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2006-06-13 Parks and Rec Comm MinutesCITY OF MENDOTA HEIGHTS DAKOTA COUNTY, MINNESOTA PARKS AND RECREATION COMMISSION MINUTES DUNE 135 2006 The June 2006 meeting of the Mendota Heights Parks and Recreation Commission was held on Tuesday, June 13, 2006 in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 1101 Victoria Curve. The meeting was called to order at 6:30 p.m. The following Commissioners were present: Chair Richard Spicer and Commissioners Paul Portz, Missie Hickey, Raymond Morris and Larry Craighead. Commissioner Tom Kraus was excused from the meeting. Commissioner Dave Libra arrived late. City Staff present were Operations and Projects Coordinator Guy Kullander, Recreation Programmer Teresa Gangelhoff, and Administrative Assistant Patrick C. Hollister. Mr. Hollister took the minutes. Also in the audience were Councilmember Ultan Duggan, Police Chief Mike Aschenbrener, Police Sergeant Neil Garlock, Ralph Dumond, and Pat Finkel of MHAA. MINUTES Commissioner Morns moved approval of the May 9, 2006 Parks and Recreation Commission Minutes. Comrnissioner Portz seconded the motion. AYES: 5 NAYS: 0 CONGRATULATIONS AND GOOD LUCK TO PATRICK HOLLISTER Chair Spicer noted that he had received an invitation to Mr. Hollister's going away party on Friday, June 23. Mr. Hollister explained that he has been offered and has accepted the position of Planner with Chicago County. Mr. Hollister said that his appointment still needs to be approved by the Chisago County Board on June 21, 2006, Mr. Hollister said that if the Board approves his appointment, his last day at the City of Mendota Heights will be June 23, 2006. Mr. Hollister said that he has enjoyed working with the Parks and Recreation Commission for over ten years and noted that Chair Spicer and Commissioner Libra are the only two remaining members of the Commission that were on the Commission when he started. Mr. Hollister also complimented Ms. Gangelhoff and Mr. Kullander on the tremendous amount of work they do on a daily basis. Mr. Hollister also acknowledged Councilmember Duggan, Chief Aschenbrener, Sergeant Garlock, and Mr. Dumond for their great contributions to the 50th Anniversary Celebration. Mr. Hollister said that notwithstanding the important leadership of Committee Co -Chair Spicer, Councihnember Duggan was truly the engine that drove the Celebration. Mr. Hollister said that he should yield the floor at this point in order allow the Committee Co -Chairs to thank our special guests this evening. CO-CHAIRS DUGGAN'S AND SPICER'S EXPRESSION OF GRATITUDE TO RALPH DUMOND, MIKE ASCHENBRENER, NEIL GARLOCK AND THE FIRE DEPARTMENT FOR THEIR INDISPENSABLE CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE 50"' ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION Chair Spicer agreed with Mr. Hollister that Councihnember Duggan was the engine that drove the 50th Anniversary Celebration. Chair Spicer thanked Councilmember Duggan for his ideas, hard work, energy, and enthusiasm for the event. Councihnember Duggan thanked Chair Spicer for his kind words. Chair Spicer next thanked Mr. Dumond for planning and conducting the parade. Chair Spicer joked that his one complaint would be that the parade moved a little fast. Chair Spicer said that Mr. Dumond did a fantastic job. Chair Spicer complimented Sergeant Garlock on the Saturday morning run walk. Chair Spicer said that it was his understanding that about 150 people paid to participate, but that some others may have entered without paying, which is tolerable. Chair Spicer congratulated Chief Aschenbrener on how smoothly the traffic and parking situation went and the total support by the Police Department during the Friday and Saturday events. Chair Spicer commented that Chief Aschenbrener had the unenviable task of blocking off parking spaces for activities while people are looking for somewhere to park. Chair Spicer added that it is no easy task to close a state highway, and complimented him on leading the parade. [Commissioner Libra amved at this point.] Commissioner Libra noted that the classic car show had only fourteen cars entered as of mid -May, but that many more cars entered in the final two weeks. Commissioner Libra said that he wished to thank everyone that was involved in the car show. Commissioner Libra said that there was a very good representation of cars from the 1950s. Commissioner Libra recited the