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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12-02-2020 Park Board MinutesAPPROVED MINUTES CITY OF LINO LAKES PARK BOARD MINUTES (VIRTUAL MEETING) 1. CALL TO ORDER AND ROLL CALL: Chair Huelman called the Lino Lakes Park Board meeting to order at 6:34 p.m. on December 2, 2020. 2. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE 3. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Rick DeGardner, Director of Public Services, added an agenda item to the New Business section regarding the walking trails at Birch Street and Centerville Road. 4. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Clark Gooder made a MOTION to approve the October 2, 2020 meeting minutes. Motion was supported by John Nordlund. Motion carried 6 - 0. 5. OPEN MIKE Resident Stacy Joyer, who lives off White Oak Road, inquired about current park plans and if COVID has changed anything. She wanted to know about park updates, timelines, and what is in place to keep people safe. She stated that there is a little park off White Oak Lane and would like to know when the equipment for that park is set to be replaced/updated etc. Chair Pat Huelman informed her that the Park Board is working towards developing a large overview of all the parks and looking at long term goals for the park system. He stated that the Public Services Department has put together a comprehensive spreadsheet that lists out each park and the amenities and the life expectancy of each and where each park is at. DATE: December 2, 2020 TIME STARTED: 6:34 P.M. TIME ENDED: 8:21 P.M. MEMBERS PRESENT: Patrick Huelman (Chair), John Nordlund, Clark Gooder, Abby Haworth, Richard Jensen, William Kusterman STAFF PRESENT: Rick DeGardner, Janele Waterman Park Board December 2, 2020 Page 2 APPROVED MINUTES Rick DeGardner, Public Services Director, stated that the playground equipment at Brandywood Park was installed in 2000. He went on to state that there are about 16 playgrounds in the City of Lino Lakes that are 20+ years old. The Park Board continues to try to address this issue along with the City Council. He stated that the funds for these improvements primarily come out of the Park & Trails fund. He stated that the City Council has been very supportive working to update and replace the parks and trails. The Park Board will be working tonight towards their recommendations to present to the Council and then funds will need to be secured for the projects. DeGardner stated he will keep Stacy updated on any developments going on at her park. 6. DETERMINE 2021 RECOMMENDATIONS TO CITY COUNCIL Chair Pat Huelman started by giving a bit of background. He stated that when a new development comes in the City receives funds that go into the Park Dedication Fund. The funds are then used to help build or upkeep a park and trail system that serves the community (it might not be in that neighborhood but close to where residents of the neighborhood can access it). As the park system grew the City ended up with a park and trail system that they did not have on going funds dedicated for replacement and maintenance in the City budget for a “Capital Type” project. In 2018 the Park Board was asked to develop an assessment as a guide for projects that needed to be done and the City Council worked to help dedicate some funds to go towards those projects. There are a few things left on the list that they haven’t been able to do due to time and funding. For instance Lino Park needs a new playground and shelter which is on the agenda tonight. The Apollo drive trail became more expensive and complicated due to land acquisition and the fact the road needs to be redone. Due to all of that the Apollo Drive Trail will need to be tabled for now. He stated that the Park Board recognizes that the city needs more hard surfaces such as pickle ball, 4-square, etc. The Park Board has identified some parks where this could work (parking, space, etc.) so that is something the Park Board is looking into. Rick DeGardner, Public Services Director, gave a quick introduction to the Park Board regarding the Park Board Packet that was sent to them and the items included in it. He stated that each year the Park Board recommends parks and trails to the City Council for their consideration. Funding is usually provided through the Dedicated Parks Fund or the Park and Trail Improvement Fund which the City Council established back in 2018. The Park Board was asked to review previous meeting packets as an attempt to prioritize the various park and trail opportunities. The agreement tonight was that the Park Board would continue the discussion and allow me, Rick DeGardner, to make recommendations. In the packet is the Park and Trail Improvement Fund Summary. In 2018 the City Council dedicated half a million dollars to the Park and Trail Improvement Fund. Since that time, the City Council has allocated an additional 90,000 in both 2019 and 2020 which has allowed the Park Board, staff, and City Council to make some significant improvements. These improvements are listed at the bottom of the handout and you can also see the interest earnings that were generated and price info about projects are also listed on the information form. What is left in the Park