HomeMy WebLinkAbout2004-05-11 Park Board Minutes 1
EDINA PARK BOARD
7:00 P.M.
EDINA SENIOR CENTER
SHERWOOD ROOM
MAY 11, 2004
_____________________________
MEMBERS PRESENT: Mike Damman, George Klus, Linda Presthus, Karla Sitek, Jeff
Sorem, Alice Hulbert, Andy Finsness, Jeff Johnson
MEMBERS ABSENT: Allyson Grande, Mike Weiss, Floyd Grabiel
STAFF PRESENT: John Keprios, Ed MacHolda, Janet Canton, Donna Tilsner
OTHERS PRESENT: Richard Olson, Doug Nessan, Greg Ettinger, John Ratelle, Bill
Sierks, Idelle Longman, Dick Ward, Mark Copman, Kathy
Iverson, Shirley Hunt Alexander
____________________________
I. APPROVAL OF THE TUESDAY, APRIL 13, 2004 PARK BOARD MINUTES
Karla Sitek MOVED TO APPROVE THE APRIL 13, 2004 PARK BOARD MINUTES.
Andy Finsness SECONDED THE MOTION. MINUTES APPROVED.
II. TOBACCO-FREE POLICY
Mr. Klus indicated that at the June Park Board meeting they will be discussing the
tobacco free policy. He noted that Kathy Iverson, Chemical Health Coordinator for the
City of Edina and Shirley Hunt Alexander, member of the Chemical Health Partnership
of Edina are here to plant a few thoughts in our minds before the next Park Board
meeting. Ms. Iverson first stated that she would like to commend the Park Board and
John Keprios for the work they are doing in looking at this issue. Ms. Iverson explained
that this initiative is about the voluntary compliance of tobacco free parks and they are
looking at that during youth athletic activities. She noted that this initiative will begin the
process of bringing consistency in Edina to their children in terms of the message they
are giving them regarding tobacco use. Ms. Iverson pointed out that a child who plays
basketball is not exposed to this because all schools are tobacco free. However, for a
child who plays soccer, baseball, etc., tobacco use is allowed. Therefore, they are trying
to bring some consistency to athletics by adopting a healthy parks policy. Ms. Iverson
indicated that at the June meeting they will show the Park Board what it is that other
communities around them are doing as well as explore this issue further. Mr. Klus
informed the athletic association presidents that if they would like to attend next month’s
Park Board meeting or send a representative from their association the Park Board would
be happy to hear their thoughts.
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III. YOUTH ATHLETIC ASSOCIATIONS PRESIDENTS
Mr. Klus explained that the Park Board felt it was important for the presidents and
representatives from the different athletic associations and clubs to be here tonight to talk
about facilities and uses within Edina. He indicated that they need to talk about what the
next step is if there is a next step. He noted that at the end of tonight they may find that
there is nothing more that the city is going to be able to do to help in this situation. He
stated that it may be a situation where the associations are going to have to take the next
step with the school.
Mr. Klus asked everyone to identify themselves and state which association they are
with. The following were present: Richard Olson (Edina Soccer Association); Greg
Ettinger (Edina Football Association); Doug Nessan (Edina Football Association); John
Ratelle (Edina Baseball Association); Dick Ward (Edina Basketball Association); (Bill
Sierks (Edina Girls Basketball); Mark Copman (Edina Soccer Club).
Mr. Klus stated that because the youth sports are growing so fast there is a real need for
more facilities and playing fields. He explained that the Park Board has made several
recommendations over the years as well as they have looked at a lot of different options
and at one time or another, the City Council has turned those recommendations down.
However, twice in the last year the City Council has asked the Park Board to give them a
recommendation on what to do for facilities. Specifically, they are looking for some type
of indoor facility that could have a multi-number of different uses. Mr. Klus stated that
twice now they have basically made the same recommendation to the City Council in
regards to the findings by the Facilities Study Committee. He explained that the
Facilities Study Committee was made up of Karla Sitek, Mike Damman, Andy Finsness
and himself as well as with John Keprios and Ed MacHolda.
Mr. Klus indicated that the Facilities Study Committee believes that there is a strong
desire for an indoor athletic facility which will not diminish in the foreseeable future.
Mr. Klus stated that it continues to be the Facilities Study Committee’s recommendation
that an indoor athletic field facility should be located on school property. Mr. Klus
pointed out that if you look around at other communities they have all built facilities in
conjunction with their schools. Mr. Klus gave a few reasons as to why the Facilities
Study Committee feels this way. He noted that it would allow for easier access for
students during the school day to maximize its use. They did not want to recommend to
the City Council that they build a building that’s going to sit empty all day and only be
used in the evenings. Also, it makes the most sense from an operation standpoint. Mr.
