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07/01/1993 - Advisory Parks & Recreation Commission MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING OF ADVISORY PARKS, RECREATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES COMMISSION EAGAN, MINNESOTA JULY 1, 1993 The following Commission Members were present for the July 1, 1993 meting: Lee Markell, Jonathan Widem, Ted Billy, Deborah Johnson and Frankie Hall. Commission Members not present included Erin Ipsen- Borgersen, George Kubik, Dan Mooradian, John Rudolph, Stephen Thompson and David Szott. Because there was not a quorum, a meeting was re-scheduled for July 12, 1993 at 7:00 p.m. to address items E, G and H on the agenda. 1994 BUDGET Director Vraa introduced this item noting that staff has gone through the first review of the 1994 budget but would like to solicit additional comments from the Commission. Some of the items being looked at for the next budget include expansion of the summer playground program which would include additional sites and expanded staff; the concept of sharing an STS crew with two other communities and have that crew work exclusively in the three communities. Lee Markell asked if there has been any consideration for an alternate means of inspecting developments for erosion control. Director Vraa indicated that the Soil and Water Conservation District has been used in the past for erosion control inspections. That process was changed to allow for staff and consultants to do the inspections however, staff is again looking at the option of using the Soil and Water Conservation District to do these inspections. Mr. Markell suggested that some type of language be considered to address the necessity for sediment fencing to be maintained until vegetation is established PARKS DEVELOPMENT Landscape Architect Lilly reviewed some of the items completed at Blackhawk Park which included the installation of the fishing pier,design for the wildlife blind is underway, the council fire ring is under construction, and gravel has been laid and compacted in preparation for bituminous for the parking lot. Mr. Lilly also reviewed the flooding of Pond BP-2 which caused significant erosion problems. It was discovered that the cause for the flooding was 18-20 sand bags being left in the culvert which have since been removed. C.J. also indicated that the levy has been repaired and is back in operation. Regarding Lakeside Park, Mr. Lilly noted that he will be coordinating with the homeowners on either side of Outlot A to do the landscaping within the access corridor that will help to buffer the trail from the homeowners. The playground installation is beginning on the south side of Bur Oaks Park Director Vraa noted that relative to Wescott Square, land acquisition is being pursued utilizing funds from HUD to provide a park within this development. It is hoped that plans will be available for Commission review in August with the hope that the project will be out for contract in September. Ken added that some of the property owners are sharing the costs for helping to put this project together. In response to a question regarding the size of the proposed park parcel, C.J. responded that it was approximately 150 yards long with a varied width between 80' and 150'. Director Vraa concluded that the owners of the building have essentially taken out 5 lots that could be developed in order to help facilitate both the aesthetics of the area and have an area for the children to play. Advisory Parks, Recreation and Natural ResourcesCommission Minutes of July 1,1993 Page 2 BITUMINOUS MAINTENANCE PROGRAM UPDATE Director Vraa introduced this item noting that this information is provided as an update to the Commission on planned bituminous maintenance improvements in 1993. Parks Superintendent VonDeLinde explained that in 1986 a comprehensive inventory of all bituminous maintenance surfaces, including tennis courts, basketball courts, trails, parking lots and access roads was completed. Based on that inventory, a five year maintenance cycle was established to provide preventative maintenance. John continued that in earlier years the trend was to bring all facilities up to their current standard but since 1989 the emphasis has shifted to preventive maintenance within the five yearestablished maintenance cycle. John noted that the City Council and Advisory Commission have been very supportive of the Bituminous Maintenance Plan. 1993 has approximately $45,000 allocated under the Bituminous Maintenance Plan and John identified several of the areas that will be maintained. It was noted that there are a total of 224,701 square yards of bituminous surface that have been sealcoated since the inception of the program. Mr. VonDeLinde continued that the projected financial needs for the program are expected to outstrip available budget allocations. He noted that the 1993 budget only addresses the tennis and basketball courts currently scheduled for surface maintenance and does not include approximately $56,000 of trails and parking lot sealcoating which will most likely be postponed until 1994. This backlog coupled with approximately $73,500 of sealcoating scheduled for 1994 results in a total resource need of $129,500 for 1994. If the 1994 budget remains at $50,000 the deferred maintenance would increase to approximately $79,500 by the end of 1994 and continue to reach a level of $145,000 in deferred maintenance by the end of 1997. In conclusion, Mr. VonDeLinde noted that some of the changes that may need to be considered include increasing the financial resources allocated to this area or to look at changing the maintenance cycle to greater than 5 years. John explained that the background and options suggested are provided as information to the Commission. HAY LAKE ACCESS Water Resources Coordinator Brasch introduced this item explaining that Hay Lake, while being identified as one of 17 Class 11 indirect contact recreation lakes, has experienced fair to poor water quality over the last