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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1999-09-14 Park Board Minutes 1 EDINA PARK BOARD 7:30 P.M. CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS SEPTEMBER 14, 1999 ____________________________________ MEMBERS PRESENT: Chuck Mooty, Andy Herring, Linda Presthus, George Klus, Karla Sitek, John Murrin, Dave Fredlund, Floyd Grabiel MEMBERS ABSENT: Andy Finsness, Bill Jenkins, Tom White STAFF PRESENT: John Keprios, Ed MacHolda, Janet Canton, John Valliere OTHERS PRESENT: Gary Nyberg, Kirt Briggs, Dave Lees ____________________________________ I. APPROVAL OF THE AUGUST 11, 1999 PARK BOARD MINUTES Chuck Mooty MOVED TO APPROVE THE AUGUST 11, 1999 PARK BOARD MINUTES. Dave Fredlund SECONDED THE MOTION. MINUTES APPROVED II. WOODDALE PARK COMFORT STATION PROPOSAL Mr. Keprios introduced two members from the Wooddale Neighborhood Committee, Kirt Briggs and Dave Lees. He noted these two gentleman have been very active participants in this group. He then introduced Gary Nyberg, President of SGN and also an Edina resident who was filling in for Jon Brakke, the lead architect on this project who was unable to attend the Park Board meeting. Mr. Keprios explained some of the history behind this issue and indicated that a lot of different renderings were shown to the neighborhood committee in which they have responded to all of them one way or another. Mr. Keprios explained that he has also spoken to the Rice family about moving the Greg Rice Picnic Shelter to Utley Park, in which they are supportive if we need to do that. The architect then came up with a drawing putting the new shelter building where the current one is located. He noted that the new shelter would have one unisex bathroom and a utility room. Mr. Keprios stated that the color plan in the packet is what the committee unanimously agreed upon. He commented that there is still one item that needs to be decided upon and that is the cupola. He pointed out that the architect has done a good job of matching the facility with the architecture of the neighborhood. 2 Mr. Keprios commented that a lot of wonderful ideas were borne out of this neighborhood committee and they will continue to keep in touch with them as Wooddale Park is further developed. Mr. Briggs stated that by getting the neighborhood involved everyone was able to voice their opinion. He noted that by the end everyone was in agreement that the structure fit the need and also enhanced the overall setting of the park. Mr. Murrin asked is this comfort station going to have a keyless entry system in which Mr. Keprios replied yes. Mr. Fredlund asked if the structure they were shown is the $85,000 structure in which Mr. Keprios replied yes, however that is a rough guess and they are hoping that amount will be on the high side because of only having one restroom. Mr. Fredlund commented that the architectural fees seem to be exorbitant. Mr. Keprios explained that amount will include everything from day one when the first building was designed. Mr. Mooty indicated that he thinks this is a very attractive facility and is glad that there was a consensus with the group because that is very important. He noted that he is very much in favor of what is being proposed. Mr. Klus stated that he also thinks this is a great looking facility, however, he has one question and that is why is there only one restroom. It was noted that the group felt one restroom would meet the demand. The size of the facility was a big issue. Mr. Klus asked what has been the city’s policy when the other comfort stations were built, why has there been two restrooms and not one. Mr. Keprios replied that from his perspective people feel it is more socially acceptable to have two restrooms even when there may not be the demand to have two restrooms. Mr. Fredlund indicated that the proposed facility has one water closet and no urinal and asked wouldn’t it be more sanitary if there were a urinal. Mr. Nyberg stated that is a good question and noted they definitely went around with that question. He pointed out that a urinal would fit and would still be handicapped accessible. He stated that he polled the women in his office and more of them indicated that they would not feel comfortable with a urinal in the restroom. Mr. Keprios commented that, if necessary, it would not be an expensive addition. Mr. Herring asked how much does this cost compared to the original cost for this facility. Mr. Keprios replied that is tough to answer because the comfort stations were bid along with all of the other shelter buildings in on lump sum bid. Mr. Herring asked that he would like a sense as to whether we are spending more or less on this one than the original design. Mr. Keprios indicated that he is hoping it will be less because we have one less restroom, however, there is an extended roof line. Mr. Herring noted that for some reason $96,000 sticks out in his mind in which Mr. Keprios replied he projected 3 