Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout05-01-2023 Park Commission Meeting Minutes MINUTES OF THE ORONO PARK COMMISSION May 1,2023 6:00 o'clock p.m. ROLL CALL The Orono Park Commission met on the above-mentioned date with the following members present: Acting Chair Cameron Porter, Commissioners Janice Berg,Rick Carter and Gordy Stofer,Representing Staff was Josh Lemons,Parks Director. Acting Chair Porter called the meeting to order at 6:06 p.m.,followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. APRIL 3,2023 PARK COMMISSION MEETING MINUTES Carter moved,Berg seconded,to approve the minutes of the April 3, 2023 Park Commission meeting as submitted.VOTE: Ayes 4,Nays 0. PUBLIC COMMENT None PRESENTATION CHAIRMAN's REPORT 2. PICKLEBALL ALTERNATE SITES DISCUSSION • Porter reminded the group that at the last Park Commission meeting they had discussed looking at alternative sites for pickleball.He said the pickleball subcommittee toured some of the possible locations and gained increased interest in Bederwood Park as a site.There is currently a playground at Bederwood that is slightly smaller than five pickleball courts, so there's a large,flat section that might be a suitable site. The playground equipment is in great condition,but the commission has heard from parents using the park that it is unprotected from the sun so gets very hot and is located too far from the ballfields to supervise multiple children in a family.Relocating the playground equipment in the park could be a viable idea.I would love to hear from the community,from the residents who live nearby and those who use it. If we were to move the playground,where would we move it to?And if we build a pickleball court here,what would they like to see and if there's any concerns,what are they?We are just starting the process of listening and reaching out to the residents. Carter said he left the last meeting thinking Bederwood is a good location but asked if the City can still use some of the money budgeted to do a feasibility study in that location. Park Director Lemons said that money was budgeted towards the golf course enhancement plan, so funding would probably have to be re-addressed in the CIP and later in the fall. Carter said it seemed like that would be a next step along with engaging the community. It seems like the area is there and if you are already thinking of some ways of improving the playground location,that seems like a win-win. Page 1 of 4 4 MINUTES OF THE ORONO PARK COMMISSION May 1,2023 6:00 o'clock p.m. Lemons said the playground as it stands has some other problems like rotting railroad ties and bringing it up to existing code so along with moving equipment there could be a new edging and new base. Stofer said he had never thought about pickleball at that location but it does make sense.It is flat,there's parking there,and there's already a bathroom for the Luce Line trailhead there.He said as a parent attending baseball games,he has felt that the playground is pretty disconnected.It seems like something that's worth exploring further,for sure.getting input from the neighbors as soon as possible. It seems like we've done enough work on this where we could probably put together a pretty reasonable cost estimate and layout. It seems like we should be able to flush this one out pretty quickly. Porter asked Lemons if he could look into the costs associated with building pickleball courts and moving the existing playground structure at Bederwood. Lemons said that could be done using the costs from the previously-proposed golf course enhancement and the work that was just done on the Crystal Bay playground.A lot of playgrounds right now are moving to modular systems where they will separate age groups into different pods of playground equipment,so a pod layout might work well in this area,especially if you want to look at keeping some of those trees. You can separate some of those pods of the playground that we have right now. It's pretty large and the equipment's really spread out so we could save on some space as well. Stofer asked if it might be possible to apply for another Hennepin County Youth Sports grant for the park. Lemons said the application deadline is now earlier and there would be some steps in the process the City would have to take before doing a grant request.Most likely it would be next year for any type of grant application. Stofer said he and Brian Roath had met with the school district about a week and a half previously and it was a really good meeting. We were just trying to open the communication lines with them as far as scheduling for tech on Hackberry and Bederwood and others. They do a lot of pickleball programming at the OAC. It seems like they can't do enough; it's very popular. It just seems like it's worth keeping those communication lines open with them to really understand the demand in the broader community.And I've talked about Westonka. There are some different factions getting everyone organized, especially when it comes to a fundraising effort. Porter noted Spring Park is planning to put pickleball courts in at Thor Thompson Park. So you're right. There's a lot happening. I want to make sure