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05/16/2005 - Advisory Parks & Recreation CommissionApproved June 20, 2005 ADVISORY PARKS COMMISSION EAGAN, MINNESOTA MINUTES OF REGULAR MEETING OF MAY 16, 2005 A regular meeting of the Advisory Parks Commission was called to order at 7:00 p.m. on May 16, 2005 with the following Commission Members present: Joe Bari, Phil Belfori, Margo Danner, Terry Davis, Mark Filipi, Duane Hansen, Muhammad Lodhi, Ryan Zipf, Dorothy Peterson and Richard Pletcher. Staff included Jeff Asfahl, Supervisor of Recreation; Paul Olson, Supervisor of Parks; Eric Macbeth, Water Resources; Gregg Hove, City Forester; Cherryl Mesko, Administrative Coordinator and Lori Kimball, Recording Secretary. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Superintendent Olson announced an addition to the agenda, to be added after Visitors to Be Heard. Arbor Day festivities were cancelled due to poor weather. Children who won the poster contest were invited to the APrC to show their posters and to discover who the 2005 winner was. Member Filipi moved, Member Pletcher seconded; with all present members voting in favor to approve the agenda as amended. APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF April 18, 2005 Member Peterson moved and Member Danner seconded with all present members voting in favor to approve the April 18`x' minutes as presented. VISITORS TO BE HEARD There were no visitors to be heard. ARBOR DAY POSTER CONTEST Superintendent Olson introduced City Forester, Gregg Hove, who conducts the annual Arbor Day program for Eagan 3`d graders (1100-1200 children per year). Hove said the poster contest has been held for 19 years with 10 Eagan elementary schools participating. Hove said he enjoys being known as the "Tree Guy" to the children. Wyatt Huso, last year's poster winner, was introduced and was presented with his original artwork that had been framed for him by Thomson West Corporation. Hove said each year Thomas West also makes 3,000 copies of the poster to be given to children through the schools and city. Hove thanked this years 10 contest winners, saying they were all winners. Of the 1200 posters drawn, "these 10 children should be proud of themselves". Individual poster winners were Michael Kagan of Oakridge Elementary; Matt Fontes of Rahn Elementary; Michael Gorder of Deerwood Elementary; Jackie Omer of Glacier Hills Elementary; Meghan Chicos of Thomas Lake Elementary; Kristen Fitzpatrick of Pinewood Elementary; Ashley Severson of Red Pine Elementary; Christian Berc of Pilot Knob Elementary and Emily Kohler of Woodland Elementary. Laurel Scott of Deerwood Elementary was selected a poster in the category of "Forester's Choice" which said "Proud to be a Tree Hugger all year long". The 2005 winner of the Arbor Day poster contest was Michael Gorder, who was given a plaque and will receive his framed poster next year. Advisory Parks Commission Minutes of Regular Meeting of May 16, 2005 Page 2 SUPERINTENDENT'S UPDATE AND DEPARTMENT HAPPENINGS Superintendent Parks, Paul Olson, updated the commission about the Cascade Bay, Community Center and Parks Division. Cascade Bay • Pool Restoration project is close to scheduled completion. Any Change Orders could delay the project and possible delays in the opening day. • Passes, group sales and birthday parties are still trickling in warm weather will assist with the sale. • June 10`"is the scheduled opening date but good weather is needed to complete renovations in order to open on time. Communi Center • There are new products now available at the concession stand, including healthier snacks - at continued requests from customers. Those snacks include, carrots/dressing, string cheese, Lunchables, fruit, soup, Jello-Cup, fruit cup and Dannon Light `N Fit smoothie drinks. • Promotion of our 90 Day Summer Spectacular took place in April through many mediums. • Over 60 meetings were held at the Community Center for the month. Member Danner added: Over 150 Senior Citizens and people with low income were assisted by AARP Tax preparers. The second Antique Assessment was held and over 100 items were entered. The seniors plan to have this event again. Seniors and Teens would like to have a Bingo Tent at the Fourth of July Celebration. A 501- C3nonprofit organization partner is needed as well as many helpers to run the Bingo Parks • The tree sale sold all the 450 bare root trees that were available. • Arbor Day festivities on the 14`h were cancelled. Poster winners were invited to this APrC meeting. • Full mowing crews just started this week. Full staff is 11 lawn mowers cutting grass each day. • A reminder about the growth of dandelions ... no regulation is set that people need to control their dandelions (they may be obnoxious but not noxious). Grass around city buildings are treated to prevent dandelions; only the edges of parks are treated and the rest if fertilized to grow thick turf rather than spraying • Vandalism has occurred at Northview Park. Nine portable toilets were burned, resulting in $6000- $8000 in damage. The police are offering a $300 reward. The tip line is 651-675-5799. • The 2005 CIP was formally approved at a council workshop. • Eight vendors submitted 40 proposals for