that the original design would cost around $100,000. Mr. Herring indicated that in a sense it’s the architectural fees that are bumping this amount up because it’s been done a few times. Mr. Herring asked if this comfort station is consistent with the architecture that we used for the other comfort stations throughout the parks in the city in which Mr. Keprios replied it is very close. Mr. Herring indicated that the report states that the funding for this project will come out of the Developer’s Fund and asked if the Park Board has any input on that because he would not like to see it taken from there. Mr. Herring stated that he would prefer to use some other resource other than the Developer’s Fund. Mr. Keprios explained that the comfort station for Wooddale Park was always meant to be part of the referendum. Money was borrowed from the Developer’s Fund to finish the Aquatic Center development. When the Aquatic Center paid back those funds, those dollars were to be used to finance the construction of the comfort station at Wooddale Park. He stated that by law the money from the referendum had to be spent within a 24 month period. He indicated that was the strategy used to bankroll the money for the construction of the comfort station. Mr. Herring asked if the $140,000 is the amount that has been paid back in which Mr. Keprios replied yes. He noted that Mr. Wallin, the Finance Director, has informed him that another loan payment will also be made from the Aquatic Center. Mr. Herring asked Mr. Keprios if he knew what that amount is. Mr. Keprios replied that the juggling of funds to finance these projects is somewhat complicated and might be best explained by the Finance Director. Mr. Keprios asked if it would be beneficial to the Park board to have the Finance Director attend the next meeting to address these questions. Mr. Herring noted that would be helpful. Mr. Mooty pointed out that the current balance in the Developer’s Fund is $249,000, and the approximate cost for the comfort station is $108,000, therefore the Developer’s Fund would go down to approximately $140,000. Mr. Keprios replied that is correct. Mr. Keprios also noted that the playground equipment for Wooddale Park would not come out of the Developer’s Fund but he is proposing it to come out of an old capital fund balance that has been in our back pocket for a rainy day since the day we were told that funding to the capital fund was cut. Mr. Herring indicated that he wants to make sure he understands the money situation. He noted that he has been on the Park Board a long time and the Developer’s Fund used to have a significant amount of money in it. He stated that he feels it would be very beneficial to have the Finance Director attend a Park Board meeting because this is an issue for him. Mr. Herring also stated that if the Developer’s Fund is how is has just been described then he is okay with taking money from the Developer’s Fund for the comfort station. Mr. Klus asked about the old capital budget reserve. Mr. Keprios explained that he was reserving the old capital plan balance to make up for projects that went over budget on the referendum. He was saving money from an old capital plan for a rainy day. 4 Mr. Herring commented that the issue of putting in a comfort station at Wooddale Park has been around for a long, long time and he would like to commend the neighborhood committees and staff who have worked on this because there was a lot of perseverance. Mr. Keprios indicated that he would also like to thank the architect because he was very responsive to the committee’s input and has designed an aesthetically pleasing and functional building. Chuck Mooty MOVED TO ACCEPT THE STAFF’S RECOMMENDATION FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE PROPOSED COMFORT STATION AT WOODDALE PARK. Linda Presthus SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED. It was asked when will construction begin in which Mr. Keprios replied that he will be working with the architect to determine what is the best time line financially to bid the project. The question becomes, do we bid it now and give them a longer date to complete it or do we ask for them to complete it over the winter. We will go forward with whatever is in the City’s best interest financially. Ms. Sitek asked Mr. Keprios if he is concerned that we are setting a bad precedent by asking the neighborhood want they want in the park, especially to this extent where we have spent so much money on architects and re-plumbing. Mr. Herring commented that without listening to the neighbors we were getting ready to spend $100,000 on something they didn’t want. He stated how could we tell taxpayers we are going to spend your money to build something you don’t want. Ms. Sitek replied that it’s her park too. Mr. Herring noted he understands that and that is why they actually did get a lot of input on this. Mr. Fredlund indicated that it seems like a nice compromise. Mr. Keprios noted that the lesson learned is