and Trail Improvement Fund is the primary funding source and what the Park Board will be Park Board December 2, 2020 Page 3 APPROVED MINUTES working with when making recommendations to the council. DeGardner stated that maybe the recommendation will be to hold the funds, start a project, or fund smaller projects like replacing some of the playground equipment at different parks. He said that this is the primary purpose of the meeting tonight. The additional information is the Dedicated Parks Fund detail, which is a breakdown of all the revenue and expenses broken down since 2013. The last page at the bottom is a summary of the designated projects and what the fund balances are. The third attachment is the comprehensive plan we put together in 2018. This is just Park Board information to look at throughout the discussion. DeGardner also referenced Huelman’s comments about the needs and wants for hard court surfaces. DeGardner informed the Park Board that on Monday night the City Council will be discussing putting in some hard court surface at the intersection of Birch Street and Centerville Road. This would consist of four pickle ball courts, two tennis courts, and a parking lot. In 2018 the Council designated dollars to develop the City property just adjacent to the fire station so there are funds designated for this. However, Arena Acres is a recent residential area that was just approved by the City Council. There is a significant dollar amount designated in the Designated Park Fund and this development is just north of Centerville Road. He stated that it is in very close proximity to the Birch Street/Centerville Road that he just referred to, so the City Council will be discussing whether to authorize staff to prepare specification and bid process for the pickle ball courts and tennis courts with the funding that is already secured with the dollars designated in 2018 as well as the designated funds from Arena Acres. With those funds it should get us to the amount that is needed. He just wanted to make sure that the Park Board was informed of this information and the discussion that was going on regarding hard court surfaces. Huelman stated that the Park Board wants to be critical when looking into new developments prior to building a park. They should look at how many people live in the development, how much land is available, the dollars that are being brought in and, prior to building a park if the park would serve just the residents of that area or other residents and if there is already a park nearby that could serve the residents of the new development. Smaller developments might not support the park so it might be better to invest in a park that exists to serve that development, use the dollars for a future development that is supposed to come in down the road that those residents could use the park/recreation items, or hold onto the dollars and put them into a space that the City already owns and build something there that can benefit the entire community. DeGardner presented the layout of “Tower Park” (not the official name, just what he is calling it at the moment as it needed a name), the park is located at Centerville Road & Birch Street). DeGardner stated that WSB expects the bid environment to be favorable this winter and the City will be able to get two tennis courts and four pickle ball courts. They also expect to have some costs for site grading and storm water improvements. The City will not be able to put in a full basketball court or shelter at this site at this time. Park Board December 2, 2020 Page 4 APPROVED MINUTES Huelman said that he could lend his support to the “Tower Park” project and knows that there is a lot of development going on in the city and that area. He stated that it’s a good use of the space over there and it answers some of the recreation needs for the city. He stated that there are lots of positives in developing it with the money that the city has. Huelman then stated that he has one question regarding the park. He noticed there were a lot of parking spaces listed. He thought that maybe the city was over investing a bit with regards to the parking lot where maybe if they cut parking by 1/3 they could get a basketball court. DeGardner stated that Huelman brought up a good point and it’s one that he himself has brought up and been discussing with Community Development. DeGardner stated that he was informed there was a code that says you must have six parking spaces per hard court surface. Looking at the map, with the 36 spaces shown they would not be in compliance. DeGardner stated that if/when the City Council commits to the project City Staff would dive into more details about what they can do to reduce cost and still remain compliant. Gooder stated that he understood why there might be a need for the parking spaces as there could be 5 on 5 at the basketball court and playing doubles at the tennis court and such. The parking spots would start to fill up as there isn’t an easy way to get to (“Tower Park”) by biking or walking. Plus with the land over there they could expand the park. Park Board Member Jensen agreed that parking spaces should not be overlooked and would be needed. Gooder continued that the Park Board needs to be aggressive when asking