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2021-10-12 Park and Rec Comm MinutesCITY OF MENDOTA HEIGHTS, DAKOTA COUNTY, MINNESOTA PARKS AND RECREATION MEETING OCTOBER 12, 2021 The October meeting of the Mendota Heights Parks and Recreation Commission was held on Tuesday, October 12, 2021, at Mendota Heights City Hall, 1101 Victoria Curve. 1. Call to Order – Chair Steve Goldade called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. 2. Roll Call – The following Commissioners were present: Chair Steve Goldade, Commissioners: Jaffrey Blanks, Patrick Cotter, Bob Klepperich, Stephanie Meyer, and Amy Smith; absent: Commissioner Dan Sherer. Student Representative: Niko Hess. Staff present: Recreation Program Coordinator, Meredith Lawrence, Assistant City Administrator, Cheryl Jacobson and Public Works Director, Ryan Ruzek. 3. Pledge of Allegiance The Pledge of Allegiance was recited. 4. Approval of Agenda Motion Klepperich/second Blanks, to approve the agenda AYES 6: NAYS 0 5.a Approval of Minutes from September 14, 2021 Regular Meeting Motion Meyer/second Cotter to approve the minutes of the September 14, 2021 Parks and Recreation Commission Regular Meeting. AYES 6: NAYS 0 6. Citizen Comment Period (for items not on the agenda) None. 7. Acknowledgement of Reports Chair Goldade read the titles of the three updates (Par 3, Recreation, and Park Improvement Updates) and polled the Commissioners for questions. 7.a Par 3 Update Recreation Program Coordinator Meredith Lawrence briefly reviewed the 2021 August Financial Report. She stated that fall aeration was completed on the course. She stated that fall rates are in effect for the remainder of the season. She reviewed some pre-winter maintenance that will occur and advised of the request for three pieces of equipment for replacement she will be bringing before the Council. Chair Goldade asked how the golf event with the Police was. Ms. Lawrence replied that the Bogey with the Red and Blue was held with a great turn out. Chair Goldade stated that he has noticed some inconsistencies on where golf course equipment is budgeted from. Ms. Lawrence noted that this is the first time that there are funds in the Par 3 budget to purchase equipment. She stated that the Par 3 fund would be used to purchase two pieces of equipment while a different City fund would be used for the third piece of equipment. She noted that the goal is for the golf course to be able to fund all of its needed purchases. Commissioner Meyer referenced the equipment slated for replacement and asked if equipment sharing has been reviewed as an option. Ms. Lawrence confirmed that they have loaned equipment from other courses in the past. She stated that some pieces are used daily and therefore would be difficult to share. She noted that aerators would also be difficult to share as everyone is attempting to use the equipment at the same time. She stated that she does keep communication open with other courses. She noted that the City has also looked into outsourcing maintenance but did not receive any interest. 7.b Recreation Update Recreation Program Coordinator Meredith Lawrence reviewed recent activities and current programing opportunities. Commissioner Smith asked what the targeted age group is for “Tour de Rec”. Ms. Lawrence replied it is targeted for youth 13 and younger. 7.c Parks Improvement Update Recreation Program Coordinator Meredith Lawrence stated that light usage at Marie Park has begun in the pilot program and noted that the lighting has been quite popular. She stated that she has received very good feedback and requests for lighting on the courts at Friendly Hills as well. She continued to ask the Commission to document any feedback received. She stated that they are moving forward with the Wentworth warming house project, but because of rising materials and labor costs the project now exceeds the original estimate and will need to go to competitive bidding based on architectural design. She provided an update on the grading of the fields at Mendakota Park, noting that they are hoping the project can be completed this fall. She also provided an update on the Mendakota dugouts and the overall dugout project. She noted that the dugout locations mentioned by Commissioner Sherer at the last meeting were not correct and noted that MHAA can hopefully provide clarity on that tonight. Chair Goldade recommended two projects to the Council and asked for clarity on how the group should move forward. Ms. Lawrence replied that the recommendations have not been brought forward to the Council yet. She stated that additional information can be gathered through the discussion with MHAA tonight and then additional discussion could occur in November prior to bringing a recommendation to the Council. Commissioner Smith asked if the plan would be to have the dugouts completed for the spring season. Ms. Lawrence confirmed that would be the intent, dependent on contractor availability. Commissioner Cotter commented that in the previous discussion it was believed that the cost would be higher for Mendakota because of the concrete work that was necessary and asked if that is correct. Ms. Lawrence provided additional explanation on the cost. Motion Klepperich/second Meyer to acknowledge the staff reports. AYES 6: NAYS 0 8. New Business 8.a Mendota Heights Athletic Association Recreation Program Coordinator Meredith Lawrence stated that representatives from MHAA are present tonight at the request of the Chair and Vice Chair to provide information to the Commission. Chair Goldade stated that MHAA attended a few years ago to provide an update and he believed that this would be a good time to gain information on spring and summer sports. Dan Novak, President of MHAA, explained that each sports program is run on its own with the goal to break even each year on the