Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutNRRC Minutes 08-2006 City of Hastings Natural Resources and Recreation Commission Minutes August 8, 2006 – 6:00 pm 1) Roll Call at 6 pm: Commissioners Brown, Christenson, Rohloff, Schommer, Vandehoef, and Vaughan, Parks and Recreation Director Bernstein, and Superintendent Smith. Absent: Commissioner Popp 2) Approved July meeting minutes. Motion by Schommer. Seconded by Vaughan. Passed unanimously. 3) Setting Agenda: Director Bernstein added Lake Isabel Meeting, Tax Forfeit Property, and 2007 Budget Items to the agenda. th 4) The next NRRC meeting will be held on September 19 due to an election conflict on the normal meeting date of th September 12. 5) Departmental Updates were passed out to the members of the NRRC. Superintendent Smith mentioned that since the updates were written, there have been a few additional projects. The contractor has been back to Wallin and has installed vibration dampeners, so the lights should be completely fixed now. A concrete picnic table was installed at Eagle Bluff Park. The Parks Department and Public Works have been working together to prep/pave a trail extension at Vermillion Falls Park. Staff has also been working on the north soccer field at Vet’s Athletic Complex – more irrigation is being installed. Director Bernstein mentioned that all of the arena lighting is going to be replaced by Xcel Energy with energy efficient lighting. We will receive a significant cost savings due to assistance from the Center for Energy and Environment and the city will receive 0% financing for the remainder of the cost. 6) Eagle Bluffs Park Neighborhood Response: Jim Kummer, a representative from the Eagle Bluffs Neighborhood who resides at 1364 Eagle Bluff Dr., was in attendance. Commissioner Christenson recapped the neighborhood meeting again for the benefit of all in attendance. An e-mail was received by the Parks & Recreation Department from the Neighborhood Association President listing the requests the neighborhood feels would be of benefit to the park. Superintendent Smith mentioned that because of the conservation easement, he is researching the possibility of planting a hedge of native material along the back of the park. This would be a more natural, less intrusive option than a fabric fence, but would still address the safety concerns due to the river. Mr. Kummer requested that since neighbors on each side of the park are concerned about the traffic in their yards, could the hedge be run up each side of the park as well to create boundaries. He also mentioned that the neighborhood would be willing to assist in the maintenance of the hedge (trimming, etc.) Commissioner Christenson stated that the previous Parks & Recreation Director had spoken of putting a barrier of some sort on each side of the park for the neighbors. Commissioner Brown asked about the run-off that is killing the neighbors’ lawns. What can be done about that? Superintendent Smith has spoken with the operators and this fall, the fertilizer that is applied to the turf will be a much lighter dose or will be worked into the soil to minimize run-off into the surrounding lawns. Director Bernstein mentioned that the neighborhood needs to be aware that if a picnic shelter is placed in the park, it will be a public city facility and as such, will be a part of the Park & Recreation Department’s reservation process. If a basketball court is placed in the park, it will have to be quite small due to space limitations, possibly 20’ x 20’. Mr. Kummer asked if a shelter or basketball court is placed, does the NRRC or staff feel that there would be issues with youth loitering or noise? Director Bernstein replied that since it is a small, neighborhood park, any issues of this kind should be minimal and would most likely be neighborhood kids. Commissioner Rohloff stated that one of the neighbors mentioned that the neighborhood is willing to find matching funds to assist in the implementation of these projects. Superintendent Smith said that a park sign is in the plan for the future, but that since the City can only place 5-6 signs a year due to cost, priority was given to parks without any current sign and high-use parks with fields and things that people are trying to find. Mr. Kummer asked what the next step would be. Director Bernstein said that the NRRC will discuss the issues, it will be recapped with the neighborhood, then the NRRC will make a recommendation and it will go to Council. Mr. Kummer thanked the NRRC for all of their work and stated that the neighborhood just wants to make the best use of their park. 7) SCORE Hastings: Preliminary discussions have been held with the Hastings Hawks regarding selling advertising space at Vet’s Park in order to create funds to improve Hastings’ recreational areas. Advertising would most likely be on the fences, perhaps on a windscreen fabric. This would be a team effort between the City and the Hawks, with a split of some sort of the collected revenue. Commissioner Schommer mentioned that the coupon portion of the program is no longer desired, since many business owners thought the program should be kept simple and there are already similar coupon programs being used by other organizations. Commissioner Vandehoef thought that it would be worthwhile to explore any ways to create revenue outside of our normal budget. Commissioner Vaughan cautioned that we need to keep the advertising tasteful and should be careful on the quantity we allow. He also recommended that instead of just