Klus commented that Edina is much more landlocked than a lot of other communities.
He also stated that of all of the facilities they have looked at in the area none of them
operate at a surplus. Mr. Klus pointed out that they also feel it would eliminate all of the
additional expenses to convert another grass field into an artificial turf field.
Mr. Klus informed the Park Board that Mr. Keprios and the City Manager Gordon
Hughes recently met with school staff regarding facilities. At that meeting, Athletic
Director Steve Dove stated that the school is not interested in a dome facility because the
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school has all of the athletic facilities that they need today. There is no need for
additional athletic facilities because they are servicing their students with the facilities
they have and are able to meet their curriculum needs. Mr. Klus noted that basically what
the school said is that they are not interested.
Mr. Klus explained that an Edina resident has stepped forward who is willing to make
quite a substantial donation to help build some type of indoor facility/bubble somewhere
in this community. He noted that they have discussed the possibility of putting it at
Braemar Park behind the Arena and talked about some of the different options. Mr. Klus
stated that they have also discussed the possibility of going back and talking to the
school. He noted that it’s his understanding that there has been a lot of discussion about
getting rid of the huts on the south end of the community center. He indicated that the
huts are used quite a bit with after school activities as well as storage. Therefore, they are
thinking about possibly talking to the schools about building some type of multi-use
facility on that site.
Mr. Klus pointed out that if the City were to look at building a facility at Braemar they
still have the operational expenses issue. It would still be a building that’s going to sit
empty and therefore, they are going to have to look at user fees and see if they can afford
to pay for it. He noted that they also may be able to go back and raise some funds for
operations to help offset that. Mr. Klus explained that is what they did in Minnetonka,
they had to raise operation money before they were allowed to build behind the high
school. Mr. Klus stated that they know there are always going to be issues with funding.
Mr. Klus indicated that right now the school is very focused on curriculum and nothing
outside of that. He noted that it has been very frustrating because they are not sure where
to go from here and therefore they would like some feedback from the athletic
associations. He stated that he doesn’t think there is much more the Park Board can do.
Mr. Klus voiced that he feels there is going to have to be more community involvement
from the associations and clubs if they are going to get things done in this community in
the future.
Mr. Keprios again informed everyone of the property at 7300 Bush Lake Road and noted
that option is not completely dead although he is not confident that the parties involved
have looked deeply enough into the deed restriction . Therefore, it’s still in motion and
he will keep the Park Board updated on what develops. Mr. Keprios indicated that the
Southdale YMCA site is not an option.
Ms. Presthus asked what happened to the GM Parts property to which Mr. Keprios
replied that he doesn’t know where that stands at the present. Mr. Ratelle commented
that it seems to him that the GM property would be the perfect location for a facility. He
noted that it already has a large structure that could probably handle a lot of indoor courts
as well as a large outdoor area. He stated that it has a lot to offer as well as it has good
access right off the freeway.
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Ms. Presthus indicated that regarding the huts at the community center the plan is to just
eliminate them and do nothing else, which is a very unpopular decision among the
Community Education Board. She explained that she sits on that board as the Park Board
liaison and noted that she thinks there needs to be some dialog on how the community
feels because they would definitely need community support if anything were to be done
there.
Ms. Presthus stated that she is not part of the Facilities Study Committee and noted that
she is a little concerned with the recommendation where it states “Based on the failed
referendum of 2001, it is the Facilities Study Committee’s recommendation that the City
of Edina should not enter into any future referendum that proposes to build gymnasiums
on School District property.” She commented that she is not sure how she should take
that because we want it on school property but yet it can’t be done through a referendum
which means funding should come from another source. Is that what the intention of that
is. Mr. Klus replied that for a referendum to be done to put buildings on school property
it would have to be a school referendum, it could not come from the city. Ms. Presthus
stated that she thinks that needs to be clarified.
Mr. Ratelle commented that speaking from the Edina Baseball Association’s perspective
they are short fields and that’s partially due to the construction that is going on over at the
Community Center. He noted that they are struggling with trying to find fields for all of
their age groups as well as they are seeing an increase in demand for their associations
and they definitely need a source of fields. Mr. Ratelle explained that one of the ideas
they have is to approach the School regarding the baseball field that is at Valley View
Middle School because it is in very rough shape. He stated that it wouldn’t cost a lot of
money to get that field back into use and the Baseball Association is willing to do that.
Mr. Ratelle indicated that he has had several conversations with Mr. Keprios and one
thing that was relayed to him is that the athletic associations do take precedence over the
schools and asked if that is something that they should look at pressing the issue with.