several years. Rich noted that a substantial fish kill had occurred this spring, the cause of which is suspected of being low winter-time oxygen caused by the enriched conditions of the lake. As part of the Schwanz Lake watershed, 50% of the total inflow to Schwanz Lake is contributed by the outflow from Hay Lake. Rich continued that while only 17% of the nutrient load to Schwanz Lake currently comes from Hay Lake, this load will increase as southeast Eagan develops. Both high levels of rooted aquatic plant growth and some filamentous algae blooms on the surface have been perceived as severe problems by shoreline residents and have triggered their efforts to encourage the City to take more decisive action to 'clean up' Hay Lake. Mr. Brasch explained some of the options that could be considered but added that since there is no access to Hay Lake, implementing those options may be difficult. By providing access to the lake for in-lake treatments, more options are available for consideration; i.e. aquatic weed harvesting or whole-lake nutrient inactivation. It is anticipated that prior to proceeding with a project, staff would assemble some proposed guidelines which outline under what conditions the City would conduct in-lake treatments so as to not raise expectations of shoreline residents to an unrealistically high level on in-lake management. Advisory Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission Minutes of July 1,1993 Page 3 Responding to a question from Ted Billy regarding the cost of using a weed harvester, Rich noted that the cost varied between $1500-2000 each time it is done. Rich also stated that a permit from the DNR was needed to do any kind of weed harvesting. Lee Markell asked what the cost would be to provide access to Hay Lake. An estimate of $5,000- 10,000 was given by Mr. Brasch. Mr. Markell asked if having the DNR build an access would be an option. Mr. Brasch responded that he would look into that option. SUPPLEMENTAL FISH STOCKING Water Resources Coordinator Brasch introduced this item noting that Jim Storland has been working on this project to see how to improve the fishing opportunities throughout the City of Eagan. Mr. Storland, noting that fishing is the second most popular past time, stated that the DNR has developed fish management plans for Carlson, Schwanz and Fish Lake and stocks these lakes periodically with panfish and gamefish. Jim continued that staff has been working on capitalizing on the interest of City residents in fishing. To that end, staff has investigated the possibility of pursuing supplemental stocking in Eagan. Staff is seeking approval to pursue supplemental fish stocking in Carlson and Schwanz Lakes using channel catfish to expand the fishing opportunities and enhance the water quality program in the city. The DNR reports that introduction of channel catfish into lakes has been beneficial and encourages the practice, however, they do not have the resources to expand their stocking program. Jim concluded that this report is provided as information for the Commission. Lee Markell asked if the DNR is doing all the stocking they can do at this time. Jim Storland responded that they are limited to a total of 25 stocking locations spread over several counties and they can only do one lake per year. Ted Billy, along with other Commission Members, expressed his support for this proposal. NATURAL RESOURCES SUBCOMMITTEE MEETING It was determined that the Natural Resources Subcommittee meeting would meet on July 22, 1993 at 6:00 p.m. at the Maintenance Facility. DEPARTMENT HAPPENINGS Superintendent of Recreation Peterson reviewed several of the Department Happenings including the tennis tournament which attracted forty-five youth from throughout the metro area; the increase from 20 to 60 softball camp participants and the successful Teddy Bear Band concert with an attendance of approximately 350 people. Superintendent of Parks VonDeLinde reviewed the construction of the sun shelter at Northview Park; the re-staining of athletic benches, park benches, picnic tables and repainting and striping on the insides of all fifteen hockey rinks by STS participants; approval of the Tree Preservation Guidelines and Tree Replacement Policy and the hiring of Jeff Perry as the new seasonal tree inspector. Lee Markell asked for an update on the spread of oak wilt. Superintendent VonDeLinde explained that staff will know more information once the aerial photos and subsequent mapping are completed. John continued that more information should be available for the Commission in August. Mr. Markell asked if the Commission could see some of the aerial photos at some time in the future. Advisory Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission Minutes of July 1, 1993 Page 4 UPDATE ON RECREATION FACILITY Director Vraa explained that the fundraising group for this facility has been charged with the responsibility of raising approximately $600,000 by December, 1994. The group is organized and proceeding with their plan to raise the dollars. Ken noted that a great number of people, with various areas of expertise have stepped forward to help with the fundraising efforts. Ken added that the wading pool issue has not been completely addressed as yet but as staff learns more on this project they will keep the Commission updated. Lee Markell commented how nice it would be to see more partnering with companies and corporations in these types of projects. ROUND TABLE Lee Markell asked if there was a way to make sure residents are providing a buffer from Hay Lake. Lee suggested that scaling down the mowing around the water and provide only a mowed trail access to the lake would be helpful. Ted Billy suggested that this would be a good opportunity to inform and educate citizens regarding water quality issues. With no further business to discuss, the Advisory Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission meeting was ended with business to be conducted at the postponed meeting on July 12,1993. Sec tary C7 Date