programs with the exception of scholarships that are provided. Tom Stevens, MHAA, stated that they created a document with the number of athletes and related financial information for baseball and softball. He stated that information was provided from Spring of 2021, along with fall noting that fall is gaining in popularity. He also provided information on the percentage of athletes that are Mendota Heights residents and reviewed the document with the Commission. He stated that since 2019, softball has provided 24 scholarships and baseball has provided 14 scholarships. He also provided information on revenue and expenses, noting that the final numbers are not yet complete for 2021. He stated that the balance that rolls over is typically used quickly the following year for training and equipment needs. Commissioner Klepperich asked if the impact from COVID-19 in 2020 had an impact on MHAA’s financials. Mr. Stevens replied that traveling sports still generated revenue, while in-house program registrations were refunded. Adam Crepeau, MHAA, stated that the t-ball program is included in the baseball dollars, but that program does not use City fields and instead uses fields at the elementary schools. He reviewed the field improvement requests, which were sorted into different levels of priority. He focused on needs for Mendakota. He stated that waiting until March to know field availability is late, as traveling sports require earlier field availability for tournament hosting. He asked if volunteers could put up and take down temporary fencing at Mendakota which would allow additional opportunities for tournament hosting. Chair Goldade stated that he is not convinced pole holes are safe at Marie Park and asked for input from MHAA. Mr. Crepeau commented that those holes are a little high at Marie Park. Commissioner Cotter stated that the idea of youth opportunities versus adult programing and asked for input on what other communities are doing. He also asked if the adult program is run by the City. Mr. Crepeau replied that another community hosts adult sports two nights per week and youth sports on the other three days. Ms. Lawrence confirmed that is a City run program. She stated that if adult softball is cut, that would be cutting the largest adult offering and therefore that discussion would need to occur with the Council. Commissioner Cotter recognized the competing programs. He asked for more information on what would be needed in the weekends at Mendakota for tournaments. Mr. Stevens stated that they do not necessarily have to have more weekends, but that would provide additional fundraising opportunities which would in turn lower the registration fees. He stated that they currently have only hosted two traveling tournaments and they would like to expand that. He stated that it is difficult to expand that when field availability is not known until March. He stated that perhaps next year they would like one or two additional weekends. He stated that for fall tournaments they have the ability to host large events at Mendakota every weekend for a few consecutive weekends. Mr. Novak stated that the biggest issue is timing. He stated that they cannot put in permits to get the fields until the City process is completed. He stated that perhaps something could be done to ensure the fields are secure in order to book good tournaments. Commissioner Smith asked for clarity on the City policy for field reservations. Ms. Lawrence stated that all permit requests are due by February 1st, and she then reviews the requests and responds to the user groups. She stated that the policy can be amended. She noted that the policy dates were created using the input from MHAA three years ago. Commissioner Cotter stated that based upon the need to schedule tournaments in advance, it would make sense to reconsider the dates in the policy. Mr. Stevens commented that if they were able to finalize their dates in January, it would help tremendously to schedule tournaments. Ms. Lawrence stated that could be discussed, noting that permit applications would be needed by all user groups by that date. She stated that the policy is reviewed each year and that is why these discussions are important. Commissioner Cotter stated that it would be helpful to have these discussions more frequently as MHAA is one of the biggest users of the parks. He asked if there is concern with being able to schedule out the entire season that much earlier. Mr. Crepeau commented that the traveling and in-house tournaments are the same each year. He stated that traveling teams are selected in the fall each year, therefore they could provide that by January without issue. Commissioner Cotter stated that the policy should be placed on the agenda for continued discussion. He noted that perhaps the other user groups are consulted as well. Ms. Lawrence stated that it would be helpful to know specifically what is requested in terms of policy changes prior to the worksession in November. She stated that the City is attempting to avoid blanket permitting, as if MHAA blanket permits, that prevents other groups from using the fields on those nights. Mr. Novak stated that they would not know the individual field schedules until Spring, but they are speaking directly of permitting Mendakota and could book that through 2025. Ms. Lawrence stated that the City receives requests from multiple user groups and therefore one universal date is easier for permitting the fields. She asked if MHAA would be ready to schedule their full season by January 1st. Mr. Stevens replied that they would not be ready at that time. He stated that they view Mendakota as an event center and would hope to book large events in advance rather than the entire schedule. Mr. Novak commented that MHAA is aware that they share Mendakota with another user group on certain