that we should have asked the neighborhood first because then we wouldn’t have ended up with such exorbitant architect fees, relocation and design changes. III. WOODDALE PARK PLAYGROUND EQUIPMENT PROPOSAL Mr. Keprios noted that as his reports indicates it will cost approximately $7,000 to $8,000 to correct what is wrong with the playground equipment. He stated that Wooddale Park and Normandale Park are the top two that need to be replaced. He pointed out that he was planning to replace both playgrounds this year, however, he was not planning on not having any capital funding for the past three years. He commented that, as his staff report points out, staff recommends that Wooddale Park needs to be done more so than Normandale Park. Mr. Klus asked if there are the same safety concerns at both Wooddale and Normandale Park. Mr. Keprios replied he feels Wooddale is a more hazardous condition because of the sidewalk around the play structure where the safety surface sand is constantly being dumped on the sidewalk creating a dangerous condition. That is the difference between the two parks as to which one you would do first because there is only enough money to 5 do one. Mr. Klus asked if the money for this is coming out of the Developer’s Fund. Mr. Keprios responded that will come out of the old capital fund remaining balance. Mr. Fredlund asked if the risk assessment was done at Normandale Park as well. Mr. Keprios indicated that it was not, however, it is pretty much the exact same structure. Ms. Sitek indicated that she is still concerned about not doing Normandale Park and doing Wooddale Park. Mr. Herring stated that he is having a hard time picking one park over another even if there is one differentiation point between the two. Mr. Keprios stated that the options at this time are to either do one park or not do any parks, because there is not enough money to do both. Mr. Murrin asked if statistically we could prove that Wooddale Park has more foot traffic, activity, sand problems, etc. Mr. Keprios replied that they cannot prove that statistically. Ms. Sitek asked what park programs are held at Wooddale Park in which it was noted there were some girls softball games played there this year. Ms. Sitek stated that Normandale Park is heavily scheduled with boys baseball games. Mr. Murrin stated that since Wooddale Park is getting a new comfort station maybe it’s appropriate to do the playground equipment at Normandale Park first. Mr. Mooty indicated that in fairness to Wooddale Park, they were not originally in favor of the comfort station and it was not necessarily high on their list whereas the playground equipment would be high. Mr. Mooty asked if it would be possible to do both of the playgrounds and hold off on the comfort station for a year and see whether we get the dollars. Mr. Keprios replied that the City Council has directed him to build a comfort station at Wooddale Park. Mr. Herring opened the floor if someone wanted to make a motion, however, he stated that he would vote against just putting in playground equipment at Wooddale Park. Mr. Fredlund asked would there be adequate funds if we zeroed out the Developer’s Fund and did both parks. Mr. Keprios replied he can’t make that statement right now because everything is in such flux right now with the park shelter buildings and comfort stations contract finishing up and the transferring of funds. He stated that he will know more in a few weeks. Mr. Herring suggested to table this issue, especially since construction would not be started until next spring. Mr. Keprios indicated that they can definitely delay this issue until we know more about different sources of funds for these projects. Mr. Mooty asked if staff could look into the possibility of doing both parks in stages where we would use part of the equipment that’s currently there so we could fix the safety issues and then phase in the rest when dollars become available. This way both could potentially be under way. Mr. Keprios stated that they cannot re-grade the site until all of 6 the playground equipment is taken out. However, we could possibly pull out what we believe to be the most hazardous and just hang in there until we have the money to do the rest. Mr. Herring asked Mr. Keprios to look into financing both parks and come back with information for the next Park Board meeting. John Murrin MOVED TO TABLE THIS MATTER UNTIL THE NEXT PARK BOARD MEETING. Dave Fredlund SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. IV. FEES AND CHARGES Mr. Keprios explained the reason he has only listed the fees and charges for the adult sports is because it is a timely issue. He noted he would like the Park Board’s approval for these 1999-2000 season fees. Mr. Keprios indicated that at the last Park Board meeting there was a discussion on the rental of ice for bandy. He stated that staff would like to charge $120.00 per hour this year as opposed to the $60.00 that was charged last year. This is still a little less