using the revenue to improve Vet’s Athletic Complex and other recreational facilities, we could use the money to fund a scholarship program for Little Raiders, Hastings Hawks, HYAA and other youth opportunities. Commissioner Christenson thought it was a good idea, but agreed that it needs to be kept simple and tasteful. Commissioner Rohloff commented on the amount of Hastings’ businesses that currently advertise at Miesville and would most likely advertise here if available. Commissioner Schommer requested one NRRC member to accompany him to the next meeting regarding SCORE. Commissioner Rohloff volunteered. Director Bernstein would like to see a refined proposal at the next NRRC meeting. th 8) Tuttle Park Neighborhood Meeting Recap: The meeting held on July 18 was well attended and resulted in a quite lengthy list of requests from the neighborhood. Director Bernstein mentioned that the restroom will be placed earlier in the season. Superintendent Smith said that the pea gravel will be swept from the trail once a week. The intent of the meeting was to give the residents an opportunity to be heard – no promises were made. Commissioner Vaughan feels that these requests need to be in the Capital Improvement Plan and should be prioritized along with the other park needs/requests in the City. Commissioner Schommer felt that the neighborhood is comparing their park with South Pines Park. Commissioner Christenson brought out that the playground equipment in the park was originally picked out by a neighborhood committee. Director Bernstein mentioned that he explained to the residents that irrigation is given priority in more active areas, like ball fields. Superintendent Smith thought it would be good to forward any ideas the NRRC feels are appropriate to the master planner so that they can be included in the master park plan study. Director Bernstein has requested $10,000 in the 2007 budget for possible improvements. The NRRC requested that staff develop recommendations for the NRRC to discuss at the next meeting. 9) Field Rental Application: Director Bernstein showed the NRRC a new Field Rental Application Form that will be used to tighten up our reservation process. Eventually this form, along with other park forms, will be available on-line at the Parks & Recreation website. The NRRC felt that this form was appropriate and looked good. 10) NRRC Park Improvement Request Evaluation: The NRRC reviewed the evaluation form and requested that the rating scale be adjusted and that total points be added. Director Bernstein stated that it is important to have a process in place for park requests and that he believes people will respect the process. Changes will be made to the form and it will be reviewed again at the next NRRC meeting. 11) New Business - Tax Forfeit Property: There is a tax forfeit property available on the southwest side of Lake Isabel if the NRRC is interested. After some discussion, the NRRC concluded that this property would be of minimal benefit and therefore it will not be pursued. - 2007 Budget Items: The City’s Finance Director asked Director Bernstein if any of the 2007 budget requests could come out of park dedication funds. A list of about seven items was discussed. Commissioner Schommer suggested dividing some of the costs between park dedication and general funds, perhaps 50/50. The NRRC recommended advising the Finance Department on which items could possibly come out of Park Dedication, but requesting that the decision process be shared regarding whether or not they actually will be. - Lake Isabel: Director Bernstein presented 3 options that Barr Engineering has come up with to improve access to the lake. He is cautiously optimistic that we received the fishing pier grant from the DNR due to comments from Representative McNamara, but has yet to receive anything in writing. Concerns were raised about the water quality. A dike could be built at the cost of around $1.2 million, but as Commissioner Christenson explained, major flooding could still leave us with water quality problems. The current plan is to dredge about an acre of the lake. Commissioner Vaughan was unsure that this project is the best way to spend our money – the access for the City is still not ideal. Commissioner Schommer mentioned that there is a possibility of receiving State or Federal money to assist in the construction of the dike. Director Bernstein is waiting to receive a recommendation from the East Hastings Improvement Association, which he believes will be to go ahead with option #1 and allow for expansion th on option #2, and needs to go before Council on September 5. His recommendation to City Council is to educate, and get Council direction on which option would best suit our purpose, if they even want to continue pursuing it at all. - Bike Trail Crosswalks: Commissioner Christenson informed the NRRC that a crosswalk for the bike trail by Madison & Lincoln on Cty Rd 42 was requested. The DOT did put up a “bike” sign, although the placement was in between the two crossing areas. Other crossing areas of concern are on Cty Rd 47/48. The Public Works Director, Tom Montgomery, has stated that the City has no control in these areas and that the County will not place crosswalks here due the 45mph speed limit. Superintendent Smith also mentioned that Tom has been informed of all City requests for crosswalks. MOTION to Adjourn. th Next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, September 19, 2006. Adjourned at 8:20 p.m. Minutes submitted by: Kristin Behrens