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2022-07-12 Parks and Rec Comm MinutesCITY OF MENDOTA HEIGHTS, DAKOTA COUNTY, MINNESOTA PARKS AND RECREATION MEETING JULY 12, 2022 The July meeting of the Mendota Heights Parks and Recreation Commission was held on Tuesday, July 12, 2022, at Mendota Heights City Hall, 1101 Victoria Curve. 1. Call to Order – Chair Bob Klepperich called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. 2. Roll Call – The following Commissioners were present: Chair Bob Klepperich , Commissioners: Jaffrey Blanks, Patrick Cotter, St ephanie Meyer, and Michelle Muller; absent: Commissioner Dan Sherer and Amy Smith . Student Representative: Niko Hess. Staff present: Parks and Recreation Manager, Meredith Lawrence, Assistant City Administrator , Kelly Torkelson, Public Works Director, Ryan Ruzek, and Recreation Program Coordinator , Matt Colwell. 3. Pledge of Allegiance The Pledge of Allegiance was recited. 4. Approval of Agenda Motion Blanks/second Cotter, to approve the agenda AYES 5: NAYS 0 5.a Approval of Minutes from June 14, 2022 Regular Meeting Motion Cotter /second Blanks to approve the minutes of the June 14, 2022 Parks and Recreation Commission Regular M eeting. AYES 5: NAYS 0 6. Citizen Comment Period (for items not on the agenda) None. 7. Acknowledgement of Reports Chair Klepperich 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 Parks and Recreation Manager Meredith Lawrence reported that the turf is in good condition and an irrigation audit was completed at the end of June. She commented that there are a few irrigation heads that need to be repaired/replaced. She provided an update on the senior golf passes that have been s old, noting that the program will be reassessed for 2023. She also provided an update on the approved equipment purchases , noting that staff is still awaiting delivery of the equipment but anticipate they will arrive soon. She reported that a Junior Mini PGA event was hosted on July 7 th and was a great event. She noted another award the City will be receiving for the rebranding of the Par 3 course. She also provided an overview of the May 2022 Financial Report. Chair Klepperich commented that heat can be as bad as rain in terms of diminished golf rounds, therefore it is a tremendous effort of staff in that the rounds have not been reduced in the heat. 7.b Recreation Update Recreation Program Coordinator Matt Co lwell provided a summary of summer programing and upcoming events including pickleball lessons, fishing derby, parks celebration, and other recreation programing. Commissioner Muller noted that this is the second year the parks celebration is being held in August rather than June and asked why the date was changed. Parks and Recreation Manager Meredith Lawrence stated that the change was a result of COVID-19 as things began to open up again and there was not enough time to plan for June in 2021. She noted that there was also direction from the Commission and Council to expand the event. She explained that planning a large event in June is difficult because of staffing constraints and programming, therefore August was chosen as the date. She noted that the date could be reconsidered in the future if desired, but this changed date has been working well and positive feedback has been received. Commissioner Muller commented that the previous date paired well with the mid -season tournament which helped to c reate a full day event. She noted that it also paired well with the 5K. Ms. Lawrence stated that staff has become more involved in the 5K and therefore it was not feasible for staff to be in two places at once. She noted that the MHAA tournament has als o grown, which is a good thing as well, therefore there is not capacity to hold two large events at Mendakota. She agreed that it was great when the events worked together, but both events have grown since that time. Commissioner Blanks referenced the fi shing derby and asked if there is a timeframe for that. Mr. Colwell replied that event takes place from 4 to 7 p.m. He believed that they just reached capacity for the event filling all 30 spots. Commissioner Meyer asked the age range of those that took pickleball lessons. Mr. Colwell estimated that the age range was between 40 to 60 years of age. Commissioner Meyer asked if those participants would like to see continued ranges of lessons offered. Mr. Colwell stated that he has been talking to the instructors and an idea was brought forward to have a beginner lesson followed by an intermediate lesson. He noted that some participants enjoyed the first session and signed up for the second lesson, kno wing it would be the same curriculum. Commissioner Muller asked if there are a certain number of spots reserved for Mendota Heights residents when camps are offered in conjunction with other communities. Ms. Lawrence acknowledged that many of the camps and program offerings are partnered