HomeMy WebLinkAbout2005-02-08 Park Board Minutes 1
EDINA PARK BOARD
7:00 P.M.
EDINA COMMUNITY ROOM
EDINA CITY HALL
FEBRUARY 8, 2005
_____________________________
MEMBERS PRESENT: George Klus, Karla Sitek, Alice Hulbert, Jeff Johnson, Mike
Weiss, Mike Damman, Andy Finsness, Linda Presthus, Jessica
Selleck, Todd Fronek
MEMBERS ABSENT: Jeff Sorem
STAFF PRESENT: Ed MacHolda, Janet Canton, Vince Cockriel, Tom Horwath
OTHERS PRESENT: Floyd Grabiel, Jean White, John Henry, Ruth Saari, Geof
Workinger, Betty Workinger, Robert Shaw, Hugh Wooldridge,
Dan Latham, Dianne Plunkett Latham, Idelle Longman, Jane
Moran, Jim Villas, Kris Wetmore, Sue Simonton, Jeannie Hanson,
Richard Griffith, Naomi Griffith, Les Wanninger
____________________________
I. WELCOME NEW PARK BOARD MEMBERS JESSICA SELLECK AND TODD
FRONEK
Mr. Klus welcomed the two new Park Board members Todd Fronek and Jessica Selleck.
Mr. Fronek indicated that he grew up in Edina and while in high school and college he
worked during the summers for the Park Department to which Vince Cockriel was the
Park Foreman. He noted that he is an attorney and works in downtown Minneapolis. He
added that he recently ran for City Council. Mr. Fronek stated that he is very excited to
be involved with the Park Board.
Ms. Selleck indicated that she is a senior at Edina High School and stated that during the
summer she volunteered her time to help out the Communications Department and City
Council. She noted that when she heard about the student representative position she
decided she wanted to be more involved. Ms. Selleck added that rugby is her main sport.
II. BUCKTHORN MASTER PLAN
Mr. Klus informed the Park Board that Diane Plunkett Latham is here tonight to give her
annual report on buckthorn. Ms. Latham indicated that this year they raised
approximately $1,800.00 for buckthorn abatement. She noted that they are now going to
expand on that because they’ve set up a fund through the Edina Community Foundation
so that members of the community can donate money and receive a tax deduction. Ms.
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Latham stated that this year they gave seven presentations and educated a total of 170 and
are planning to continue doing this next year. She noted that they also had 14 articles in
the Sun Current and various other publications and will continue to publicize it. Ms.
Latham commented that 14 volunteers distributed 600 door hangers as well as a group
from Garden Park handed out an additional 200 flyers in their neighborhood. Ms.
Latham noted that they really appreciate what all of the volunteers have done.
Ms. Latham indicated that she would first like to thank Mr. Keprios, Mr. Horwath and
Mr. Cockriel for all of the work and support they have given during the past year. She
added that even with the terrible problems the city has had with Dutch Elm Disease the
City’s staff was still able to do a lot of work in the parks which was wonderful and very
much appreciated. Ms. Latham commented that she would also like to thank Tim
Zimmerman., the City’s horticulturist, who does a lot of work at Arneson Acres and is a
very valuable resource to everyone.
Ms. Latham explained that Mr. Keprios applied for and received a grant from the DNR
Conservation Partners for $5,000 to evaluate all of Edina’s parks that have buckthorn.
She noted that the city hired Prairie Restoration Inc. (PRI) to research and make
recommendations that identify buckthorn infestations in our parks and come up with a
prioritized list of the parks. Ms. Latham indicated that before PRI did their study she
visited the parks and came up with a list of her own and found that her tallies did agree
with PRI’s, however, there were a couple of surprises. She noted that PRI identified 9
parks as high priority parks.
Ms. Latham indicated that Van Valkenburg was listed as the top priority park which took
her completely by surprise. She explained that the reason it is listed as the highest
priority is because it’s Edina’s only existent Oak Savanna, which is very rare. She stated
that this area is also one that would be fairly easy to maintain using prescribed burns
because it is away from residential areas, heavy traffic and could easily be taken care of.
She noted that Van Valkenburg is 15 acres and hopefully Mr. Horwath will receive some
help with this park.
Ms. Latham stated that the second park listed was Arden Park which is one that the Tree
Trust group worked on. She noted that the Tree Trust group is made up of youth under
the age of 18 who have committed non-violent crimes and are required to do community
service. She indicated that the Tree Trust people are not licensed to paint the stumps and
if the stumps are not painted the buckthorn will regenerate. Therefore, they have the Tree
Trust people cut the stumps high so that later in the fall Mr. Horwath can cut them low
and paint them. She noted that they would like to continue to use this group.
