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08/16/2004 - Advisory Parks & Recreation CommissionAnnroved September 20, 2004 ADVISORY PARKS COMMISSION EAGAN, MINNESOTA MINUTES.(SF`REGULAII MEETING OF AUGUST 16, 204 A regular meeting of the Advisory Parks Commission was called to order at 7:00 p.m. on August 16, 2004 with the following Commission Members present: Terry Davis, N. Mark Filipi, Joe Bari, Richard Pletcher, Mazgo Danner, Muhammad Lodhi, and Duane Hansen. Members Dorothy Peterson and Phil Belfiori were not present. Staff present included Paul Olson, Pazks Superintendent, Jeff Asfahl, Recreation Superintendent, Gregg Hove, City Forester, Eric Macbeth, Water Resources Coordinator, and Adam Nelson, Parks and Recreation Intern, and Cherryl Mesko, Administrative Coordinator/ Recording Secretary. APPRQVAL OF AGENDA Richazd Pletcher moved, Joe Bari seconded, with all present members voting to approve the agenda as presented. APPYtO'~~lI' O~SS~°~;,~1 Liza Perry moved, Margo Danner seconded, with all present members voting to approve the minutes of July 19, 2004 as presented. VISITORS TO~B~~HEEARb There were no visitors in the audience that wished to address the APrC on matters not on the agenda. RECOGNITION -DISC GOLF COURSE DESIGNERS BILL AND IAN ASHTON Superintendent of Pazks Paul Olson provided a background into the 9-hole disc golf course at Northview Park. He mentioned that Bill Ashton and his son Ian Ashton were responsible for the design of the course, and worked with Dakota Hills Middle School on a curriculum. Ashton expressed appreciation for the opportunity given to him by the Pazks Commission and staff to bring disc golf to Eagan. He noted it is the 90`~ course in Minnesota. He discussed the work he did with the school to develop a physical education program around disc golf. He also noted that there is room for an additional 9 holes. Chair Davis thanked him for helping bring this to Eagan. Member Bari thanked him for his work and effort, and asked how much use the course has been getting. Ashton said that there aze no numbers available, but the paths aze well worn. Member Danner said the course is being heavily mazketed in schools, and she would like to see better signage. Ashton mentioned the disc golf course section on the City's web site. Olson said signage is the next evolution to bringing awazeness of the course. R~HE-P kNN [J~1L IMPORT Water Resources Coordinator Eric Macbeth reviewed the background of the WHEP program and introduced Mr. Goodwin who has been working on this project for 7 years. He said training for the project starts in May, and wetland sites are visited during June and July. He reviewed how samples are obtained and reviewed. He said they aze looking at diversity of the wetlands, which is a sign of good health. He said invertebrate diversity at Cedar Pond, Central Pazk, and Moonshine Park were poor, vegetation at Cedaz Pond and Moonshine Pazk was good, but poor at Central Pazk. He said overall Cedaz Pond is in good shape, Aldrin Road is in good shape, Moonshine Park will be under review again next yeaz, Central Park's pond is in poor shape. Advisory Parks Commission Minutes of the Regular Meeting of August 16, 2004 Page 2 Member Lodhi asked what trend WHEP is seeing overall. Goodwin said in reference to Aldrin, the constituted wetland is improving, as is Cedar Pond. Member Danner asked what goal the group was trying to achieve. Goodwin said citizen involvement. Additionally, it provides the City with data that can help them improve the wetlands. SUPERINTENDENT'SUPDATE AND DEPARTMENT HAPPENINGS Superintendent of Parks Paul Olson presented recent events in the Parks Division. These include: • A pre-con meeting held to discuss the public street being constructed within Lexington-Diffley Athletic Fields to access the Lexington Ridge development. • Update on meetings held to discuss the potential acquisition of the Caponi property. • 77 applications have been received for the vacant parks maintenance position; 44 applicants met the minimum qualifications. • Quarry Park rinks have been paved, part of the 2004 CIP project list. • .New perimeter walls were installed around the new playground at Cedar Pond Park. • Park staff has completed installation of several new play features on school district property, part of a long- standingpartnership between the City and the school district. • Recently passed legislation guides the way cities can assess park dedication fees. The City Attorney is reviewing the legislation to determine how it will impact the City. Member Danner requested updates on the Caponi project. A brief update on the status of the project was discussed. Superintendent of Recreation Jeff Asfahl presented recent events in the Recreation Division. These include: • Summer Softball leagues have concluded. Northview and Lexington-Diffley Athletic Fields served 1,800 games this summer. Fall Ball has started at the sites. • Men's D Region N softball tournament was held at Northview Athletic Fields July 31 to August 1. 