dates. He stated that perhaps permitting for Mendakota could be split off with a date of January 1st and the rest remain with the March 1st date. Chair Goldade summarized that MHAA would like Mendakota permitting split out into its own category with a due date of January 1st and the remainder of the fields are permitted with a date of March 1st. Mr. Crepeau continued to identify desired field improvements. Mr. Novak asked if the City generates the same amount of revenue through adult softball compared to MHAA use of the fields. He asked at what point the decision would be made to prioritize youth sports over adult sports. Commissioner Smith recognized that it is competition between two different groups, adults, and youth programing. Mr. Novak commented that MHAA is scrutinized when they do not use a field they have permitted for, but adult softball is sometimes not using the fields that they have booked. Ms. Lawrence stated that she knows the nights softball is being played and what fields are being used because she makes the schedules. She stated that the additional nights that were requested by MHAA for pictures and other things were opened up. She stated that the City has not taken the approach that every single night they are driving around viewing field usage. She stated that the issue that she has is that other user groups are attempting to use the fields and cannot because they are told the fields are reserved but there is no activity for three consecutive weeks on that night. She believed that everyone could do a better job to work together and collaborate, the schools, associations, clubs, and the City in order to better use and schedule the available space. She believed that it is possible to get more residents on the fields with what there is within the system. She stated that if field use is needed on Tuesday and Thursday nights, MHAA can reach out to her, and she can attempt to find the space. Chair Goldade noted that this information has been helpful, and they would like to have MHAA back after the Fall season to discuss football and soccer. Commissioner Cotter agreed that this was very informative and that it would be helpful to have continued communications between the groups. Commissioner Meyer asked and received confirmation that the Commission intends to discuss the policy at the next meeting to discuss the concern related to tournament scheduling. Chair Goldade thanked MHAA for attending to provide an update on spring and summer sports and looked forward to the next time the group will come back to provide information on fall sports. 8.b Historical Swing Set Replacement Information Recreation Program Coordinator Meredith Lawrence stated that at the September meeting swing sets were discussed. She stated that she provided information in the packet on swing set replacement. She stated that public works will be painting the swing sets that are still in good shape but may not look to be in the best condition. She noted that in the future, when playgrounds are replaced, the Commission may want to include swing sets to avoid this situation in the future. Commissioner Cotter stated that he believes that is the goal of having the CIP, to complete full replacements. Commissioner Meyer noted that five parks are listed in 2025 and asked why it is shown in that manner. Ms. Lawrence stated that she brought forward the requests from the Commission to the Council and many of those were deferred to 2025 within CIP for the time being. She noted that there may be a park referendum before that time that would provide another funding opportunity. 9. Unfinished Business 9.a Strategic Planning Update Recreation Program Coordinator Meredith Lawrence provided the monthly update on the continued strategic planning process. 10. Staff Announcements Recreation Program Coordinator Meredith Lawrence shared the following announcements: • Skating instructor and warming house staff positions have been posted on the website • Other events can be found on the city’s website Chair Goldade asked if there is a backup plan if there is not sufficient staffing for warming houses. Ms. Lawrence stated that staff has been having those discussions internally. 11. Student Representative Update No comments. 12. Commission Comments and Park Updates Commissioner Meyer • Marie Park continues to have a lot of activity and pickleball court use • She enjoyed the Parks Tour and the interaction with Skate Park users and Dog Park users Commissioner Klepperich • Parks Tour was a great success for the Commission. The Pilot Knob stop was fantastic with educational opportunities for the school district as well. • The adjustable hoop at Ivy Hills may need maintenance attention. The pond is low and green because of the lack of rain Commissioner Smith • The pickleball courts at Friendly Hills look great • Perhaps the mowing schedule could be adjusted next year for Kensington to better align with game schedules. The fence near 494 still needs attention to keep soccer balls in the area Commissioner Cotter • Thanked MHAA for attending tonight to share their input • The Dog Park is a popular and well used amenity not only for residents but also for the broader region Commissioner Blanks • Has noticed a lot of bicycle activity at Valley. Chair Goldade • Thanked staff for coordinating the Park Tour. Pilot Knob is a treasure and encouraged residents to visit the park. The Dog Park numbers were amazing, noting the interaction between residents and the dogs. It was impressive to see the number of people and range in age of the users for the Skate Park. Wentworth is a beautiful park and playground, and he looks forward to the warming house completion. 13. Adjourn Motion Klepperich/Second Meyer to adjourn the meeting at 8:00 PM. AYES 6: NAYS 0 Minutes drafted by: Amanda Staple TimeSaver Off Site Secretarial, Inc.