He noted that they could tell the schools that the associations are going to use Braemar
and all of the other fields that they want and are going to kick them off unless they
participate. Mr. Ratelle pointed out that the Baseball Association has donated
approximately $7,500 to $10,000 to help the High School with their program and they
feel it’s probably appropriate that they recognize that and that they continue to support
their program because they are inter-related. Mr. Ratelle stated that the success of the
Baseball Association is ultimately the success of the school’s program. Therefore, he
thinks a cooperative effort is really in line and so from their perspective they have a field
shortage that they need to deal with.
Mr. Ratelle explained that the second thing is that because the winters are so long they
can’t start baseball until fairly late in the season where a lot of the other communities
who have domes are able to start practicing and hold try-outs a lot earlier. He noted that
they scramble just to get try-out times at either Eden Prairie or Holy Angels. He noted
that this year they ended up having try-outs on a Sunday afternoon and by not being able
to have an appropriate try-out process they get a lot of heat from the parents that there
weren’t enough try-outs, it wasn’t appropriate, the right kids weren’t being picked, etc.,
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and those are the kinds of things that they are constantly dealing with. Mr. Ratelle
pointed out that they are trying to be as cooperative as they can and noted that when Kids
Club came to the Baseball Association and asked if we could try and facilitate all of the
kids they have in their program who are playing baseball they made a special effort to
accommodate them. He stated that he thinks the School also needs to step up and
recognize that the Baseball Association does feed their system and that they can bring in
facilities that they have under their control into being part of an overall community
support effort.
Mr. Ettinger stated that the Edina Football Association’s charter is written that they
support all football in the community which includes grade 2 through high school. He
indicated that the Football Association has donated approximately one million dollars
over the last 8 to 10 years to the City and School. Mr. Ettinger stated the their football
season is short but as an organization they take the viewpoint that they are all Edina kids
no matter what sport they play and therefore they need to support the community and
added that they are very much in favor of increasing athletic fields. He explained that
this year and over the next few years they are feeling the pinch of the school referendum.
The Football Board feels that losing the middle field between the community center and
South View is a terrible thing to do especially when they are going to use that green
space for parking when other alternatives are out there. Mr. Ettinger stressed that green
space is a big issue in this town and they are very supportive of whatever it takes in order
to help their kids stay busy and active.
Mr. Nessan commented that he thinks for football a dome would have limited use,
however, it could certainly help baseball, soccer, basketball, lacrosse, etc. He noted that
he agrees with Mr. Ettinger that whatever can be done to facilitate this he is supportive of
it. Mr. Nessan stated that if someone is willing to put money towards this how wonderful
is that. The only question would be where do you locate it. Mr. Ettinger responded that
personally he thinks that a dome belongs next to a school to maximize its use. He added
that it’s not in the curriculum now, however, it could certainly help with what goes on
with the School.
Mr. Ward indicated that the need hasn’t change arguably in ten years. He noted that their
demand continues to grow for boys basketball from 1st grade up to 9th grade. He stated
that he has heard two things. First, these facilities don’t make any money and second it’s
not the school’s problem. Mr. Ward pointed out that the school doesn’t run any
basketball programs or indoor court sport programs until high school. Therefore, the
associations have the challenge to serve the community because the demand is there
which makes it the Basketball Association’s problem and not the schools. Mr. Ward
stated that they have to look at this not as a money making opportunity but as some kind
of a community asset that’s going to serve the needs today and tomorrow. He noted that
he doesn’t have any good solutions but they need to find a solution and figure out a way
to solve it as opposed to talking about it yet again a year later. Mr. Klus replied that he
personally thinks for the Park Board to recommend to the City Council that we need to
build something and the City is going to have to subsidize it, which means it’s going to
come out of the residents of the city, would be a very tough sell. Mr. Ward pointed out
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that on the other hand the city subsidizes a lot of activities such as the Senior Center and
Art Center to name a couple. Mr. Klus responded that there are subsidies and he thinks
there is a level of what the city can subsidize. Mr. Ward commented that he’s not
suggesting that it needs to be subsidized, he’s suggesting that they need to be open to
talking about it. He noted that he thinks there are ways to charge user fees for a dome
facility and even gyms that approximate some of the revenue costs. They might not
cover all of it but if you don’t look at it as a community asset, as a starting point we
might not be able to find a good solution. Mr. Ward stated that they are all serving the
same people so they need to find a common ground and a solution that works for
everyone. He noted that both boys and girls basketball associations have huge needs in
their programs. He stated that there are going to be challenges and they need to attack
those challenges one at a time. Mr. Ward pointed out that he thinks all of the associations
are in agreement that they are willing to spend the time and energy needed to do this.
Mr. Nessan asked Mr. Keprios to explain what technically do they mean by a dome to
which he replied that with Braemar they could do either a permanent building or an
inflatable fabric structure. He explained that the State Fire Code requires that, if you put
up an inflatable fabric structure without a fire suppression system, then a road would
need to be put in all the way around the bubble for Fire Department vehicles to use for
access to the facility. Because of the terrain at that site, that means it would shrink the
field and make it a less desirable field. If a permanent building were put in there would
be no need for a road because it would have a sprinkler system.
