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HomeMy WebLinkAbout08-06-2012 Park Board PacketLino Lakes Parks and Recreation Department 600 Town Center Parkway Lino Lakes, MN 55014 (651) 982 -2440 Fax (651) 982 -2439 CITY OF LINO LAKES PARK BOARD MEETING Monday, August 6, 2012 - 5:30pm Library — Not Televised ** *AGENDA * ** 1. Call to Order and Roll Call 2. Approval of Minutes from March 5, 2012 3. Setting Agenda 4. Open Mike • 5. Discuss Council Member Dale Stoesz' Proposal for Geo Caching in Neighborhood Parks 6. Review Recreation Department Update 7. Old Business 8. New Business a. 2011 -2012 Warming House Report 9. Next Scheduled Park Board Meeting — Tuesday, September 4, 2012 10. Adjourn • If you are unable to attend the meeting please call Sandie at 651 982 -2442. sw /parkbrd /8 -6 -12 Park Board Agenda.doc Park Board Meeting — March 5, 2012 Minutes • The March 5, 2012 City of Lino Lakes Park Board meeting was called to order at 6:40 p.m. by Chair George Lindy. • Roll call was taken; members present were, George Lindy, Bill Kusterman, Richard Jensen, Pat Huelman and Byron Roland. Members absent were Matt Koehn and Charles Evans. Also present was Rick DeGardner, Public Services Director and Sandie Wood, Public Services Department Office Tech 11. 1. SWEARING IN OF REAPPOINTED MEMBERS: Mayor Jeff Reinert swore in reappointed members William Kusterman and Byron Roland. 3. APPROVAL OF MINUTES FROM JULY 5, 2011: Bill Kusterman made a motion to approve the December 12, 2011 minutes. Pat Huelman seconded the motion and the minutes were approved as written. 4. SETTING AGENDA: There were no changes to the agenda. 5. OPEN MIKE: There was no one present for open mike. 6. DISCUSSION WITH MR. KELLY SHARKEY, 174 WHITE PINE ROAD: Mr. Kelly Sharkey, 174 White Pine Road was present at the meeting. Staff included three attachments in the packet for members to review. Mr. Sharkey gave the board his background and said he wanted to address the lack of park and trail opportunities in this neighborhood. He said the park has some playground equipment, a lot of cattails by the pond and only a few kids. He also mentioned that the city brushed out the park and he wasn't happy with the results. He feels this park has been neglected by the Park Board for a long time. Mr. Sharkey has talked to residents and most of them agree with his opinion about this park. Park Board Members and staff told him what was visioned for this park when it was originally master planned. There had been plans to attain 6 -8 acres to make this park larger. They are still waiting for regional trail development and could maybe put in a boardwalk, over the pond, if funding becomes available. He was told that no money is available right now to do anything in this park. Board members had concerns about the cost and effectiveness of what Mr. Sharkey had in mind for this park. The chair recapped the situation by saying the regional park has not been developed and the city is lacking in funds. He said that when the county develops the area the city will need to make it a priority and attempt to do something with the park. 1 0. Park Board Meeting — March 5, 2012 Minutes • Staff will talk to the Lino Lakes Environmental Coordinator and respond back to the Park Board at the next meeting. • 7. 2012 RECREATION COMPLEX GRANT APPLICATION UPDATE: Mr. DeGardner started by saying that staff is finalizing the Outdoor Recreation Grant application for Phase 1 development of the Recreation Complex. This grant program is provided by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and is designed to assist local governments in developing outdoor recreational facilities. (This is the same program where the City successfully secured $125,000 for the development of Clearwater Creek Park). He said Phase I consists of two multi -use fields (may include soccer, football or lacrosse fields), two baseball fields and a gravel parking lot. Applications must be submitted by March 31 with funding announcements made in the summer. 8. REVIEW RECREATION DEPARTMENT UPDATE: Rick reviewed the update included in the member's packets. He talked about the strange skating rink season we had this year, the Snack and Skate Program, Open Volleyball and Zumba Classes. He told members there were approximately 600 participants at Snow Day and that attendance at the Sweetheart Party and Super Hero's Camp was good. He said Kudos to Tanya for the great job she is doing with the Senior Programs and the Senior Appreciation Lunch was a success. He also told members the brochure is out and that registration has begun for the spring and summer programs. Rick asked members to read the update and contact him if they had any questions. 9. REVIEW PARK DEPARTMENT UPDATE: Rick did a review of the Park Department Update. He told members that because of the terrible rink season we had it allowed staff to do a lot of boulevard and park tree pruning. He asked members to read over the update and to contact him if they had any questions. 10. OLD BUSINESS There was no old business. 