judges' picks for best cars: Mayor Huber 1956 Buick Chief Aschenbrener 1962 Lincoln Chief Maczko 1948 Chevy Fleetside People's Choice 1970 Chevelle Commissioner Libra thanked Commissioners Portz and Craighead for their help with the car show. Commissioner Libra said that 35 cars were sent to Mr. Dumond for the parade. Commissioner Libra commented that coordinating the parade had to have been a huge headache. Commissioner Portz complimented Commissioner Libra on the car show. Commissioner Portz said that the car show was Commissioner Libra's vision, and the he sponsored it. Commissioner Portz said that Commissioner Libra recruited 74 cars for the show. Commissioner Portz complimented Commissioner Libra on his planning, his vision, and his persistence to make it all happen. Commissioner Libra said that there were nice pieces on the event in the Pioneer Press and the local papers. Commissioner Libra complimented the City on a beautiful special 50tb Anniversary Edition of the Heights Hilites. Commissioner Libra said that everyone did a great job. Chair Spicer thanked Teresa Gangelhoff. Chair Spicer commented that even though Ms. Gangelhoff is a half-time employee, she must have worked triple time leading up to the celebration. Chair Spicer added that although Mary Hapka was not in the audience this evening, he also wished to thank her for all her help leading up to and during the event. Chair Spicer also thanked Mr. Kullander for handling all of the minutia such as arranging for tents, tables and chairs, and a hundred other small but critical details. Chair Spicer also thanked Mr. Kullander for keeping the event budget on track. Chair Spicer also said that he thought the 501h Anniversary flag looks great, and that he loved the fireworks. Chair Spicer invited Councilmember Duggan to add his comments. Councilmember Duggan displayed a board showing the list of financial contributors and committee volunteers and asked the camera operator to show it on Tv. Councilmember Duggan said that he has received a lot of compliments on the event, and even requests to 'do it again next year". Councilmember Duggan said that while there can only be one 501h Anniversary, some elements of this year's celebration that could and should be repeated next year are the 5k walk/run, the evening dance, fireworks, and the ice cream social. Councilmember Duggan said that all of the merchants are very happy with Friday evening's kick-off event. Councilmember Duggan said that he would like to thank everyone at the City, and thank Commissioner Libra for the car show. Councilmember Duggan said that he felt that the two main ingredients to the success of the event were civic pride and community support. Councilmember Duggan thanked all the volunteers, sponsors, and donors. Councilmember Duggan said that the Committee was a bit disorganized and haphazard at the beginning, but by mid -March the Committee had coalesced into a fine working machine. Councilmember Duggan said that in terms of City Staff contributions, he particularly wanted to thank Ms. Swanson, Mr. Kullander, Ms. Hapka, and Ms. Gangelhof£ Councilmember Duggan said that he felt that Ms Gangelhoff had the hardest job because she has been running the annual parks celebration for years and suddenly this year everyone is telling her to do things differently. c Councilmember Duggan thanked Ms. Gangelhoff for her patience and flexibility for this year's event. Councilmember Duggan also thanked Mr. Kullander who was there from day one helping with agendas, documents, minutes, and details such as stages and chairs. Councilmember Duggan also thanked Chief Aschenbrener for directing traffic and Sergeant Garlock for his help in the morning with the walk/run. Councilmember Duggan also thanked Public Works, who did an outstanding job, and thanked Mr. Blum for attending all the planning meetings. Councilmember Duggan complimented Mr. Dumond on the parade and said that his reports were "tight and flawless". Councilmember Duggan thanked Mr. Dumond for his patience and said it was a fantastic parade. Councilmember Duggan also acknowledged the contributions of Mr. Dumond's wife, son, daughter, and granddaughter. Councilmember Duggan also said that he wished to thank Saint Thomas High School and Sibley High School for their contributions. Councilmember Duggan also thanked the citizens of Mendota Heights for their participation and support. Commissioner Craighead said that he wished