HomeMy WebLinkAbout2018-03-13 Parks & Rec Comm MinutesDraft Minutes☐
Approved Minutes☒
Approved Date: 4/10/2018
Minutes
City Of Edina, Minnesota
Edina Parks & Recreation Commission
Braemar Arena
Tuesday, March 13, 2018
7 p.m.
I. Call To Order
Chair Good called the meeting to order at 7 p.m.
II. Roll Call
Answering roll call were Commissioners Good, Dahlien, Ites, McAwley, Nelson, Strother and
Student Members Kiely and Schieffert.
Commissioner Miller arrived at 7:05 p.m.
Commissioner Burke arrived at 7:10 p.m.
Commissioner Willette arrived at 7:50 p.m.
Absent was Commissioner McCormick
Staff present: Staff Liaison Ann Kattreh, Assistant Parks & Recreation Director Susan Faus,
Administrative Coordinator Janet Canton and General Manager Braemar Arena/Sports Dome Chad
Eischens
III. Approval Of Meeting Agenda
Motion made by Nelson to approve the meeting agenda. Motion seconded by Strother.
Motion carried.
IV. Approval Of Meeting Minutes
Motion made by Dahlien to approve the Feb. 13, 2018 minutes. Motion seconded by Nelson.
Motion carried.
V. Community Comment
None
VI. Special Recognitions and Presentations
Chair Good introduced the new Parks & Recreation Commissioner Rick Ites. Commissioner Ites
took a few minutes to introduce himself to the commission.
VII. Reports/Recommendations
A. Braemar Arena Tour
Chad Eischens, General Manager of Braemar Arena and Sports Dome, gave the commission a
tour of Braemar Arena and Sports Dome. Commissioners asked questions throughout the tour
and after.
B. Comprehensive Plan Update
Draft Minutes☐
Approved Minutes☒
Approved Date: 4/10/2018
Chair Good introduced Planning Commissioner Todd Thorsen. The Parks & Recreation
Commission will provide their section of the Comprehensive Plan to the Planning Commission
and from there it will go to the City Council.
Chair Good went over the fourth iteration of the Comprehensive Plan and shared the changes
that were made from inputs he received last month. He added that the input he recently
received from Commissioner McCormick will be included in the fifth iteration. Chair Good then
reviewed the structure.
Commissioners asked questions and gave input.
Chair Good noted their next large goal is to review their section of the Comprehensive Plan
with the Planning Commission on April 11. Planning Commissioner Thorsen added that at some
point it will be handed off to the consultant to put it all together.
C. Annual City Council Joint Work Session Prep
Chair Good informed the commission the Annual City Council Joint Work Session will be held
on Tuesday, April 3 at 6:15 p.m. Chair Good asked the commissioners for their input and
insights on what they would like to discuss with the City Council during their joint work session.
The following items were discussed:
• Arden Park – Update
• Braemar Comp Plan – Next steps
• Fred Richards Park – Update
• Funding for the Future – Consideration of exploring alternative funding sources for parks
Chair Good asked each of the commissioners what their first and second priorities would be.
It was noted Arden Park was the most popular followed closely by the Braemar Comp Plan.
D. 2018 Work Plan Update
Updates were given for the following 2018 Work Plan initiatives:
• Arden Park Natural Resource Plan – Staff Liaison Kattreh has been working with the
Arden Park Neighborhood Association to find a shelter Building/Playground Committee.
They also need to start talking about the large number of ash trees on the property
because at some point they will be impacted with Emerald Ash borer. A big decision will
need to be made regarding how aggressive hey want to be in a plan to remove and
replace ash trees. It was also noted to add Commissioners Ites and Nelson to this
initiative.
• Weber Woods – There was no update; this initiative will probably not happen this year.
Draft Minutes☐
Approved Minutes☒
Approved Date: 4/10/2018
• Study and Report for Field, Court and Rink Capacity and Utilization – Chair Good noted
this initiative should be started in the next 30 days. It was noted to add Commissioner
Burke to this initiative.
• Comprehensive Plan – Everything is going good.
• More Clearly Define Formal Relationship between the City and the John Philip Sousa
Band – Commissioners Miller and Kiely will be meeting with Scott Neal and Scott
Crosbie in the next week to hear both sides. There should be more information in the
near future.
VIII. Chair and Member Comments
• Commissioner Dahlien asked if there is a master calendar indicting when and what tournaments
are being held at the various facilities. Assistant Parks & Recreation Director Faus indicated
there is not one master calendar for all of the facilities. The best place to find that type of
information would be on the website in the calendar section of each of the facilities.
• Chair Good formally thanked Mr. Eichsens for hosting tonight’s Parks & Recreation Commission
meeting and giving them a tour; it is nice to see what is happening at Braemar Arena and Sports
Dome.
• Chair Good formally thanked Planning Commissioner Thorsen for representing the Planning
Commission and attending tonight’s Parks & Recreation Commission meeting and appreciates
the insights he gave the commission on their Comprehensive Plan.
• Chair Good recognized and congratulated the Edina High School Girl’s Hockey team for taking
first place in the Minnesota State High School Girl’s Hockey Tournament and the Edina High
School Boys Hockey team for taking third place in the Minnesota State High School Boy’s
Hockey Tournament.
• Chair Good indicated he recently saw some discussion on social media regarding heavy use and
possible safety issues at the sports dome on Family Night (which is held on Saturday nights from
6:30 – 8:30 p.m.). Commissioner Dahlien indicated he was at that Family Night and there were
all kinds of team events going on, balls flying all over and men playing football and baseball. He
noted the two staff members behind the desk didn’t go into the facility at all which was a little
concerning since there was a little bit of policing that needed to be done. Commissioner
Dahlien suggested some parameters be set around what is Family Night. Chair Good
commented the general premise seemed to be what exactly is family night; is it really just an
open dome or is it intended to designate some specific types of activity.
IX. Staff Comments
Staff Liaison Kattreh gave the following updates:
Draft Minutes☐
Approved Minutes☒
Approved Date: 4/10/2018
• On March 21 the annual Chair and Vice Chair liaison meeting will take place at 6 p.m.
• The Board and Commission Annual Recognition event that will take place on April 16 at 5:30
p.m. at Braemar Golf Course; commissioners will be receiving an invitation to this event.
• Three of the four restaurants who submitted Request for Proposals for the Braemar Golf
Course restaurant were interviewed. The interview team was unanimous in their choice of
Red River Kitchen. The hope is to have the lease ready to present to the City Council at
their second meeting in April.
• Tom Swenson, Maintenance Superintendent of Braemar Golf Course, has been hired to be
the new Assistant Director of Parks & Natural Resources. He will work both positions until
his current position at Braemar Golf Course is filled.
• Staff Liaison Kattreh today met with the Executive Director of People for Parks; one of the
fundraising arms for the Minneapolis Park Board to discuss fundraising opportunities in Edina.
If the commission is looking to add an additional initiative to their Work Plan this may be
something to look into.
X. Adjournment
Motion made by McAwley to adjourn the March 13, 2018 meeting at 8:45 p.m. Motion seconded by
Nelson. Motion carried.