45 teams competed, • Eagan performed strongly at the Mixed D Region III and N softball tournament in Red Wing August 7 and 8. • The Men's Touch Football state tournament will be at Northview Athletic Fields in October. • Spring and summer youth athletic programs are complete, and fields are being transitioned for fall programs. • Programs at the Eagan Art House continue to do well. • Adapted programs are growing. Adapted soccer has 32 kids, and adapted floor hockey will be split into age divisions. An adapted tumbling program will take place this winter. • Bimonthly publication for seniors News from the Front Porch is underway, featuring a plethora of senior activities. • Youth Development programming and outreach programs were operational at Wescott and Cinnamon Ridge. • The Local Collaborative Time Study awarded Eagan a $10,000 grant to support programs at Glacier and Wescott for the 2004 - 2005 school year. $10,500 has also been awarded through the Community Development Block Grant. • Battle of the Bands took place at the Dakota County Fair, with over 180. youth attending the Grand Battle. • Asfahl described the activities of the Eagan Teen Advisory Board and mentioned they are seeking applications for three open positions. Member Danner said the seniors would like to change the name of the Lone Oak Room to the Senior Center. Advisory Parks Commission Minutes of the Regular Meeting of August 16, 2004 Page 3 INTERN REPORT -ADAM NELSON Superintendent of Recreation Asfahl introduced Parks and Recreation Intern Nelson, and provided a brief overview of Nelson's study. Nelson described his project as a tooU guide for park event planning, listing crucial inventory details at athletic and event-prone sites. He said it provides an insight as to the type of events that can be hosted, while keeping the information understandable. He provided an overview of methodology, by field visits to survey the parks and verify information, and working with GIS generated information to label maps accordingly. He detailed the type of information gathered for each site, including: • Pazking • Electricity • Restrooms • Water ` • Field amenities such as bleachers, backstops, and scoreboards • Picnic areas Other amenities such as playgrounds, ice rinks, and batting tunnels. Nelson showed a sample page from the upcoming final report, and reviewed the goals of the project; to provide electronic access to site information, to provide a basis for future updating, and to make the data readily available to City employees. Member Lodhi asked if this information might be included on the City web site for public access, and whether the report might include other athletic sites. Member Danner said the findings may provide a good resource for the Park System Plan update. Superintendent Asfahl said other data such as base distance would be applied to the study as well. Member Filipi suggested adding data about which fields are lit. Nelson said this information would be incorporated. Chair Davis suggested the information gathered can serve as a basis for use, and that investigation into the maximum potential use and amenities that might be needed in that scenario may be useful. He said the report is a good foundation for staff, and to consider what else might be needed if the report were to be available on the web site for public viewing. CONSENT AGENDA Member Filipi moved, Member Bari seconded, with all present members voting to recommend the alternatives presented regarding the parks dedication, trails dedication, tree preservation, water quality, and wetlands issues associated with the Clubview Addition proposal. DE~ELOPIVIENT F~bROSALS Sycamore Place -EPIC Development Superintendent of Parks Paul Olson provided background on the Sycamore Place development, a preliminary subdivision of 6 acres to create 9 single family lots on property located north of the dead end street of Sycamore Court in the SE'/< of Section 36. This property has appeared before the APrC before, with a different proposal. Olson reiterated that the issue before the APrC is water quality, not water quantity. City Forester Gregg Hove reviewed