Ms. Latham noted that number three on the list is Normandale Park and at this time there
is no work being done. She commented that it would be nice to have an adopt-a-park
group at Normandale Park. Ms. Latham stated that Krahl Hill came in fourth which
surprised her because she didn’t feel it was that high of a priority and noted that currently
there is no work being done. Ms. Latham stated that Highlands Park came in at number
five and that is a park that Mr. Horwath has been heavily working on. She commented
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that Mr. Cockriel’s crews have already picked up three or four truck loads to which they
are still going to need more help at the park. Ms. Latham indicated that Garden Park
came in at number six and last fall a group lead by Les Wanninger and John Henry, Edina
residents, starting removing the buckthorn. Ms. Latham pointed out that one threat to
Garden Park is the garlic mustard because if that seeds into the area it will cover
everything. She noted that Mr. Cockriel’s crews took out two or three pick-up loads from
that park. Ms. Latham indicated that Melody Lake was number seven on the list and
noted that at this time there is no work being done. However, Mr. Cockriel has informed
her that as the scout troops step forward he is going to deploy them to Melody Lake.
Ms. Latham noted that Braemar Park is number eight on the list and pointed out that a lot
of people don’t understand that Braemar is really two separately managed areas. One is
the golf course which John Valliere is responsible for and the other is the park, which is
approximately 250 acres, that Mr. Cockriel is responsible for. Ms. Latham pointed out
that Jean White, who is on the Braemar Golf Course staff, has been working with the
Braemar Men’s Club and they have done a wonderful job taking out several acres of
buckthorn this past year. She stated that the golf course takes care of the perimeter of the
golf course and Mr. Cockriel takes care of the park property which is enormous and
would be impossible for volunteers to even put any kind of a dent into. Ms. Latham
stated that it’s her opinion that PRI should be hired to come up with a detailed report
section by section on how Braemar Park could be restored. She noted that this park is
also heavily used during the winter months. Ms. Latham indicated that Rosland Park is
the last park listed as a high priority park. She noted that she thinks this made the list
because of the lake as well as the heavy use it receives. She stated that her Garden Club
has been working on this park since the fall of 2002.
Ms. Latham explained that PRI listed 12 parks under the middle priority which included:
Pamela, Todd, Lewis, York, Creek Valley, Heights, Walnut Ridge, Wooddale, Utley,
Williams, Lincoln Drive Floodplain, Bredesen Park and Arneson Acres. She noted that
the low priority parks were: Alden, Browndale, St. Johns, Birchcrest, Countryside,
Sherwood Pump, Cornelia School, Frank Tupa, Bob Kojetin, Chowen, Weber, Lake
Edina, Fred Richards Golf Course, Fox Meadow, Bristol, Yorktown, McGuire,
Strachauer, and Tingdale.
Ms. Latham informed the Park Board that they have worked out a liability waiver that the
residents could sign indicating that they could use their chainsaws in the parks and that
the city would not have liability.
Ms. Latham pointed out that Bredesen is one of Edina’s largest parks and there is a lot of
buckthorn at the park. She noted that there are some people from Nine Mile Village here
tonight because they live on the border of Bredesen Park and have done an enormous
amount of clearing and if Bredesen Park is not going to be cleared they are going to have
a hard time retaining theirs.
The following Edina residents spoke to the Park Board about the various parks where
they have volunteered to help remove buckthorn: Jean White, Hugh Wooldridge, Les
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Wanninger, Jane Moran, Kris Wetmore, Suzanne Kerwin, Jeannie Hanson, Jim Villas
and Robert Shaw.
Mr. Wanninger stated that he feels with the exception of the larger parks most of the
parks could have their buckthorn removal done by adopt-a-park kinds of groups. He
noted that it’s a building kind of exercise that is a lot of fun and there is a great sense of
pride when it’s done. Mr. Wanninger indicated that someone would need to train them
on the appropriate way to get rid of buckthorn because if it’s not done correctly they are
wasting their time. He noted that once this is done then Mr. Cockriel’s crews will need to
haul it away. He commented that it would be great if Mr. Horwath had the support he
needs to help get it done. He stressed that he also thinks it’s important that the neighbors
who are affected be involved in the project so they can do it how they want it done.