to thank the Fire Department, who worked really hard. Commission Craighead complimented the Fire Department on covering the fireworks and selling beer and water. Commissioner Portz said that one the merchants in Mendota Heights recently told him that business has been booming ever since the 50th Celebration, Councilmember Duggan commented that the Town Center merchants sold a lot of merchandise at Friday night's event. Councilmember Duggan said that sometimes the merchants were so busy selling goods that they didn't have time to give samples away. Mr. Kullander said that a lot of the firefighters also helped Public Works. Mr. Hollister said that the City Council should also be thanked, not only for their individual contributions but also for their collective official endorsement and financial support of the event, without which the whole event could not happen. RECREATION PROGRAMMER'S REPORT Ms Gangelhoff said that both Safety Camp and the Fishing Derby are now full. Chair Spicer noted that Ms. Gangelhoff s report listed upcoming recreational activities, including the Summer Playhouse (formerly Imagination Station), Golf for 200 kids, Ride the Light Rail, Bunker Beach Wave, Cascade Pool, and Leroy's River Minstrels. Chair Spicer commended Ms. Gangelhoff on the number and variety of programs for this summer, particularly for a half -rime employee. 0 Ms. Gangelhoff showed the Commission the passport -like booklets called "do the parks" that promote use of the local parks. MHAA UPDATE WITH PAT FINKEL Chair Spicer acknowledged Pat Finkel of the Mendota Heights Athletic Association in the audience. Mr. Finkel said that a new group has formed called the Mendota Heights Athletic Association Boosters, and that MHAA Boosters will be having an inaugural charity golf tournament on July IOth at Mendakota Park at a fee of $175 per golfer. Mr. Finkel said that there are corporate and group opportunities available by calling Brian Hallman at 612-386-4404. Mr. Finkel said that there will also be a baseball tournament from July 14-16 and that he anticipated 550 kids playing baseball. Mr. Finkel said that registration for fall sports is in July, including tackle football and flag football. Mr. Finkel said that in terms of MHAA's needs, MHAA would like to boost the skills of the coaches and the kids, and would like to improve the athletics facilities. Mr. Finkel said that MHAA has some needs for some baseball improvements. Chair Spicer said that MHAA in the past has come to talk about a storage facility for pitching machines, and also about field conditions. Mr. Finkel said that there are needs for upgrades, because there is only one field with a mound in Mendota Heights, there are no scoreboards, and there are no lighted fields. Mr. Finkel said that he hoped the City could help out in these areas, and that MHAA should send representatives to the Parks Commission meetings more often. Commissioner Portz said that as a follow-up to the SOth anniversary celebration there is a call for memoirs from residents, and that he wrote about Super Saturdays as a memoir. Mr. Finkel said that Scott Applebaum did a great job for the MHAA tournament. Cormmissioner Libra said that he was a MHAA Soccer Commissioner for four years. Commissioner Libra said that it would be good if MHAA on a quarterly basis showed how many Mendota Heights kids are involved in these sports. Commissioner Libra said that MHAA is providing a hidden service to kids in the community. Commissioner Libra said that it might be helpful if MHAA sent in a quarterly report on the number of kids. Commissioner Libra said that it is very impressive if in a community of slightly over 10,000 people MHAA has 500 kids in baseball alone. Commissioner Libra added that flag football for girls has grown significantly. Commissioner Libra said that sometimes we forget the numbers that are served. Mr. Finkel said that they hoped for 500+kids in the upcoming baseball tournament, and asked the Commissioners to give a thought to helping to sponsor the tournament. Commissioner Portz asked where one should send a check if one were interested m contributing. Mr. Finkel said that checks could be sent to MHAA Boosters, 161 E. Marie, West Saint Paul, MN, 55118. Mr. Finkel added that the boosters have their own website, www.inhaaonline. org. Commissioner Craighead suggested that Mr. Finkel stop by during a Council meeting to promote the charity golf tournament and the