playground equipment. Four were selected. • Threshers Field has been well received and used by many. Civic Arena • The Eagan Skating School along with the Eagan Ice Crystals figure skating club presented the annual spring ice shows on May 7`h. There were over 80 participants that performed before near capacity crowds at 1pm and 6:30 pm. • The Eagan Skating School along with the Eagan Ice Crystals figure skating club presented the annual spring ice shows on May 7`h. There were over 80 participants that performed before near capacity crowds at lpm and 6:30 pm. • Events hosted at the Civic Arena this spring were: 2 arms shows, I craft show, Karate Tournament, job fair and annual Home show. • Upcoming events, Mech Wars (battling remote control robots) on May 21 and 22, Lacrosse Tournament on May 20-22, Jose Cole Circus May 25 and 20h Advisory Parks Commission Minutes of Regular Meeting of May 16, 2005 Page 3 Recreation Jeff Asfahl, Superintendent of Recreation, shared highlights of the recreation department. • Summer is in full swing for the adult sports programs and concessions. Although the weather has been cold, there have been no cancellations to this point. • The next focus for adult sports is getting the fall information put together and out to teams by the beginning of June for softball and the beginning of July for basketball, volleyball and touch football. • On Saturday, May 7 more than 200 people attended the National Tennis Block Party held at Northview Park tennis courts. The event was one of about 25 events taking place across the nation. Many people were impressed with the variety of tennis programs and the site. • The Eagan Fun Run is only days away. The Commons on Marice is sponsoring a vendor area for people to get a variety of information about health and senior living. • Youth Athletic Assoc. programs are underway. Cooperation is excellent - cross associations assuring wise and fair use of facilities. • The July 4th Fun Fest committee continues their work for towards a variety of event activities. The committee focused this year on involving more organizations. The efforts have been fruitful, as several new faces and organizations are now participating. • The Eagan Art house is also gearing up for the Art Festival scheduled for June 25-26. They are expecting over 120 artisans to be on display. • Staff training for Recreation Leaders and Recreation Assistants will begin on May 25 with Customer Service Training. There are 5 other dates for training with topics including Policies & Procedures, Game Leadership and Site Planning, Leadership Tools and Training, Handling difficult behaviors and First Aid/CPR Training. We are using a variety of speakers including Cascade Bay staff for the first aid and CPR training. • Spring Preschool is wrapping up in the next few weeks. Track and Field Day will be held at the preschool sites on Wednesday and Thursday May 25 and 26. • The annual year end family picnic for the preschool programs will take place on May 27. Last year over 300 hotdogs were served. While saying goodbye to the preschool friends is the main objective of our get together, the staff would love to serve over 400 this year! CONSENT AGENDA TAN ME 13` ADDITION Member Danner moved and Member Peterson 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 Tan Me Pt Addition. DEVELOPMENT PROPOSALS There were no items to review under Development Proposals. OLD BUSINESS There were no items to review under Old Business. Advisory Parks Commission Minutes of Regular Meeting of May 16, 2005 Page 4 NEW BUSINESS E-TAB PRESENTATION- COFFEE HOUSE CONCEPT Representatives of the Eagan Teen Advisory Board spoke to the APrC regarding the concept of adding a coffee/beverage bar to the Oasis Teen Center. The teens were providing information and asking for suggestions for improvement and support from the members of the commission. A video was shown documenting teens giving their opinions about the Oasis and adding a coffee bar. Sam Kunjummen, Laura Peterson, Michael Peterson and Aameer Bhojani took turns speaking. Laura Peterson read the E-Tab Mission Statement, saying the teens are hoping to strengthen the community with a teen voice, provide a place and process focusing on teens and working to enhance the teen center as a supervised place to hang out that is safe, drug free and violence free. Michael Peterson shared the teens desire to open a coffee/beverage bar with a friendly atmosphere. Aameer Bhojani_said the products sold would be fruit smoothies, regular and specialty coffee and baked goods like brownies. The customers would be people of all ages who use the Community Center. While the teen center is functioning, adults would purchase their coffee and drink it somewhere other than the Teen Center. Kunjummen stated that Dunn Brothers coffee has been sharing their knowledge with the teens regarding the floor plan, business plan and how to work with the health department. Discussion evolved around questions asked by the members. When asked what is needed most, the teens said they are seeking financial support and free help; similar to the partners listed in the E-TAB's business plan who has donated their time and talent. Teen center staff will be trained (on the job) by Dunn