that we're still listening not only to the community members, but also all the players. Stofer reported on plans in neighboring Minnetonka and Independence to add pickleball courts. Page 2 of 4 MINUTES OF THE ORONO PARK COMMISSION May 1,2023 6:00 o'clock p.m. Berg said the larger group of pickleball players had expressed an interest in fundraising for the courts. I think we should engage them again. Porter said the committee has met with some of the people who have attended meetings one on one. The next two Park Commission meetings are work sessions and the next formal meeting will be Aug. 7. Janie Delaney 1315 Woodhill Ave,. asked how many courts are being considered at Bederwood Park. She pointed out most of Orono parks are in neighborhoods so she really likes the idea of continuing to talk to the school district because Bederwood has houses nearby. Porter said they would be looking at four to six courts.Research shows when you build two courts they are not used. It's not the way the sport is played. It's kind of like building a six-hole golf course. To facilitate the type of play pickleball warrants,you need a destination that people know other people will be there to play.He added the commission is at the point of being ready to open it up to talking with the residents. Delaney asked about the Donation Garden site. Lemons said the City would not do a construction project around a temporary object.A garden is temporary in that it can expand and contract over time.He also said the site would be pretty tight and the City doesn't own the parking lot. Delaney reiterated that she would not like to see pickleball go into any of the neighborhood parks.It's just too intrusive. Porter said Bederwood is a heavily-used recreation area with baseball and soccer fields. Delaney said when there is a baseball game they play for an hour and they are gone. Pickleball players come in the morning early,and they play all day till dusk. You're gonna talk about some really increased activity in a neighborhood. STAFF REPORT 2. PARKS DEPARTMENT UPDATE Lemons reported the golf course is now open. We had another crummy April,which is disappointing. We were really excited to get out early but Mother Nature had other plans. He said this section of Minnesota is completely out of a drought with more rain coming this weekend. The golf course is doing well. We did have quite a bit of damage in some of our fairways from snow mold. It's always disappointing to see that but that's one more reason why we are starting our own pesticide program to maintain the golf course the way it needs to be maintained. Lemons said there are a lot of kids using the golf course and the schools have come out for practice.He said right now his department is working on park transitions getting the biffs and trash cans out at the parks, doing park inspections and the Big Island docks are in place. Our Page 3 of 4 MINUTES OF THE ORONO PARK COMMISSION May 1,2023 6:00 o'clock p.m. next step is to get the pontoon out of storage and head over to Big Island to unlock the restrooms. We do have the tables and sign ready to go. Starting next week,we are going through our right-of-way tree inventory and that will be completed mid-May. This was one of our grants that we applied for last year. We're also going for a level two tree grant from Hennepin County that will help us build our urban tree management program. Lemons said the house in Hackberry Park will be burned down on May 20 and will have to sit vacant for two or three weeks before the excavation company can come in. The June 5 work session start time is changing from 6:00 to 5:00.He said the park commission will be looking at committee assignments and adding an additional Park Commissioner as right now there is one vacant seat. The Tree Lighting committee is meeting. They are looking ahead to 100-year anniversary at the golf course and in the meantime,the Hackberry Park Master Plan is in the process of listening sessions. Crystal Bay Park is on the agenda for this year as well as Lurton Dog Park. The Golf Course Park Enhancement Plan has been eliminated from the CIP for this year. COMMISSIONERS' REPORTS Stofer reported on the first listening session for Hackberry Park and said some very good input had been received. The two primary concerns there are parking and drainage.Another meeting is planned for May 9. After that they will assemble all those comments and sit down with the master planner and start generating some ideas. This will be an ongoing process throughout the summer. Once we have some concepts the neighbors and the broader community will react to that as well. We're also meeting with the associations of the five primary groups, baseball, softball,soccer,lacrosse and flag football,to understand their wishes for the park. He talked about an update on the golf course endowment fund and said since the last meeting he and Brian Roath met with Lemons to get a 10-year capital plan put together for the golf course.He said Duvall is researching other endowments. ADJOURNMENT Carter moved,Stofer seconded,to adjourn the Orono Park Commission meeting at 6:31 p.m. VOTE: Ayes 4,Nays 0. ATTEST: Cameron Porter,Acting Chair Page 4 of 4