Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout1982 08-24 PRMsi MINUTES OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE PARK AND RECREATION COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER IN THE COUNTY OF HENNEPIN AND THE STATE OF MINNESOTA REGULAR SESSION AUGUST 24, 1982 CITY HALL CALL TO ORDER The Brooklyn Center Park and Recreation Commission met in regular session and was called to order by Chairman Sorenson at 7:35 P.M. ROLL CALL Chairman Sorenson, Commissioners Streitz, Bradford, and Bloomstrand. Also present were Councilman Bill Hawes, Director of Parks and Recreation Gene Hagel, and Ad- ministrative Assistant Tom Bublitz. Commissioners Kiefer and Denissen were absent from the meeting along with Commis- sioner Albright who was absent and excused from the meeting. APPROVAL OF MINUTES - May 18, 1982 There was a motion by Commissioner•Streitz and seconded by Commissioner Bradford to approve the minutes of the May 18, 1982, meeting as submitted. Voting in favor: Chairman Sorenson, Commissioners Streitz, Bradford, and Bloomstrand. Voting against: none. The-motion passed. DISCUSSION ITEM - Review of Installation of Plav Apparatus in Marlin Park Administrative Assistant Bublitz reviewed the status of the installation of the play apparatus in Marlin Park. He pointed out that bond monies from the 1980 Bond Issue had been committed to Marlin Park included the installation of play apparatus in the park. He stated that, because of the size of Marlin Park and Lakeside Park, it was decided that a survey would be conducted in the surrounding neighborhood to determine whether or not people in the area have an interest in seeing play apparatus installed in the parks. He explained that the Park and Recrea- tion Commission conducted a door to door survey in the neighborhoods surrounding both Lakeside and Marlin Parks. Upon completion of the surveys, the.Park and Recrea- tion Commission reported that persons in the Lakeside Park area generally felt that .play apparatus was not necessary, and that persons in the Marlin Park area generally 'thought that the play apparatus should be installed in the park. The information gathered by the Park and Recreation Commission was forwarded to the City Council, and the Council authorized the installation of play apparatus in Marlin Park. At the July 26, 1982, City'Council meeting, Administrative Assistant Bublitz noted that Mr. and Mrs. Kirscht, whose lot borders on Marlin Park, appeared at the council meet- ing and spoke against the installation of play apparatus in Marlin Park. As a result of their comments, the City Council returned the issue of the installation of play apparatus in Marlin Park to the Park and Recreation Commission for further review and study. He pointed out that this brings the Commission up to date with regard to the events concerning the play apparatus in Marlin Park. • Commissioner Sorenson noted that the Commissioners had conducted a door to door sur- vey in both the Marlin Park and Lakeside Park neighborhoods, and that their recom- mendations to the City Council regarding the installation of play apparatus in these parks was based on the results of these surveys with the neighborhood. He added that he would like to open the meeting up for discussion and recognized Mrs. Sharon Silo- nek who stated that she lives on Marlin Drive and had sent a letter to the Park and Recreation Commission concerning the installation of the plan apparatus in Marlin 8-24-82 -1- 4 Park. She noted that she learned about the installation of the play apparatus in the Brooklyn Center Post, and that she.had completed a survey of residents who live on Indiana Avenue and Marlin.Drive and presented the petition-to the Park and Recreation Commission. She explained the petition represents about 25 families and a total of approximately 36 children who live in the area of Marlin Drive. She added that, she along with the other people signing the petition, is requesting that the City proceed with the project in Marlin Park. Mr. Lee Evenson, 4112 65th Avenue North, stated that he was happy to see the play equipment installed, and that he was upset when he heard that the project was delayed. He added that he believes the City should proceed with the installation of play equipment. Chairman Sorenson recognized Mr. and Mrs. Kirscht, who stated that the play equipment was being installed only twenty steps from their back gate, and they believed there are very few children of the age to use the equipment living on Halifax, and also pointed out that Grimes and France was cut off from the park with no access from that area.. They stated that the real access to the park is on Marlin Drive. The K.irschts also stated they feared late night activity in the park, and they believed the door to door canvass conducted by the Park and Recreation Commission asked the wrong questions. They emphasized that they wanted to see the park remain as it is. They added that there are also five parks within a half mile and two schools within a half mile distance from their neighborhood. They added that they believed the play appara- tus is not necessary, and