the tree inventory, noting the proposal calls for 68% removal, a total of 142 trees, stating the previous plan called for 145 trees to be removed. He noted that this exceeds the 40% removal allowed by ordinance, and that the required tree mitigation is 66 Category A trees. Hove noted the applicant has proposed the installation of 66 Category A trees in their Tree Replacement Plan. Water Resources Coordinator Eric Macbeth reviewed the wetland issues associated with the site. He stated that the wetland disparity shown on the previous plan has been resolved, there will be less impacts to the wetlands and no off-site banking associated with this plan, and all replacement is proposed to be on-site. He noted the proposed wetland restoration in the northern portion of the site, and said that the plan submitted by the developer Advisory Parks Commission Minutes of the Regular Meeting of August 16, 2004 Page 4 fulfills state wetland replacement requirements. He said the City Council will review the proposal on September 6, and public comment will be welcome until September 10. Macbeth reviewed the recommendation alternatives pertinent to water quality. Member Pletcher asked where fill was going that was dug from the excavation area. Member Bari asked about the wetland to the south, and whether it encroaches on the lots. Macbeth said it is a fill azea, not a wetland. Chair Davis asked what the bigger wetland azea would look like. Macbeth said the area azound the wetland would be naturalized, this will protect functionality. Chair Davis asked whether it wouldn't be better to get the water moving through the wetlands to maintain their integrity. Macbeth said the water won't be able to flow to the north and then go to the wetland because of the grade. Macbeth said the proposal meets the City's minimum requirements. Chair Davis asked where the water was treated after leaving the site. Macbeth said it drains to the west in the existing storm system. Member Danner asked if the new amount of wetland fill is less than that shown in the previous proposal. Macbeth said yes, it is. Rich Ragatz of EPIC Development, LLC, explained how the plan had been reworked. He said the plan previously showed 141ots to be created, but that this has decreased to 91ots. He said all wetland replacement would be done on site, that there is no off-site banking. He said the on-site pond is planned to be oversized to reduce impact. He said tree mitigation would also be done on-site. He said there would be about 23,000 cubic yards of fill and approximately 10 days of hauling. He opened that the end product will be good based on input received. Chair Davis said he likes the changes made to the proposal. Member Danner asked what kind of fill would be used. Ragatz said it would be good load-bearing fill, that the wetland excavation fill would not be used for load bearing on the site. Chair Davis asked why water can't be treated through the wetlands to the north and then routed back south before going west. Ragatz said they wanted to minimize the amount of imported fill on the site, that going north then south would require extra grade change. Chair Davis said that a swale would need to be filled in order to move water to the north toward the wetland, and asked if this might be more desirable. Macbeth said there needs to be an emergency drainage overflow on the east. Chair Davis said he was looking at how better to treat the water on-site. Macbeth said that under normal conditions, water will not leave the site. Craig Murray, 4817 Weston Hills Drive, said he appreciates the work done to date, and noted that if the 570' cul-de-sac were shortened, that lot 3 could be eliminated to decrease the potential for flooding. He asked if the skimmer could be screened. Tom King, 4800 Weston Hills Drive, said the new wetland to the north will be part of a private lot, and asked who would be responsible for monitoring it. Macbeth said the developer would be responsible, but the City would review it. King asked what control there is to maintain the wetland in the long term, what safeguazds were in place Deane Parks said she has lived at her property for 91/2 years, and contends the wetland is operational as it currently exists. She said the new plan would impact trees, wildlife and the drainage of water. Bill Hannon, 4804 Weston Hills Rd expressed concern for the tree removal (noting removal would be almost 70%) and likened it to removing 7 APrC member, and replacing them with 3 ten year olds. He asked if there was something more than can be done. Todd Sogge, 4830 Sycamore Court