than half of what the John Rose Memorial Minnesota Oval is charging. Mr. Keprios commented that the bandy participants have indicated that they may not be willing to pay that amount. However, if these fees are passed he will get a commitment out of the bandy participants that either they pay the fee or there will not be a bandy rink. Mr. Herring stated this must have been calculated out so it is close to $16,400. Mr. Keprios replied that he and Mr. MacHolda talked about this at length and calculated it out a couple of different ways. First, if we assumed the only reason for having the rink is because of bandy then the total cost should be divided out by the total number of hours they use in a season. This would equate to a charge of approximately $350 an hour to cover all expenses. However, if you divide that by the total number of hours they could purchase in a season it would be only $35.60 an hour. Secondly, we can look at what they charge for ice at the Roseville Oval, which is artificially refrigerated ice that is resurfaced by a Zamboni in between every game. Not being apples to apples with the Oval, renting the Lewis Park bandy rink for half of the Oval’s price would be fair. Ms. Sitek asked what do they charge at the Oval in which it was noted $240.00 an hour and according to their Park Director, that price is likely to be even higher this year. Ms. Sitek replied if the bandy people really want a bandy rink in Edina, they will pay it. Mr. Herring stated that the theory here has always been that the users pay for their use and we should no longer subsidize that service. It was also noted that bandy is the only non- resident athletic program we offer. Ms. Sitek indicated that her husband played on the first bandy team and it used to be free. Ms. Presthus commented that if we raise the bandy fee this might help solve the issue and they won’t want to play in Edina anymore and we could then change the area into a soccer field. 7 Mr. Klus asked how are the other fees figured. Do you try to get a certain percentage of revenue to offset the expenses? Mr. Keprios replied that we do not lose money on our sports programs. If anything, we make a little money to cover capital expenses that pay for facility improvements. Mr. Herring stated that we don’t always cover all of our expenses because it doesn’t cover staff’s time, etc. Mr. Herring commented that the neighborhood does enjoy the large sheet of ice and it is a benefit to them. Ms. Sitek noted that it is her understanding that this may be the last year we offer bandy. Mr. Grabiel indicated that he is a little concerned that for adult basketball we charged $400.00 in 1999 and made money and we are now raising it to $425.00. He asked why is it that government can raise fees higher than the rate of inflation. Mr. MacHolda replied the fee has been raised because they are going from a 10 game schedule to a 12 game schedule, which is budgeted at a break-even proposition. Also, a third play-off bracket was added to the post-season, which adds additional expenses. He noted that the expenses for basketball are officials, registration with the state, purchasing state berths, trophies, t-shirts for the winning team, basketballs and scorebooks, so it’s a wash. George Klus MOVED TO APPROVE THE FEES AND CHARGES FOR THE ADULT ATHLETICS. Karla Sitek SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY. V. YEAR 2000 BUDGET AND CAPITAL PLAN Mr. Keprios indicated that everyone should have received in their packet a copy of the budget which he has proposed to the City Manager who will then make a proposal to the City Council. He stated that he liked the process this year because he was given the opportunity to tell the City Council what he felt were the most critical needs in the Park and Recreation Department. Mr. Keprios stated that the numbers of facilities and park acreage have grown and the expectation of the customer has gone up. However, the total number of staff has actually declined in the past decade. Mr. Keprios noted that for the most part they are looking at a 2 ½% to 3% increase across the board whether it is for general supplies or professional services. Mr. Keprios explained that where they fall the shortest is with the capital plan. He noted that one might ask why do you need more money if you just finished up with a 10 million dollar referendum. The reason being is a lot of what they did with the referendum money was for maintenance. Mr. Keprios pointed out that the number one question he received at almost every one of the 40 referendum informational meetings was why haven’t we kept up the maintenance. Therefore, we need a capital plan just to keep up with maintenance so we don’t find ourselves back doing another referendum in the near future. Mr. Klus asked what is the City Council’s view on this. Mr. Keprios replied they have not yet heard the capital plan issue. The staff is currently working very hard right now with the Finance Department, City Manager and a few others to