with other cities. She stated that when registration is open each city had the same number of spots open. She noted that once a certain amount of time has passed, the cities will reevaluate and reallocate the open spo ts to cities with waiting lists. She confirmed that many of the camps filled this summer and staff is planning to reevaluate additional offerings for next year. Commissioner Cotter asked if staff is tracking the increase in programming and revenue. Ms. Lawrence confirmed that she is tracking that information and hopes to provide that information in the annual report. She stated that in her years with the City she has not seen this type of interest in programming. Commissioner Cotter recognized that t his was a goal that seems to be coming to fruition and therefore would be interested in those statistics. 7.c Parks Improvement Update Parks and Recreation Manager Meredith Lawrence provided an update on parks improvement project progress and balance of the special parks fund. Commissioner Cotter commented that it is nice to see some projects being approved/completed that have been on the list for some time. He stated that he likes seeing the balance of the special parks fund but would also like to see the pending expenses in order to see a more accurate balance. Commissioner Meyer noted that field maintenance at Civic Center was previously discussed and asked if that will be completed this year. Ms. Lawrence stated that staff has been attempting to place all the fields on a rotation for field maintenance. She noted that staff hopes to complete Civic Center this fall but is still waiting to see if that can be done. She stated that if funds are available for the project, it would be done this fall and that field would then be taken offline for the duration of that project. Commissioner Meyer asked if there would be an opportunity to partner with West Saint Paul for field maintenance in order to obtain a cost savings. Ms. Lawrence replied that she believes that West Saint Paul uses their own parks staff for that type of maintenance, while Mendota Heights contracts that work out. She noted that staff could look into that opportunity. Commissioner Cotter commented that perhaps it would be cost effective to contract with West Saint Paul to complete the field maintenance in Mendota Heights. Ms. Lawrence stated that they did research contracting with another community to complete maintenance on the golf course, but ultimately the other cities decided that if the staff had time to contract work out, they probably did not need those staff. Student Representative Hess arrived. 8. New Business 8.a Booth at Park Celebration Open House Parks and Recreation Manager Meredith Lawrence provided an overview of the different events proposed for the park celebration weekend. Chair Klepperich assumed that most Commission members would attend the events, noting that perhaps a booth space could be made available. He welcomed input from the Commission. Commissioner Blanks believed the purpose of having a booth would be to connect to the community and noted that he would be happy to staff the booth and answer questions of residents. Commissioner Meyer commented that in previous celebration events there were typically two Commission members at a time. Chair Klepperich believed that there were shifts as well, which allows the Commission to split up the time sitting and also be able to mingle wi th the crowd. Commissioner Meyer stated that it would be nice to have the large parks map and noted that people may also be interested in the bike ped plan. Public Works Director Ryan Ruzek agreed that this would be a great venue for public outreach on the bike ped plan. Ms. Lawrence noted that if there were going to be more than three Commission members at the booth at one time, she would need to notice a potential quorum and therefore it would be helpful to know who would be attending. Commissioner Cotter did not believe there would be more than three people at the booth and if it looked like there could be, someone could step away. 8.b Finalize Parks Tour Chair Klepperich stated that the consensus was to hold a parks tour and three potential dates were provided in the packet. He asked the Commission for input, noting that he could be available for any of the three dates. He reviewed the four parks that wi ll be featured on the tour. Parks and Recreation Manager Meredith Lawrence confirmed that the tour will be scheduled for approximately 5 to 7 p.m. and she will review the park list to ensure they are going in a geographic order. It was the consensus of the Commission to hold the parks tour on August 4 th at 5:00 p.m. 8.c Commission Data Practices and Email Update Assistant City Administrator Kelly Torkelson stated that the City is providing email addresses for Commission members in order to separate per sonal and professional communications to comply with the Data Practices Act. She provided a short presentation on the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act and what the City must do to comply. She noted that the Commissioners must use their City email for all Commission business going forward. 