HomeMy WebLinkAbout05-15-2009 NRRC 10 Levee Park
City of Hastings Parks & Recreation
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920 W 10 St, Hastings MN 55033
Ph: (651) 480-6175
Fax: (651) 437-5396
Web: www.ci.hastings.mn.us
“Creating Community Through People, Parks, and Programs”
Date: May 5, 2008
To: Mayor Hicks and City Council Members
From: Barry Bernstein, Parks and Recreation Director
On behalf of City Council Member Slavik
Subject: Levee Park Committee Recommendations
As you all well know, Council Member Mike Slavik was assigned by the Mayor to oversee a
committee of citizens to recommend upgrades to Levee Park. The Levee Park Committee
concluded its meetings in March 2009 with the following recommendations.
Recommendations from the Levee Park Committee
Riverfront access from Bridge:
There was a consensus from the Committee members to allow for pedestrian access to the
river from the bridge without crossing Second Street. The Committee felt this
recommendation would be reviewed when the Point Douglas Trail is completed or nearing
completion.
Park Redevelopment:
The Levee Park Committee would like to coordinate the redevelopment of the park to
correlate with the bridge construction. The Committee felt that with the disruption the
bridge construction would bring, this would allow for redevelopment opportunities. In
addition, this would mean that at the time the bridge construction would be completed, so
would the Levee Park redevelopment.
Visitor Center:
The Levee Park Committee felt very strongly and recommended that City Staff continually
work towards the development of a Visitor Center. The concept discussed with the Visitor
Center included public restrooms, possible meeting room/rental space for larger events,
interpretive opportunities, possible winter warming house location, concession/vending
opportunities, trail head location, picnic shelter, and local gathering spot.
Civic ArenaAquatic CenterYouth First
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2801 Red Wing Blvd. 901 Maple Street 920 W 10 Street
Ph: (651) 480-6195 Ph: (651) 480-2392 Ph: (651) 480-6182
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The Committee did not ultimately define a location for a future visitor’s center, but liked the
concept. It was discussed to use a current vacant building or preferably build a Visitors
Center on lot #3 currently owned by HEDRA. It was further recommended by the Levee
Park Committee to continue to work with outside agencies for possible funding and
partnerships. (See attachment)
In addition, if Levee Park is disrupted in any manner by the bridge construction or public
utility work, it was a recommendation from the Levee Park Committee to research the
possibility of preparing the site for a future Visitor Center.
Lattice Towers:
In examining the new Highway 61 Bridge proposals, the Committee recommended to
pursue the monopole option for both the east and west side of the new bridge.
Community Input:
The Levee Park Committee recommended that the City should conduct public open
meetings to discuss the options discussed by the Levee Park Committee to gather a
consensus from residents.
Revisions to the Master Plan:
Enclosed you will find three options developed from the hard work of the Levee Park
Committee that modified the approved master plan of this park. While incorporating many
of the features of the approved master plan (2006), the modified plan incorporated the
Visitor Center concept. The Committee’s recommendation is to pursue option #3 for future
development.
With the existing master plan, it was the Committee’s recommendation to also conduct a
parking study to investigate if adequate parking exists in and around the downtown area.