find alternatives to fund a capital plan in this seemingly endless era of levy limits. We need to find some alternate sources of funding whether it be through enterprise facilities, liquor stores, utility fund, etc. to find a creative way to fund a long-term capital plan. 8 VI. COMMUNITY CENTER STUDY - CHUCK MOOTY Mr. Mooty indicated that he and Mr. Keprios attended a meeting today with a lot of other people from City Hall, the School District, Community Center and a group of architects to discuss various issues. He stated that in going through the generic proposals everyone was in support of the concept of trying to enhance the overall community center with the idea that there would be a referendum that would be voted on sometime in May 2000. Mr. Mooty explained that right now the issue is trying to figure out what will actually fit in the space as well as make sure that the assessment has been made of maximizing where those facilities should be put. For example, how much should be put at the community center and how much at other potential sites. He stated that if everything works out, construction could start in November or December of next year. Mr. Mooty pointed out that hopefully everything will be further defined in the next six weeks with the goal of having this plan put in place around the first of November. This is also the same time frame when the Kunz Lewis site should be defined as far as what will ultimately be proposed for that location. Ms. Sitek asked if this is going to be Park and Recreation maintained in which Mr. Mooty replied that it will be maintained by the schools. However, it would be a city referendum and therefore the dollars for the election for the referendum would be coming primarily from the city. Mr. Murrin asked Mr. Mooty how he feels about the concept and how it can help the city. Mr. Mooty responded he thinks he is the wrong person to ask because he is very biased on the whole thing. He noted that this referendum would provide for additional gymnasiums that we so badly need here. Mr. Mooty stated that this is the most economically wise approach by keeping most of this at the community center, which is a centralized location. Mr. Mooty explained that the library would be part of the Kunz Lewis site, which would also incorporate a senior center. Mr. Murrin pointed out that Mr. Mooty has been a very active and an integral part of the fundraising effort and has heard he has been just marvelous. He stated that this needs to be a community effort that will benefit the whole community. Mr. Mooty commented there have been a lot of people working on this, however, the question is whether the community be in support of it when it’s time to vote. Mr. Fredlund asked if any figures have been discussed for the referendum in which Mr. Mooty replied that realistically they are looking at somewhere around 8 million dollars or possibly even more. Mr. Herring asked what will we get for 8 million dollars. Mr. Mooty noted the football stadium, storage facility underneath, potential remodeling and relocation of the track, concessions and restroom. It also includes a field-house which would include gyms, running tracks and fitness type capabilities for training. The remodeling of the current facilities is also included in the 8 million. Mr. Fredlund asked if there are going to be three new gymnasiums. Mr. Mooty indicated that is the concept right now with a potential fourth gym at another school site. Mr. Mooty explained that 9 the goal for the Kunz Lewis site is to have the library and senior center basically paid by the person developing that particular property. Mr. Keprios indicated that he would like to see an additional excess levy referendum on the ballot to approve an additional levy to pay for operational expenses at the new senior center. He explained that he is concerned if a senior center is built there may not be enough money within our current operating budget to pay for additional operating expenses for a new senior center. Mr. MacHolda asked Mr. Mooty if he anticipates any other groups, such as the Edina Swim Club, asking to be part of this referendum. Mr. Mooty replied that he thinks the Edina Swim Club would definitely love to see a new pool built, however, he feels the reason this even has legs right now is because the school is willing to take on the maintenance. The cost of the maintenance should not be an incremental cost to a significant degree, however, with a pool it would be very different and he doesn’t think the school would be interested in that. He stated that to get this referendum through, a pool should not be part of it at this time. Mr. Mooty indicated that his goal would be to try to do this in a way that doesn’t necessarily prohibit the Edina Swim Club from being able to propose a competitive pool in the future. Therefore, that is why at this time he would not like to take up the space at Valley View if we don’t need to. This way the Edina Swim Club will know that we are not