Mr. Keprios noted that some would argue that the same site should be used instead for
gymnasiums for basketball, volleyball, and other multi-purpose floor events.
Mr. Copman explained that the Edina Soccer Club doesn’t get out onto the fields until
early April and therefore they try and take advantage of what they can because their
season starts May 10th. He noted that there are 700 kids playing on 50 teams for traveling
soccer which is up 20 teams from as recent as 3 ½ years ago. Mr. Copman indicated that
he has been working closely with Mr. MacHolda in trying to figure out field space. He
noted that to have access to any kind of artificial turf would be very helpful for them.
Mr. Copman stated that he would be more than happy to open up their books and show
what they spend at the Holy Angels dome because they have training going on all winter.
He commented that this year Holy Angels had such a demand that they weren’t able to
have any children’s leagues, just adult leagues. Therefore people had to scatter to other
facilities. Mr. Copman indicated that what he would like to try to figure out is what the
specific financial opportunities are in more detail. He noted that if they have money to
build something they also have to think about operating costs and they need to come up
with something more financially creative. Mr. Copman stated that they are very
interested in putting in some kind of artificial turf that they can use in the winter and
longer in the spring as well as lessen their demand in the fall which would help the
football program who has a very short season. He explained that they want to make sure
that they can maximize the use of the fields, and that they don’t overlap as much as they
do right now. It’s a real issue with overlaps because they just don’t have the field space.
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Mr. Nessan asked if Pamela Park would be considered as a place to build a facility to
which Mr. Keprios replied that they have discussed that option.
Mr. Ward indicated that he would like to talk outside of the box for a moment and stated
that to him there are two big drivers, land in Edina and money to pay for either capital or
operating to which he would like to set that issue aside for a minute. He stated that the
city owns all of the open space in this town and asked is there an opportunity on some
park land to put up a permanent facility that serves all of the programs year round. He
noted that we may have to lose a baseball field or a soccer field. Mr. Ward commented
that if you want feedback this might be one area for the Park Board to examine. He noted
that they would still have to attack the money side of it but that could be looked at as a
separate issue. Mr. Klus responded that he thinks the day will come where Edina will
maximize the use of its land and as the associations continue to grow as they are today
they are going to have to continue to go outside of the city. He stated that there just isn’t
going to be any other way to do it. Mr. Klus stressed that they still have too many needs
that they are not meeting. Mr. Ward asked if maybe it’s worthy of the Park Board to
examine this in some detail to which Mr. Klus replied he doesn’t disagree with that.
Mr. Olson asked about the land at Rosland Park and stated that if something is put at
Pamela Park the residents are going to be all over the Park Department. Mr. Keprios
replied that they are here to hear different ideas. Ms. Presthus commented that she agrees
land is always an issue and neighbors are always an issue and that’s why they’ve always
looked to the schools where there is land around them. Ms. Presthus indicated that the
Basketball Association, Football Association, Baseball Association, etc., have all given a
great deal of money to the schools. She noted that she is just trying to make a point that
she’s not so sure where the high school programs, such as the high school football
program, would be without the association’s money. Ms. Presthus pointed out that there
are going to be more budget cuts in the athletic programs. She stated that she thinks there
is room for cooperation considering how much Edina’s athletic associations do to
promote the high school’s athletic programs. Without the associations they may not be
able to exist.
Mr. Klus asked the associations if they are willing to spend more money with the city in
order to provide these new facilities. He noted that may mean the associations would
have to divert money that has been given to the Schools programs. He asked if that
would even be a feasible option for them in the future. He stated that he realizes some of
the associations have committed in the past somewhat to the Schools programs and
rightly so which we do need in this community to continue to keep our programs
competitive. However, are the associations willing to step up and help raise that money?
Mr. Klus explained that he thinks if we recommended that we need a bond issue to build
some things it’s going to take more than the city to sell it. It’s going to take the families
of the people that participate in those associations to sell it and if they are not willing to
step up he’s not so sure it could get sold. Mr. Klus asked is that a feasible thing for the
associations to do. Mr. Ward replied that the Basketball Association is able to commit
resources including dollars to support new, improved additional facilities in this
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community because it’s what their constituents want and demand. He noted that he
thinks that extends across the board for both boys and girls.
Mr. Olson indicated that he doesn’t know if Edina Soccer would be able to help. He
noted that they have a short season and that the majority of their participants are
kindergarten through 3rd grade and then it starts to taper off. He stated that with the
majority of them being young players they don’t expect them to play indoor soccer
during the winter. Mr. Olson commented that it is a good feeder system for the Soccer
Club and therefore they would support the Soccer Club in what they wanted to do.
