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Parks and Environmental Commission Regular Meeting Minutes <br />September 13, 2021 <br />Page 8 <br />1 <br />2 Staff subsequently received feedback on the draft plan from Minnesota Department of Natural <br />3 Resources and incorporated those comments into the current draft. <br />4 <br />5 Staff is recommending the adopt of a Wild Turkey Management Plan in order to give private <br />6 property owners an option for wild turkey removal when all other avenues for deterrence have <br />7 been exhausted. There is a cost associated with removal, and staff is recommending that cost <br />8 be the responsibility of the property owner. Staff recommends not implementing a fee for the <br />9 City permit, as the staff time to process is anticipated to be minimal. The permit fee and <br />10 removal cost can be re-evaluated at any time. <br />11 <br />12 This also gives the City an option for removal should wild turkeys present an issue on <br />13 publicly-owned property in the future. <br />14 <br />15 Mr. Yunker asked that the Parks and Environmental Commission discuss and provide <br />16 feedback for the City Council and asked Does the Commission support the adoption of a Wild <br />17 Turkey Management Plan? A draft Wild Turkey Management Plan was provided for <br />18 Commission consideration. <br />19 <br />20 Staff will bring the final draft and Parks and Environmental Commission comments to a <br />21 future City Council meeting for consideration to adopt and implement. If adopted, information <br />22 on wild turkey management will be added to the City website and included in an edition of the <br />23 City Newsletter. <br />24 <br />25 Commissioner Niemi asked if some residents felt fearful of the turkeys. Mr. Yunker stated the <br />26 turkeys were not being aggressive. Staff is not aware if the turkeys are being fed. <br />27 <br />28 Commissioner Guest asked if this problem goes away at Thanksgiving and Mr. Gumke stated <br />29 it does not. <br />30 <br />31 Commissioner Niemi asked how long this has been an issue and Mr. Yunker stated he just <br />32 heard about it last Fall. Mr. Yunker explained the process to mitigate the issue. <br />33 <br />34 Chair Bellinger asked if turkeys needed to be removed what does that consist of and Mr. <br />35 Yunker stated he does not know the cost. Chair Bellinger stated Commissioner Reed and <br />36 herself are in support of the Wild Turkey Management Plan. <br />37 <br />C.38 Central Park Safety Netting Discussion <br />39 <br />40 Commissioner Niemi stated he and his family spend a lot of time at Central Park. There has <br />41 always been a concern about safety netting behind the backstops. People watching games on <br />42 other fields are not paying attention to foul balls and have been hit by balls. For the spectators, <br />43 people walking, kids riding bikes, it is a safety concern. This has been brought up many times <br />44 before and he does not know why it stopped. He fears someone will be seriously hurt. The <br />45 baseball club is also interested in a solution. <br />46