for funds from the City Council to upgrade the parks and playgrounds around the City. He stated that updating two or three parks a year wasn’t going to cut it. They wouldn’t catch-up. He agreed that they need to continue to upgrade and invest in the smaller parks like Stacy Joyer had mentioned that add value to their community and we can’t overlook that. DeGardner stated he wanted to comment and go back to the parking situation. Depending on what there is funding for they may not get the basketball court at “Tower Park” right away, however this may cut down on the number of parking spaces needed and as such, things that are added would then add to the needed parking and vice versa (like the basketball court and open air park shelter) so things, including some of the parking spaces, will be able to be done in phases. Kusterman asked DeGardner to make a clarification for him. He stated that he thought the 2021 budget originally had $70,000 set aside and then it was taken away. He emailed the council member and the mayor regarding his concern with that money being “taken away”. He received an email from Council Member Dale Stoesz that stated what Rick had just said, that the money was going to be used for a larger park structure. He is wondering if we are still at the point, where that money will be going for 2021 and that there is no general fund dollars designated for parks, so that there is no 2021 dollars that will go to anything other than that structure (“Tower Park”). DeGardner helped to clarify by stating that they are discussing different funding sources. The hard court surface project by the fire station (Tower Park), is strictly a combination of the money that was designated back in 2018 and the dedicated park funding from Nadeau Acres. In 2019 and 2020 the Council allocated $90,000 the Park & Trail Fund and the money was and is to be used for Park & Trail Improvements but this funding is not available in 2021. Park Board December 2, 2020 Page 5 APPROVED MINUTES DeGardner stated that the Council did commit to significant funding for park improvements for 2021. For example, Council approve $15,000 for new lights and a timer at Sunrise Park, funding for the Wenzel farm board walk segment that needs to be replaced, $5,000 for engineered wood fiber, and there is discussion about making some trail repairs. These improvements will be made through the Parks Department fund but the Council did not allocate the $90,000 for 2021. For discussion purposes for tonight the $271,000 undesignated fund balance would be the extent of funding available for any potential Park & Trail projects for 2021. Kusterman stated that he can appreciate that the Council is making those repairs and filling critical needs but he is worried about the current problem which is that there are play structures within the City that are getting old and unsafe and that there is no money being set aside to replace them. He is worried that if the Council does not continue to set aside funding each year that the funding will eventually stop and structures like Brandywood will not get replaced. Huelman stated that keeping the pressure on the Council because just to replace the structures now without any amenities is 1.3 million so there is a “big hole” that is there that needs to be filled. In the end the constant reinvestment in the parks and trails system is vital. Mayor Rob Rafferty stated that we are in a COVID crisis, as it is being described, and it is affecting everyone. Everyone should keep that in mind when making decisions about the budget. The current budget is related to COVID. It’s the “Unknown” of what COVID will bring going forward. The mission of the Council was to bring funds forward. At one point, they were going to pull the $375,000 from the Park & Trail fund to help balance the budget. The budget is balanced in a flat rate. Last year it was 39.87 and they lowered it to 39.47. He stated that the comments from Mr. Kusterman were not far off, yet they are. He went onto say that the council will not forget about the neighborhood parks. He reminded everyone that they just came out of a recession in 2008 and it had effected the budget for the coming years which made it hard to get the dollars that were needed for the parks and trails. Huelman stated that there is $271,000 in the Parks & Trails fund. He asked the Park Board members what they thought they should do with it? He states that he has heard people say that the funds should be spread around. Expand Lino Park, put in some open air shelters at other parks? Thoughts? What should the priority be? Jensen stated he doesn’t think they should put the money into Lino Park as it’s too big of a project. He suggests smaller projects that will make a big impact. Kusterman stated he thought that they should start replacing playground equipment. Huelman stated he didn’t think that only replacing playground equipment would be doing the City any favors. He is worried that if they just replace a playground at a park they might limit themselves on how and when they can replace the other items. He gave the example of Lino Park stating that one of the key issues of the park is needing more separation between the parking lot and the playground. He thought the should start Lino