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02/22/1994 - City Council Special MINUTES OF A SPECIAL MEETING OF THE OOOY="' EAGAN CITY COUNCIL Eagan, Minnesota February 22, 1994 A Special City Council meeting was held on Tuesday, February 22, 1994 in the lunchroom of the Eagan municipal center building for the purpose of considering a commercial land use study background report and joint meeting with the Advisory Parks, Recreation & Natural Resources Commission to review progress on the Park Systems Plan. Present were Mayor Egan and City Councilmembers Awada, Hunter, Masin and Wachter. Also present were Director of Community Development Reichert, Senior Planner Mamin, Assistant to the City Administrator Hohenstein and City Administrator Hedges. COMMERCIAL LAND USE STUDY BACKGROUND REPORT Director of Community Development Reichert Introduced the "commercial land use study background report" stating that the primary product that will result from the study is a new commercial land use plan element and map. Senior Planner Marnin presented the background report covering five specific sections which included: 1) a study Introduction, 2) a background of the comprehensive guide plan, 3) a review of the current commercial land use plan, 4) a review of trends that have occurred since 1980 which affect development of a new commercial land use plan, and 5) a discussion of policy Issues to help guide the City's vision of commercial development. City Councilmembers commented on the general commercial goals and policies discussing the direct one-for-one correlation between commercial land use plan categories and commercial zoning districts. There was discussion concerning the one-for-one correlation between the land use designations and zoning districts which traditionally make land use designations far too specific. The City Councilmembers discussed the types of commercial land uses that should be planned for Eagan, how much commercial land should be set aside and how the City should locate and design future commercial areas. The City Councilmembers Indicated general satisfaction with the Information contained in the background report and with the direction the study has taken so far. PARK SYSTEMS PLAN UPDATE Mayor Egan welcomed members of the Advisory Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Commission to the joint meeting to discuss the Park Systems Plan update. Those Commission members in attendance were its Chairperson George Kubik and Commission members Erin Ipsen-Borgersen, Lee Markell, John Rudolph, David Scott, Steven Thompson, Ken Tyler and Jonathan Widem. Also in attendance were Director of Parks & Recreation Vraa, Superintendent of Parks VonDeLinde, Superintendent of Recreation Peterson and Parks & Recreation Secretary Cherryl Mesko. Representing the consulting firm of Barton-Ashman were Barry Warner and Donald Wiske. Mr. Warner presented a draft of Chapter 4 which Includes accepted Standards and Classifications for park facilities, Chapter 5 Needs and Demands Analysis and Chapter 8 the Community Trails System. Mr. Warner reviewed the park classification system which adds various components such as linear park, conservancy area, special use park and historic sites. City Councilmembers discussed the significance of these added components and also discussed the criteria for a more traditional park such as neighborhood commons, neighborhood parks, community athletic fields and community parks. City Councilmembers and members of the advisory commission discussed the balance of park land and whether the concept of neighborhood parks should be redefined. 0(C Page 2/EAGAN SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES February 22, 1994 Mr. Warner also reviewed the Eagan park facility standards for various activities and facilities such as tennis, soccer, baseball and other recreational activities. He reviewed the needs and demands analysis which includes tools from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, a comparison to accepted national acreage standards, neighborhood park systems area analysis and participation rate trends and athletic association participation projections to develop the criteria. Mr. Warner covered per capita park acreage standards for active use parcels which were calculated for each park in the community. There were summaries for outdoor facilities and graphic illustrations of various teams per capita to determine the number of participants during the next five to ten years in various athletic and recreational activities. Mr. Warner briefly discussed the community trails system which includes several goals such as develop a City-wide trails system that minimizes potential conflicts between trail users and motor vehicles and ensures the safety of the trail users. He stated there were eight (8) goals to be considered for Eagan's trails system. After a general discussion, Mayor Egan thanked the Advisory Parks, Recreation & Natural Resources Commission members for their participation and work effort in shaping the Park System Plan update. LEXINGTON/DIFFLEY ATHLETIC FIELD DEVELOPMENT Director of Parks & Recreation Vraa stated that Mr. Tony Caponi has raised concerns about the location of the softball complex that it proposed for the Lexington/Diffley athletic field complex development. He stated that Mr. Caponi has requested that the fields be shifted in a southeasterly direction to minimize Impact on his proposed art park development. Director of Parks & Recreation Vraa stated that the site development plans are ready for bid and if it Is the desire of the City Council or advisory commission to change the location of the softball field complex, it will be necessary to hold new public informational meetings with the Kensington Place neighborhood and those residents located west of the Lexington/Dit ley Park. After a brief discussion, members of the City Council and the Advisory Parks, Recreation & Natural Resources Commission jointly concurred that Diffley/Lexington park development as presented should not be changed and that Mr. Caponi should be informed of the surrounding neighborhood expectations, topography and other development considerations that were Included in the planning process. MAINTENANCE OF TRAILWAYS/OAKRIDGE SENIOR CENTER City Councilmember Awada stated that Maxine Studer, a resident at the Oakridge Senior Center, has contacted her and is requesting that a sidewalk adjacent to Cliff Road be maintained by the City from the Oakridge Senior Center to the Cliff Lake Shopping Center. Councilmembers concurred that due to funding and liability reasons, trailways are not plowed or maintained during winter months and if an exception were made for this complex, there would be many other requests for trails to schools, bus shelters and other facilities to be maintained by the City. The City Administrator was directed to contact Ms. Studer and share the City's trailway maintenance policy and further suggest that the Oakridge Senior Center complex Include the traitway plowing with their general parking lot maintenance as an option. SCHOOL BOUNDARIES MODEL City Councilmember Hunter presented a preliminary plan and analysis that he prepared with the assistance of City staff for consideration of school district boundary adjustments. He stated that two specific areas were designated that would shift certain parcels from District 196 to 191 and others from District 191 to 196. He stated that efforts were made to equalize tax capacity, market value, the number of parcels and other factors. City Councilmembers, Including Councilmember Hunter, discussed various impacts and 000 57 Page 3/EAGAN SPECIAL CITY COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES February 22, 1994 problems with Implementing a school district annexation procedure which resulted In the City Council deciding to place the project on hold until a more broad based plan Is considered for shifting boundaries in all three school districts serving the City of Eagan. City Councilmembers shared a vision and goal that Eagan would be best served by having all its constituents and students attending the same school district. Mayor Egan thanked City Councilmember Hunter for developing the model and stated that the Information and data will be extremely helpful as the City pursues a complete shift to centralize the City of Eagan into one school district. The City Administrator was directed to prepare a work plan that would address the legal steps, property tax implications and other issues If school district boundaries are reconfigured so the entire City of Eagan is part of one school district. OTHER BUSINESS There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at approximately 10:00 p.m. TLH February 22, 1994 Date City Clerk