Mr. Wanninger pointed out to the Park Board that the original plans for Garden Park had
a walking path around it, however, if you try to walk around Garden Park you end up
walking in mud because there is no path. He noted that he has talked to Mr. Keprios and
he is supportive of the idea of putting in a walking path. He stated that if they are going
to put in a lot of time and clear out a lot of buckthorn at some point it would be nice to
have a walking path where people don’t have to walk in the mud. Mr. Wanninger
thanked the Park Board for their help and support.
Jeannie Hanson, resident and member of the Conservation League of Edina, indicated
that she would like for the Park Board to think about what would come in after the
buckthorn is gone. She noted that sometimes you can’t plant wild flowers and native
buffers in time and therefore asked the Park Board to consider the idea of putting in rain
gardens which can be very small to very large. She explained that the Conservation
League of Edina has already put in a small one and would like to do more. She
described rain gardens as working puddles in areas of storm water drain off and anytime
it’s downhill or near a storm sewer it can be good to put in a rain garden. Rain gardens
take the moisture from run-off and the beautiful plants around it and it acts as a bio filter
that can pick up any runoff that’s going into it. She noted that rain gardens are a really
good idea for cleaning up the water.
Mr. Klus informed members of the audience that each of the Park Board members have
been assigned to parks within the city and it is their responsibility to keep up with what is
happening at the parks and to report back to the Park Board on what needs to be done.
Ms. Presthus thanked everyone for all that they have done and their involvement in this
project. It is truly remarkable all of the work the volunteers have done.
Robert Shaw, Edina resident, indicated that he thinks Bredesen Park is a mess, the
pathways are well maintained but everything else has been horribly neglected. He noted
that he lives right next to Bredesen Park and spends a lot of time there. He indicated that
he has not seen any volunteers there and asked if someone were to organize volunteers to
work on the buckthorn at Bredesen Park under the authority and control of the Park
Department would the Park Department carry the brush piles away. Mr. Cockriel replied
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that there are other issues besides just cutting down pieces of buckthorn and dragging
them to the parking lot. He pointed out that it’s the five to six year follow-up
maintenance that’s important. He explained that it would take approximately 10,000 to
15,000 hours to complete a project like this from start to finish, it is no small undertaking
and that’s why it is quite a ways back on the priority list. Mr. Cockriel commented that
it’s not that it’s not a priority park because everyone agrees it’s a beautiful park, however,
that’s not the point. The point is that it can’t get much worse than it already is, it’s not
going to look 10 times worse 10 years from now. Mr. Cockriel indicated that he would
be supportive of volunteers working within a specific area of Bredesen and staying with it
for five years.
Mr. Klus indicated that he commends Ms. Latham and her group as well as the City of
Edina who have taken the leadership to go after buckthorn because without it they would
be in a lot worse shape. He noted that he realizes it takes considerate effort and a lot of
volunteers to which they will continue to look for more volunteers. Mr. Klus indicated
that he heard some good suggestions and Ms. Canton will compile a list of those for the
next Park Board meeting to be given to the Park Board members.
Dr. Hulbert noted that she would just like to thank everyone for all of the work they are
doing because it’s a tremendously huge problem but you have to start somewhere. Mr.
Klus thanked Ms. Latham and everyone else in the audience.
Mr. Cockriel stated that coming from the staff’s point of view they too were in agreement
with the assessment of the parks that was done by PRI. He explained that they will start
by working from the top of PRI’s list and work their way down. He noted that they are
always happy to have volunteer groups who want to work in the parks, however, he asks
that everyone goes through the forestry department and do it correctly during the correct
times of year.
Mr. Cockriel indicated that staff is continuing to work on Van Valkenburg Park as well as
they started a little bit of work at Arden Park. He noted that they have not yet touched
Normandale Park and commented that the priority of that park came as a surprise to them
but he thinks it’s because of the oak woods that are there. Mr. Cockriel stated that
Braemar Park is an ongoing maintenance issue.
Mr. Cockriel commented that Todd Park and Garden Park both had very nice
neighborhood groups step forward and the Park Department is very supportive of them
and will continue to support them with the haul-a-way and training. However, if it gets to
be too big of an issue they will need to slow down a bit because Mr. Horwath cannot put
Oak Wilt and Dutch Elm Disease on the back burner and only work on buckthorn. He
added that so far there hasn’t been an issue.
