn between homes on the north cul -de -sac of Trappers' Crossing. So before a single home or road was even built in that area, all affected residents should have been legally informed of the trail, when the property was purchased, prior to closing on their homes. Both adjoining property owners to the trail corridor support the trail — along with most of the other occupants in Trappers' Crossing — who signed the park trail petition. • There are valid safety issues concerning the lack of a park: o Presently, if you drive around Trappers' Crossing and Gemini Estates you will see all the children playing in the streets, because there are no parks in the area. o Some children have balanced primitive narrow boards across the wetland area and county ditch, to have a makeshift access to the park. The city has no control over this, because the boards could be removed by the city, but how long before other replacement boards are reinstalled? o Birch Park is so visibly close to both Gemini Estates and Trappers' Crossing. In the winter, the floodlights from the hockey rink, light up all the yards of the properties on that north end of these developments. It can be easily seen — but yet "is so far away, and inaccessible, except by driving a car over a mile on surrounding roads, to reach it. 12`h Avenue and Holly Drive are too narrow and unsafe for riding bikes, because they have