However, they already charge $100.00 to play soccer which is a lot of money and if they
were to add an additional $20.00 he’s not so sure what that would do to their program.
Mr. Ward commented that there is a point where you say the cost of being in a sport has
out-priced the demand, which that’s not necessarily to be determined tonight.
Mr. Ward stated that the Basketball Association has probably contributed over $100,000
to the High School Basketball program over the last ten years. He noted that the
Basketball Association does have some resources that they can use to support facilities in
this community for these programs. He explained that they are going to have to make
decisions about how to use those resources but they are willing to support it.
It was asked if it would be totally out of the question to have the associations and Park
Board as a group meet with the School and see if they might consider something that
doesn’t require money but rather land. Mr. Klus replied that it is his understanding from
the city’s perspective that there is nothing more they feel at this point they can do with
the school. The school has made it very loud and clear that they are not interested in
building additional athletic facilities on their property. Mr. Klus stated that it is his
understanding that the athletic director feels they do not have a need for any more
facilities. Therefore, if the athletic associations disagree with that, then they need to take
that stand to the school and say we don’t agree with that. He stated that from a city
standpoint he’s not sure what more they can do.
Mr. Ward indicated that the Edina Schools just passed an 85 million dollar referendum
which is being put to use right now. However, his recollection is that the original
recommendation was for up to 120 million dollars to which much of that was for
additional athletic facilities that the School Board decided to cut. Mr. Ward asked Mr.
Johnson isn’t that a little inconsistent to say that there is no need for additional athletic
facilities when in fact the board’s original proposal was to have more facilities. Mr.
Johnson explained that there certainly was a wish list of what would be the best case
scenario. However, they did studies and had a consulting group come in and say what
amount the citizens would be willing to support and it ended up being 85 million. Mr.
Johnson pointed out that the whole referendum was for school curriculum and everything
above the 85 million was basically gravy and was cut. Mr. Ward asked so are we talking
about a community need as opposed to a school need. Mr. Johnson replied that is when
the athletic director stated that they have everything they need. He meant that they have
everything they need for their curriculum base and for the schools’ teams. Mr. Klus
commented that right now the school is not willing to work with the community to help
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them utilize the school because they don’t see it as a curriculum need for the schools.
However, they do have the land, and they are just not interested in pursuing something
outside of the curriculum.
Mr. Johnson explained that when they sold this referendum to the public it was based on
curriculum and for them to go back and say they are going to add a few gyms and a dome
the public would go nuts about deception and saying that we were not telling the truth.
Mr. Johnson indicated that what they have learned the last couple of months is that the
public wants a say in this matter. Mr. Johnson indicated that he has talked with Tim
Walsh, School Board Chairman, that when this is all said and done the two of them
would be more than happy to support a city referendum adding facilities onto school
property. However, at this time he can’t speak for the rest of the School Board.
Mr. Keprios commented that based on what they learned from the 2001 referendum the
community doesn’t buy the relationship of the city doing a referendum to make
improvements on school property because they have different boundaries. The
recommendation that has been made by the Facilities Study Committee is accurate in
saying “The City of Edina should not enter into any future referendum that proposes to
build gymnasiums on school property”. Mr. Keprios stressed that the city offered the
referendum the last time, not the school, and it wasn’t a joint referendum. Ms. Presthus
noted that the recommendation virtually cuts that out of ever building on school property.
Mr. Keprios replied it says the City of Edina will not offer it, it doesn’t say the School
can’t offer a referendum. He noted that it’s not the City’s job to tell the School Board
what to do. Mr. Klus commented that is why they are limited as a Park Board on what
they can do with school property. If the associations feel that the best place to develop
facilities is at the schools then it’s the associations that need to talk to the School District.
Mr. Ward responded that the Basketball Association thinks that the best spot for
something to get done in the near future as opposed to five or ten years down the road is
somewhere on city property. Ms. Sitek stated that whoever is using it will then have to
cover the operating costs to which Mr. Johnson added that’s the kicker. Mr. Olson asked
how much is that because maybe the associations could get together. However, the
question then would be how to split that up.
Ms. Hulbert asked if the GM Warehouse site is a building that can structurally be used
and we just convert it. Mr. Klus replied that’s correct but they first need to find out if
it’s even available for sale to the city and as of right now they are not sure where it’s at.
He noted that is something they can direct the staff to look into for the Park Board as one
of our options and see what kind of feedback we get. Ms. Presthus pointed out that they
have to keep in mind that piece of property is pretty prime property with a huge tax base
so it’s not exactly like let’s just make a field there and it’s not going to cost the city
anything.