11. NEW BUSINESS a. Review Park Board Member's Roster Rick asked members to look over the Park Board Roster and let Sandie know if any changes, to phone numbers or e-mail addresses, needed to be made. 2 Park Board Meeting — March 5, 2012 Minutes • NEXT PARK BOARD MEETING: The next Park Board Meeting will be Monday, April 2, 2012, at 6:30p.m. ADJOURN: The meeting was adjourned at 7:18p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Sandra Wood Public Services Office Tech II These minutes were approved at the August 6, 2012 Park Board Meeting. • • • WS — Item WORK SESSION STAFF REPORT Work Session Item No. Date: August 6, 2012 To: City Council From: Rick DeGardner, Public Services Director Re: Request to Formalize Geocache Program in Lino Lakes Parks System Background Councilmember Stoesz has requested that the City formally implement "geocaching" throughout the Lino Lakes Parks System. Geocaching is a relatively new outdoor recreation activity that blends modern-day navigation technology with the concept of treasure hunting. Geocaching is initiated by an individual hiding a cache, normally a waterproof container with small items inside, then recording the location with a Global Positioning Unit (GPS). The cache may be in a hollow log or under an object. The individual then posts the GPS coordinates, along with a description of the cache on the geocaching web site ( www.geocaching.com ). Other individuals then try to find the cache. When it is located, they sign a logbook, then take or leave a small item. The Anoka County Parks Department began a geocaching program in 2009 and currently provides geocaching at six Regional Parks including the Rice Creek Chain of Lakes Park Reserve ( http:// www. anokacountyparks. com /recreation/geocaching.html). Anoka County has certain rules /restrictions in place including: • All caches must be approved and registered by the Anoka County Parks and Recreation Department. Unregistered caches will be removed. • Caches must not be buried and must be accessible from a standing position. • Caches must be placed at least 1/4 mile apart. • Caches must be located within the designated geocaching park areas at Rice Creek Chain of Lakes Park Reserve, Riverfront Regional Park, Coon Rapids Dam Regional Park, Bunker Hills Regional Park, Rum River Central Regional Park, and Lake George Regional Park. • Caches are not allowed in picnic areas, play areas, golf course, water park, beaches, or campgrounds. • If the City Council wishes to formalize a geocaching program throughout our parks system, I recommend that city staff determine suitable locations for placement of the caches, rather than Anoka County's model of permitting geocachers the ability to place their own caches. Most of our neighborhood parks are relatively small and are developed for activities geared specifically for neighborhood use. Inviting explorers to search for caches in "natural" areas near resident's backyards may create some anxiety /conflict. Two Options: 1. Keep status quo. With Anoka County offering an established geocaching program within the 5,500 acre Rice Creek Chain of Lakes Parks Reserve, area residents already have a wonderful opportunity to experience this activity. In addition, the www.geocaching.com website currently identifies 60 caches within two miles of the 55014 area code. Staff can incorporate geocaching information on the City's website referring interested residents to Anoka County's website and www.geocaching.com. 2. City formalizes geocaching program. Staff identifies suitable locations throughout our parks and trails system. We would inform local geocachers that all existing caches located on city property must be removed. We may seek assistance with local geocachers to determine suitable locations, place the caches, acquire accurate coordinates, address ongoing maintenance, etc. Staff would need to create /maintain a registry on the City's website. Requested Council Direction Does the City Council wish to direct staff to develop our own geocache program? If so, we will begin implementing a geocache program immediately. • Lino Lakes Parks and Recreation Department 600 Town Center Parkway Lino Lakes, MN 55014 (651) 982 -2440 Fax (651) 982 -2439 www.ci.lino - lakes.mn.us Date: July 30, 2012 To: Park Board From: Lino Lakes Recreation Supervisors — Brian Hronski and Tanya Mozingo RE: Department Updates • Special Events that have taken place include: o Princess Party — over 60 little princesses joined us for a night of dancing, crafts and photos with Belle and Cinderella. o Spring Fling — This annual egg hunt held at Rice Lake Elementary saw about 200 children ages 3 — 11 take part in finding over 2000 eggs. o Kite Day — this was held in June at Rice Lake Elementary. We handed out over 200 kites on a beautiful Saturday morning. o Puppet Shows — We partnered with Shoreview Parks and Recreation again this summer and offered a series of 3 puppet shows at Country Lakes Park, Highland Meadows Park and Clearwater Creek Park. Over 200 people attended these free shows. Refreshments were provided as well as a craft for the children after the show. • The Summer Playground Program ends August 8. We have over 420 children participating in this summer program. There are 3 park sites in the morning and 4 in the afternoon. Children play a variety of games, work on craft projects and enjoy visits from police officers, Wargo Naturalists and Fire Fighters. The 22 staff hired to run the program have done a great job working with the kids over the summer. The Preschool Playtime program had 26 children enrolled this summer. They enjoyed many of the same activities as the kids at playgrounds. This summer are conducting a variety of camps such as: Artists Sampler, All About Science, Splendid Summer Art Camp, Painting and Drawing and Preschool Art Creations. There have been over 80 children enrolled in these programs. Our Tae Kwon Do and Youth Dance programs have continued to run throughout the summer with great attendance. During the summer we conduct classes at Senior Center. The second annual Family Corn Roast and Community Night be will held on August 2 at Sunrise Park. Music will be provided by the Dan Perry and Ice Cream Band. We are preparing for another great turnout. Safety Camp will be held on August 9 at Blue Heron Elementary. There are currently 98 children registered for the program. • The Senior Center has continued with its many programs throughout the summer. Attendance for day trips has been great. There