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Public Works Facility — Irish Ave Park Planning Commission Page 2 June 25, 2020 park starting with low impact parks uses and having more active uses in the future like ballfields. The neighborhood favored the park uses over development of the property. The City sued the gravel pit operator to restore the property. A settlement agreement resulted in the property being restored in 2008. In 2009, the property was available for sale and the City purchased the property. The Parks Chapter of the Comprehensive Plan at the time identified an area in eastern Hugo for a location of a community park. The Parks Commission was looking for 80 acres of land for a community park. They purchased the 125 acres of property and completed an extensive clean-up of the junk cars, garbage, debris, and structures that were left behind. After the property was purchased and cleaned, the City held another neighborhood meeting in September 2009. The goal was for the property to be enjoyed by the public. It was stated at the meeting the long-term uses (15 years from the date of purchase) would be ballfields, athletics, lights, noise, traffic; the short term uses were stated to be a dog park, equestrian uses, archery, trails, and other passive park uses. In the Comprehensive Plan it states that because of the growth of the City an expansion of the Public Works Facility may be needed. In 2019, the City Council created goals and included completing a space needs study for the Public Works Facility to determine the current and future needs. The study identified the need for more space to meet the current and future needs. The study considered expanding the existing Public Works Facility. It determined that an expansion could meet the needs for the next 15 years, but does not allow the long term expansion beyond 15 years. The existing building was not designed to be readily expanded; an expansion would result in several scattered additions to the building and due to the constraints of the site (size, wetlands, etc.) it is limited on where the additions could be. The study then considered a new facility location. This could allow for more cost effective future expansion planning, more efficient building design, and flexibility in layout. The City Council approved its budget and financing plan to allow for an expanded or relocated Public Works Facility. After discussions with the Parks Commission and City Council it was decided to evaluate and start drafting plans to relocate the Public Works Facility to the south end of Irish Avenue Park. The Parks Commission goals for 2020 include starting to master plan Irish Avenue Park with improving access and addition of amenities in the park. With or without the Public Works Facility, this process is expected to take place this year including meeting with surrounding neighborhood. This staff report will focus on the Public Works Facility relocation only. Parks Commission Update During its last couple meetings the Parks Commission has been discussing the location of the Public Works Facility at Irish Avenue Park. They generally like the proposed location and provided the following comments on the proposed site plan: • Ensure the trails within the park are relocated/rerouted and remain an amenity to the park. • Allow parking at the Public Works Facility for access to the park. o Add a walking path from the parking lot to the access to the park. • Screen outdoor storage areas and provide a landscape buffer around the Public Works Facility from the park area.