Mr. Damman noted that he is still pretty convinced that the facilities that they are talking
about should be on school property. He indicated that he realizes the associations want
something right now but he’s not so sure that in the long-term it would be good. He
stated that he would like to look at the whole thing.
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Mr. Finsness commented that he thinks the feedback has been great. Ms. Sitek noted that
she would like to look into some of the points that were brought up and put it all together.
Mr. Sorem asked when they are talking about putting up a permanent building at Braemar
does that mean they would lose that as a field if it were converted to which it was noted
yes. Mr. Olson replied that the Edina Soccer Club loves that field to which Mr. Copman
responded that they would be happy to give up a field to have a permanent structure if
they had an indoor facility that they could use. He noted that it would make up your 52
weeks a year as opposed to seasonal play.
Ms. Presthus pointed out that the hut area still needs to be considered because that area is
in the referendum. Mr. Johnson explained that old auditorium is going to be made into a
multi-purpose room and whether that’s a complete substitute for the hut he doesn’t know.
Mr. Ettinger commented that Steve Dove came to their EFA meeting last month and said
that they would like to build off the tennis courts over the Concord field and put the hut
storage underneath. Mr. Johnson replied that’s just storage. Ms. Presthus stated that the
point there is that it’s not just storage. The Kids Club and after school activities use that
as a gym and they have no where to go if those huts are eliminated. She noted that
there’s a push that needs more community support because right now in the referendum
they are expected to be torn down which means Kids Club and some of those other
activities are going to be pushed back into the schools and there is no space for them.
She indicated that in the referendum that space is going to be used as an open space
where you can have a picnic before a game. Ms. Presthus stated that they need
community support to say either keep the huts or put some type of a gym surface in there.
Mr. Johnson indicated that he knows football uses Winter Park and asked if there is an
option to use more of it. Mr. Ettinger replied that because of the regime with Coach Tice,
an Edina resident, he has opened up Winter Park to football, girls soccer and baseball.
Ms. Presthus commented that the High School football team uses it as well as High
School soccer. She added that the school needs to be very careful if they think the
curriculum needs are met. Mr. Johnson stated that obviously the best place to put the
dome is at Kuhlman, however, we then run into problems with the surrounding residents
who don’t want it located there.
Mr. Johnson pointed out that they are going to add two fields where McCarthy is so they
will gain the field they are losing with the parking lot between South View and the
Community Center. He stated that they are going to be losing some fields; however, they
are going to be gaining a synthetic turf field at the high school which they will be able to
use more and more of. Also, they are going to have synthetic turf at Kuhlman which they
will able to use more often. Mr. Johnson stated that as far as gym space the only real
logical place would be at Valley View because in talking with Scot Housh it sounds like
they want an area where they could put three to four gyms so that they can run
tournaments and use it more effectively. Mr. Johnson again stated that he would be more
than happy to look at this after everything with the referendum is done. He noted that he
did suggest doing this now while they are building it, however, he was shot down
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because of the deception to the public even if they say the City is building it. Mr.
Ettinger commented that he feels that’s a marketing issue to which Mr. Johnson agreed.
Mr. Ettinger pointed out that one member of the school has approached two members of
the Football Association looking for a significant donation to get turf for McCarthy upper
fields and to get it done now. He stated that he thinks that’s a little out of line to which
Mr. Klus added that it doesn’t meet the curriculum issue.
Mr. MacHolda informed the Park Board that Mr. Ettinger, Mr. Nessan and himself met
with Steve Dove to look at the plans for the Community Center campus. He stated that
he thought Mr. Dove said that they added a field to McCarthy but in his view they don’t.
He indicated that they lose a back-stop and an infield you just re-stripe the green space
that is there but you don’t gain green space. Mr. MacHolda stated that by just moving the
baseball field below, you are not gaining green space but simply stripping it differently.
Mr. Johnson noted that you’re gaining probably ½ a field. Mr. MacHolda stated that they
didn’t see it as a gain, because he thinks losing the green space in between the two
buildings is a significant loss of green space. The original concept was that converting
Kuhlman Stadium to artificial turf would result in gaining additional field use time;
however, Mr. MacHolda has heard that band will be marching on that and so it really
won’t be a gain.
Mr. Klus summarized what he is hearing from the associations who are here tonight. The
Associations would like the Park Board to go back and look at all city-owned property
for facility use and come up with a plan that they would feel comfortable recommending
to the City for facility use on some park property that they currently have. The facility
may be a bubble or a permanent structure, but it’s one that can be used by multiple
associations. In addition the Associations would like some costs analysis as to what it
would cost to build something as well as what it would cost to operate it. Once the Park
Board has that knowledge they would bring it to the Associations to receive their
feedback at that time. Mr. Klus noted that he thinks as a Park Board they can accomplish
that within the next three to four months. However, after this meeting he will need to
check with Mr. Keprios and Mr. Hughes to make sure that they can provide what they
need to do the property analysis and come back and say here’s what we think we can do
now on city property. Mr. Klus stated that as a board he would like to entertain a motion
to that effect from one of the Park Board members so they can at least formally put that
into their minutes and begin working on that. He stated that they will talk about how they
will work on that later in the meeting.