Mr. Kirscht stated that the main problem is the proximity. He stated that he does not want to see the equipment from his house since it'is not very pretty. He stated the park was meant to be beautiful, and the equipment is not beautiful. He stated he would like to see the equipment out of the park. . The Director of Parks and Recreation reviewed for the Commissioners the type of equi ment proposed for installation in the park. He stated that this type of equipment being installed in neighborhood parks throughout the City, and it is of a wooden be construction and is typical of the types of equipment .found in parks throughout the metro area. Howard Hurn, a resident on Halifax Drive, stated that he believes the play equip- ment at the parks is not used now and he believes the installation of equipment would be a waste of money. Mr. Bill Eisenmenger of 6443 Marlin Drive noted that some people had wished the equip- ment was installed when their children were small and added that it would be nice to have the equipment installed now. Additional residents along Indiana Avenue and Marlin Drive commented that they would love to have a park with playground equipment that is close and that they hoped the Commission would take the young people into consideration. Chairman Sorenson recognized Mr. Bob McGowan, 6407 Marlin Drive, who stated that the park was intended for kids and that he supports the installation of the equipment. Chairman Sorenson stated that he would like to address the proximity problem with the Kirscht's property. The Director of Parks and Recreation stated that the work com- pleted to date, the installation of curb around the apparatus area, could be moved, but at some expense. He noted that $1200 had been spent thus far on the installation. Mrs. Silonek, 6431 Marlin Drive, commented that it was her understanding that the play apparatus was installed where it was so that the playing area of the park was not taken up by the.apparatus. Mr. Kirscht commented that he believes there is about room for a ballfield only in the park, and that he does not like the location 8-24-82 -2- of the apparatus where it is. He stated that in other parks he had visited, there was some type of buffer between the apparatus and the homes. Mr. Chris Carlson, 6437 Marlin Drive, stated that parks are built for the benefit of the general area and that he believes it is unfortunate that the apparatus was built this close to someone's property, but he believes the installation should continue. Discussion continued among people present at the meeting regarding the location of the play apparatus. Several suggestions were offered for buffering the play apparatus from the residential area including plantings and fencing. Discussion continued among Commission members regarding the installation of the play apparatus and their origi- nal recommendation to the City Council recommending installation. Councilmember Sorenson inquired whether the Commission was ready for a motion on the question. Commissioner Bradford suggested that the Commission take a tour of the area in question and stated that he believed the Commission could look at the park and the location'of the equipment before a decision is made. Commissioner Sorenson stated that due to the lateness of the season, this could delay installation of the appara- tus considerably. There was a motion by Commission®r Streitz and seconded by Commissioner Bloomstrand to support the Commission's original recommendation to the City Council to install play apparatus in Marlin Park. Voting in favor: Chairman Sorenson, Commissioners Streitz, Bradford, and Bloomstrand. Voting against: none. The motion passed. RECESS The Brooklyn Center Park and Recreation Commission recessed at 8:35 P.M. and recon- vened at 8:50 P.M. DISCUSSION Freeway Park Shelter Building the Director of Parks and Recreation reviewed a letter-sent to the surrounding neighborhood at Freeway Park dated August 16,. 1982, and explained that the letter outlined the current situation at Freeway Park, that being considerable vandalism done to the existing shelter building which lead in part to a .question of what should be done with the shelter building at Freeway Park. He stated.that several options are available including complete renovation or replacement of the entire building. He stated that the estimates for the renovation are approximately $10,000 for a new roof, facia, doors, door frames, and inside paneling. Several residents of the Freeway Park neighborhood were in attendance at the meeting, and their comments covered a wide variety of issues. One of the residents reported a vandalism incident where the rink attendant at Freeway Park was powerless to remedy the situation. In this situation, apparently there was no way to directly call the Police for assistance, and the resident reporting the incident suggested that there should be more enforcement by the Police Department in the park. The Director of Parks and Recreation pointed out that Freeway Park is in somewhat of an isolated area and due to the budget cuts last winter, the phones were not installed as in past years. He added that the rink