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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06-16-25 Parks Commission Meeting Packet NOTICE OF MEETING City of Lake Elmo Parks Commission 3880 Laverne Avenue North June 16, 2025 6:30 p.m. AGENDA 1. Call to Order 2. Pledge of Allegiance 3. Approve Agenda 4. Approve Minutes a) May 19, 2025 5. Public Comment 6. Park Reservation Policy 7. Tana Ridge Park Review 8. Communications 9. Adjourn ***Note: Every effort will be made to accommodate person or persons that need special considerations to attend this meeting due to a health condition or disability. Please contact the Lake Elmo City Clerk if you are in need of special accommodations. Our Mission is to Provide Quality Public Services in a Fiscally Responsible Manner in Partnership with our Community. STAFF REPORT DATE: 06/16/2025 Regular TO: PARKS COMMISSION FROM: Assistant Public Works Director – Adam Swanepoel AGENDA ITEM: Park Use Policy REVIEWED BY: Marty Powers, Public Works Director CORE STRATEGIES: ☐ Vibrant, inclusive, connected community ☐ Efficient, reliable, innovative services ☐ Responsive, transparent, adaptive governance ☒ Balanced Finances now and future ☒ Managed Growth ☐ Resilient Infrastructure BACKGROUND: Over the past few years staff has seen an increase in park reservations ultimately due to more park amenities, increased population and updated facilities. The policy was discussed in 2024 by the parks commission as an additional way to help future funding of the parks department. Park reservations open January 15th of the reserving year and are submitted to the city clerk for review. Reservations include pavilions, ballfields, open space and courts. Ball fields are generally reserved by baseball associations or clubs. Staff has seen an increase in the demand for competitive field space for practices and games. These organizations generally use both Lions and VFW fields for games. Most reservations for field space are made at VFW, Lions, Reid, Pebble and DeMontreville Park. Tablyn Park fields are also reservable but see minimal reservations throughout the year. Reservable courts include Tablyn, Lions and Pebble Park. Staff has seen and increase in club reservations pickleball courts since the courts were updated in 2024. Common complaints regarding court reservations are the number of courts reserved by these clubs and the length of time they are reserved for. The parks commission reviewed the policy in March 2025 at a scheduled meeting. Suggestions were made for staff to review. ISSUE BEFORE PARKS COMMISSION: Would the Parks Commission like to recommend changes to the reservation policy? PROPOSAL DETAILS/ANALYSIS: The current use policy serves fields, courts and shelters. Prices vary on each reservation for residents and non-residents. All deposits are refundable if property is cleaned up after the event and have no damage. Ball Fields $50/day $500 per season. *Refundable Shelter $50/day $100/day non-resident *Refundable Lions Park Shelter $25/day $75 non-resident $500 per season in conjunction with fields. *Refundable Courts $50/day $500 per season. *Refundable Field Lights are subject to a non-refundable fee of $20 per reservation or $150 for the season. A penalty of $30 is changed if the lights are not turned off within 20 minutes of the end of an event. Lights for our courts and ice rink have no fee for their use. Staff is recommending the following changes while continuing to follow the reservation priority ranking: Priority 1 – City of Lake Elmo Priority 2 – Affiliated School Districts Priority 3 – Affiliated Youth and Adult Athletic / Civic Organizations Priority 4 – Non-Resident / Non-Resident Groups Ballfield Rental VFW and Lions rental be split between into Summer (April - July) and Fall (Aug - Oct) seasons. Reservation costs will be $50 per day or $500 per season (non-refundable). Field Lights are subject to a non-refundable fee of $20 per reservation or $250 for the season. All other ball field rentals would be $50 per day or $250 per season (non-refundable). Reservations would continue to follow the scheduling priority with preference in the following order: Lions Park Shelter: A $25/ day reservation fee with a $50 deposit. Events in conjunction with the fields or a special event application would be $50/day with a $50 deposit. Use of the parks shelter would include bathroom use, hot water and electricity. Park Shelter or Pavilion