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HomeMy WebLinkAbout09.08.21 Parks and Rec MinutesFarmington Parks and Recreation Commission Minutes from the September 8, 2021 Regular Meeting Members Present: Katharine Caron, Elizabeth Koss, Ashley Crabtree, and Katie Putt Members Absent: Laurie Suchanek Other’s Present: Parks & Recreation Director Kellee Omlid, Recreation Supervisor Missie Kohlbeck I. Call Meeting to Oder Chair Crabtree called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Quorum was present. II Approval of September 8, 2021 Meeting Agenda Moved by Koss and seconded by Caron to approve the meeting agenda. All persons in favor (APIF). Motion carried. Katie Putt introduced herself as this was her first commission meeting. Commission members and Recreation Supervisor Kohlbeck introduced themselves. III. Approval of July 14, 2021 Regular Meeting Minutes Moved by Caron and seconded by Koss to approve the meeting minutes with no revisions. APIF. Motion carried. IV. Presentations A. Public Comments There were no public comments shared at the meeting. B. Rambling River Center Operations Report Recreation Supervisor Missie Kohlbeck shared information and numbers for program participation, rentals, and memberships at the Rambling River Center (RRC). This included annual numbers from January 2017 through August 2021. Koss asked what the biggest barrier to going to the RRC is, transportation? Kohlbeck stated it is for some, but getting connected with people and letting them know we are in town is a barrier. Word of mouth is big way we get new members. Crabtree asked how our membership fees compare to neighboring communities. Lakeville’s membership fee is $18 and their building is probably most similar to the RRC. Rosemount doesn’t charge a fee, but has a senior club. Northfield’s membership fee is a sliding scale by income up to $250/year. They have a warm water pool. There is some overlap with members as some belong to multiple centers. Senior Center Month is September with this year’s theme being “Mind, Body, Spirit, and Community”. Friday, September 24 is an open house with treats and coffee starting at 12:30 p.m. and a speaker at 1:30 p.m. Recreation Supervisor Kohlbeck left the meeting at 7:30 p.m. V. Business Items A. Parks and Recreation Commission Photos The commission decided to do a group photo instead of individual photos and will do this at the October 11 meeting. B. Meeting with Empire Township’s Parks and Recreation Commission Empire Parks and Recreation approved the agenda topics and meeting date of October 11 at 7:00 p.m. at their September meeting. Moved by Koss and seconded by Caron to approve the meeting agenda and date. APIF. Motion carried. VI. Discussion Items A. Review Parks and Facilities Tour with Rambling River Center Advisory Board and City Council Crabtree thought the tour went well with good questions at Flagstaff Meadows Park and the park at Fairhill Estate at North Creek development. Koss stated she thought the Schmitz-Maki Ice Arena looked good as there has been a number of improvements in the facility and was nice to see. The parking lot improvements in 2022 are also very needed. Koss also mentioned thought it would be good to stop by Depot Way Arts Park as some of the sculptures are rusting. We need to add amenities in our parks for adults without children. Overall, the consensus was the parks and facilities tour was beneficial and should be continued. B. Review 2021 Work Plan Progress Chair Crabtree reviewed the 2021 work plan goals and objectives. Director Omlid provided an update on Goal #4: Work with the developer to name the neighborhood park in the Fairhill Estate at North Creek development. The developer had staffing conflicts with the fall Parade of Homes and COVID-19 event protocols, thus, the contest to name the park was changed from an in-person event to emailed survey. The survey has already been emailed and submitted names are due by September 15. VII. Commission Roundtable Koss: Didn’t have anything to share. Caron: Mentioned about 206th Street crossing Pilot Knob Road to get to the trail and how dangerous it is. Said there have been a number of bad accidents at this location as the road curves along with a hill and the speed limit is 55 MPH. Has noticed a number of people including children trying to cross there to get on the trail. Asked if anything in this area has been looked at for pedestrian safety. Director Omlid said she would look into this and report back. Crabtree: Asked if the Parks and Recreation Department is short staffed as saw comments on Facebook regarding mowing along a sidewalk on Spruce St. in a new development and a neighbor asked about Prairie Pines Park. Director Omlid shared all of the seasonal staff are done for the year, so mowing is now fully completed by full-time staff. It is still the developer’s responsibility to mow in the new development and he has until Friday to complete this. Staff is trying to catch up on mowing in the parks. Putt: Didn’t have anything to share. VIII. Staff Report/Updates Director Omlid provided information on the following: A. Dew Days Dew Days is Saturday, September 18 downtown. Parks & Recreation will be hosting a number of activities including Koo Koo Kangaroo, Kiss the Pig, and a movie, Trolls – World Tour, in the park. There will also be food trucks, bingo, bags tournament, and kid’s games. B. Pickle Ball Courts The School Distract and Parks and Recreation are exploring pickle ball courts at Dodge Middle School. This would include converting the tennis courts to pickle ball courts. The School District was going to reach out to an architect to get a cost estimate and potential court layout. C. Rambling River Park A consultant did a playground safety inspection on three of the play structures at Rambling River Park. Will keep commission posted on the results. Staff has met with a playground representative on new equipment and relocating the playground south of the tennis courts to move out of the typically flooded area. D. Sign Code and Advertising on Ball Fields If commission is interested in advertising on ball field fences, the sign code would need to be amended. There was consensus to discuss this at the November meeting. E. Flagstaff Meadows Park Parks & Facilities Supervisor Pire and Director Omlid met with three landscape architecture firms regarding Flagstaff Meadows Park. Information was presented regarding the firms, their process, and similar projects they have done. Pire and Omlid took them to the park to see the site. The three firms will be submitting a proposal. The goal is to hire a firm and start master planning the park this fall. F. Community Survey Director Omlid had a virtual meeting with Hoisington Koegler Group Inc, the landscape architect firm that did the master plan for Jim Bell Park. The recommendation was to do the community survey in the year the referendum is going to be held. Thus, the survey should be done in February in conjunction with the spring edition of the Farmington Currents. G. Yoga in the Park This free class is being held Tuesdays, August 24 – September 28, at 6:00 p.m. at Rambling River Park. The first three weeks have seen in an increase in participation numbers. H. Vita Attiva Development At its May 12, 2021 meeting, commission approved the park, trail, and sidewalk plan for the Vita Attiva development. This included a recommendation by staff of five lots on the southeast corner of the development be dedicated as a public park, because of a regional trail that will be constructed in the future just to the south. However, this was prior to the developer receiving the results of the wetland study. The study showed the aforementioned five lots were not in the wetland, but buildable lots. Thus, instead of taking any park land as dedication the city will take cash in lieu of the land. Discussion took place regarding meeting prior to the joint meeting with Empire Township’s Parks and Recreation Commission on October 11. The naming of the park at Fairhill Estate at North Creek and park dedication along with the commission photo could be on the agenda. Director Omlid will let the commission know if need to meet at 6:00 p.m. on October 11. IX. Meeting Agenda Topics The following items were tentatively identified by the Commission for its November 10 meeting agenda: 1. Sign Code 2. Flagstaff Meadows Park Plan X. Adjournment Moved by Koss and seconded by Caron to adjourn the meeting. APIF. Motion Carried. The meeting was adjourned at 8:22 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Kellee Omlid Parks & Recreation Director and Recording Secretary