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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2016 04-19 PRM MINUTES OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE PARK AND RECREATION COMMISSION FOR THE CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER IN THE COUNTY OF HENNEPIN AND THE STATE OF MINNESOTA REGULAR SESSION APRIL 19, 2016 COMMUNITY ROOM #221, COMMUNITY CENTER CALL TO ORDER Vice-Chair Shinnick called the meeting to order at 7:00 pm. ROLL CALL Commissioners Bonovsky, Dalton, Ebert, Thorbus and Witalka were present. Chair Sorenson was absent and excused. Also present was Councilmember April Graves and Community Activities, Recreation & Services Director Jim Glasoe. APPROVAL OF AGENDA Vice-Chair Shinnick asked if there were any additions or changes to the proposed agenda. There was a motion by Commissioner Witalka, seconded by Commissioner Eber to approve the agenda as written. The motion was unanimously approved. APPROVAL OF MINUTES – March 15, 2016 There was a motion by Commissioner Witalka, seconded by Commissioner Ebert to approve the minutes of the March 15, 2016 meeting of the Park & Recreation Commission as presented. The motion passed unanimously. COUNCIL LIAISON REPORT th Councilmember Graves reported that April 11 had been Youth in Government Day and that five youth had toured City facilities and then sat in on the City Council meeting. Councilmember Graves noted it was a great opportunity for the council to interact with the youth. Councilmember Graves reported the Fire Department had received a 2 year FEMA grant to assist with the recruitment, retention and management of volunteer fire fighters. Councilmember Graves reported that city staff was taking part in the Racial Equity Cohort being presented by the Racial Equity Alliance. She noted this training was in support of the City’s Inclusion & Diversity initiative. Lastly, Councilmember Graves reported that the Crime Prevention golf tournament had been set th for May 20 at Centerbrook golf course. SHINGLE CREEK ART AERATION PROJECT CARS Director Glasoe presented background information on the Shingle Creek Art Aeration Project. Mr. Glasoe noted the waters of Shingle Creek had been identified as impaired, with one of the major factors being a lack of dissolved oxygen in the water. CARS Director Glasoe noted the intent of the art project was for local artists to design art installations that helped to assist with th aeration of the water. Mr. Glasoe added there had been a meeting of interested artists on April 5 to review the requirements for submissions. CARS Director Glasoe reported that an additional meeting had been set for Tuesday, May 17 to review the proposals and selected finalist and noted any interested Commissioners were welcome. Mr. Glasoe indicated a meeting location had not yet been determined but he would pass it along when identified. FIELD SCHEDULING PERMITTING CARS Director Glasoe indicated there had been some discussion at the Commission level regarding scheduling of fields, most notably soccer fields. Mr. Glasoe continued that the current practice was that all fields were open and available to residents but only city sponsored programs were permitted. CARS Director Glasoe noted that this practice has historically worked well, but in recent years, staff had been seeing increased requests for soccer fields. CARS Director Glasoe reported that some neighboring communities permitted and charged for the fields, while others did not. Mr. Glasoe noted that, while they had not kept track, staff felt 70 to 80 percent of the requests had come from nonresidents. Mr. Glasoe asked for Commission input on continuing current practice, or permitting the fields. Commissioners asked if the current practice was meeting resident needs. CARS Director Glasoe responded while they had no metric to measure the need, staff had worked diligently with resident groups to identify fields when requested. Mr. Glasoe also noted that bringing the Centennial Park and East Palmer Park soccer fields “on line” this year, there should be more supply. After considerable discussion, the consensus of the Commission was to continue with the current practice of not permitting the fields, but gathering additional information on the dimension and location of requests. CENTERBOOK LOGO UPDATE CARS Director Glasoe presented an updated logo for Centerbrook Golf course that had been developed by Golf Superintendent Steve Makowske. Mr. Glasoe noted the red color in the logo was only shown to accentuate the design, and the actual color would be dependent upon the color of the hat or garment the logo is placed upon. Commission reaction to the logo was not positive, with most Commissioners preferring the original logo design. CENTENNIAL PARK TENNIS COURT REPLACEMENT- CONTINUED DISCUSSION CARS Director Glasoe reported that, while he had attempted to work with a couple of companies to develop a potential layout of a disc golf course in Centennial Park, all of the companies wanted to charge for the service. Mr. Glasoe noted a typical disc golf hole is between 125 and 300 feet and all companies indicated there was more than sufficient acreage to support a nine or eighteen hole course. CARS Director Glasoe also noted Commissioner Dalton had sent out an article supporting the planting of prairie grasses. Commissioner Bonovsky indicated that, if the other Commissioners are interested, he could provide additional information at an upcoming meeting. CARS Director Glasoe also reported that while staff was looking for a recommendation for the upcoming Capital Improvements Plan, one option would be to put a “placeholder” in the plan, with the notation the Commission was continuing to study the issue. After some additional discussion, Commissioner Ebert made a motion, seconded by Commissioner Bonovsky that $30,000 be placed in the 2017-2031 CIP for yet to be identified improvements to Centennial Park, as the Commission wished to continue study of the issue. The motion passed unanimously. GREAT SHINGLE CREEK CLEANUP CARS Director Glasoe reported that, while he was unable to attend, staff had reported that between 75 and 100 people had attended the event. Mr. Glasoe noted the event was held at the new amphitheater and that things had worked out well. LITTLE LEAGUE MASTER PLAN- UPDATE CARS Director Glasoe reported the city received five “Request for Proposals” from qualified firms and indicated all of the proposals had been scored and that Loucks Inc. had been selected as the preferred vendor. Mr. Glasoe noted the schedule called for preliminary designs by June and final designs and cost estimates by September. OTHER Commissioner Dalton reported she had been monitoring recycling containers at Firehouse Park and noted that a considerable amount of recyclables had been deposited in the trash receptacle. She noted that placing the recycling containers immediately next to the trash container had seemed to improve the source separation. Commissioner Thorbus noted she had observed a number of pet owners not cleaning up after their pets. The Commission discussed possible ways to improve compliance. SET NEXT MEETING DATE h By consensus, the next meeting was set for May 17, immediately following the Evergreen Park neighborhood meeting. MEETING ADJOURNED A motion was made by Commissioner Ebert, seconded by Commissioner Bonovsky to adjourn the meeting at 7:52 p.m. The motion passed unanimously.