Parks and Recreation Commission Meeting Packet - November 15, 2007

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should be presented. Staff is looking for direction as to when it should be presented: either as soon as it is available, or at the next Town Hall meeting along with other Citizen awards - scheduled for April 2008. Selection Criteria: Sportsmanship: Demonstrates exemplary sportsmanship both on and off the field Leadership: Leads his or her team by showing leadership and attempting to instill leadership skills in the players Attitude: Happily expends a significant amount of time and energy to the betterment of the sport Encouragement: Consistently encourages participation by all and encourages others to do their best. Unselfishness: Does not expect anything in return for his or her actions; i.e. financial compensation, fame, or political notoriety. This award would be open to all coaches involved with coaching Mounds View youth. The final recommendation would come through the Commission and forwarded for approval by the City Council. The application will be finalized at the November meeting including deadlines for applications. 7. New Business: a.) Woodcrest Park - Staff has received a request from citizens to take action to establish the park as it was originally conveyed to the neighborhood then the wetland were created - "with open waters to attract wildlife". A request has been made to muck out the wetlands to make them deeper and less conducive to cattail growth. It was also requested that the trees that boarder the wetland be thinned up to allow for better viewing of the park. As directed, staff looked into cleaning up the underbrush / trees at the wetland border. The DNR and Rice Creek Watershed District were contacted. The Commissions were encouraged to walk the park to better understand the issues. Staff is looking for direction as to whether selected tree removal is desired by the Commission. If so, staff is also looking for direction as to what public notification or input is desired. As a minimum, Staff would recommend that properties within a set distance of the park be notified of the overall tree removal plan and its purpose. Mr. Rich Sonterre, 5060 Read Oak Dr., a resident near the park, gave brief history of the park as he had worked to develop the park in the late 1990s. It had open water and attracted wildlife. Cattails and perimeter trees have become invasive. Neighbors have concern about safety of the playground when hidden behind the trees and overgrown vegetation. The County Road H trail way resulted in removal of part of the gravel path around the pond, as well as the Woodcrest Park sign. Direct Staff to discuss with Rick Wriskey how best to remove trees around the two ponds closest to Woodcrest Drive. Look into the cost of drudging the ponds and bring back to the Commission when available. b.) Comprehensive Plan Update - Review Parks and Recreation component (chapter 5). The City is in the process of updating the City's Comprehensive Plan. A portion of this plan involves items related to parks and park facilities. Staff is looking for comments and suggestions for updating / revising these elements of the Comprehensive Plan. Discussion included Goal 6. Policy a: What are the metropolitan standards? Planning Commission will clarify. Policy d: Parks and open space shall be developed and improved to take advantage of natural features. Policy m: Remove Policy k: Rename Park Facilities Replacement Plan to comprehensive park improvement plan Policy r: Remove