Mr. Horwath indicated that everyone should have a copy of his annual report and pointed
out that as most people are aware Dutch Elm Disease has been on the up swing and has
already heard this year’s projections and can’t believe it. He noted that the city crews
were very busy last year working on Dutch Elm Disease. Mr. Horwath pointed out that
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his report also includes different trees that he has planted in the various parks. He stated
that the report also includes all city staff and volunteers who have been working on
buckthorn removal. He commented that it is a lot of work and it’s not going to happen
overnight. He explained that controlling buckthorn and other invasive species as well is a
huge task and something that they have to learn how to do most efficiently, most easily
and most cost effectively. He stated that he was highly encouraged by all of the
volunteers and that is what they will continually need to tackle this. Mr. Horwath stated
that he would like to thank Ms. Latham and all of the other volunteers for the
unbelievable amount of work that was done and is very proud of what Edina is doing.
Ms. Hulbert asked if there is any research going on to find other ways to control
buckthorn. Mr. Horwath replied that the only thing he has heard is there may be some
biological controls but they are still at least ten years away from that.
Mr. Cockriel informed the Park Board that he received a letter from the DNR thanking
the City of Edina for letting them use Highlands Lake for raising walleyes in 2004. He
noted that in May they stocked 70,000 walleyes the size of a crappie minnow and in the
fall harvested 1,880 which is a pretty high success rate. Mr. Cockriel indicated that the
DNR is hoping the city will allow them to use Highlands Lake again in 2005. He added
that Highlands Lake is one of the top walleye rearing ponds/lakes in the State of
Minnesota.
III. PARK ASSIGNMENTS PRESENTATION – MIKE WEISS
Mr. Weiss indicated that his park assignments were Browndale Park, St. John’s Park,
Normandale Park and Braemar Park. Mr. Weiss noted that the slides he took were taken
in October/November. Mr. Weiss stated that the first park he visited was Browndale Park
which was named after Browndale Avenue. He indicated that it is a very, very small park
that it located on Browndale Avenue and about 45th Street. He pointed out that the park
is right on the creek and has a little boat landing, a couple of benches and a garbage can.
He noted that the park was very clean and looks like it gets used. He noted that no one
was at the park but that it was a chilly day when he was there.
Mr. Weiss indicated that St. John’s Park was named after St. John’s Avenue and is a very
nice, small neighborhood park that is very clean. He noted that it has a little back stop
but it didn’t appear that it gets a whole lot of use. He stated that he did see one
gentleman walking his dog on a leash.
Mr. Weiss stated that Normandale Park was named after the Normandale sub-division
and was surprised at how big the park actually is to which it is a little over ten acres. He
noted that the park has a baseball diamond, a newer tennis court, a basketball court, a
new playground, a nice picnic area with barbecue, a warming house and two skating
rinks. He indicated that there was one person there with a dog. He also pointed out that
there was a lot of buckthorn.
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Mr. Weiss indicated that Braemar Park was named after Dr. Jackson, a Park Board
member who selected a variety of Scottish names which were voted on by the Park
Board. He added that it was formerly the Hayes Farm. Mr. Weiss stated that it is a huge,
huge facility which includes golf courses, a baseball complex, an all-purpose field, a
hockey arena and a golf dome. He noted that the day he was there it was a cold
November day and there were four guys teeing off and was told later that the golf course
had approximately 80 rounds of golf turned in that day as well as people were still using
the driving range. Mr. Weiss pointed out that everything was very well maintained in
terms of the end-of-the year clean up.
Mr. Klus asked Mr. Weiss if he had any recommendations for improvements. Mr. Weiss
commented that at Normandale other than the buckthorn the park itself was in great
shape. Mr. Klus asked Mr. Weiss if he feels the parks are being used the way they should
to which he replied he thinks some of those parks could see more use. Mr. Weiss
indicated that he thinks Normandale Park is probably big enough to support some of the
smaller teams. He commented that he thinks one or two areas at Normandale may be a
great place for lacrosse. Mr. MacHolda explained that the difficulty with lacrosse is that
it’s the same season as baseball, softball and soccer but it’s a great thought.
IV. APPROVAL OF THE TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 2004 PARK BOARD
MINUTES
Linda Presthus MOVED TO APPROVE THE NOVEMBER 9, 2004 PARK BOARD
MINUTES. Mike Damman SECONDED THE MOTION. MINUTES APPROVED.
V. ELECTION OF OFFICERS
Mr. MacHolda opened up the floor for nominations for Chair of the Park Board.
Linda Presthus MOVED TO NOMINATE GEORGE KLUS. Mike Damman
SECONDED THE MOTION.
MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY TO VOTE FOR GEORGE KLUS AS CHAIR
OF THE PARK BOARD
Mr. Klus thanked everyone and indicated that he expects each Park Board member to
take many responsibilities because the Chair runs the meeting primarily but when it
comes to the work it takes everyone.
Mr. Klus opened up the floor for nominations for Vice-Chair.
Mike Damman MOVED TO NOMINATE ANDY FINSNESS FOR VICE CHAIR.
Karla Sitek SECONDED THE MOTION.
MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY TO VOTE FOR ANDY FINSNESS FOR
VICE-CHAIR.
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Mr. Klus pointed out to the Park Board that Mr. Grabiel is no longer an official Park
Board member but is now an official Planning Commission member. Mr. Klus informed
Mr. Grabiel that everyone will miss him and at the end of the meeting he has a gift for
him.
Mr. Grabiel indicated that he would like to thank John Keprios, Ed MacHolda, Janet
Canton and all of the people on the Park and Recreation Department staff because he
thinks they do a wonderful job for the city. He noted that Edina has a great park system
and a great park system helps contribute to making Edina a really great community to be
in so he applauds them and he applauds their efforts. Mr. Grabiel commented that he has
been on the Park Board for seven years and has really enjoyed working with everyone on
the board and hopes that he contributed somewhat to a really great park and recreation
system for the City of Edina.
VI. 2005 PARK BOARD MEETING CALENDAR
Mr. Klus asked the Park Board if there is somewhere else they would like to have the
Park Board meetings throughout the year. He stated that the Park Board will only meet
on the months to which they have an agenda. Mr. MacHolda commented that it would be
staff’s preference to have the Park Board meetings at City Hall because if someone wants
to give a presentation all of the equipment is there as well as it’s a central location and is
easy to find.
Ms. Presthus indicated that she would be fine with the calendar as long as if it turns out
they would like to look at a new building, etc. that they could change the meeting place at
that time.
Karla Sitek MOVED TO APPROVE THE 2005 PARK BOARD MEETING
CALENDAR. Andy Finsness SECONDED THE MOTION. MOTION CARRIED
UNANIMOUSLY.
VII. UPDATES
A. Braemar Athletic Field Development - Mr. MacHolda informed the Park Board that
the city has contracted the services of Roy Anderson, landscape architect. He noted this
is the same architect that was contracted for the Lewis Park project. He indicated that the
bid opening is scheduled for February 24th at 2:00 pm. Mr. MacHolda commented that
he believes they would be on the same schedule as Lewis in that they would begin
excavation around late May or early June and seeding would be done in August and
typically you can see great growth and root structure by October. Ms. Sitek asked when
they hope it will be playable to which Mr. MacHolda replied probably in time for the
2006 football season.
B. Kojetin Park Playground Equipment - Mr. MacHolda informed the Park Board that
he is hoping to have the bid opening during the month of February. He indicated that he
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is waiting for the manufacturer to come back with a new three dimensional drawing on
the playground equipment and get the approval from the neighborhood committee. He
stated that the neighborhood group has decided to go with the same manufacturer as what
you see at Normandale Park. Mr. MacHolda noted that the cost is estimated at
approximately $112,000 to $114,000 which is pretty close to their budgeted amount.
C. Gymnasium Proposal – Mr. MacHolda informed the Park Board that so far they have
had two meetings with the User Group. He noted that the User Group is basically made
up of the athletic association presidents as well as Dan Rectenwald who is the
representative from the neighborhood. He explained that Mr. Rectenwald who is an
architect by profession has been very valuable in the process and has been able to give
some great feedback and insight. Mr. MacHolda passed around a drawing of the
ECC/Normandale site. He commented that this is a work in progress so there will be a
new drawing the next time they meet.
Ms. Presthus asked how are they doing on the cost of it to which Mr. MacHolda replied
that at this time they do not have a cost estimate but will have a cost estimate for the next
Park Board meeting. He noted that as far as the completion date they are looking at April
2006.
D. Grandview Square Park Development - Mr. MacHolda handed out to the Park Board
a site drawing and a master plan cost estimate. Mr. Klus asked how much money has
been raised for this project to which Mr. MacHolda replied that it’s his understanding that
currently they are about $15,000 short. To date they have received $14,500 from Ron
Clark and $14,500 matching dollars from Opus. They have also received $5,000 from
Friends of the Library and $1,000 from the residents. Mr. MacHolda added that the
Senior Center is planning to make a contribution but he is not aware at this time how
much that contribution will be. Mr. Klus asked if they don’t raise the money will this be
put on hold to which Mr. MacHolda replied that’s a good question and he does not know
the answer. He believes they have $35,000 so that could get them into the lower range.