said a development in Inver Grove Heights is proposed adjacent to this development, with a swale that will move water to the west. He has a concern about drainage into surrounding ProPertY• Tom Nelson, 4824 Weston Hills Drive, asked where the mitigation trees go. Chair Davis said up to a certain percentage of trees were slated for removal, and that category A trees are 4" diameter. Hove said the wetland trees aze taking over the site, and the size of the oaks is limited on such a wet site. Chair Davis asked if all mitigation would occur on-site. Member Danner asked where the most impact for tree loss occurs. Hove identified locations as requested. Chair Davis asked if the road were shortened, would there be less tree loss. Hove said it would be not be significant. Advisory Pazks Commission Minutes of the Regular Meeting of August 16, 2004 Page 5 Member Lodhi asked if development would affect the existing homes on Weston Hills Drive, wetland- wise. Macbeth didn't see any significant impact. Chair Davis asked if the wetland would be part of Lot 3. Ragatz said they might want to put a conservation easement around the wetlands to protect it. Superintendent Olson said it was common for ponds on properties to have easements azound the water bodies. Macbeth said the Wetland Conservation Rules require protection of replacement azeas through perpetual conservation easements. Superintendent Olson said shortening the cul-de-sac may actually impact more trees rather than reduce the impact. Member Danner noted that lots 3 and 4 divided the wetlands, that those provide protection for existing homes. Ragatz said trees would be removed from both east and west, and homes to the west were constructed on a wetland and filled, leaving this site lower and difficult to develop. He noted one home slopes 10' to the wetland so it shouldn't affect the flow. Craig Murray said if lot 3 weren't included in the plan, conditions may be better; that if impact is not minimal, houses would be subject to flooding. Chair Davis said lot 3 is not the problem regarding directing water through the wetland to the north. Member Danner asked how close the house on lot 3 is to the wetland. Ragatz said 50' is the closest distance. Member Filipi moved to recommend approval of the plan to City Council, with eight conditions. Chair Davis seconded. All present members voted to approve the motion. Member Danner asked staff to clarify alternative number 7, "Any approval of the wetland replacement plan at the September 7 City Council meeting may need to be contingent on public comments received by September 10, 2004." Water Resources Coordinator Eric Macbeth said that the public comment period ends after the City Council is scheduled to make its decision. Chair Davis asked whether since public comment was ongoing, will this proposal go back to the City Council after the comment period. Member Filipi noted that the proposal worked within the City's regulations, and their previous request for wetland banking on-site were heazd by the developer and changes were brought back to reflect this concern. OL' D'~USIINESS There was no new business for the Advisory Parks Commission to discuss under this agenda item. r1» B~~~s There were no items under New Business for the APrC to review. WATERrRlv6dilRC>~S^I~PDATI .Water Resources Coordinator Eric Macbeth said the Moonshine Park project was moving forward positively. O~S~l~kS A°R~t~F SUBCOMMITTEE UPDATES Chair Davis set a Recreation Subcommittee meeting to look at informational reports provided by the Recreation Supervisors on how often they report and the general content of reports. The group will look at timing and content of presentations. Recreation Superintendent Jeff Asfahl said reports are presented to provide the APrC with a general background of recreation division issues. Davis said the visibility is good for the APrC and the supervisors, but need to be less general and more specific. Member Danner suggested including information about how a program is evaluated, and perhaps a 5 yeaz program review. Advisory Parks Commission Minutes of the Regular Meeting of August 16, 2004 Page 6 ROUND TABLE Member Danner asked about progress on Holz Farm. Superintendent Olson said the barn siding had been replaced, and water was being tied into the site. ADJOURNMENT With no further business to conduct, Richard Pletcher moved, Margo Danner seconded with all members voting in favor to adjourn the meeting. The meeting was adjourned at 9:30 p.m. ll-fib-ae Secre Date Minutes drafted by: Beth Wielde, Part-time Research and Special Projects.