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03/30/2004 - Advisory Parks & Recreation Commission Minutes of Public Hearing DNR Natural and Scenic Area Grant and DNR Remediation Grant Applications Tuesday, March 30 2004 The public hearing was called to order at 5:35 p.m. in the Eagan Room, City of Eagan City Hall. Staff present were Paul Olson, Superintendent of Parks, and Beth Wielde, Research and Special Projects. Advisory Parks Commission members present were Chair Terry Davis and Vice Chair Dorothy Peterson. Audience members were Tony and Cheryl Caponi. Bob McGillivray represented the Trust for Public Land. There were no other audience members attending. Superintendent Olson introduced staff and the Trust for Public Land. Olson reviewed the required elements that would be covered at the hearing, and mentioned it would be followed up the next morning with a special City Council meeting to sign the resolutions associated with the Natural and Scenic Area Grants and the Remediation Grant. He then introduced McGillivray. McGillivray introduced the Trust for Public Land (TPL) and its mission to provide assistance in land transfer transactions to benefit public ownership of open space. He described the project scope and activities involved in the grant, namely acquisition of segments of the Caponi Art Park property for the purpose of remaining open space, and having TPL work with the Caponis to get an option to purchase approximately 30 acres. Researcher Wielde described the implementation schedule, saying the grant allows 24 months to complete the project, but the City would hope to have it substantially completed within 12 months. She continued, describing the overall cost of the project and proposed financing. She detailed the financing chart shown in the grant application, noting the City is willing to contribute $720,000 to the project, combined with funds from the Dakota County Farmland and Natural Area Protection, and hopefully with the state DNR. Superintendent Olson noted that there are no costs anticipated to be assessed to citizens, as the City contribution would come from the Park Site Fund, comprised of developer's fees, and the balance would likely be comprised of grant funding from Dakota County, supplemented by the State DNR programs, should the applications be approved. He noted that the park would be built in to the operational budget and might require nominal maintenance and operation costs, most likely equivalent to a seasonal employee. Researcher Wielde mentioned that current understanding was there is an absence of liability on the Caponi property. McGillivray clarified this by explaining there is no known environmental cleanup or similar issues associated with the property. Commission Member Peterson asked if there had been assessments on the tunnel on the property (note: not in the grant request area), and Cheryl Caponi said that it would be satisfied upon completion of the project. There were no further comments, and Olson called for anyone else who wished to speak. Being none, the Public Hearing was closed at 5:50 p.m.