totally voiding the ability to ever do it but will have to wait and see. Mr. Herring asked why would the city pay for the football stadium. Mr. Mooty indicated he thinks the view on this is that it’s a community project no different than the gymnasiums. Also, the goal will be to have the stadium used a little bit more than it is currently being used, possibly it could be used for soccer games. Mr. Herring commented that he assumes they are going to have rights to use these facilities. Mr. Mooty stated the School District would have the first right. Mr. Herring agreed that the schools will always have the first priority and the city will be second, just like it is now at the facilities. Mr. Mooty pointed out that after going through this, it all comes down to it’s the same dollar whether it’s coming through the city or through the school. He stated that this is something we need, it’s all a community element and his goal is to see it get done. Mr. Herring asked if anyone has looked at the demographics on basketball. He stated that he knows we are really jammed on gym space, but looking to the future are the numbers there to support this number of gymnasiums in say five years. Mr. MacHolda replied that currently the numbers could support twice as many gymnasiums, the sport has exploded and yes, the numbers will still be there. Ms. Presthus confirmed there was a group working on the demographics a few years ago and those numbers have been run. Mr. Mooty stated that the greatest concern is not having enough, however, we need to find the balance of whether the people are willing to support this without trying to get overly aggressive on what they would like to do. Mr. MacHolda commented that soccer 10 is another game that would like indoor space. You can play basketball and volleyball in the gymnasiums but you cannot play soccer, therefore, that is another group that’s fairly large who could utilize gym space. Ms. Sitek stated that she has heard that the school is sometimes not very reasonable in the way they allocate things in what they say yes and no to. Therefore, she thinks it’s important to be careful that they don’t have full say in everything because she has found them to be less than reasonable. Mr. Mooty noted that there will be some type of an arrangement as to how these facilities will be operated. Mr. Keprios explained that, in his view, the city and the school work very closely together on the collaboration of facilities in a manner that best serves the community. VII. OTHER A. Donations - Mr. Keprios indicated that he was hoping to have the donation memorial policy on the agenda with a recommendation. However, he has found that it is not as easy to come up with a proposed policy as he had hoped. He noted that Mr. Valliere has had some great input with regards to what he is doing at the golf course. Mr. Keprios informed the Park Board that he will be meeting with the Historical Society in October and will ask them to come up with some creative ideas to pay tribute to and memorialize people who have passed away who have done wonderful things for the City of Edina. He will also come up with an idea on how we can approach some of these proposals for donations and memorials. Mr. Keprios stated that after this he will bounce these ideas off of his staff and give them one more shot at it. At that time he hopes to have a policy ready to present to the Park Board. B. Community Requests - Mr. Keprios handed out a copy of a petition he received from young residents who would like to see Edina build a skate park. He noted that he also received a request to build a horseshoe pit as well as an archery range. Mr. Keprios stated that he likes to keep the Park Board up to date on comments he receives from the community. C. Soccer Goals - Mr. Murrin indicated that someone asked him to bring up the topic of the safety of our soccer goals. Apparently this was on a recent “60 Minutes” where there have been deaths with these goals falling over. He asked what is the situation in Edina. Mr. Keprios noted that he did ask the Park Superintendent and Park Foreman how our soccer goals are secured. He was told we are doing our part in that most of them are permanent goals and are buried in concrete so that they will not move. However, there are a few portable goals, which are only anchored to the ground, however, kids and adults do occasionally find a way to pull the anchors out of the ground to move the goals to a different location on the field. D. Community Education Services Board Meeting - Mr. Keprios noted that he was recently invited to attend the Community Education Services Board meeting to discuss some joint publicity ideas, especially to new residents of Edina. Therefore, they are 11 looking at different ideas in which we may no longer have an activities directory but something else. It was a very good discussion. VIII. ADJOURNMENT George Klus MOVED TO ADJOURN THE MEETING AT 9:20 P.M. John Murrin SECONDED THE MOTION. MEETING ADJOURNED.