All Lake Elmo’s city park shelters may be reserved for exclusive use to accommodate small events requiring additional space beyond field use which would host less than 100 attendees. Parks can be reserved for a “Full or Half Day” (6 or 12 hours). Cost of a shelter reservation would be $50 for half and $100 for a full day. A $50 security deposit would be submitted with the reservation. Cleaning of the area will be required and include cleaning up facilities after use including picking up all refuse on and around grounds and shelter, wiping off tables, and sweeping the hard surface of area. Failure to do so will result in the loss of the $50 security deposit. Courts Lake Elmo has reservable pickleball courts at Lions, Pebble, and Tablyn park. Staff recommends limiting reservable courts to 50% at each site. (ex; Lions-2, Pebble-3 and Tablyn -2). With the remaining courts being for open play. Individual Courts can be reserved for up to 3 hours for $20. Groups looking to reserve multiple courts can reserve all the reservable courts at one site. Cost would be $100 per week for up to 3 hours. Reservations can be made one month at a time. All courts reservations after 6pm would result in a $10 light fee. (Lions/Pebble) FISCAL IMPACT: Park reservation revenue in 2024 was $300, all of which was from a non-refundable lighting fee. Lighting of the courts and fields was $6685.08 in 2024. Lawn care costs for 1 ball field averages $4,424 per year which includes mowing weed control. Irrigation O&M costs average $16,000 per year. Court resurfacing is suggested every 5 years costs approximately $7000 per legal size tennis court. Considering our current courts $14,000 would be needed for both Lions and Tablyn Park $20,000 is needed to resurface Pebble. Staff’s recommendations would increase the parks revenue for both field and court use and help offset regular maintenance. RECOMMENDATION: “Motion to recommend to City Council the changes to the Lake Elmo Reservation Policy as present by staff” STAFF REPORT DATE: 06/16/2025 Discussion TO: PARKS COMMISSION FROM: Assistant Public Works Director – Adam Swanepoel AGENDA ITEM: Tana Ridge Park Review CORE STRATEGIES: ☒ Vibrant, inclusive, connected community ☐ Efficient, reliable, innovative services ☐ Responsive, transparent, adaptive governance ☐ Balanced Finances now and future ☐ Managed Growth ☐ Resilient Infrastructure BACKGROUND: Over the past two years staff has been reviewing city parks with the Parks Commission. The purpose of the review is for commissions to become more familiar with the city park, provide history and discuss any potential changes which may be needed. Tana Ridge Park is located in the Tana Ridge development and connects to Fields of St. Croix 2nd addition. The 9.1 acre park consists of a playground set which was constructed in 2005, soccer net and a ball field. Parking is limited to several parking stalls and street parking. A public trail connects Tana Ridge development with the downtown area. Consideration for a trail connection to the Wildflower development was reviewed in 2022. Connecting the two public trails would need to cross private property. Owners of the property were not interested at the time in making the trail connection. Future consideration will be discussed with the property owners. In 2020, approximately one acre of the park was used for the construction of a city well which sits in the NW corner of the park. ISSUE BEFORE PARKS COMMISSION: What considerations would the Parks Commission like to review at Tana Ridge Park? PROPOSAL DETAILS/ANALYSIS: Tana Ridge Park is classified as a neighborhood park in the recent Parks Master Plan. Of the 27 city parks, Tana Ridge is the 10th largest park in city with 9.1 acres. Considerations for this park in the future may include an updated play set in 2030. If considered staff would suggest making this site ADA compatible with the parking lot and public trail. Additional seating or bench areas where room allows should be considered in any upgrade. Additional parking would be beneficial if amenities are updated or improved. A future pavilion is not ideal for this location. Placement would be made away from the parking lot and likely limit its use. Staff would support covered park bench along the trail. FISCAL IMPACT: There are no financial obligations at this time, commissioners should take into consideration the annual cost of any proposed items for budgeting purposes.