Linda Presthus MOVED. Andy Finsness SECONDED. MOTION CARRIED
UNANIMOUSLY.
IV. UPDATES
A. Park Visits and Park Presentations – Mr. Klus informed Mr. Johnson that he will be
on the June Park Board agenda to give his park assignments presentation.
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B. Wine License – Braemar Golf Course – Mr. Keprios indicated that the Park Board’s
recommendation did go on to City Council and that they had their First Reading because
it requires amendments to two ordinances; one for consumption and one to allow
Braemar Golf Course to purchase a wine license. He noted that they approved it but not
without discussion. He noted that they had the question of why is this coming forward,
are we going to actually sell wine on the course itself and if so are we going to sell wine
coolers. Mr. Keprios commented that after the discussion they did pass the First Reading
it so it goes onto its Second Reading which will be one week from tonight.
C. Student Park Board Member - Mr. Klus informed the Park Board that Allyson Grande
will be graduating in June and indicated that the Mayor will need to appoint a new School
Park Board member. He noted that so far they do have at least one person who has
applied for the position.
D. Upcoming Park Board Meetings - Mr. Klus reminded the Park Board that next
month’s Park Board meeting will be held at the South Metro Training Facility and in July
there will be no meeting because of the Braemar Inspection Tour. In August they will
resume their meetings at Edina City Hall.
V. REVISIT FEEDBACK FROM ATHLETIC ASSOCIATIONS
Mr. Klus commented that he appreciates the motion and thinks it’s something they can
continue to look at as a Park Board. He noted that he thinks they need to move it along
quickly. Mr. Klus noted that he thinks what Mr. Keprios and staff need to do is to make
some recommendations to the Park Board between this meeting and next months meeting
on some of your thoughts and what you think we should be looking at. He stated that he
would like to have that in an e-mail before their next meeting rather than wait until the
next meeting. He noted that he would also like feedback on what is happening with the
GM building.
Ms. Sitek stated that more importantly she thinks they need to come up with numbers
regarding operating costs because she’s not so sure they are going to want to pay it. Mr.
Klus replied that they need to look at some locations so they know what it’s going to cost
them. He commented that they have an idea what Braemar is going to cost them right
now if it was a permanent structure.
Mr. Klus asked Mr. Keprios if he could give the Park Board a staff report on what he
thinks might be some of their best options as well as get some rough costs. He noted that
he would like to have that e-mailed to the Park Board in order to get some feedback from
the Park Board before next months meeting. That way they can start the meeting with
what some thoughts are.
Mr. Johnson asked if the donor who is coming forward strictly wants a dome. Mr.
Keprios replied that it’s coming from a gentleman who has a strong interest in artificial
turf, an indoor field, specifically for his sport of choice which is lacrosse. He has stated
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that he is willing to come up 1.5 million dollars. Mr. Johnson asked so it is only for that
specific purpose to which Mr. Keprios replied correct, he is not interested in gyms.
Mr. Sorem asked if this donor was pretty much unsolicited to which it was noted yes. He
noted that maybe the associations could work together on some sort of fundraising effort.
Mr. Sorem commented that he’s new to the Park Board and didn’t realize the need that
there is for all of this and is not so sure that the majority of the residents in Edina are
aware of the serious need that is there. He stated that there are a lot of people in this
community with a lot of money that might donate large amounts of money that could
maybe cover some of the significant costs.
Mr. Klus indicated that he thinks this is the first time they’ve heard from the associations
more of a willingness to step forward and work with this. Mr. Finsness noted that he
heard at least three of them say they would give at least $10,000 a year is what he added
up towards the school to which he doesn’t know how much of that they can divert. Also,
for soccer to say they would be happy to give up one of the fields to have an indoor
facility they are being generous in their own minds. Mr. Keprios replied it’s a move in
the right direction. Mr. Sorem stated that he’s not so sure they can divert the money but
just look at how much money they would save by not going to Holy Angels and
Burnsville.
Mr. Damman indicated that if the Athletic Associations are giving this kind of money to
the schools couldn’t we see if they could talk to the schools and put pressure on them so
they won’t lose that kind of money. He noted that it seems to him that we are throwing
the Facilities Study Committee’s recommendations right out the door. Mr. Klus
commented that is not what he is hearing from the associations. He noted that what he is
hearing them tell the Park Board tonight is if the school is out then we have to go look for
something else. He didn’t hear them say well let’s go talk to the school as he was hoping
he would hear them say tonight. Their thinking is if the school is not an option, then we
have to move on to other opportunities.