Brothers Coffee. Commission members suggested other potential partners such as the Rotary Club or Chamber of Commerce; they suggested the teens check out the competition at neighboring corporations and discussed marketing opportunities. APrC members congratulated the E-Tab representatives on their presentation, thorough thinking and their enthusiasm. Chair Davis offered assistance to prepare the E-TAB teens for their City Council. PARKS/TRAILS DEDICATION REBATE - EAGAN DENTAL Eagan Dental Associates are requesting a refund for the portion of the Park Dedication which they have paid for land they consider unusable for development. Owners of Eagan Dental Association, Todd Thomas and Loren Taple spoke to the APrC regarding their property. Taple stated that because of the easements and layout of the property, the small area on 3 portions of their property is technically useable, but not build able. The slopes around the pond are 45 to 60 degree angles. Todd said there is a tree mitigation plan in place and they plan to use retaining walls and plantings on the site for conservation. Olson showed pictures of the area, stating the easement area is less than normal because of the bounce of the land. Olson suggested an alternative option would be to convert the un-build able land into a conservation easement. This decision would provide value to both Eagan Dental and the City since it is for the balance of the net area. Thomas and Taple approved of this suggestion, asking if Olson knew how it would affect taxes. Excavation will start on June 1 and this decision would not hold up the permit that has already been issued. Member Danner and Member Filipi stated they saw this as a win/win situation for tree preservation and to prevent someone else from developing close to Eagan Dental. The dedication fee would be based on the land they would actually be building on, not build able space. Thomas and Taple reassured the APrC they liked this idea. Chair Davis moved and Member Filipi seconded, with all present members voting to recommend denial the alternatives as presented. In lieu, staff and applicants would pursue the concept of changing this property to a conservation easement. The City Council is scheduled to address the issue at their meeting on May 17t''. Advisory Parks Commission Minutes of Regular Meeting of May 16, 2005 Page 5 WATER RESOURCES UPDATE Water Resources Coordinator, Eric Macbeth reported that the City Council approved to dedicate June as Eagan Lakes Appreciation Month. Macbeth handed out a "State of the Lakes" report to all present. He explained how to read the report which included suggestions of things to do in our own yard and neighborhood and how to participate in the city process. The brochure helps residents to see where the challenges and successes are with each lake, Heine Pond being the best and Thomas Lake being the most challenged. Macbeth said this report is a starting point and will be updated every five years. Macbeth acknowledged Tom Garrison for the critical review and fresh perspective when producing this brochure, saying it was a collaborative effort between Communications and Water Quality departments. Chair Davis suggested using cable TV interviews as a way for Eagan Residents to hear this information or as a follow up to reading it to help residents find answers of why there are differences in Eagan's lakes. Macbeth said residents will receive this brochure at the September 22 Community Service Open House. Macbeth showed pictures of a huge, slimy looking blob native to Eagan lakes. Macbeth explained it was not harmful, just interesting. He told them it was a colony of live organisms that forms into a blob and attaches itself to submerged items in the lakes. Clean Water Legacy Bill - Macbeth explained the goals and standards that were set by the Clean Water Act of 1972. The state has the primary responsibility to monitor their lakes and rivers by using 303(d) Assessments which will require $80 million in the next 10 years. The Clean Water Legacy Act provides authority, direction and funding for statewide assessments that have been required. Macbeth explained this act is still being worked on by the house and senate so it is not yet determined how it will affect our pocketbooks. Macbeth said he will update us further as he receives more information. Discussion evolved around potential affects on the tax payers. OTHER BUSINESS AND REPORTS There were no items to review under Other Business and Reports. ROUND TABLE Discussion evolved around what to expect at the workshop with City Council regarding the 20/20 Vision Plan for Parks. Member Pletcher said the NE Eagan study had resumed. Member Danner said that earlier this evening the Parks Commission had met at the Community Center to discuss where to place a playground. She added that a 4th of July button was now on sale. Proceeds from the buttons will be used to help support the tradition of 4th of July activities in Eagan. The button was designed by a teen at Eastview High school. ADJOURNMENT With no further business to conduct, Member Peterson moved to close, Member Pletcher seconded with all members voting in favor to adjourn the meeting. The meeting was adjourned at 9:00 p.m. Secretary Date