baseball tournament. Mr. Finkel said that the baseball tournament is not full yet, and is in fact at less than 50% Tight now. Commissioner Portz also suggested that Mr. Finkel go to a Council meeting. CONDITION OF IVY POND Mr. Kullander reported that neighbors around Ivy Pond have complained about the appearance of the pond. Chair Spicer said that former Commissioner Stan Linnell was involved in the planning for the pond, and that Commissioner Linnell liked native vegetation. Chair Spicer said that Commissioner Linnell thought that native vegetation would be less maintenance, and very attractive. Chair Spicer said that apparently one neighbor does not agree. Commissioner Portz said that he had recently drove by the pond and that he felt that the foliage was doing what it was supposed to do. Chair Spicer said that maybe the City did not use the right plants. Mr. Kullander said that in hindsight the pond should have been handled the way the City is currently handling Pilot Knob. Mr. Kullander said that many neighbors to the pond preferred a more "manicured" look, but that the native grasses provide a variety of color and texture to the landscape, and provide habitat for birds, insects, and small animals. Commissioner Morns said that it is good that the non-native species are regularly removed, but that part of the problem maybe the inability to keep out lawn fertilizer treatments. Chair Spicer said the ON should do more than remove invasive plants. Chair Spicer said that more plants and flowers should be added. Or. Kullander said that he would include additional plantings in the 2007 budget request. .0 Chair Spicer said the City may have stopped too soon, but what we have now is functional for what we need around a storm holding pond. Commissioner Libra said that because things wash through the street someone in the community could adopt the pond. Commissioner Libra said that Minneapolis went to more natural area growth. Commissioner Libra said that Mr. Kullander could consult with Minneapolis about what their standard is or how they are converting. Chair Spicer noted that there was a handout on Pilot Knob on the dais entitled "Pilot Knob Natural Area" Cormmissioner Portz said that he handed it out. Commissioner Portz said that he attended the ceremony for the dedication of Pilot Knob. Commissioner Portz said that there were lots of good speeches at the ceremony. Commissioner Portz said that he will take guests there to show them the views when they are in town. Commissioner Portz said that the part of the ceremony that struck him the most was when the big "No Trespassing" sign was taken down and replaced with a welcoming sign. Commissioner Portz suggested that the Parks Commission go over and take a look at Pilot Knob at a future meeting. Mr. Kullander said that the contractor will be doing another burn at Pilot Knob in the near future. Mr. Kullander said that later the City will develop a trail system and parking. Mr. Kullander said that if any Commissioner has not been at the site recently they should go have a look. Mr. Kullander said that the vegetation has been cut down, and the power poles are gone. Mr. Kullander said that sometimes turkey vultures are overhead as well as hawks and eagles. Mr. Kullander said that it is a nice site to visit. PARKS POLICE REPORT There were no comments on this item. OTHER COMMENTS Chair Spicer said that he has received comments that the Valley Park Tennis Courts needs resurfacingI Mr. Kullander said that this item will be on the Commission's agenda next month. Mr. Kullander said that the City has just been doing "band -aid" resurfacing. Mr. Kullander said that the condition of the tennis courts is at the point where they need major reconstruction. Mr. Kullander said that reconstructing a double court would cost about $100,000 to $120,000. Mr. Kullander said that he is starting an overall look at the tennis courts. Mr. Kullander said that a tennis court could be reconstructed every two or three years. Commissioner Craighead complemented the crack patching on the City's trails that was done last year. Mr. Kullander said that next week he will focus more on trails after the planned reception at City Hall to thank all of the sponsors, volunteers and staff who helped make the 501h Anniversary Celebration a success. I_\ I71L�IIl'��I Commissioner Libra moved to adjourn. Commissioner Portz seconded the motion. AYES: NAYS: The meeting adjourned at 8:00 p.m.