9. Unfinished Business 9.a Community Engagement Outreach Update Commissioner Meyer stated that she has been in contact with the dog park group and will work with Chair Klepperich to schedule that date. Commissioner Muller stated that she reached out to the Mendota District wide PTO representative but did not hear back. She stated that she has reached out to the MHAA President. Commissioner Cotter suggested that he and Commissioner Muller work together on MHAA. Commissioner Blanks stated that he previously made contact and has been reaching back out. He noted that a date in September has been chosen for the PTA group and stated that he would reach out to Commissioners Muller and Smith to potentially work together. He stated that he will reach back out to the rotary group as they were very flexible, noting that he would most likely take a City staff member to that meeting. He noted that he will be reaching back out to the Linden group as well. Commission er Cotter stated that he will reach back out to the CDA building to schedule a date. Chair Klepperich stated that he will not be meeting with the Mendota Heights Foundation at this time, noting that he does not believe that will help the group at this time. 9.b Park and Recreation Strategic Planning Update Parks and Recreation Manager Meredith Lawrence reviewed the monthly update on the strategic planning calendar. She noted that they have accomplished the goals for 2022. She stated that once the community outreach information is gathered by the Commission, they can discuss that in worksession format to develop additional goals to focus on. Commissioner Meyer stated that she would be interested in the census data as that can help to plan for futur e parks programming. Ms. Lawrence confirmed that data could be presented to the Commission at a future meeting. 9.c Student Representative Recognition Chair Klepperich recognized the contributions of Student Representative Hess. Parks and Recreation Manager Meredith Lawrence presented the recognition to Ni ko Hess for his role of Student Representative to the Commission, who has been a valued member of the Commission since April 2021 , and has provided an important youth perspective. She noted that a new Student Representative has been appointed and will begin at the August meeting. She thanked Student Representative Hess for his service. Student Representative Hess commented that he has had a great time working with the Commission and he has learned a lot. He stated that he will be traveling to Germany on a scholarship for ten months and will then att end the University of Wisconsin -Madison to study biomedical engineering. 10. Staff Announcements Parks and Recreation Manager Meredith Lawrence shared the following announcements: • The bike ped plan will come forward to the Commission in August to review • Temporary Wentworth Warming House concepts will also come forward to the Commission in August • Other events can be found on the City’s website 11. Student Representative Update Student Representative Hess commented that he has been doing more biking and has noticed more residents biking as well . He noted that some spots on the path around Rogers Lake are rough for biking. 12. Commission Comments and Park Updates Commissioner Cotter • Wished Student Representative Hess well in his endeavors and thanked him for his contributions to the Commission • He will be excited to see a transition to a new warming house at Wentworth Park • It was great to see a ball game at Civic Center and the field improvements will be welcomed • There are a lot of bikers, walkers, and park activity Commissioner Blanks • Expressed appreciation to Student Representative Hess for sharing his thoughts • Mendakota Park has been very busy with baseball • The basketball hoop at Valley Park was quickly repaired by City staff Commissioner Muller • The lacrosse team was practicing at Kensington Park with younger siblings playing at the park • Has enjoyed fishing at Rogers Lake • It is great to see people active in the parks • Awesome ball weekend and it was great to see multiple Commissioners at the field cheering on youth members Commissioner Meyer • Thanks to Student Representative Hess • Marie and Victoria Highlands remain busy • Thanks to City staff for their work on programming • Exciting to have the swing installed at Ivy Chair Klepperich • It appears a tree was removed at Valley View and there were new woodchips installed • Ivy Hills was quiet when he visited but the path to the neighborhood is well underway 13. Adjourn Motion Meyer/Second Blanks to adjourn the meeting at 7:33 PM AYES 5: NAYS 0 Minutes drafted by: Amanda Staple TimeSaver Off Site Secretarial, Inc.