attendant in question was replaced during the year because the attendant was not able to keep discipline at the warming house. Another resident of the Freeway Park area commented that she believed lots of children attended the puppet shows at Freeway Park, but she saw a problem in that younger children are often intimidated by larger and older children at the park. Chairman Sorenson recognized Mr. Ted Willard who stated that Freeway Park is in an isolated area and added that in the initial development proposal for the park, it was proposed that it be a tot lot and that the initial plans did not contemplate a shelter. He added that a temporary shelter building was not part"of the original plan for the park, and he believed there would be no great loss if the shelter building was removed from the park. 8-24-82 -3- Discussion continued among persons in attendance at the meeting and Commission members, and it was pointed out that enforcement is difficult at the park sinoe the vandals can hide behind the building as the Police patrol the area. Several of the residents in attendance suggested that they would like to see the park used for all age groups and would like particularily to see an ice rink at the park. Discussion continued regarding the cost of obtaining an ice rink and warm- ing house`facility, and discussion continued regarding what type of shelter should be maintained at.the park. Comments ranged from removing the shelter completely to an open shelter all the way to constructing a permanent year-round shelter. Commissioner Sorenson inquired whether there were any recommendations regarding the Freeway Park shelter building from the staff. The Director of Parks and Recreation stated that if an open shelter were constructed, it could be bricked in at a later time to make a permanent shelter. He added that the cost of the open shelter would be approximately $7,000, and that a renovation of the existing building could be as high as $10,000 or more. There was a general consensus among the persons in attend- ance that the meeting from the Freeway Park neighborhood-some type of permanent shelter should be maintained in the park. Councilmember Theis, in attendance at the meeting, commented that programming for recreation may tend to favor the larger parks because the number of people attending those parks will always be greater. He suggested that perhaps all recreational activities not be cancelled at smaller parks, but somehow divided between larger and smaller parks. Discussion continued among Commission members and those present in the audience regarding recreation programming for Freeway Park and suggestions for various types of shelter buildings. Commissioner Sorenson summarized the options for Freeway Park by noting that the cost estimates for renovation of the building are $10,000; '$7,000 for construction of an open shelter; $5,000 for an exterior facelift; tear down the existing shelter and replace with a temporary shelter; tear down the existing shelter and do not replace with any shelter building; and finally, construction of a year-round warming hosue without plumbing facilities. Commissioner Bloomstrand stated that he would favor, at this point, a temporary shelter for the area. Commissioner Streitz stated that he would like to get the view of the full commission on this issue, and since three commissioners are absent at this meeting, he would like to continue discussion at the next commission meeting. • There was a motion by Commissioner Bradford and seconded by Commissioner Streitz to postpone-consideration of the recommendation for the Freeway Park shelter building until September 21, 1982, when the full commission can review the issue. Voting in favor: Chairman Sorenson, Commissioners Streitz, Bradford, and Bloomstrand. Voting against: none. The motion passed. Persons in attendance at the meeting regarding the Freeway Park shelter building included Gene Wickhorn, 3300 Thurber Road; James-Achtelik, 3213 Thurber Road; Ernie Erickson, 6800 Drew; Craig McGeary, 3007 Thurber Road; James A. Smith, 6807 Abbott Avenue North Duane Modrow, 6706 Beard Avenue N.,; and Bob Stevens, 3307 Thurber Road. PARK AND RECREATION 1983 BUDGET There was a motion by Commissioner Streitz, seconded by Commissioner Bloomstrand to postpone review of the 1983 Park and Recreation Budget until the 'September meeting. Voting in favor; Chairman Sorenson, Commissioners Streitz, Bradford, and Bloomstrand. Voting against: none. The motion passed. REVIEW OF PALMER LAKE DEVELOPMENT PLANS AND CENTRAL PARK LANDSCAPING PLANS The Director of.Parks and Recreation reviewed the Palmer Lake development and Central Park landscaping plans for commission members and pointed out that they will be pre- sented to the City Council at the August 23, 1982, meeting. 8-24-82 -4- ADJOURNMENT There was a motion by Commissioner Bradford, seconded by Commissioner Bloomstrand to adjourn the meeting. Voting in favor: Chairman Sorenson, Commissioners Streitz, Bradford, and Bloomstrand. Voting against: none. The motion passed.. The Brooklyn Center Park and Recreation Commission adjourned at 10:20 P.M. Chairman is • 8-24-82 -5- 4