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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2024-06-20 Parks and Trails Minutes Corcoran Parks and Trails Meeting Minutes June 20, 2024 - 7:00 pm The Corcoran Parks and Trails Commission met on June 20, 2024, at City Hall in Corcoran, MN. Present were Commissioners Anderson, Erzberger, Friedrich, Nybo, and Strehler. Commissioner Schmidt arrived at 7:02 pm. Absent was Chair Christenson. Present at City Hall were Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck and Program Coordinator Shipley. Present virtually was Councilor Nichols. 1. Call to Order / Roll Call Vice-Chairperson Friedrich called the meeting to order at 7:01 pm. 2. Pledge of Allegiance Vice-Chairperson Friedrich invited all in attendance to rise and join in the Pledge of Allegiance. 3. Agenda Approval Motion: Made by Anderson, seconded by Nybo, to approve the agenda as presented. Voting Aye: Anderson, Erzberger, Friedrich, Nybo, Schmidt, and Strehler. (Motion carried 6:0) 4. Minutes a. Minutes – May 16, 2024, Meeting Commissioner Anderson asked about why the final page of the minutes had boxes at the top, to which Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck informed the Commission that she could adjust the formatting so the boxes from the two pages are together. Motion: Made by Friedrich, seconded by Nybo, to approve the minutes with the minor edit. Voting Aye: Anderson, Erzberger, Friedrich, Nybo, Schmidt, and Strehler. (Motion carried 6:0) 5. Open Forum Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck stated nobody was interested in speaking at that time. 6. Presentations – None 7. Unfinished Business Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck noted that an email was received from resident Katherine Drivas that included feedback for items included in Unfinished Business and was provided on the dais. Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck provided an overview of the email, including timeline for when donations are acquired and concerns about developers having parks named after their company. Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck noted that 1 year prior to work on the park would be reasonable when accepting donation and did not believe developers would qualify under “donation” when they provide park dedication due to statute requirements. Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck confirmed that the policies should be reviewed by the City Attorney. a. Park Enhancement Program Vice-Chair Friedrich inquired about design options for the park enhancements, to which Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck noted that the choice would be of the Commission what to offer, but the request from staff is to have specific options to choose from for pricing and installation ease. Vice-Chair Friedrich noted that she would like durable, nice aesthetic benches, that are consistent in natural tones and colors. Vice-Chair Friedrich inquired about including water bottle filling stations and fire tables, a process for plaques in languages other than English, and inquired about the maintenance donation fee of 10%. Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck explained further that the maintenance donation would help cover additional expenses during the lifespan of the amenity. Commissioner Anderson provided an example of a bench getting moldy and a request to power wash the bench clean, requiring staff time and noting that the maintenance donation would help cover some of the cost. Commissioners noted concerns with replacement if the amenity is damaged, to which Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck informed the Commission that she would look into what insurance would cover. Vice-Chair Friedrich inquired about the park maintenance budget, to which Recreation Supervisor noted there are various categories to the budget that would have to be explored. Commissioner Schmidt clarified the maintenance bullet to note that the City would be “performing” maintenance, rather than responsible for maintenance to imply fiscal responsibility. Commissioner Erzberger inquired about including trees or gardens in the park enhancements, to which Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck informed the Commission that some cities do include them, but they are hard to guarantee for long periods of time. Commissioner Erzberger inquired about upgrading existing amenities, to which Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck said she would further define that in the next draft. Commissioners thanked Katherine Drivas for her email and perspectives on the agenda items. Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck summarized the changes and information to include non-English language options, water receptacles, and fire tables, adding plaques to existing amenities, maintenance/installation included in cost of the amenity donation, inquiring about insurance coverage for amenities, and finding amenities that are durable and natural-colored tones. b. Park Naming Policy Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck summarized a change to the policy noting that meeting criteria in the policy does not guarantee naming. Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck summarized areas from Katherine Drivas’ email, including commercial entity name consideration for amenities, but not overall park naming after commercial entities. Commissioner Erzberger inquired about prioritizing naming after historical or geographical naming over commercial entity naming, with preference to no park naming after commercial entities. Commissioner Erzberger inquired about park dedication fund not being a donation, but the possibility of a donation that exceeds that would allow for the possibility of an amenity to include language such as “donated by”. Katherine Drivas, 6747 Olde Sturbridge Drive, provided hometown example of Swan Park that included Community First Splashpad, noting that it seemed appropriate, especially with the lifespan of amenities allowing for updates to amenity names. Commissioner Erzberger asked if the commercial section should move from park names to the amenity specific section. Commissioner Nybo inquired about the Northwest Area Jaycees donation of $100,000 towards the splashpad, to which Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck clarified that there is language stating one or more of the criteria have been met to which the Jaycees have contributed long-term support. 8. New Business a. 2025 Budget and Fee Schedule Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck noted that registration fees have not increased since 2022 and with increasing costs, staff recommendation is to increase most registration fees, but keep amenity rentals at the same price until the park updates are complete. Commissioner Anderson inquired about what the return is for youth athletics, to which Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck informed the Commission that the registration fees cover the costs of running the programs and some of the wages for the Program Coordinator position. Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck noted that the Program Coordinator position is involved in other areas such as community engagement and Parks and Trails Commission help as well. Vice-Chair Friedrich asked if a difference of $10 is enough between the resident and non-resident rates, to which Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck felt they were appropriate. Commissioners agreed that following the City Park Remaster, the registration and amenity rental fees should be re-evaluated for 2026. Motion: Made by Erzberger, seconded by Schmidt, to approve the 2025 registration and amenity rental fees. Voting Aye: Anderson, Erzberger, Friedrich, Nybo, Schmidt, and Strehler. (Motion carried 6:0) 9. Reports/Information a. Planning Project Update Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck noted a clerical error in the approved minutes and requested a motion to change the Active Planning Applications heading to Planning Project Update. Motion: Made by Friedrich, seconded by Anderson, to update the clerical error in the May 16, 2024, Parks and Trails Commission meeting minutes. Voting Aye: Anderson, Erzberger, Friedrich, Nybo, Schmidt, and Strehler. (Motion carried 6:0) Vice-Chair Friedrich noted that there was a good conversation as part of the Dominoes discussion at City Council and would return to the City Council in the future. b. Program Coordinator Update Program Coordinator Shipley highlighted the items he had been working on including youth baseball, youth soccer, donations for Night to Unite, and volunteers for Night to Unite. Program Coordinator Shipley noted that soccer had a 37% residency rate. c. Recreation Supervisor Update Recreation Supervisor Christensen Buck provided an update on items she had been working on including Night to Unite tasks, cultural assessment items, compensation and classification study items, policy work, and park planning. 10. Subcommittee & Miscellaneous Reports a. City Council Report Councilor Nichols highlighted some items from previous City Council meetings since the last Parks and Trails Commission meeting including Dominoes, Oswald Farms concept, and Heather Meadows. Commissioner Anderson expressed appreciation that Heather Meadows was being reviewed again for the OS&P guidelines. b. Garden Club Report Tom Anderson noted that there were many thistles in the Memorial Garden. Michelle Friedrich highlighted that the thistles are getting pulled and the peonies looked nice. c. Park Dedication Fund Vice-Chair Friedrich noted interest to the Park Dedication Fund and was happy to see growth. 11. Other Business/Announcements Commissioner Anderson noted that Ken Guenthner, Elm Creek Watershed Commissioner, would be moving soon and had done a wonderful job in the role. Commissioner Anderson noted that there is access for farmers and homeowners to grant money for projects through the Elm Creek Watershed District. 12. Commissioner Liaison Calendar Commissioner Nybo noted that she would likely be virtual for the June 27, 2024, City Council meeting. Vice-Chair Friedrich stated that she would ask Chair Christenson if he would switch the August 8, 2024, meeting for the August 22, 2024, meeting. 13. Adjournment Motion: Made by Anderson, seconded by Nybo, to adjourn the meeting at 7:59 pm. Voting Aye: Anderson, Erzberger, Friedrich, Nybo, Schmidt, and Strehler. (Motion carried 6:0) Submitted by Jessica Christensen Buck, Recreation Supervisor 06/27/2024 07/11/2024 07/25/2024 08/08/2024 08/22/2024 09/12/2024 09/26/2024 Nybo Erzberger Schmidt Friedrich Christenson Anderson Strehler