1986 August 18 to 1987 August 3 - Council Packets

Home Browse Search

MEMO 10: Mounds View Parks and Recreation Commission FROM: Staff DATE: .tune 25, 1986 RE: Policy for park land use Staff met with representatives from the Silver. View Park neigh- borhood on Thursday, June 12, 1986 and discussed the enclosed policy for park land use. The residents basically concurred with the policy and felt that it was fair and was responsive to their respective needs. From staff's perspective, the key issue is the development of a landscaping plan for each of the neighborhood parks, which will then dictate the existing and/or tuture use of the park property. To that end, I have spoken to City Forester Wriskey and he feels confident that we can develop formal park planting master plans for each of the neighborhood parks during the winter months. Specific suggestions and/or recommendations that we discussed with the Silver blew Park residents regarding planting were to identify two or three species of large canopy trees that would serve as the main landscaping material between the pond and resi- dential lots. We would also utilize some type of a ground cover or low maintenance planting to help better define the park bound- ary. The residents felt this could be workable but requested review and/or input in the process. Staff assured them that they would be involved in the process from beginning to end. One of the other items that was addressed at the meeting was staff's interest in developing the area with reduced maintenance costs as our number one objective. Their were a number of resi- dents that• expressed a strong interest in purchasing park proper- ty, which would obviously reduce the maintance budget completely. Staff's position on this issue is that we should not sell park property unless it is deemed surplus and/or not suitable for general public use. I feel that if we were to sell some of the property, which would allow for larger backyards, we would lose hhe right to control what types of buildings, facilities and/or encroachments that would develop on that property. I feel that the one advantage of reduced maintenance costs would not outweigh the many positive advantages of retaining the park property in public ownership. It cannot be stressed enough that Silver View Park, in the next twenty years, will become the major focal point for public and recreational uses for Mounds View residents, as additional facil- ities are developed, and programming of the facility is in- creased. Ice must continue to be "futurists" as we develop and establish policies for our public lands. RECOMMENDATION: Staff recommends the enclosed policy and adopt it 1986 and to also take a formal park lands. that the Park Commission review in a formal form on. June 27, position regarding the sale of BKA/sl.l Enclosure