Mr. Klus commented that he thinks the Blue Ribbon Task Force in 2001, the Facilities
Needs Committee and the School Board have all identified needs and made decisions on
what they felt was important at the time. Unfortunately, however, those needs have not
changed. Mr. Klus stated that he doesn’t think we’ve done a good job in this community
of marketing those needs and added that he doesn’t feel the school has ever done a very
good job of marketing what their needs are. He stated that he believes marketing is one
of the reasons some of this stuff has failed because we don’t educate enough.
Ms. Hulbert asked if it would be possible to work up two models to present how this
would work if it were done on school property as well as what a budget would look like
in that case. She asked if there is an ideal piece of school property to use. Mr. Johnson
responded that he thinks the only place it would really work would be at the middle
schools or high school for gymnasiums. He noted that as far as green space he’s not sure
how many more fields they can put in. He commented that Mr. Ratelle from the Baseball
Association had talked earlier about fixing up the baseball field by the tennis courts at
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Valley View. Mr. MacHolda pointed out that he continually hears from residents that the
quantity of practice and game space is not there and noted that he thinks they need to
look at just the season as being the number one item that they need to tackle. Mr.
MacHolda stated that someone is going to have to either eliminate a portion of their
program or somebody is going to have to decide to go during the day because they don’t
have enough evening space to accommodate everyone.
Paul Ferry, Edina LaCrosse Association, apologized for being late and asked for a copy
of the report that was given out. He indicated that it would be great if they could get a
facility for the kids. He stated that currently there are 300 to 400 kids play lacrosse and
the numbers keep growing. He noted that it would really nice to have a dome and
thanked the Park Board for considering building a facility.
Mr. Johnson suggested to the Park Board that perhaps they can get all of the athletic
association presidents to send some e-mails to Steve Dove and Ken Dragseth about
possibly pulling some of their funding and say if something is not going to happen they
may have to divert their funds elsewhere in order to build their own private facilities. Mr.
Klus replied that’s a good suggestion and they should discuss that at next month’s
meeting. Mr. Johnson stressed that he doesn’t want to get into a big contest where they
butt heads. Ms. Presthus added that it’s nice that they haven’t had to do that and that
they’ve been able to work very cooperatively.
Mr. Klus indicated that one of the things he heard earlier was that maybe the schools
shouldn’t be using our parks as much and perhaps the associations should be using them
more instead. Especially if the schools are getting them for free and other people need
somewhere to play. Mr. Johnson responded that plays right into the curriculum thing if
you say the High School Baseball team can’t use Braemar, the school now has to find a
field of their own and that changes the playing field a little bit. Mr. Klus commented that
he thinks in some ways it’s going to come down to some of those issues.
Mr. Johnson asked the Park Board is there something from the Park Board that he could
take back saying here is specifically what is being asked of the schools in terms
gymnasiums and fields, etc. Mr. Klus replied that he thinks that has already been given
to the school. Mr. Keprios explained that the city and school worked very closely
together on the referendum and the voters said no. Mr. Keprios indicated that he fully
agrees with what Mr. Johnson said earlier in that the best place for a bubble is at
Kuhlman Stadium. Mr. Keprios pointed out that every community faces opposition when
they propose to build a bubble; however their school boards ultimately vote yes because
they feel it’s the right thing to do for their community.
Ms. Presthus informed Mr. Johnson that two different plans were drawn up for both
Valley View and the Community Center area from the last referendum and she doesn’t
think those things have changed. Mr. Johnson commented that there is money in this
referendum for the lower field at the high school to get improved. He stated that
wouldn’t be a bad spot to put a dome except it has the 20 year flood and getting down
there in the winter time might get a little tricky. However, that would be a spot that
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would be away from the public. Mr. Keprios stated that the thing that has changed with
this school referendum is now there are other spaces being consumed for other uses such
as more performing arts and parking lots. He indicated that he thinks we need to hear
from the associations as to what they want. He noted that we need to be aware of the
remaining options now with the way the school is developing things.
Mr. Klus stated that right now he thinks the directive is to find a site for either a dome or
a permanent structure on a multi-use building that they can preferably be put in a park
setting or city land. He indicated that now he thinks they need to move on the motion
that was made earlier and at the June Park Board meeting they should at least be
somewhat down the road on thoughts of what will work in this community. Mr. Klus
asked the Park Board to give them something before the next meeting so everyone can
ponder it and decide where to go.
VI. ADJOURNMENT
Linda Presthus MOVED TO ADJOURN THE MEETING AT 9:00 P.M. Karla Sitek
SECONDED THE MOTION. MEETING ADJOURNED.