Mr. MacHolda passed around some bronze sculptures and noted that he thinks Mr.
Keprios has communicated that the Park Department will probably be making that
contribution. Mr. Klus commented that it’s disappointing to hear that the residents have
only provided $1,000 and added that he hopes the residents of Grandview Square will
step up and provide some more donations to that park. Mr. Klus pointed out that they
should be sure they are hitting the businesses that are in the building that is adjacent
because that would be another source of potential donations. He added that all of the
donations are being run through the Edina Foundation so they are all tax deductible.
VIII. 2005 PARK BOARD AGENDA ITEMS AND ISSUES
Mr. Klus indicated that he would like for the Park Board to brainstorm on items they
would like to discuss at the Park Board meetings for the coming year. He noted that Mr.
Sorem e-mailed him suggesting that one topic he would like to see talked about is the
outdoor hockey rinks on Saturday mornings because he is concerned there is no where to
skate on Saturday mornings. He commented that the kids are using all of the rinks with
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the exception of Lewis Park and that park has been taken over by kids from Bloomington.
Mr. Sorem had suggested that possibly they look at whether or not they need to rent out
ice during the winter to people who are using it outside of Edina although he doesn’t
know how they would control it. Mr. Sorem also brought up in his e-mail that another
item he would like on the agenda is the situation with the hockey rink at Countryside
Park because he feels we need more outdoor rinks as opposed to fewer. We cannot
afford to lose rinks like Countryside, therefore, he really hopes that the Park Board can
spend some time talking about ice rinks as it continues to become more of an issue.
Ms. Sitek stated that she would like to talk about a fourth sheet of ice at Braemar.
Ms. Presthus commented that she works in St. Paul and they have an outdoor ice rink that
uses a mechanical chiller and wondered if this is something that would be feasible for
them to look into for one of the rinks. She commented that by doing that the season
could be a lot longer.
Mr. Damman stated that he is hoping that they can somehow find a way to get some
shade at the skate park. He added that he too was going to mention the skating rinks at
Countryside Park.
Mr. Finsness indicated that he would like to see the off-leash dog park put on the agenda
for discussion. Mr. Klus replied that he knows Mr. Keprios will be bringing that issue to
the Park Board possibly as early as next month.
Mr. Fronek commented that he would like to see more outdoor hockey rinks and look
into some sort of outdoor artificial surface like something they have at the Roseville Oval
rink.
Mr. Klus informed the Park Board that Ms. Presthus has said she would like to stay
involved on Community Services Committee as the Park Board’s representative. He
noted that they are glad she has decided to stay on with the committee and it is very much
appreciated.
Dr. Hulbert indicated that she would agree with the gentleman who was here earlier in
that something needs to be done at Bredesen Park not just from the buckthorn issue but
there is broken equipment, a fence has fallen down, etc. She commented that she thinks
they need a plan of how to renovate that woodland area as far as the amount of derelict
stuff that is there.
Mr. Klus indicated that he hopes staff will be able to put which parks each Park Board
member is responsible for on the city’s website so people can call when they have issues
with a particular park. He noted that they will only list names.
Mr. Weiss stated that he would like to put on the agenda the possibility of putting in an
outdoor basketball court at Lewis Park because he knows the basketball courts on Tracy
Avenue and 50th Street are used all of the time.
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Mr. Finsness pointed out that he would like to be brought up-to-date on the transportation
issue regarding the walking paths and bike paths and how they connect through the parks
and the city. He noted he would like to see what they could do that would be appropriate.
Mr. Klus replied that maybe they can get an update in the next few months on what’s
going on with trails through the park system. Mr. Finsness indicated he would also like
to see how sidewalk plans work into the park plans.
Mr. Weiss commented that everyone on the Park Board gives a lot of time but was
wondering if possibly everyone could commit four hours on a Saturday to do something
within any of their parks so we are doing something more than just attending the
meetings. Mr. Klus noted that will be put on the agenda for next month to talk about and
see how we as a Park Board could commit our time. He stated that he thinks it’s a great
idea.
IX. ADJOURNMENT
Karla Sitek MOVED TO ADJOURN THE MEETING AT 9:10 PM. Mike Damman
SECONDED THE MOTION. MEETING ADJOURNED.