updates but maybe wait on replacing the shelter and put the money into a small playground as they are far behind on the master plan. Park Board December 2, 2020 Page 6 APPROVED MINUTES Nordlund stated that he thought they should replace the playground equipment. He stated not replacing them could be a liability for the city. Haworth stated that she too agreed with replacing the playgrounds. She wanted to know if there was a way to tell what parks are being more heavily used. Nordlund asked DeGardner what Mike Hoffman, Lino Lakes Parks Supervisor, would recommend. What did Hoffman see as a priority? DeGardner stated that city staff would create a list upon request of highest priority playground replacement for the Park Board if the board decides that they want to replace playgrounds and how many they want to replace. Huelman then addressed the board saying that they should also discuss trails. He asked DeGardner what trails were on the replacement/repair list. DeGardner stated that the City has done some significant trail projects the last few years regarding the parks and trails. South Reshanau Lake area has been on the City radar for the last 4-5yrs to the point where the City needed to do something. The Council provided some funding for the next year to replace some of the trail. There is also a big gap at Lake Drive and Marshan Park on the east side. Elm Street has the pedestrian crossing and then there is a gap. If you go north bound on Lake Drive you are basically waking on the shoulder until you get to Park Court. DeGardner commented that once the City can fill that trail gap the City will have a pretty impressive continual trail system but he wouldn’t recommend doing anything with it until they look into the road and utility improvement project. DeGardner stated that he recommends that for 2021 the Park Board focuses on the parks. Huelman recognized that playground replacement seems to be at the top of everyone’s list. He asked the board what their thoughts were on how many they should plan to replace or how should we expand or re-envision Lino Park? Jensen suggested replacing Brandywood Park. He said that it is 20+yrs and recommends that they start there as resident Joyer stated it was used a lot. Kusterman asked to take another look at the “Schedule of Replacement Priority” spreadsheet. Kusterman stated that there is a trail segment that connects Brandywood Park to Birch Park. Birch Park was just updated in 2018 so he does not support the replacement of Brandywood Park as they do have access to another park that has been updated. Huelman stated that City Hall Park has a lot of potential but is too far away for residents. He supports Lino Park as it is close and can fill some of the community needs. He then asked DeGardner what the cost for Lino Park would be if they hold off on replacing the park shelter. Park Board December 2, 2020 Page 7 APPROVED MINUTES DeGardner state he expects it could cut about $75,000 off the cost of the upgrade leaving the total to be around $225,000. Huelman stated that $225,000 was doable and the park shelter cost down the road was also doable and something they could plan for. He continued that he thought the Park Board options were to sit on the funds if park board had a greater projects for them or do what they can and maybe have some left over for the next playground need and do nothing with the trails. Kusterman agrees that we spend the funds on improvements and supports the Lino Park project. Haworth stated she supports the Lino Project as well as it is a high traffic park, in a good location, and it needs updating. Norland stated he support the Lino Park project and is ok with cutting out the park shelter for now to make the funds work. Huelman asked DeGardner to look into the phasing and pricing if they hold off on the shelter at Lino Park. He then said they would like to identify another park that is a high priority on the list in case there are some left over funds. DeGardner states that he will ask WSB to breakdown the project into phases. He told the park board that he will have more information about this and it will be discussed at the January Park Board Meeting. He said they will also discuss what to do if there are any leftover funds or what they can do to finish Lino Park. Gooder stated after listening to everything he agrees and backs the Lino Park project. 7. NEW BUSINESS A. Walking Trails at Birch Street & Centerville Road DeGardner informed the Park Board that during the past week the Lino Lakes Parks Department spent time at the City owned property at Birch Street and Centerville Road creating some walking trails in the non-maintained areas. The trails provide a very scenic walk for residents. This property is also on the agenda for the Monday night council meeting to discuss if they will be putting in a dog park at this location as well. 8. OLD BUSINESS There were no comments made regarding old business. 9. NEXT SCHEDULED PARK BOARD MEETING Park Board December 2, 2020 Page 8 APPROVED MINUTES Wednesday, January 6, 2021 10. ADJOURNMENT Kusterman made a MOTION to adjourn to adjourn the meeting at 8:21 p.m. Motion was supported by Jensen. Motion carried 6 - 0. Respectfully submitted, Kellie Schmidt, Lino Lakes Administrative Assistant