are many great trips and educational sessions planned for this fall. • The fall brochure will be out in homes the second week of August filled with many great programs for all ages. • Summer T -Ball classes have just ended and we had 170 kids ages 3 -6 playing t -ball. • Skyhawks Mini -Hawk class was a big success this summer. The Mini -Hawk class offers kids 4 -6 the opportunity to try various sports in this one week camp. We had 25 registered. Soccer Fundamentals just finished for the summer and we had another successful soccer season. Over 200 kids participated in this class. Tennis Lessons for kids 5 -15 years olds was a big hit this summer. We hired 2 new instructors and they did a great job teaching the young players the basics of tennis. Cougar Baseball Camp had another successful year despite the lower than usual turnout. We had 40 participants playing ball in this outstanding camp. • Skyhawks SNAG golf had great numbers this summer as 20 young golfers took part in this one week beginner golf class. • We offered 3 different MDB Basketball camps this summer and they are still going strong. We had 60 kids register for these basketball specific camps • Skyhawks Volleyball Camp had 30 campers again this year and was another great week of volleyball. • We had record numbers for the Cougar Youth Soccer Camp this year for ages 5 -12. 82 budding soccer stars took the field during this camp! • Summer Adult Softball Leagues have just finished and we had 22 teams participating in our leagues this summer. Fall League will start the week of August 6th • Fall Youth football and soccer registration is well underway and the early tallies shows well have over 800 participants in our fall football and soccer programs. • Lino Lakes Parks and Recreation Department 600 Town Center Parkway Lino Lakes, MN 55014 (651) 982 -2440 Fax (651) 982 -2439 www.ci.lino- lakes.mn.us Date: 3/7/12 To: Rick DeGardner, Public Services Director From: Brian Hronski, Recreation Program Supervisor Subject: Final 2011 -12 Warming House Report The 2011 -12 warming house and skating season was the worst we've seen in recent years. With a late opening date and an early closing we had an extremely short season. When we had ice it wasn't near the quality as we've had in years prior due to the fluxuation of temperatures and ice making conditions. Our ice season kicked off on Friday January 13`'' which was the latest we've opened in many years. Not being open over winter break is always a big disappointment because that's when we have the highest number of skaters and the kids are out of school. Even opening when we did the ice wasn't in top condition but we felt we needed to open and try to get the skating season started. After being open for 2 weeks we hit another huge warm spell which really hurt our ice conditions. The warm spell lasted from February 1st — 8th and we were forced to close the warming houses during that time. With the damage to the ice from the warm weather we were lucky to squeeze another 10 days of the skating season. Once we reopened the rinks the conditions were poor as frost boils started cover the ice surface. We closed for the season on Saturday February 18`h As in past years the Centennial Hockey Association again used our rinks for youth hockey practices. I noticed a reduced number of teams signing up for practice time and we had some holes in the CYHA schedule. I'm hoping this was just a one year trend that will change next year. Joe Gratz who is the outdoor ice coordinator for CYHA was in communication with me prior to the season and did a nice job getting me schedules in a timely fashion. Again this year we had part time maintenance staff clean Sunrise and Birch Park's rinks on Saturday mornings. This was again a nice service to provide especially at the rinks with higher use. Not cleaning the rinks at all over the weekend really lessons the skating conditions. Don Jensen again helped in weekend ice maintenance. We had 2 incidents during the skating season and both occurred at Sunrise Park. The first incident happened on Thursday February 9th and one of the warming house attendants shot a puck over the boards and broke a car window. The gentleman was parked right by the side warming house door and was parked in a less than ideal spot. The other incident happened when one of our snack and skate participants tripped while skating and split their chin open. That child required stitches and was ok. Although the season was brief in days our hourly skater numbers increased at all three sites. Birch Park averaged 7.04, Sunrise Park averaged 12.8, and City Hall Park averaged 7.99 skaters per hour. Those numbers indicate that our skating rinks and warning houses are still a very popular winter recreation option here in Lino Lakes. My hope is for next year we have many more days to enjoy the skating season. CC: Lino Lakes Park Board BH /warminghouse2011 / 2012- 10finalwarminghousereport.doc Lino Lakes Parks and Recreation Department 600 Town Center Parkway Lino Lakes, MN 55014 (651) 982 -2440 Fax (651) 982 -2439 www.ci.lino- lakes.mn.us Date: 3/6/12 To: Rick DeGardner, Public Services Director From: Brian Hronski, Recreation Program Supervisor Subject: Final 2011-12 Warming House Numbers Report Rinks Opened: January 13th 2012 Rinks Closed: February 18th 2012 Rinks closed due to cold temps: None Rinks closed due to warm temps: February 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 Rinks closed due to snow: None Rink Summary Birch Park Total Hours Open: 168 Total Hourly Skaters: 1182 Average Skaters Per Hour: 7.04 City Hall Park Total Hours Open: 128 Total Hourly Skaters: 1023 Average Skaters Per Hour: 7.99 Sunrise Park Total Hours Open: 168 Total Hourly Skaters: 2143 Average Skaters Per Hour: 12.8 •